Making the Switch from Magento 1 to Magento 2 – What’s new for 2025

Migrating from Magento 1 to Magento 2 is indeed a daunting feeling. Much like moving your well-established small shop to a brand-new, larger location, full of smart automations. There’s excitement about the possibilities, but also understandable hesitation. Merchants often worry about the disruption to their business, the potential loss of data, or the challenge of learning a new system. After all, Magento 1 may feel like a familiar, comfortable space you’ve worked hard to build. That’s why in the following lines, we will try to show all the benefits, hoping that having a faster, more secure, and overall more powerful eCommerce platform will push merchants to make the switch.

We’re experts in e-Commerce development services and we’re here to help you choose the right solution for your business.

For the last 15 years, Magento has been widely recognized as one of the most powerful and versatile eCommerce platforms available. It has a strong and active community that continues to support and enhance it, its Marketplace offers one of the most extensive list of complex modules designed to ready it for every task required by modern commerce, while the last versions being able to seamlessly integrate with next-generation AI-driven platforms that offer personalization, automation, and the best customer experience. But we need to set things straight. While Magento 1 was a pioneer in its field, Magento 2 is a whole different breed, a complete new platform and not an iteration of the old one.

How the AI era changed the game for eCommerce platforms

There are many reasons why you should change from Magento 1 to the latest modern versions and we will describe them in the next chapter, but the hard truth is that if you want to integrate modern technologies based on AI, migrating is the only option.

If this alone does not convince you, maybe the next chapter will…

5 Reasons why you o should migrate from Magento1 to Magento2

While Magento1 is still a more solid choice than many modern platforms available on the market, there are many concerns that arose since Adobe announced its End of Life.

First of all, the platform no longer receives official security updates or patches, leaving any business still using it exposed to significant vulnerabilities. Of course, there are third-party extensions that enhance the security, like Two-Factor Authentication for Magento1 from Amasty, but still, without the necessary security patches, Magento 1 stores are highly susceptible to cyberattacks.

Second, Magento 2 is designed with performance in mind. The codebase is optimized, the database operations are thought out to reduce server load and the native Full Page Cache (FPC) improves load times but also reduces server load, particularly during periods of high traffic. Additionally, Magento 2 supports Varnish, a powerful HTTP accelerator that can cache entire pages, further enhancing site speed and responsiveness​.

Number 3 is the user experience. From mobile responsiveness, to a streamlined design – not just limited to the frontend, but also to the admin panel as well –  and a faster, more efficient checkout process, Magento2 beats its predecessor hands down. With a simpler, two-step checkout, users face fewer barriers to completing purchases, leading to lower cart abandonment rates. 

A strong argument is also the fact that Magento 1’s architecture and technology stack present challenges in developing enhanced features like native iOS and Android applications. Its APIs are less flexible and not as robust as those in Magento 2, making seamless integration with mobile platforms more complex. In contrast, Magento 2 offers a more advanced and flexible API structure, facilitating the development of native mobile applications.

Reason number 4 is taken by the possibility of enhancing the platform with thousands of new features and extensions. As Magento 1 has reached end-of-life, developers stopped creating or updating extensions for it. In contrast, Magento 2’s marketplace is thriving. Anything from SEO tools, payment gateways, or AI-driven customer engagement platforms – you can find pretty much everything you need to scale your business and align it with the most complex requirements of modern eCommerce.

Last but not least, a few years ago, Magento was acquired by Adobe, which invests in both their product, Adobe Commerce and Magento OS. This way, the platform benefits from the same core engine upgrades and security patches as Adobe Commerce.

Totally different, or a simple upgrade?

Migrating from Magento 1 to the most recent versions is not an easy process, as it comes with a completely different architecture and database design. Simply put, it’s a new build. First of all, Magento 1 relied on PHP 5, while Magento 2 supports the latest versions of PHP8. It also integrates modern technologies such as Nginx, Varnish, Composer, and Redis, allowing for better caching, modular development, and faster load times, as well as support for progressive web applications (PWA), making it future-ready and scalable for large businesses​.

The  database structure is also radically changed, focusing on scalability and speed. Unlike Magento 1, which relied on a single database for the whole system, Magento 2 uses multiple databases to separate functionalities such as checkout and order management. This separation optimizes performance under high traffic, offering faster load times and greater flexibility when handling large volumes of data. 

The Migration Process: What Does It Involve?

Depending on the number of customizations, complexity, and the number of extensions a store has, the process will likely take from three to a few months. 

The process requires not only extensive planning, but also a thorough audit to understand if more advanced functionalities are required at that time or in the future, or if any old extensions and modules can be removed.

All this time, the Frontend team will be busy reworking the theme to suit Magento 2. There are a few options here. The first would be buying a third party theme and adapting it to fit your design. The issue here is that they usually come with numerous features, many of which you might never use. This extra bloat can slow down your website’s performance, and our developers will have to do a lot of cleaning.

The second option is using Magento’s default themes – Blank and Luma, or Hyva, as foundations to create a custom theme. These are very good options, because the first two, being official themes, are likely to be updated alongside Magento. Hyva benefits from great support and is one of the most acclaimed options when it comes to building a custom theme.

Finally, when all the work is done, we’ll update incremental data – such as new orders, reviews, and customer updates, that occurred during the migration.

Challenges

Every Magento migration comes with its own set of challenges. First, there might be a temporary downtime, but development work can be done in a staging environment, meaning your live store can continue running without any interruptions during the migration process. On the launch day, a temporary downtime is possible, but there are always ways to minimize the impact. Usually, for launch, the quietest day in terms of sales will be chosen. 

Second , the cost is an important factor. The process often involves significant development work, customizations, theme redesign, and possibly new extensions. But the long-term benefits of migrating to Magento 2 outweigh the expenses. You will get better performance, scalability, and a more efficient backend, which can result in improved conversion rates, higher sales, and lower maintenance costs over time.The learning curve for your staff is also easy, as Magento 2’s admin is very intuitive. It features a streamlined layout, offering a clean and modern design that simplifies navigation, with key functions like product management, reporting, and order processing easily accessible. Magento 2’s dashboard also provides real-time business insights, enabling administrators to quickly view sales, revenue, and customer data.

Final thoughts

Migrating to Magento 2 might be costly and come with its set of challenges, but the long-term rewards far outweigh the investment. With improved performance, enhanced security, and the flexibility to scale, Magento 2 offers businesses the tools needed for modern eCommerce. The key to a smooth migration is thorough planning. Start by auditing your current store, deciding which functionalities and extensions are needed, and then create a timeline that minimizes disruption. Hiring reliable professionals, with a good track record ensures that everything, from theme adaptation to extension compatibility, is thoroughly tested before launch. This way, your business can transition seamlessly while keeping the impact on day-to-day operations minimal.

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