Upgrade Magento 1.8 to 1.9 - New Lands to Discover - Infographic

Unless you were born yesterday, it’s not a big news that Magento (now known as Adobe Commerce) has maintained a strong presence in the enterprise e-commerce solutions market for nearly two decades, though the landscape has evolved significantly.

Historically, when the 1.9 version was considered cutting-edge (before Magento 2.0 became stable and widely adopted), its key features included:

  • Responsive Design - default Magento theme was replaced with a fully responsive one that will make your site look great both on the desktop and mobile devices.
  • PHP 5.4 Patch - at the time, Magento 1.9 was updated to operate under PHP 5.4 (and 5.5), bringing significant performance gains to PHP-based websites.
  • PayPal Overhaul - your conversion rate will be boosted with the help of PayPal Express Checkout streamlining and adding the support of Bill Me Later facility.
  • Security Enhancements - you can feel safer now with closing of potential cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities and improving the security of file system.
  • Cross-Border Trade - now Magento is able to adapt to different currencies and legalities making international trade much easier.

Naturally, these advantages were worthy of a shopping cart upgrade. For a successful platform transition, it's essential to consult a comprehensive migration checklist. But then the obvious question emerges - how to do it? Moreover, how to omit downtime and, as a result, revenue reduction? Try to look up for the answers to all these questions on the following infographic:

Upgrade Magento 1.8 to 1.9 - New Lands to Discover - Infographic

At its release, Magento 1.9 was seen as a significant evolution, offering advanced features that were highly valued by store owners seeking improvements at the time.

If after looking through this infographic, you are still considering an upgrade from Magento 1.8 to 1.9, please note that Magento 1.x is now a legacy platform and no longer officially supported. For a modern, secure, and high-performing solution, we strongly recommend exploring migration to the latest Adobe Commerce (Magento 2.x) or other leading contemporary eCommerce platforms. You can still find resources for your Magento store, but our specialized data migration services can guide you through this complex transition to a supported platform.

Monthly Update – January 2026

The year 2026 kicks off with e-commerce businesses heavily focused on enhancing customer lifetime value through data-driven personalization and robust platform scalability. The emphasis is shifting from mere transaction volume to building lasting customer relationships, propelled by sophisticated AI and machine learning algorithms that analyze purchase history, browsing behavior, and even external social signals to offer highly relevant product recommendations and tailored content. Furthermore, the importance of a resilient and flexible e-commerce infrastructure cannot be overstated. With the increasing adoption of microservices and API-first (headless) architectures, businesses are gaining unprecedented agility to integrate new technologies, quickly adapt to market shifts, and deliver consistent customer experiences across various channels – from traditional web stores to emerging metaverse and augmented reality shopping environments. Ensuring your underlying platform can support these advanced capabilities and future innovations is paramount for sustained growth.

For more details, explore our FAQ section or schedule a call with a migration expert.