VirtueMart
VirtueMart is a free, open-source Joomla e-commerce extension for SMB merchants and web agencies, providing shopping-cart, catalog, product, checkout, payment, shipping, tax, inventory, multilingual and SEO functionality, with paid supporter memberships and extensions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2002
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What VirtueMart does
VirtueMart is a free, open-source eCommerce extension for Joomla! CMS operated as the VirtueMart brand of iStraxx GmbH. It provides shopping-cart and catalog-mode functionality for small to medium online retailers, individual merchants, and web agencies or developers building client stores. The available evidence describes a long-running project active since 2002, maintained by a small core group of 3–5 active developers with additional community participation through forums and Discord.
The core product is written in PHP for a PHP/MySQL environment and relies on Joomla for the core system and framework. The product set includes VirtueMart Core, VirtueMart AIO, TCPDF for PDF documents, the vmadmin backend template, the VMBasic frontend template, and Supporter Membership modules. Functional coverage includes product, category, attribute and variant management; cart and checkout; payment gateway support including PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net and others; shipping and tax calculation; inventory tracking; multilingual stores; SEO features; and an extension/add-on ecosystem.
VirtueMart uses a community-led freemium model. The core software is distributed free under the GNU GPL with no stated limits on categories, products, orders, customers, or websites, while monetization comes from optional Supporter Memberships at €59 per year for one domain, early-access releases, bonus modules, priority bug reporting and fixes, discounts on iStraxx VirtueMart software, and extension/software sales through the extensions store. Distribution is primarily self-serve via direct downloads, documentation, forums, demos, and the extensions marketplace; no revenue figures, funding rounds, or institutional investment are disclosed.
VirtueMart firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- VirtueMart
- Legal name
- iStraxx GmbH
- Website
- https://virtuemart.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2002
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- VirtueMart is a free, open-source Joomla e-commerce extension for SMB merchants and web agencies, providing shopping-cart, catalog, product, checkout, payment, shipping, tax, inventory, multilingual and SEO functionality, with paid supporter memberships and extensions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
VirtueMart industry classification
Industry- Product category
- E-commerce Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Marketplace Enablement, Seller Tools & E-commerce Infrastructure (BPAMAGAK)
Keywords
Where VirtueMart is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
VirtueMart business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Open Source Core Distribution: The core VirtueMart software is free and open-source under GNU GPL. Users can download and use the component without payment, creating a large user base that may convert to paid services.
- Supporter Membership: Annual supporter membership at €59/year for single domain provides early access to new versions with bug fixes and new features, bonus packs (extra language module, multilanguage vendor module), priority bug reporting and fixing, and 20% discount on iStraxx VirtueMart software.
- iStraxx Software Sales: Sale of VirtueMart extensions and software through extensions.virtuemart.net, with 20% discount for supporter members.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free Core - Free tier with unlimited usage |
| Subscription | Annual | Supporter Membership Bronze/Gold/Silver/Platinum |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels6 records
VirtueMart product offering
Product offeringCore offering
VirtueMart is a free open-source e-commerce component/extension for the Joomla! CMS, written in PHP and running on PHP/MySQL environments, released under the GNU General Public License. It provides a complete shopping cart and catalog solution with 500+ built-in features including product and inventory management, multi-currency and multi-language stores, integrated payment gateways (PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net, Klarna, Amazon Pay, Realex), shipping and tax calculation, SEO tooling, and an extensions ecosystem. It can be downloaded free from virtuemart.net, with an optional paid Supporter Membership that funds ongoing development.
Product overview
VirtueMart is a free open-source eCommerce extension for the Joomla! CMS, offering a complete eCommerce solution that can operate as a Shopping Cart or Catalog mode. The product portfolio consists of VirtueMart Core (the main component providing core eCommerce functionality), VirtueMart AIO (All-in-One bundle with plugins and modules), TCPDF (for PDF invoice generation), vmadmin (administrative backend template), VMBasic Template (modern frontend template for Joomla 5 and VM4), and Supporter Membership (a paid tier providing additional language modules and premium features). The platform is written in PHP, uses MySQL database, and is released under the GNU General Public License. VirtueMart supports multiple payment gateways including PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net, Klarna, Amazon Pay, and Realex.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- VirtueMart Core The main VirtueMart component that provides the core e-commerce functionality for the Joomla! CMS, including product and category management, shopping cart, checkout, payment processing, shipping and tax calculation, order management, multi-currency support, and SEO tools. It is released free under the GNU GPL and is used by thousands of online stores worldwide.
