MBA vs MageAnts Frequently Bought Together
A budget, one-time-fee Magento 2 widget that shows an admin-curated "Frequently Bought Together" block with one-click add-all-to-cart.
When MBA wins
If you want recommendations actually mined from real co-purchase data with inspectable support/confidence/lift, richer bundle formats and B2B, the same engine across multiple storefronts, or agent/API access, MarketBasketAnalysis is the stronger fit.
When MageAnts Frequently Bought Together wins
If you run a single Magento 2 store, want a cheap one-time-fee FBT block you can hand-curate yourself, and do not need cross-platform parity, an API, or statistical recommendation logic, MageAnts is a simpler, lower-cost buy.
Feature comparison
Color-striped rows favor MBA, MageAnts Frequently Bought Together, or are even. We mark each so you can scan for the trade-offs that matter to you.
| Feature | MBA | MageAnts Frequently Bought Together |
|---|---|---|
| How recommendations are generated | Six co-purchase mining engines (sql_pairs, fp_growth by default, seasonal_cohort, return_aware, profit-aware HUI, ai_catalog cold-start), plus a co_occurrence fallback computed from real order data | Primarily admin-curated/linked products with a basic report of items bought together from orders; no automated mining engines |
| Explainable metrics (support / confidence / lift) | Emits support, confidence, and lift per rule; rules are inspectable in-admin | No exposed statistical metrics; relations are manually configured |
| Magento 2 storefront FBT widget | Provides FBT/recommendation rendering on Magento storefronts | Purpose-built Magento 2 block with all product types, swatches, AJAX totals, and one-click add-all |
| One-time pricing / total cost of ownership | Subscription: free $0 tier, Plus $99/mo (or ~$79/mo on annual); flat, no GMV or revenue share | One-time license $89 (Open Source)/$189 (Commerce); lowest upfront cost for a single store |
| Cross-platform parity | Same intelligence across Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Magento, and OroCommerce on one API contract | Magento 2 / Adobe Commerce only |
| Bundle formats and merchandising | Real-SKU bundles plus BYOB, volume, BOGO, virtual, substitutions, post-purchase upsell, cart drawer, and Klaviyo/email recs | Single FBT block with checkbox add-all and combined-total display |
| A/B testing | Built-in A/B testing with lift and confidence intervals | No built-in experimentation |
| API / agent and MCP access | Public REST API, 19-tool MCP server (18 off Shopify), and ACP/agentic-commerce endpoints | Storefront widget only; no documented public API or agent integration |
| Data privacy / on-store processing | Mining runs locally inside the merchant install; AI is bring-your-own key | Self-hosted Magento extension, so data also stays on the merchant's own store |
Pricing snapshot
MarketBasketAnalysis
Flat, transparent plan pricing: Free ($0) and Plus $99/mo flat (or ~$79/mo on annual). One paid plan, everything in it. These are product plans, not per-platform prices, and the same plans apply across every platform. Metered on capability and compute, never on GMV. No revenue share, no add-ons.
See plansMageAnts Frequently Bought Together
One-time license: $89 Magento Open Source, $189 Adobe Commerce (Enterprise), plus paid add-ons (Hyva compatibility +$99, install +$30, 6/12-month extended support +$49/+$69). No subscription, no GMV or revenue share.
Visit MageAnts Frequently Bought TogetherThe honest verdict
MageAnts is a genuinely inexpensive, self-hosted Magento 2 FBT widget: a one-time $89/$189 license buys a clean storefront block with all product types, swatches, AJAX totals, and one-click add-all-to-cart.
Its recommendations are essentially admin-curated and rule/link-based; aside from a simple bought-together report, it does not mine co-purchase data or surface support, confidence, or lift, so the suggestions are only as good as the merchant's manual setup.
Both products keep data on the merchant's own store (MageAnts as a self-hosted extension, MarketBasketAnalysis with local in-install mining), so privacy is comparable for the Magento case.
MarketBasketAnalysis is a different tier: six explainable mining engines, inspectable rules, multi-platform parity on one API contract, agent/MCP access, A/B testing, and deeper bundle/B2B merchandising, at a recurring subscription price rather than a one-time fee.
Pick MageAnts if you want the cheapest possible curated FBT block on a single Magento store; pick MarketBasketAnalysis if you want data-driven, explainable recommendations, experimentation, and reach across multiple storefronts and agents.
Want the full buyer's deep-dive?
This page is the per-vendor short version. For the long version, read “MBA vs Bloomreach” (8 pages on the enterprise-vs-mid-market trade-off) or “MBA vs the widget cluster” (4 pages of pricing math vs Glood, Rebuy, and PickyStory).
Try MBA on your own store
14-day money-back guarantee on all paid platforms. WP.org free tier on WooCommerce. No credit card required for the free path.