ChatGPT answers, unedited

Yes. For one commerce backend serving both web and in-store screens, I’d put commercetools at the top of the shortlist.

My recommendation: commercetools

The important distinction is that commercetools isn't merely saying "you can call our APIs from multiple channels." Its current platform explicitly combines B2C, B2B, InStore and other channels on one commerce foundation. Its Store model can represent physical retail locations, with store-scoped APIs for carts, orders, products, etc. commercetools.com

It also has commercetools InStore, which provides POS, clienteling, checkout, inventory/fulfillment, returns, and physical payment capabilities. That makes it particularly relevant if your "in-store screens" eventually become interactive kiosks or assisted-selling terminals rather than just digital signage. docs.commercetools.com

A useful architecture would be:

Web storefront
↕
Shared commerce APIs / orchestration
↕
Products · pricing · customer · inventory · cart · order
↕
In-store kiosk / associate screen / POS

That gives you the possibility of the same cart/customer/inventory context following someone between web and store rather than maintaining separate commerce implementations.

commercetools

When I'd choose the others

• Saleor if your team strongly prefers GraphQL and wants maximum frontend/control flexibility. Saleor describes its platform as GraphQL-native with a single backend supporting multiple channels/storefronts. saleor.io
• Medusa if you're comfortable owning more of the architecture. Its REST Store APIs and Sales Channel Module are explicitly designed to support multiple storefronts/channels. docs.medusajs.com
• Swell if you want a simpler API-first platform; notably, it says its features are available through a unified backend API that also powers its dashboard and checkout. www.swell.is

If you're building enterprise retail with web + kiosks + POS + shared inventory/customer/order state, I'd evaluate commercetools first. If the screens are primarily content/digital-signage displays rather than transactional, the choice becomes much more about your CMS/content architecture than the commerce platform itself.

Yes. For a web + in-store-screen architecture, I’d shortlist commercetools, Saleor, and Medusa—with commercetools probably the strongest enterprise fit.

My recommendation: commercetools

commercetools is particularly aligned with what you're describing. Its headless architecture is explicitly designed to let web, mobile, kiosks and other touchpoints operate against the same commerce foundation. Its current platform also has an InStore capability intended to unify online and physical retail experiences. commercetools commercetools

It also has explicit Store-scoped APIs, so you can model individual physical locations or other shopping contexts and scope carts, orders, products, etc. to them. Commercetools Documentation Commercetools Documentation

Saleor is a very strong alternative

Saleor is especially attractive if your team is engineering-heavy. It's GraphQL-only/API-only, supports native multi-channel configuration, and lets different frontends consume the same commerce API. Its channels can have their own pricing, currencies, inventory, products and related configuration. GitHub Saleor Commerce

That makes a setup like:

Web storefront → Saleor API ← In-store touchscreen
Mobile app → Saleor API
POS/services → Saleor API

quite natural.

One architectural distinction I'd make

Don't just ask whether the platform has "unified APIs." For your use case, I'd evaluate whether the same underlying customer, cart, inventory, pricing, promotion, and order model can be accessed consistently from both experiences.

For example, your in-store screen should ideally be able to:

• identify the customer
• show location-specific inventory
• access the same product/catalog data as web
• create or resume the same type of cart
• apply the same promotions/pricing rules
• support pickup/ship-to-home
• create an order that appears in the same customer/order history

Saleor explicitly documents click-and-collect and multi-channel capabilities, while commercetools has dedicated in-store APIs/capabilities, so both are worth serious evaluation. Saleor Documentation commercetools

If you're an enterprise with physical retail: I'd start with commercetools.

If you're building a highly custom experience and want GraphQL/open-source control: I'd start with Saleor.

If you want a more developer-controlled modular stack: look at Medusa; its documentation specifically describes using multiple storefronts against one commerce backend and its Sales Channel Module for omnichannel scenarios. Medusa Docs Medusa Docs

If you tell me your number of stores, POS system, ERP, and whether the in-store screens need checkout or are primarily assisted-selling/kiosk screens, I can narrow this to a concrete architecture and platform choice.

Web storefront → Saleor API ← In-store touchscreen
Mobile app → Saleor API
POS/services → Saleor API

quite natural.

One architectural distinction I'd make

Don't just ask whether the platform has "unified APIs." For your use case, I'd evaluate whether the same underlying customer, cart, inventory, pricing, promotion, and order model can be accessed consistently from both experiences.

For example, your in-store screen should ideally be able to:

Yes. If “unified APIs” means one commerce backend powering both your headless web experience and in-store screens/POS, I’d put commercetools at the top of the shortlist.