- VMBasic Template A modern frontend template compatible with Joomla! 5 and VirtueMart 4, providing the storefront design and layout for VirtueMart-based online shops, distributed via virtuemart.net/templates.
- VirtueMart Supporter Membership Paid annual membership (€59/year for single domain) offered in Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum tiers that provides early access to new versions with bug fixes and features, bonus packs (extra language module, multilanguage vendor module), priority bug reporting and fixing, 15-month relicensing, and a 20% discount on iStraxx VirtueMart software.
Companies that use VirtueMart
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
VirtueMart technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
Feature8 records
VirtueMart partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves3 records
Expansion highlights4 records
VirtueMart competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- BigCommerce: BigCommerce is a major SaaS e-commerce platform targeting SMB and mid-market merchants, the same customer segment as VirtueMart but delivered as a hosted subscription service.
- Shopify: Shopify is the leading SaaS e-commerce platform serving the same SMB merchants VirtueMart targets. It is the dominant commercial alternative that VirtueMart's free positioning implicitly competes against.
- Adobe Commerce (Magento): Adobe Commerce/Magento is a major open-source and enterprise e-commerce platform with both community (free) and paid editions. It overlaps VirtueMart's feature set while serving upmarket into mid-market and enterprise.
Direct peers
- WooCommerce: WooCommerce is the dominant open-source e-commerce extension for WordPress, using a nearly identical model to VirtueMart: free core under GPL, paid extensions, themes, and add-ons. It is the most direct competitor in the CMS-extension e-commerce category.
- PrestaShop: PrestaShop is an open-source e-commerce platform distributed freely with a marketplace of paid modules and themes. It targets the same SMB merchants as VirtueMart and shares the freemium + add-on monetization pattern.
- OpenCart: OpenCart is a free open-source PHP/MySQL shopping cart with paid extensions and themes - an almost 1:1 functional comparison to VirtueMart in the standalone open-source shopping-cart category.
- Drupal Commerce: Drupal Commerce is the leading open-source e-commerce layer for the Drupal CMS, structurally identical to VirtueMart as a Joomla extension - it commercializes a CMS community via add-ons and services.
- osCommerce: osCommerce is one of the original open-source PHP shopping carts, still maintained and free, with paid hosting and add-ons. It competes for the same legacy open-source e-commerce merchant audience as VirtueMart.
- Zen Cart: Zen Cart is a long-running open-source PHP e-commerce storefront with free core and paid plugins/templates. Like VirtueMart, it serves SMB merchants who want a self-hosted, low-cost alternative to SaaS.
Others
- Joomla: Joomla is the open-source CMS that VirtueMart is built as an extension for - the host platform's user base defines VirtueMart's addressable market. Joomla also competes for attention with WordPress and Drupal.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
VirtueMart social profiles
Digital presenceVirtueMart financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
VirtueMart leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
VirtueMart funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
VirtueMart M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about VirtueMart
What does VirtueMart do?
VirtueMart is a free open-source e-commerce component/extension for the Joomla! CMS, written in PHP and running on PHP/MySQL environments, released under the GNU General Public License. It provides a complete shopping cart and catalog solution with 500+ built-in features including product and inventory management, multi-currency and multi-language stores, integrated payment gateways (PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net, Klarna, Amazon Pay, Realex), shipping and tax calculation, SEO tooling, and an extensions ecosystem. It can be downloaded free from virtuemart.net, with an optional paid Supporter Membership that funds ongoing development.
Is VirtueMart a public or private company?
VirtueMart is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was VirtueMart founded?
VirtueMart was founded in 2002. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is VirtueMart based?
VirtueMart is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does VirtueMart make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Open Source Core Distribution is the primary driver. The others are supporter Membership and iStraxx Software Sales.
Who are VirtueMart's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are BigCommerce, Shopify and Adobe Commerce (Magento). Direct peers are WooCommerce, PrestaShop, OpenCart, Drupal Commerce, osCommerce and Zen Cart. Joomla is listed as an others.
Does VirtueMart have an API?
No public API is recorded for VirtueMart.
What industry is VirtueMart in?
VirtueMart's product category is E-commerce Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAGAK, Marketplace Enablement, Seller Tools & E-commerce Infrastructure. Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.