Shopify API + MCP vs WooCommerce API + MCP

Shopify API + MCP

Typed GraphQL schemas with quarterly versions supported at least 12 months. Closed platform. You can't self-host or change checkout internals.

WooCommerce API + MCP

Free GPL software with no platform fee or revenue share. Uptime, speed and security depend on each store's host and plugins. No vendor status page.

Shopify API + MCP

1. Pin an API version in the URL and plan to move at least once a year. Old versions fall forward to the oldest supported one
2. Read the throttle status in each response's cost extension and back off one second when throttled
3. Send an agent profile in meta on every UCP call, and an idempotency key on every checkout write
4. Check userErrors on every mutation. A 200 response can still carry a failed write
5. Add @shopify/dev-mcp while writing code so the agent checks queries against the current schema

WooCommerce API + MCP

1. Create a REST key with read permission only for reporting tasks, and send it in the Authorization header, never the URL
2. Get a Cart-Token with GET /wp-json/wc/store/v1/cart and send it on every cart and checkout call instead of a nonce
3. Add _fields=id,name,price to REST calls to cut response size
4. Page with per_page up to 100 and stop at X-WP-TotalPages
5. Product delete only trashes unless you pass force true, so check the trash before assuming it's gone