Strategy
March 15, 2026
9 min read
Headless commerce vs monolith in 2026: a decision framework
Mikołaj Lehman
CEO & Founder
Headless commerce separates storefronts (web, app) from order and catalogue engines via APIs instead of one all-in-one deployment.
When a monolith still makes sense
Single channel, few integrations and a team that must ship fast, a SaaS monolith or one codebase can be cheapest in CAPEX.
Risk: every UX change couples to backend release cadence.
When headless wins
Multiple fronts (B2B/B2C, partner APIs, mobile), frequent pricing tests and ERP integrations many times per day.
Front and back teams can parallelise with clear API contracts.
Run cost, not only launch
Licences, observability, security and environment count grow in headless, we plan TCO, not MVP quotes alone.
gmi.software helps model a 24-month view including peak sales.
Frequently asked questions
- Does headless mean bad SEO?
- No. Next.js SSR/ISR can be fully indexable if content and performance are planned upfront.
- What about MACH?
- MACH is a set of principles (microservices, API, cloud, headless), not one product, we adopt gradually by risk.
- When to migrate off a monolith?
- When simple UX changes take longer than their business value or integrations threaten stability.
Content updated: March 15, 2026
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