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About The Project

The Art of E-Commerce

Zen Cart® is a free, user-friendly, open source shopping cart system. The software is developed and maintained by a global group of like-minded shop owners, programmers, designers, and consultants who believe E-Commerce can - and should - be done differently.

Built for the Entire Ecosystem

While other solutions seem to be complicated programming exercises, Zen Cart puts merchant and shopper requirements first.

For Online Merchants

Other programs are nearly impossible to install without an IT degree, but Zen Cart can be set up by anyone with basic computer skills. It puts merchant needs first, and best of all, it is completely FREE.

For Online Shoppers

Zen Cart delivers the ultimate online shopping experience. With a secure 3-step checkout process, built-in shipping quotes, and PA-DSS certification standards, customers can navigate and purchase effortlessly.

For Web Designers

A robust template system "abstracts" the look-and-feel from the core code and logic. This enables designers to create truly custom solutions that integrate perfectly with existing website designs without touching the backend.

For Developers

Deploy cutting-edge solutions based on modern standards. Combining modern PHP with powerful override protection systems, Zen Cart provides a highly flexible architecture that you can modify to suit any business need.

Zen Cart Goals

Our Project Goals

We simply want to deliver a fast and easy-to-use shopping cart program. Everything we build revolves around making the software more powerful, yet easier to manage.

  • Ease of Use: Make the program easy to set up, customize, and navigate.
  • Automation: Automate critical tasks like order confirmations and stock notifications.
  • Built-in Promotions: Native support for discount coupons, gift certificates, and group pricing.
  • Global Ready: Deep support for multiple languages, currencies, and complex tax structures.
  • Intelligent SEO: Built-in Search Engine Optimization tools, including per-product meta controls.

100% Free & Open Source

Zen Cart® is made available to you without charge under Version 2 of the GNU General Public License. It is OSI Certified Open Source Software.

While we do not charge for this software, donations are greatly appreciated to help cover the expenses of maintenance, upgrades, the free support forum, and continued development for your online store.

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Power and Flexibility at your Fingertips

Every feature you need to run a high-volume store is included natively. Expand the categories below to see the full technical capabilities of Zen Cart.

  • Easily keep catalog updated without HTML coding
  • Scalable to hundreds of thousands of products
  • Products can be marked as Free, or "Call for Price"
  • Products can be linked/copied to multiple categories
  • Add multiple product images with popup viewing
  • Low-Stock notifications sent to administrators
  • Percentage-off, Fixed Amount, and New Price sales
  • Minimum/Maximum quantities and unit multiples
  • Quantity Discounts per-product or volume
  • Radio buttons, Checkboxes, Drop-downs, File Uploads
  • Text Pricing (price-per-word or letter)
  • Customer "Group Pricing" for wholesale/B2B
  • Advanced Template System with override protection
  • Multiple Language & Currency Support
  • Search Engine friendly "Down For Maintenance" page
  • Intelligent meta-tag generation & spider detection
  • Customer Access Control (Restrict pricing/browsing)
  • Notifier subsystem for developers to "hook" events