Storefront API

A Storefront API is the shopper-facing API exposed by a commerce platform. It is the interface a headless ecommerce frontend uses to render product listings, product detail pages, cart, checkout, and account pages. It is a public or semi-public endpoint that anonymous shoppers can call to browse a catalog, and that authenticated shoppers can call to manage their own carts, orders, and account details. ## Why platforms separate Storefront and Admin APIs A commerce platform typically has two API surfaces. The Storefront API is scoped to what a shopper can see and do. It handles product data, category structure, cart operations, checkout submission, order history for the logged-in customer, and account management for the logged-in customer. Rate limits, authentication, and data exposure are all tuned to public browser traffic. The Admin API is scoped to what internal users and integrations can see and do. It handles catalog editing, inventory adjustments, order fulfillment, customer service actions, and reporting. Authentication is stricter, and the API can access data across all customers, not just the logged-in one. Separating the two is a security and performance concern. A Storefront API is designed to be called from every page load by every shopper. It has to be fast, cacheable, and safe to expose to the public internet. An Admin API is called at much lower volume, needs stronger authentication, and does not need public exposure. ## What a Storefront API typically covers A well-designed Storefront API covers everything a shopper-facing frontend needs. Product data and category structure. Product search and filtering. Cart operations (add, remove, update quantities). Checkout submission and payment initiation. Order history for the current customer. Address management. Wishlist and saved cart state. Loyalty points, if applicable. Recommendation and personalization inputs. What it does not cover: administrative actions, other customers' data, low-level pricing engine controls, or platform configuration. Anything a shopper should not be able to see or do belongs on the Admin API. ## Shopify, BigCommerce, Norce, Shopware Most modern commerce platforms ship a Storefront API. Shopify's is called the Storefront API and is GraphQL-based. BigCommerce ships one. commercetools exposes its capability through a set of APIs including a shopper-facing subset. Shopware has a Store API. Norce exposes its full capability through APIs that a headless frontend consumes. The exact naming and shape differ, but the pattern is the same: a shopper-facing surface distinct from the admin surface. ## How Frntkey relates Frntkey talks to the Storefront APIs of the backends it supports. For Norce, that means the Norce commerce API. For Shopware, that means the Store API. Frntkey does not run its own commerce logic. Cart state, checkout, product data, and orders all live on the backend and flow through the Storefront API. When a shopper adds a product to cart on a Frntkey storefront, that call goes straight to the backend's Storefront API. What Frntkey adds is the rendering layer, the design system, the CMS integration, and the pre-built flows. ## Related terms API-first commerce · Headless commerce · Headless checkout · Ecommerce frontend