Ecommerce Carts Introduction

In the Insites ecosystem, carts are a dynamic, transient entity designed for high-speed interaction. Unlike orders, which are permanent administrative records, carts are created exclusively via API and GraphQL. This programmatic approach ensures that 'shopping intent' is captured in real time, directly from the user's front-end experience.

By restricting cart creation to the API/GraphQL, Insites maintains a clean separation between customer intent and administrative action. This architecture offers three primary advantages:

• Headless flexibility: Developers can build custom checkout experiences on any platform (web, mobile, or IoT) while using the Insites API as the unified 'source of truth.'

• Real-time validation: The API automatically handles complex calculations, such as inventory 'soft-locks,' multi-currency conversions, and tax estimations, as items are added.

• Session persistence: Using a Session ID, the system ensures a customer’s items remain available across different devices or browser refreshes without requiring a permanent database entry.

You may refer to the following articles for more details:

• Managing Carts
• Importing and Exporting Carts