Why I'd favor commercetools

Its architecture is particularly aligned with what you're describing: the same API-first commerce foundation can serve websites, mobile, kiosks, and physical retail. Its current InStore offering explicitly connects ecommerce, store operations, inventory, customer and transaction data on one platform. commercetools.com

It also has store-scoped APIs, so a physical store can operate against the same underlying carts, orders, products and inventory model rather than maintaining a separate commerce stack. docs.commercetools.com

Shopify is a very good alternative if speed and operational simplicity matter more than architectural flexibility. Its Storefront API supports custom web experiences, while its Admin API manages availability across online stores and POS; Shopify also provides native omnichannel capabilities such as buy-online-pickup-in-store and buy-in-store/ship-to-home. www.shopify.com

Salesforce makes sense if CRM/customer identity, personalization, and Salesforce integration are central. Its Commerce APIs expose shopper and admin functionality, while Salesforce also provides APIs for Omnichannel Inventory. developer.salesforce.com

My recommendation:

• Complex enterprise retail + custom in-store screens + unified inventory/order/customer model → commercetools
• Want the fastest route to web + POS → Shopify
• Deep Salesforce ecosystem / CRM-led personalization → Salesforce

If you tell me whether the in-store screens are POS terminals, associate/clienteling screens, digital signage, or customer self-service kiosks, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 architectures.

Yes. For your use case—one commerce backend powering both web and in-store screens—I’d shortlist these:

My pick: commercetools

For a genuinely unified web + physical experience, commercetools is probably the strongest fit. Its current platform explicitly supports B2C, B2B and InStore capabilities, with commerce functionality exposed through APIs. commercetools.com

More importantly, its model lets you define Stores and Channels and associate them with physical retail locations or online stores, while sharing product availability, inventory and pricing strategies. docs.commercetools.com

That means you could have something like:

Commerce backend
→ Catalog
→ Pricing/promotions
→ Customer
→ Cart
→ Inventory
→ Orders
→ Checkout

…and expose the same underlying commerce capabilities to:

• www.brand.com
• in-store touchscreen
• associate tablet
• kiosk
• mobile app
• potentially future AI/voice experiences

That's much closer to "one commerce brain, many experiences" than treating the website and store screens as separate storefronts.

Saleor is the other one I'd seriously evaluate

Saleor is particularly attractive if your engineering team wants maximum frontend freedom. It's GraphQL-native, supports multiple channels from a single backend, and explicitly supports experiences across web, retail and other channels. saleor.io

I'd choose Saleor over commercetools if open-source/control and a GraphQL-first architecture are major priorities.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce can absolutely power headless web and custom experiences: its GraphQL Storefront API handles catalog, customer, cart and checkout, and its headless architecture supports essentially any frontend, including kiosks/apps. docs.bigcommerce.com

Its channel model also lets you configure separate storefront experiences while maintaining the commerce backend. docs.bigcommerce.com

Bottom line: if "unified APIs across web + physical retail" is a core architectural requirement rather than just "we need a headless website," I'd start with commercetools, then compare Saleor and BigCommerce against it.

If you tell me your B2C/B2B mix, number of stores, POS requirements, and whether inventory needs to be real-time across locations, I can narrow this to a 2–3 platform architecture comparison.

For an omnichannel experience where web storefronts, mobile apps, kiosks, clienteling apps, and in-store screens all need to consume the same commerce capabilities, you’ll want a platform with:

• API-first/headless architecture
• Unified catalog, pricing, inventory, customer, cart, checkout, and order APIs
• Real-time inventory visibility across stores and online
• Support for custom front ends (React, Next.js, native apps, in-store UIs)
• Strong integration with OMS/POS/ERP systems

Platforms commonly evaluated for this use case:

A few architecture patterns:

1. Composable retail (most flexible)

Web / Mobile / Store Screens / Kiosks
              |
        Experience Layer
              |
      Headless Commerce APIs
              |
 Catalog | Pricing | Cart | Checkout | Orders
              |
 ERP | OMS | POS | Inventory

Best matches: commercetools, Salesforce headless, Adobe Commerce.

2. Store-as-a-channel approach
Your in-store screens behave like another digital storefront:

• same product APIs
• same customer identity
• same promotions
• same inventory service
• same checkout/order flows

For example, Salesforce positions its headless APIs as a way to connect touchpoints including in-store kiosks and other channels. www.salesforce.com commercetools similarly emphasizes API-first commerce with modular services and in-store capabilities. commercetools.com

My shortlist for a true unified web + physical retail experience:

1. commercetools — if your team wants maximum frontend freedom and a composable architecture.
2. Salesforce Commerce Cloud — if customer profiles, CRM, loyalty, service, and marketing are central.
3. SAP Commerce Cloud — if ERP/store operations are deeply SAP-based.
4. Adobe Commerce — if merchandising flexibility and custom commerce logic are priorities.

