Apps made easy: Build your next full-stack BigCommerce app with Gadget
Any developer is likely too familiar with the grind of setting up infrastructure, writing boilerplate code, and managing the tedious aspects of app development. What you should be spending your time on is the exciting, unique, and innovative features that solve actual user problems. Until now, building apps on the BigCommerce platform also had these challenges, preventing you from focusing on making app experiences truly great.
To solve that slow, tedious development experience, we are excited to announce a new partnership with Gadget. Gadget is a full-stack development platform that lets you focus on what really matters: writing the code that makes your app stand out from the rest.
Starting today, any developers building apps for the BigCommerce platform can build with Gadget using the new BigCommerce integration.
Build BigCommerce apps in minutes
The new BigCommerce integration in Gadget handles all of the tedious setup and boilerplate code so you can focus on building the features that brands actually want. Gadget’s full-stack bundle simplifies app development by providing a unified platform for building both your frontend and backend.
Let’s dive deeper into some of the benefits of building BigCommerce apps with Gadget:
Hassle-free, full-stack development
Gadget offers serverless, full-stack infrastructure that's ready to go out of the box. Your apps are hosted on Google Cloud, and Gadget provides production and development environments with a Postgres database, Node.js on the backend, and React, served by Vite, on the frontend. Instead of managing a backend, and frontend, databases, etc., you’re managing one cohesive bundle where everything plays nicely together, and you can get straight to building without the usual setup headaches.
A built-in BigCommerce connection
Gadget lets you set up your BigCommerce apps in seconds by giving you a built-in connection, and handling OAuth so you can build custom or public apps. No need to build your own Oauth, deal with shop tenancy, or setup webhook handlers; Gadget has you covered.
Perfect for e-commerce
With Gadget, you can be sure your app is ready to handle any amount of traffic, even during BFCM. The platform powers more than 20,000 apps, has processed more than 4 billion API requests, and handled more than 2 billion webhooks. You can build, deploy, and manage your apps faster than ever, with the certainty that your app is ready to scale.
Auto-generated APIs
With Gadget's context-aware, full-stack framework, you instantly get auto-generated APIs, freeing you from repetitive tasks so you can invest your time in solving real problems. Whether you’re building custom apps, or rolling out a new SaaS product, Gadget equips you with all of the tools to get it done quickly and efficiently.
Built-in security and scalability
Security is non-negotiable, and Gadget comes with enterprise-grade security features, including role-based access control and encryption, baked in. When it comes to scalability, Gadget’s elastic infrastructure ensures your app can handle any high-traffic events without breaking a sweat, making the platform ideal for apps that need to perform under pressure.
Best practices baked-in
Gadget handles so much of the boilerplate and glue code, and provides a backend framework to ensure you always build with best practices. And with an instant feedback loop to see what changes as you code, you can build, test, and ship features faster than ever. The platform even auto-generates documentation for your app, making it easy to build complex applications alone or as a team.
Seamless developer workflow
We all have our favorite tools and workflows, and Gadget isn’t here to change the way you work. Whether you're coding locally or using their cloud IDE, you can build with Git-based source control, CI/CD support, background actions for async tasks, and a development experience that doesn’t tie you down to one environment. You can keep using the tools you love while benefiting from Gadget’s robust infrastructure.
What can you build with Gadget?
Custom or public apps
Grow sales, customize the online storefront, or publish your apps to the BigCommerce App Marketplace. Whether your app is for one store or 1,000, Gadget makes it easy to build apps and extensions that can scale for any amount of traffic.
Integrations
Sync your mission-critical data from your PIM, ERP, or any other platform you rely on. Gadget lets you enrich and mutate incoming data in a real Node.js environment, so you aren’t limited in how you build your integrations. You have full access to the code powering your connections.
Internal tools
Whether you need a custom dashboard with your recent sales data or a slack notification when customers start a return, Gadget makes it easy to build apps that streamline the way you manage your internal operations.
Setting up your Gadget <> BigCommerce integration
Step 1: Sign up for Gadget
Follow the Gadget signup flow and create your first project.
Step 2: Select your app type
If you’re building a new BigCommerce app, select “BigCommerce app”!
Step 3: Choose a domain name for your app
Step 4: Connect to BigCommerce
Once you’ve successfully created and named your app, you’ll be brought to your new dashboard, where you can connect to BigCommerce.
Gadget provides you with the callback URLs to enter in your BigCommerce developer portal. Alternatively, you can grab your client credentials from the BigCommerce developer portal, and enter them in your Gadget account (as seen below).
Step 5: Voila! You’re connected & can now install your app on your sample store!
You are also now able to write code in your Gadget environment, or clone your repository and work locally. When you push changes, Gadget recognizes them instantly and updates the code found here, in your dashboard.
For those of you that attended BigSummit 2024, you may remember Gadget from our Next Big Thing update from Senior Director of Product Management, Nathan Booker. Many of you were excited to begin building with Gadget, and we’re eager to hear your feedback in the coming weeks.
We’re thrilled to be partnering with Gadget to vastly improve the experience of building apps for our platform!
Gadget is built for developers who want to move fast without cutting corners. It's not just another no-code/low-code tool—it's a platform that empowers you to build serious software with the speed and efficiency you need to stay ahead.
Gadget’s BigCommerce integration is now available to any and all developers! Head over to Gadget, sign up for an account and explore for yourself.
If you have questions, feedback, or issues implementing, please reach out to the BigCommerce DevRel team.