Why BigCommerce Outshines SAP Commerce Cloud (Hybris): A Strategic Advantage for Modern Enterprise Brands

Many enterprises once considered SAP Commerce Cloud (formerly Hybris) a powerful solution for complex commerce needs, but times have changed. In today’s market, agility, speed to market, total cost of ownership, and flexibility matter more than ever. That’s where BigCommerce leads. Whether you’re evaluating ecommerce platforms or starting a digital transformation, it’s important to understand the benefits of choosing a modern platform like BigCommerce, and why high-profile companies, including Pearson and Composites One, are making the switch.

Speed matters: BigCommerce delivers fast, SAP can’t

BigCommerce is designed for speed and adaptability. Our SaaS architecture means there’s no infrastructure to set up, so even large enterprise brands can launch fully functional storefronts on BigCommerce quickly.

But the real value of the platform comes after launch. When sellers want to add new brand or regional storefronts, pivot go-to-market approaches, or roll out new acquisition stores, BigCommerce enables them to move fast, saving time and cost compared to legacy systems.

Pearson, one of the world’s largest learning companies, chose BigCommerce over SAP Hybris to launch new B2B and B2C global storefronts quickly and cost-effectively — leveraging headless and multi-storefront capabilities that would have taken much longer to execute on SAP.

In a world where speed is strategy, this isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a competitive advantage.

BigCommerce slashes total cost of ownership

SAP is expensive. From licensing and infrastructure to developers and upgrades, the costs stack up fast. SAP Commerce implementations routinely cost hundreds of thousands annually, and that’s before factoring in the time and money required for ongoing maintenance.

BigCommerce offers a predictable SaaS subscription, which includes hosting, security, updates, and 24/7 support. There are no surprise upgrade costs, no heavy infrastructure needs, and no mandatory reliance on expensive system integrators.

BigCommerce also delivers results. A Forrester Total Economic Impact™ study shows customers see:

• 211% ROI

• Payback in under eight months

• More than $774,000 in cost savings by retiring legacy systems

These aren’t just cost savings, they’re strategic advantages. With BigCommerce, brands can reinvest in growth, move faster with fewer resources, and break free from the hidden overhead that holds traditional platforms back. When every dollar and every day counts, BigCommerce delivers where legacy solutions like SAP simply can’t.

Maintenance without the headaches

BigCommerce customers get automatic updates, security patches, and the latest features, without needing to plan, test, and pay for manual upgrades. 

With SAP, upgrades are expensive, take months, and often break customizations. That’s not agility — that’s technical debt. SAP customers are frequently stuck on outdated versions, face backward compatibility issues, and pour resources into keeping integrations up to date.

BigCommerce customers, on the other hand, are always current by design.

And we don’t stop there. One of the biggest advantages of BigCommerce is how accessible it is from day one. Our platform is built for merchandisers, marketers, and operators — not just developers. Teams can launch promotions, update pages, and manage customers without waiting on IT or learning a complex backend.

There’s no nine to 18 month ramp-up and no dependency on SAP-certified developers just to do your day job. Everyone can contribute immediately, enabling faster execution, better collaboration, and measurable business impact from day one.

Enterprise B2B and B2C, without the bloat

SAP Commerce Cloud offers B2B and B2C functionality, but most brands don’t need all of it, and few can manage the complexity that comes with it. 

BigCommerce delivers powerful out-of-the-box B2B and B2C capabilities with less overhead, including:

• Multi-storefront and internationalization features from a single backend

• Headless APIs and MACH-compliant architecture

• Granular B2B account management, including custom catalogs, pricing, quoting, and buyer portals

• Seamless ERP and CRM integrations (including SAP)

Composites One moved from SAP Hybris to BigCommerce to modernize its B2B portal. The result? A faster, leaner, more customer-centric experience, without the infrastructure baggage.

You get all the features enterprise teams need, without all the friction.

BigCommerce is MACH-ready, SAP isn’t

SAP is racing to catch up with modern architecture. Its monolithic structure is being slowly broken into microservices, but it's not there yet. SAP’s roadmap is still full of promises to "modularize" in the future.

BigCommerce is already there.

• We're MACH Alliance certified

• More than 95% of our platform is accessible via API

• Our customers power composable architectures using headless CMS, search, personalization tools, and more

If your customer wants a modern, flexible, best-of-breed tech stack, BigCommerce is the clear choice. SAP still expects you to buy into its full ecosystem, or fight to plug in your own tools.

What about the "all-in-one" pitch?

A common reason companies consider SAP for commerce is the belief that it's easier to combine your ecommerce platform with your ERP under a single vendor. The thinking is: one system, one source of truth, simplified workflows. On the surface, it sounds appealing, but in practice, this “all-in-one” promise often leads to trade-offs, such as:

• Being locked into SAP’s ecosystem, whether or not it’s the best fit for each function

• Sacrificing ecommerce agility for back-office consolidation

• Relying on SAP-certified developers for changes, increasing cost and reducing speed

The reality is: commerce moves faster than ERP. Tying your frontend experience and innovation cadence to your ERP team’s timeline can stifle growth. 

BigCommerce offers a better path: integrate with your ERP, don’t let it dictate your customer experience.

BigCommerce is built to integrate with any ERP system, including SAP. Merchants can achieve a single source of truth without compromising on frontend speed, flexibility, or customer experience. It’s the best of both worlds: your ERP remains your back-office powerhouse, and BigCommerce powers a fast, agile, customer-facing storefront.

This is also why many SuiteCommerce (NetSuite) customers eventually move off the “all-in-one” bundle. What looks integrated on paper becomes a bottleneck in practice.

When ecommerce is a strategic growth channel, not just a side feature, you need a dedicated platform built for performance and change. That’s BigCommerce.

The analysts agree

Analyst reports consistently show that BigCommerce outperforms SAP in areas that matter most today:

Forrester Wave 2022 (B2C & B2B).

• BigCommerce: Positioned near the Leader quadrant; praised for innovation, usability, and partner ecosystem

• SAP: Ranked last in B2C as a Contender; noted weaknesses in architecture, extensibility, and innovation

Paradigm B2B Combine 2022.

• BigCommerce: Earned 12 out of 12 medals

• SAP: Received 10 out of 12 medals, but flagged for limited agility and a heavy customization burden

Gartner Magic Quadrant.

• SAP: Still a Leader, but criticized for slow progress toward modular SaaS

• BigCommerce: A Challenger on the rise, with high marks for usability, storefront agility, and cost efficiency

Comparison table

The final word

SAP Commerce may still suit ultra-complex legacy businesses, but for modern enterprise brands that prioritize speed, agility, cost-efficiency, and powerful commerce capabilities, BigCommerce is the obvious choice.

We help customers like Pearson, Composites One, and United Aqua Group make the leap, and they don’t look back.

When ecommerce is core to your business strategy, not just a checkbox, BigCommerce is the key to growth.