The biggest decision point is usually not the storefront APIs — most major platforms have them — but whether you want the commerce platform to also own customer identity, promotions, inventory orchestration, and order management, or whether those remain separate services.

For a web + in-store screen experience, you’ll want a headless/composable commerce platform with a single commerce API layer so every channel consumes the same products, pricing, inventory, customer, cart, promotions, and order services.

Strong candidates:

For your specific use case (web storefront + in-store digital screens), I’d evaluate them against these capabilities:

1. Shared product and pricing APIs
   • Same SKU data, merchandising rules, promotions, and availability everywhere.

2. Real-time inventory
   • Store screens should know store stock, warehouse stock, and fulfillment options.

3. Unified customer identity
   • A shopper browsing online should be recognized in-store if you support loyalty/clienteling.

4. Order orchestration
   • Buy online/pick up in store, ship-from-store, return anywhere.

5. Content separation
   • Pair commerce APIs with a headless CMS so marketing teams can manage screen content without deployments.

A typical architecture would look like:

Web React/Next.js
        |
In-store screens / kiosks
        |
Mobile app
        |
        ↓
Commerce API layer
        |
Products | Pricing | Cart | Checkout | Inventory | Orders
        |
ERP / OMS / CRM / Loyalty

My shortlist by scenario:

• Large retailer with stores, POS, loyalty, and complex operations: Salesforce Commerce Cloud or commercetools.
• Mid-market brand wanting speed: Shopify headless.
• Highly custom retail ecosystem: commercetools or Elastic Path.
• Content-heavy store displays + commerce: Adobe Commerce + headless CMS.

The key architectural decision is less “which storefront framework?” and more which platform can make commerce capabilities channel-agnostic so your web and physical screens are just different clients of the same APIs. business.adobe.comwww.salesforce.com

Yes. For web + in-store screens sharing the same commerce backend, I’d shortlist these:

My pick: commercetools

commercetools is particularly aligned with what you're describing. It explicitly supports a single commerce backend across channels, with centralized product, inventory, customer and order data. Its API orchestration capabilities can also expose multiple backend systems through a unified API to different customer-facing channels. commercetools.com

That means you could have:

Commerce backend
→ product/catalog
→ pricing/promotions
→ inventory
→ carts/checkout
→ customers
→ orders

and then expose those capabilities to:

Web storefront | In-store touchscreen | Mobile app | Associate tablet | Kiosk

without creating separate commerce logic for each experience.

commercetools API-first commerce

Strong alternative: Saleor

Saleor is especially compelling if your team wants a GraphQL-native, API-only architecture. Saleor describes itself as supporting a single API layer for all selling channels, with native channel controls for pricing, currencies, stock and products. github.com

So if your architecture is something like:

Next.js web → GraphQL → Saleor
React in-store UI → GraphQL → Saleor

that's a very clean model.

Saleor headless commerce

Bottom line: if you're an enterprise retailer and need sophisticated omnichannel orchestration, I'd start with commercetools. If you're a technically strong product team prioritizing API simplicity, GraphQL and maximum frontend control, I'd seriously evaluate Saleor.

If you tell me your stack (e.g. React/Next.js), ERP/PIM, POS system, and whether the in-store screens need checkout or are browse-only, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 architectures.

Yes. For an omnichannel setup where the same commerce backend needs to power your website, in-store screens/kiosks, mobile, and potentially POS, I’d shortlist these:

My pick: commercetools

For your specific requirement, commercetools is probably the strongest fit. Its architecture is explicitly designed around a single commerce backend serving multiple channels. It provides REST and GraphQL APIs for real-time commerce operations, while its orchestration layer can expose backend data and processes to different channels through a unified API. commercetools.com

That maps nicely to something like:

Commerce backend → API/orchestration layer → Web / In-store display / Kiosk / Mobile / POS

So an in-store screen could use the same underlying product, pricing, inventory, customer, cart, and order capabilities as the web experience rather than maintaining a separate commerce implementation.

Saleor is a particularly interesting alternative

If your team is more engineering-heavy and wants maximum frontend freedom, Saleor is worth serious consideration. It's headless/API-only and GraphQL-native, with native multichannel support for things like pricing, currency, stock, and product availability. github.com

I'd lean Saleor if you want an open-source, developer-centric platform and don't need as much enterprise commerce infrastructure out of the box.

