ACP vs Other Solutions
The Agentic Commerce Protocol isn’t the only approach to AI-powered commerce. This page compares ACP to other protocols, APIs, and solutions in the market.
ACP vs Shop APIs (Shopify Storefront API, WooCommerce REST API)
Traditional Shop APIs
Existing e-commerce platforms offer APIs for building custom storefronts:
// Shopify Storefront API example
const response = await fetch(shopifyUrl, {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'X-Shopify-Storefront-Access-Token': token,
'Content-Type': 'application/json',
},
body: JSON.stringify({
query: `
query {
products(first: 10) {
edges {
node {
id
title
priceRange { ... }
}
}
}
}
`
})
});Comparison
| Aspect | Shop APIs | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Custom storefronts | AI agent commerce |
| Scope | Single merchant | Cross-merchant standard |
| Authentication | Per-merchant tokens | Standardized |
| Payment | Platform-specific | Delegated payment tokens |
| AI optimization | Not designed for AI | Built for AI agents |
| Learning curve | Each platform different | Learn once |
Key Differences
Shop APIs:
- Each platform has different API
- Designed for human-driven apps
- Payment handled per platform
- No standardization
ACP:
- Single standard across merchants
- Designed for AI agents
- Universal payment token system
- Standardized discovery and checkout
🔌
Shop APIs are for building storefronts. ACP is for enabling AI agents to shop anywhere.
ACP vs Google Shopping API / Amazon Product API
Existing Product APIs
Large platforms offer APIs for product discovery:
// Google Shopping API (conceptual)
const results = await googleShopping.search({
query: 'wireless headphones',
priceRange: { min: 50, max: 150 },
shipping: 'US'
});
// Amazon Product Advertising API
const results = await amazon.searchItems({
Keywords: 'wireless headphones',
MinPrice: 5000, // cents
MaxPrice: 15000
});Comparison
| Aspect | Product APIs | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Purchase | ❌ No (redirect to site) | ✓ Yes (in-context) |
| Cross-platform | Limited | Universal standard |
| Checkout | External | Conversational |
| Payment | User handles | Token-based |
Key Differences
Existing Product APIs:
- Search only, no checkout
- Redirect user to complete purchase
- Limited to one platform’s inventory
- No payment facilitation
ACP:
- Discovery + checkout in one standard
- Complete purchase in conversation
- Works across any ACP-enabled merchant
- Delegated payment completes loop
ACP vs Payment APIs (Stripe, PayPal)
Traditional Payment APIs
Payment providers offer robust APIs:
// Stripe Payment Intent
const paymentIntent = await stripe.paymentIntents.create({
amount: 2000, // $20.00
currency: 'usd',
payment_method: 'pm_card_visa',
confirm: true,
});Comparison
| Aspect | Payment APIs | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Payment processing | ✓ Yes | Via Stripe |
| Product discovery | ❌ No | ✓ Yes |
| Checkout flow | Build yourself | ✓ Standardized |
| AI agent support | Manual integration | ✓ Native |
| Merchant discovery | ❌ No | ✓ Yes |
The Relationship
ACP builds ON TOP of payment APIs (specifically Stripe):
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ACP │
│ • Product Feed Specification │
│ • Agentic Checkout Specification │
│ • Delegated Payment Specification │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Payment Layer │
│ (Stripe) │
│ • Payment processing │
│ • Payment methods │
│ • Shared Payment Tokens │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘🔗
ACP doesn’t compete with Stripe—it’s co-developed with Stripe and uses Stripe for payments.
ACP vs Existing AI Shopping Assistants
Current AI Shopping Solutions
Various AI shopping tools exist:
- Google Shopping AI - Search with AI summaries
- Amazon Rufus - In-app shopping assistant
- Perplexity Shopping - AI-powered product search
- Various chatbots - Customer service focused
Comparison
| Aspect | Existing AI Shopping | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Purchase completion | Limited/redirect | ✓ In-conversation |
| Cross-merchant | Platform limited | ✓ Universal |
| Open standard | ❌ Proprietary | ✓ Open |
| Payment security | Varies | ✓ SPT model |
| Merchant adoption | Platform specific | ✓ Any merchant |
Key Differences
Existing AI Assistants:
- Proprietary to each platform
- Limited to platform’s inventory
- Often redirect for purchase
- No standard for merchants
ACP:
- Open standard anyone can implement
- Works across all ACP merchants
- Complete purchase in conversation
- Clear spec for merchant adoption
ACP vs MCP (Model Context Protocol)
What is MCP?
