PrestaShop 8: All You Need to Know About This Release

Released in 2007, PrestaShop has become one of Europe and Latin America’s most popular ecommerce platforms because of its flexibility and wide range of out-of-the-box features. It’s currently being used by over 265,000 sites worldwide.

2022 became a milestone year in this platform’s history: a major version 8 of the PrestaShop update was released. The previous version, PrestaShop 1.7, came up in 2016.

In our article, we provide an overview of the new features and updates in PrestaShop 8.0, compare it with its previous versions, and help you determine if it’s worth upgrading to the latest version.

If you’re considering upgrading to the latest version or just curious about what’s new in this PrestaShop release, read on!

Table of Сontents:

A Quick Overview
PrestaShop 8: New Features
Prestashop 1.7 vs 8
Upgrading Your Store to PrestaShop 8
About PrestaShop 9
Wrapping Up

A Quick Overview

In December 2021, PrestaShop announced in their official blog that a new version is coming soon. The audience has found out what Prestashop 8 Beta is in August 2022. In October 2022, the creators notified that PS 8 is now officially available for download on GitHub.

The PS 8 release provided users with many significant improvements. Among them are the following:

• An updated version of Symfony 4.4
• PrestaShop compatibility with PHP 8.1
• A new password policy and session management features
• WebP Prestashop support

And more, in addition to over 170 bug fixes.

But why is it not Prestashop 1.8? This occurred mainly due to general changes within the brand, such as the introduction of their new logo and website.

PS 8 is also PrestaShop’s first company-neutral version, which means it’s free from built-in commercial products and services. Addons Marketplace is no longer a part of the project, but it’s possible to install it independently.

Now, let’s take a closer look into the reasons for upgrading your online store from PrestaShop 1.7 to version 8.0.

PrestaShop 8: New Features

PS 8 brought many bug fixes, a better user experience, and a faster loading speed.

BelVG developers have already had a chance to evaluate all the advantages of the new PrestaShop edition. Below are the main benefits of upgrading to PS 8.

You can see a complete list of implemented features here.

PHP 8.0 and 8.1 Support

PrestaShop 8 requires at least PHP 7.2 and provides compatibility with the latest PHP 8.1 version supported until November 2024. Security and performance improvements come with each PHP version update, so running PrestaShop on the most recent version of PHP is vital.

Below, we have listed the PrestaShop 8 compatibility chart with different PHP versions.

 

Symfony and Library Updates

Symfony 4.4 usage provides a high security level and improved performance.

The creators of PrestaShop 1.7 started a revolution when they switched to Symfony. It was followed by Symfony versions 2.8 and 3.4, and version 4.4 is now available in PrestaShop 8 and will be supported until November 2023. We can expect refinements to the Symfony framework along with upcoming PrestaShop versions.

Security Features

PrestaShop 8.0 offers more frequent security updates compared to previous versions. This is part of a broader effort to enhance the platform’s security and stability. PS 8 also introduces a new password policy management feature.

• Users can now see their password strength when registering
• Administrators can configure the store’s password policy (from simple to complex)
• Store administrators can view users’ sessions history and disable their sessions remotely

These innovations assure store owners and clients that transaction processing is secure and the protection against external intrusion or hackers is high. Simplified checkout reduces the risk of credit card fraud or other malicious activity.

Modern Image Formats Support

The PS 8 version supports the popular WebP image format for products. WebP guarantees better compression at equal image quality compared to JPEGs and PNGs. And smaller file sizes speed up page loading.

These changes are available on the tab Design->Image Settings.

PrestaShop 8 developers have also added support for the popular SVG image format for the store logo (available on the tab Design->Theme Logo).

Product Page Features

The product page has been upgraded compared to version 1.7.8. Besides, the combination management and bulk edition have been noticeably improved.

In PrestaShop 8.1, you can choose between the traditional product page and the revamped version. Here are some key updates concerning the product page:

• structure: clearer and more organized with a user-friendly approach.
• flexibility: it enables users to add products with combinations easily and change their type, replace, or add attributes for them.
• retail price: the pricing tab now has a tax calculator, which helps to calculate a retail price for a product.
• multistore mode: while using the multistore mode, attributes for all stores can be generated by checking the dedicated “Generate combinations for all stores” option.

Overall, the new product page feels more comfortable to work with.

SEO Features

The new edition includes several SEO features that PrestaShop didn’t have before.

• SEO Text Integration: optimized text can now be integrated into category pages to enhance visibility in search engine results.
• 410 Gone Status: administrators can use 410 Gone status for items discontinued from sale.
• Meta Tags with Page Numbers: the ability to add page numbers to meta title tags improves site structure and search engine readability.
• Real-Time Character Counter: a real-time character count is available to maintain the description limit.

It’s supposed to help sites to rank higher in SERPs.

DKIM Signatures Support for Emails

This feature decreases the risk of your store’s e-mails being marked as spam. You can configure it under Advanced Parameters -> E-mail.

Media Versioning

Developers can now use multimedia versioning to prevent loading outdated javascript files and stylesheets from the browser cache.