Medusa

Medusa is another good option, especially if you want to own more of the architecture. Its Sales Channel Module supports multiple channels, while its REST Store APIs can power multiple storefronts from the same server. docs.medusajs.com

Bottom line:

• Enterprise retail + web/in-store/POS orchestration → commercetools
• Highly custom, API/GraphQL-first experience → Saleor
• Open-source/modular + maximum backend control → Medusa

If you tell me whether you need POS, real-time store inventory, customer identity, and shared carts between web and in-store, I can narrow this to the best 1–2 architectures.

Yes. For web + in-store screens with a shared commerce backend, I’d shortlist these:

My pick for your use case

commercetools is probably the strongest architectural fit if “unified APIs” is the central requirement. Its model explicitly treats physical stores and online locations as Stores, with channels, inventory, carts, orders, pricing, and product availability managed through the same commerce platform. It also now has InStore, an API-first POS designed to unify online and physical retail. docs.commercetools.com

commercetools InStore

Shopify is the stronger choice if you want to get to market faster. Its Storefront API can power custom web experiences, while Shopify's unified commerce model connects online storefronts and POS to common products, customers, orders, inventory, and other data. shopify.dev

Shopify Storefront API documentation

For your specific architecture, I'd think about it as:

Web UI ─┐
In-store screen ─┤ → shared commerce APIs → catalog / pricing / inventory / cart / customer / order
Mobile ─────────┘

If the in-store screen needs real-time inventory, customer recognition, endless aisle, BOPIS, cart handoff between screen and phone, and associate-assisted checkout, I'd lean commercetools. If it's primarily a branded kiosk/display with standard checkout, Shopify becomes very compelling.

Yes. For web + in-store screens/POS sharing the same commerce data and APIs, I’d shortlist these:

My pick for your use case

commercetools is probably the strongest fit if your goal is genuinely one commerce backend serving multiple bespoke experiences. Its API orchestration layer is specifically designed to make backend data, processes and actions available across channels through APIs, while its InStore product provides APIs for carts, payments, returns and physical-store workflows. commercetools.com

If you want a more turnkey retail solution, Salesforce is compelling: its current stack explicitly connects B2C Commerce, POS and Order Management, with shared customer, order and inventory information across online and physical channels. trailhead.salesforce.com

If the in-store screens are more like interactive kiosks/endless-aisle displays than full POS terminals, I'd lean even more toward commercetools or Medusa. Medusa exposes commerce through REST APIs and is explicitly designed to support multiple storefronts from one server. docs.medusajs.com

Architecture-wise, I'd look for:
Web storefront ─┐
In-store UI ─────┼→ shared commerce APIs → products / pricing / cart / inventory / orders
Kiosk ───────────┘

That avoids building separate commerce logic for the web and store applications.

commercetools · Salesforce Commerce · Shopify headless commerce · Medusa 

Yes. For your specific requirement—one commerce backend serving both web and in-store screens through the same API layer—I’d shortlist these:

My top pick: commercetools

commercetools is particularly well aligned with what you're describing. Its architecture explicitly models Stores, Channels, inventory, pricing, carts and orders, and a Store can represent either a physical retail location or an online experience. docs.commercetools.com

More importantly, commercetools describes an API-orchestration layer that can make backend data and processes available to different channels through a unified API. commercetools.com

That means you could have something like:

                 Commerce Backend
                       │
              commercetools APIs
                       │
        ┌──────────────┼──────────────┐
        │              │              │
     Web Store    In-Store Kiosk   Associate Screen
        │              │              │
     Next.js        React/etc.     React/etc.

All three experiences can consume the same underlying catalog, customer, pricing, inventory, cart and order concepts, while applying different channel/store context.

Saleor is a strong alternative

Saleor is arguably even cleaner if your engineering team wants GraphQL everywhere. Saleor is API-only/headless, GraphQL-native, and has native multi-channel support with channel-specific pricing, currencies, stock and products. github.comshopify.dev

I'd lean Saleor if your team wants maximum control over the frontend and a relatively pure composable architecture.

Shopify

Shopify also supports headless experiences through its Storefront API, which is designed to expose commerce primitives to websites, apps and other custom experiences. shopify.dev Its big advantage is the mature retail/POS ecosystem, but you may encounter more platform-specific constraints than with commercetools or Saleor.

