Akeneo vs. Pimcore – Which PIM should you choose in 2023?

A robust product information management (PIM) system is a must for modern eCommerce businesses. It can revolutionize the way you work with product data, providing many improvements over a standard content management system (CMS). They can be especially noticeable in terms of storing, enriching, and distributing product information to sales channels.

But what PIM system is right for you? The market offers many good options, so the choice isn’t easy. In this article, we’ll take a look at two PIM systems that we typically work with, Akeneo and Pimcore, and compare them side by side to help you make the best choice for your business. 

Setting up a fair PIM vs. MDM comparison

The very first thing we need to acknowledge while approaching this comparison is that Akeneo and Pimcore represent two different types of software. 

What’s a PIM system?

As the name implies, a PIM system’s role is simple: to store, manage, and distribute product information. It helps businesses maintain accurate and consistent product data, which improves efficiency in managing large catalogs. It also means improvements in the quality and consistency of product information that you can present to customers across different platforms and channels. Akeneo is an example of a straightforward PIM system. 

What’s an MDM system?

A master data management (MDM) system, on the other hand, is a much more robust, multipurpose solution. An MDM system can include the PIM functionality, but it also encompasses many different types of data and systems: for example, digital asset management (DAM), a customer data platform (CDP), and customer relationship management (CRM).

As you can see, those don’t need to be related only to products but also to partners, customers, assets, and more. Typically, this means that such a system supports many different departments within the company and not only those strictly associated with eCommerce. This is the approach taken by Pimcore, which, contrary to what its name would suggest, is not just a PIM system but an entire MDM ecosystem designed to bridge the gaps between various departments within large companies. 

How to compare apples to oranges the right way

It’s easy to notice that we’re very much comparing apples to oranges here. At their core, they're both “fruits” in the sense that they fulfill the same need to store, manage, enrich, and distribute data, but their scopes are very different. It doesn’t make the comparison invalid, though. Comparing apples to oranges is perfectly fine as long as we’re asking the correct questions, such as “Which is the better choice to offer your employees for fruit Thursdays?” 

In our case, the correct question to ask at this point would be “Is Akeneo or Pimcore the better choice for you given the unique needs of your business?” So, let’s find out.

Key similarities between Akeneo and Pimcore

The two systems have quite a few features in common that make this comparison possible in the first place. 

Robust PIM functionalities

As an eCommerce owner, the PIM functionalities are likely the feature you’re most interested in. You’re in luck; both solutions offer robust, highly capable solutions in this regard. They both easily cover the basics of what you’d expect from a modern PIM system and will be great choices to support your eCommerce business.

Versions and hosting models

The two solutions take similar approaches when it comes to product versions and pricing. With the default version, they’re both available as free open-source releases that you can implement in your own infrastructure and develop according to your needs. Paid plans are also available, including different levels of support and service level agreements (SLAs) as well as cloud hosting if that’s what you prefer for your business.

Extendability

Both systems are easy to extend and customize. You can either tackle it on your own thanks to their open-source nature or use ready-made plugins from their dedicated marketplaces.

Source: Pimcore Marketplace

Integrations

Both Akeneo and Pimcore offer advanced and well-documented APIs that you can use to easily connect and integrate them with a number of third-party software.

Akeneo vs. Pimcore: key differences

Extra functionalities

As I’ve mentioned before, Akeneo is a PIM system while Pimcore is an MDM system. In other words, it’s a specialized single-purpose tool on the one hand and a whole ecosystem of complementary tools on the other. There’s no clear winner here since it all depends on your individual needs. While some will be satisfied with the lean PIM system and nothing more, others will appreciate the multitude of functions offered by Pimcore.

Composable vs. “one-size-fits-all” architecture

As of Pimcore version 11, the developers separated the core of the system that every implementation needs from the more niche features that you can install or not as you see fit. This means that the system resembles composable eCommerce architecture that lets you keep your implementation lean despite the number of features available to you. Akeneo, on the other hand, takes the more traditional approach; all the functions are installed by default.