Model Context Protocol (Anthropic) enables AI models to access external tools and data:
// MCP example - generic tool access
const mcpServer = new MCPServer({
tools: [
{
name: 'search_database',
handler: async (query) => { ... }
},
{
name: 'send_email',
handler: async (to, body) => { ... }
}
]
});Comparison
| Aspect | MCP | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | General AI tool access | Commerce-specific |
| Focus | Tool calling protocol | Complete commerce flow |
| Payment | Not addressed | Core feature |
| Product data | Generic tool | Structured feed spec |
| Checkout | Not addressed | Complete specification |
The Relationship
MCP and ACP are complementary:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ AI Agent │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ MCP (General Tool Access) │
│ • File access │
│ • API calls │
│ • Database queries │
│ • Calendar, email, etc. │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ACP (Commerce Specific) │
│ • Product discovery │
│ • Checkout flow │
│ • Payment handling │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘🤝
MCP is for general tool access. ACP is specifically for commerce. They work together—an AI agent might use MCP for general tasks and ACP for shopping.
ACP vs Commerce Standards (Schema.org, Open Graph)
Existing Standards
Several standards exist for commerce data:
<!-- Schema.org Product markup -->
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@type": "Product",
"name": "Wireless Headphones",
"offers": {
"@type": "Offer",
"price": "99.99",
"priceCurrency": "USD"
}
}
</script>Comparison
| Aspect | Schema.org/OpenGraph | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | SEO/social sharing | AI commerce |
| Product data | ✓ Structured markup | ✓ Product Feed |
| Checkout | ❌ No | ✓ Yes |
| Payment | ❌ No | ✓ Yes |
| AI interaction | Passive (crawlable) | Active (API) |
The Relationship
ACP can leverage existing standards:
{
"products": [
{
"id": "prod_123",
"title": "Wireless Headphones",
"schema_org": { /* existing Schema.org data */ },
"acp_checkout_url": "https://merchant.com/acp/checkout"
}
]
}Merchants with Schema.org markup have a head start on ACP Product Feeds.
ACP vs Headless Commerce (Commerce.js, Saleor)
Headless Commerce Platforms
Headless platforms separate frontend from commerce backend:
// Commerce.js example
const cart = await commerce.cart.add('prod_123', 1);
const checkout = await commerce.checkout.capture(checkoutToken, {
shipping: shippingData,
payment: paymentData
});Comparison
| Aspect | Headless Commerce | ACP |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Single merchant | Multi-merchant standard |
| Frontend | Custom built | AI agent |
| API style | Platform specific | Standardized |
| Payment | Platform handles | Delegated tokens |
| Best for | Custom storefronts | AI-powered commerce |
Key Insight
Headless commerce could implement ACP:
Headless Platform (e.g., Commerce.js)
├── Traditional API (existing)
│ └── For custom storefronts
└── ACP API (new)
└── For AI agentsSummary: Where ACP Fits
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ COMMERCE LANDSCAPE │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ Traditional Sites Marketplaces AI Commerce │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌───────────┐ ┌────────────┐ │
│ │ Shopify │ │ Amazon │ │ │ │
│ │ WooCommerce │ │ eBay │ │ ACP │ │
│ │ Magento │ │ Etsy │ │ │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └───────────┘ └────────────┘ │
│ │ │ │ │
│ └──────────────────┼─────────────────┘ │
│ │ │
│ All can add ACP support │
│ │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ PAYMENT LAYER │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Stripe │ │
│ │ (Shared Payment Tokens for ACP) │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ AI LAYER │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ ChatGPT │ Claude │ Others │ │
│ │ (OpenAI) │ (Anthropic)│ (Future AI agents) │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘Choosing the Right Solution
| If you need… | Consider |
|---|---|
| Custom storefront | Headless commerce + Shop APIs |
| Marketplace presence | Amazon/eBay + their APIs |
| AI agent commerce | ACP |
| SEO optimization | Schema.org + ACP |
| General AI tools | MCP + ACP |
| Payment processing | Stripe (underlying ACP) |
🎯
ACP fills a specific gap: enabling AI agents to complete purchases across merchants with standardized, secure protocols. It complements rather than replaces existing solutions.
Next Steps
Now that you understand how ACP compares to alternatives:
- Getting Started - Implement ACP
- Technical Specifications - Deep dive into the protocol
- Integration Guide - Add ACP to your platform