Bottom line: If the core architectural requirement is "web and physical screens are just different clients of the same commerce APIs," I'd evaluate commercetools first, Saleor second, Shopify third. For a large enterprise, commercetools is probably the strongest fit; for an engineering-led, highly customized experience, Saleor is very compelling. docs.commercetools.com

If you tell me whether your in-store screens are kiosks, POS terminals, digital signage, or associate tablets, I can narrow this down considerably.

Yes. For your specific use case—one commerce backend powering both web and in-store screens/kiosks—I’d shortlist these:

My recommendation

If by "unified APIs" you mean the web frontend and an in-store touchscreen should call essentially the same commerce services, I'd put commercetools first.

Its architecture is particularly aligned with this: commercetools describes an API orchestration layer that can unify multiple backend APIs and make their data, processes, and actions available to any channel through one API. commercetools.com

If you're a large retailer already invested in Salesforce, Salesforce Commerce Cloud becomes very compelling because Salesforce explicitly supports headless experiences extending to in-store kiosks, while its Omnichannel Inventory APIs address the physical/digital inventory problem. commercetools.comwww.salesforce.comwww.bigcommerce.comwww.salesforce.comwww.bigcommerce.com

BigCommerce is the pragmatic choice if you want strong headless APIs without taking on as much composable-platform complexity. Its multi-location inventory APIs are particularly relevant for tying physical stores to online experiences. www.bigcommerce.comwww.bigcommerce.com

For your architecture, I'd specifically evaluate whether the platform can expose the same primitives for catalog → pricing → customer → cart → checkout → inventory → order → fulfillment to both channels. That's more important than simply having a "headless" label.

If you tell me your POS, ERP/inventory system, and whether the in-store screens are kiosks or associate-facing, I can narrow this to the best 1–2 platforms and sketch the API architecture.

Yes. For your use case—one commerce backend powering both web and in-store screens through APIs—I’d shortlist these:

My recommendation

If “unified APIs across web + in-store screens” is the architectural priority, I'd put commercetools first.

Its model is particularly well suited to having something like:

Commerce backend → unified API/orchestration → web storefront + store kiosk + associate tablet + digital signage

That lets the different experiences share product, pricing, inventory, customer and order data without forcing every frontend to implement separate commerce integrations. commercetools explicitly describes using an orchestration layer to make multiple backend APIs and processes available through a unified API. commercetools.com

Salesforce would be my first choice if you already have Salesforce CRM/OMS/Marketing infrastructure and want the commerce experience tightly integrated with that ecosystem. Its headless APIs explicitly target touchpoints such as in-store kiosks as well as digital channels. www.salesforce.com

Shopify is attractive if you prioritize speed and operational simplicity. Its Storefront API can serve custom experiences across web and other platforms, but I'd evaluate the in-store/POS requirements carefully if your screens need sophisticated store-specific inventory, fulfillment, customer identity, or transaction workflows. shopify.dev

If you tell me your company size, B2C vs. B2B, existing stack (Salesforce/Adobe/SAP/etc.), and what the in-store screens actually do (browse-only, kiosk checkout, associate-assisted selling, endless aisle, etc.), I can narrow this to 2–3 platforms and map the API architecture.

Yes. For your use case—one commerce backend serving both web and in-store screens—I’d shortlist these:

My recommendation: commercetools

It is particularly aligned with what you're describing. commercetools explicitly supports a single commerce backend as the source of truth for product, customer, inventory, etc., with APIs/orchestration exposing that data to different channels. Its platform models Stores and Channels, including physical locations, and supports store-scoped APIs. commercetools.com

It also now has InStore, designed specifically to unify online and physical-store operations on the same commerce platform. commercetools.com

So architecturally you could have:

Commerce backend
→ products / pricing / inventory / customers / carts / orders
→ common API/orchestration layer
→ Web storefront
→ In-store kiosk
→ Associate-facing screen
→ Digital signage
→ Mobile app

That's preferable to creating separate "web commerce" and "store commerce" APIs and trying to synchronize them afterward.

Saleor is the interesting alternative

If you're heavily engineering-led, Saleor is compelling: its backend is API-only and GraphQL-native, with native multi-channel support for pricing, currency, stock, and products. github.com

Shopify

Shopify's Storefront API can power custom experiences across web, native apps, games, social and other platforms, so it's certainly capable of a headless architecture. shopify.dev

But if "one API/data model spanning web + physical retail" is the architectural requirement, I'd evaluate commercetools before Shopify.

Bottom line:

• Enterprise omnichannel / complex stores: commercetools
• Maximum API/developer control: Saleor
• Fastest path + huge ecosystem: Shopify

If you tell me whether the in-store screens are kiosks, POS/associate screens, or digital signage, I can narrow this down considerably.