A new parameter has been added to the registerJavascript and registrerStylesheet methods, which allows module developers to add a version parameter. The parameter is added to the asset’s URL, so if the version changes, browsers will download the new asset instead of loading the old version from the local cache.

Typescript Usage

All Symfony-based page scripts are now written in TypeScript. It offers many language features not included in Javascript, the most vital among them being strong typing. Strictly typed code reduces the percentage of errors that might remain unnoticed and negatively affect site performance.

This change is supposed to improve the code, reduce bugs, and enhance the project’s long-term maintainability.

PrestaShop 8.1 additional features

One of the latest versions of PrestaShop 8 is 8.1.1 (available for download here). It includes bug fixes for previous versions and provides additional stability for the 8.1 branch.

PrestaShop 8.1.1 was released on August 1, 2023. This new version includes several updates and improvements compared to PrestaShop 8.0.

Some of the key features and improvements in PrestaShop 8.1.1 include:

• Prestashop 8.0 allows the refusal and acceptance of orders if an out-of-stock situation occurs.
• Verify whether the product is available and can be ordered during checkout.
• The product page is currently used by default but can be disabled.
• Frequently used outdated modifiers can be registered to the Smarty configuration to prevent warnings in the back office.
• Experimental Avif has been added to the webp image format.
• Admins’ opportunity to log into the front office even when the site’s support mode is enabled. Now the access can be given to all employees.

Here are a few bug fixes that are worth mentioning:

• Resolving the issue with the product editor not saving certain fields in a multi-shop setting
• Addressing the problem with translations in child themes and multi-shop themes
• Resolving the issue with PDF files always being in English when generated from the back office

Overall, PrestaShop 8.1 offers an enhanced and more robust e-commerce platform for businesses looking to create and manage their online stores.

PrestaShop 1.7 vs 8

PrestaShop 8 vs 1.7: which one is better? The differences between these two versions are significant, with the latter offering a more advanced and user-friendly experience for ecommerce businesses.

PrestaShop 8.0 supports newer versions of PHP and Symphony, uses new image formats, and introduces a new product page with more straightforward navigation. Although PrestaShop 1.7 is still stable, it has more ready-made modules and settings. In Prestashop 8, some modules are still unavailable, and those custom ones in your store need to be rewritten entirely.  It is essential for businesses to carefully consider their specific needs and goals when deciding which version of Prestashop to use for their online store.

Upgrading Your Store to PrestaShop 8

 

PrestaShop claims that transitioning from version 1.7.8 to version 8 will be much easier than from version 1.6 to 1.7. The 1.7 themes are supposed to remain compatible with the latest version, and many modules are expected to continue working as is. However, the success of the module migration depends on many factors.

Let’s see how our BelVG developers describe the experience of migrating to version 8.

The BelVG Team’s Experience: How to Update Your Site to Prestashop 8 Successfully

There’s an auto-upgrade available. However, after trying it on several projects, the BelVG developers realized that a manual PrestaShop download is better for highly customized sites. Here are some requirements for PrestaShop 8 download:

• First, it’s necessary to upgrade the PrestaShop under PHP 7.4 and then apply PHP 8.1.

• There may be compatibility issues with third-party modules and/or overrides and PrestaShop default classes with PHP 8. We recommend manually checking all modules and overrides before migrating to the newest version to ensure they work correctly in PS 8.

• There are very few changes on the theme level, but checking everything once you’ve applied the upgrade to a development copy is necessary.

• We recommend contacting your hosting provider first if you’re considering the Prestashop update. They can supply you with an environment compatible with PrestaShop 8 (one of the main prerequisites being PHP 8). You can move your site there, apply the upgrade, and then review the impact.

How long will it take to upgrade to version 8? It’s impossible to say for sure because the complexity of the process depends on the store’s specifics. Creating a copy of your site on a new server and checking the update’s impact will take 4-8 hours.

The final cost of migrating to a new PrestaShop version will depend on how customized your site is, which theme you use, and how expensive your developer’s hour is.

About PrestaShop 9

The future of PrestaShop is around the corner: the PrestaShop 9 Alpha 1 version was released in June 2024. It’s only an early stage now but the company already shared with us some essential features that are added in the new version:

• The minimum PHP version requirement has been increased to PHP 8.1, with added support for PHP 8.2 and 8.3.
• Symfony framework has been updated to version 6.4, which is designated as a long-term support version.
• The login page for the back office has been migrated to Symfony.
• A completely new API has been introduced and built on the API Platform.

Work on developing a new, stable, usable version is still ongoing. Some key points are still under discussion or development.

Wrapping Up

If your web store runs on an older version of the PrestaShop platform, it’s time for the latest PrestaShop 8.1 download. However, don’t rush too much with the upgrade.

As with any new version, not all providers have upgraded their modules and customizations for it. Before making any changes, you should consult with a developer experienced in PrestaShop, who can analyze whether there are all the needed requirements for a newer version and whether they will work well on the latest version. That way, you can be sure that you have taken all necessary steps and can resolve any potential problems quickly if they arise.