Marketplace monetization

If the two systems lack some kind of functionality, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to add it through extensions available on their respective marketplaces. Where they differ, however, is the approach the developers take to monetizing their work. Pimcore extensions tend to be free, embracing the open-source spirit of the system. Akeneo extensions, on the other hand, are often paid, and price tags of hundreds of dollars are common.

Unique selling points of Akeneo and Pimcore

Now that we’ve spent some time on a more general comparison between the two systems, let’s dig deeper into the aspects that will most likely be the key deciding factors for you. What are the unique features that you’ll only find in one of the systems?

Unique features of Akeneo

Akeneo’s main strengths lie in the fact that it doesn’t try to do everything to some degree but focuses on doing one thing very well. Because of this approach, the unique features are centered exclusively around the “core” PIM capabilities. 

Channel-specific data management

One of the key benefits of a modern PIM system is the ability to seamlessly connect to multiple sales channels. By default, the data fed to all the different channels is identical. After all, this is the whole point: to provide a single source of truth that’s consistent across all the channels. However, in some cases, you might want to override this. For example, you might want to change descriptions to be more in line with the conventions of a specific channel or limit the amount of available stock. Akeneo lets you do exactly that while Pimcore lacks such functionality.

Reference entities

Reference entities are Akeneo’s unique way of handling pieces of information that are often repeated throughout different products, such as brands, colors, care instructions, and so on. An entity is much more than just an attribute or a fragment of a product description; it can have its own picture, description, code, and attributes. You can compare it to a pre-made block in drag-and-drop website builders that you can easily insert into whatever page you’re building.

Source: Akeneo

Smart rules for data completion

While both systems offer tools for verifying the completeness of product data, Akeneo goes much further. The system not only verifies in a binary way whether a field has been filled. It also proactively helps you improve the quality of data by scoring what you enter and providing tips on what can be improved.

Unique features of Pimcore

Because Pimcore is an entire MDM ecosystem rather than just a PIM solution, pointing out the unique features could end with a 200-item long list. This approach doesn’t make much sense and would be unfair to Akeneo, which doesn’t even set out to compete in those areas. Instead, let’s focus on the unique selling points strictly related to PIM where the two systems can be compared.

Asset editor

Pimcore offers a capable built-in photo editor that can be a game changer for making last-minute adjustments to your product images before publishing. It can also automatically create variants of the photos for different purposes, such as thumbnails, miniatures for the category page, and so on.

Publication calendar

Apart from publishing your work instantly or saving it as a draft, Pimcore offers a third option to schedule it for automatic publishing on a set date and time. While it’s nothing new in the world of blogging, the feature isn’t common in eCommerce and missing from Akeneo. It can save you or your eCommerce manager from logging in at awkward times to, for instance, coordinate the publication of a product with marketing efforts.

Brand management

Keeping your branding consistent is another feature unique to Pimcore. The system makes sure that key elements of your branding, such as the logo, fonts, color codes, slogans, and so on, remain consistent across all pages and channels. When needed, Pimcore is also capable of automatically incorporating those elements into images or descriptions.

Akeneo or Pimcore: which PIM system is right for you?

As you’ve probably noticed on your own, Akeneo and Pimcore are similar and very different at the same time. They’re similar in the sense that they both offer very capable PIM functionalities. Apart from some details, they’ll let you accomplish pretty much the same things in the field of product data management no matter which solution you choose.  

The two systems are different when it comes to extra features. While Akeneo is strictly a PIM solution, Pimcore is an MDM solution: a whole ecosystem of corporate tools, such as DAM, CRM, a CDP, and more, all built on top of its PIM “core.”

So, where does this all leave us? What’s the best choice for you? We typically suggest Pimcore as the better option for larger businesses and those planning to scale up quickly. Implementing Pimcore will open up many possibilities to consolidate multiple different solutions into a single ecosystem, making the business much easier to manage in the long run. Thanks to its modular architecture, you can add the different modules gradually so you don’t overwhelm the users. On the other hand, Akeneo’s streamlined approach might be right for smaller businesses that are just looking for a streamlined PIM solution and aren’t planning quick growth soon.