Connect is an integration-as-a-service platform that allows developers to host and manage third-party applications (Connectors) directly within the commercetools infrastructure.
Why it's useful:
- Reduced infrastructure overhead: you don't need to manage your own servers or cloud instances for integrations.
- Standardization: it provides a consistent way to build integrations, making it easier to swap or update services.
- Security: Connect manages API keys and permissions automatically, ensuring your integrations only have the access they need.
- Speed: by using pre-built connectors from the Marketplace, you can add features like payment gateways or tax calculators in minutes instead of weeks.
Connect saw significant improvements throughout 2025:
Automated API client generation
We eliminated one of the most repetitive manual steps in the setup process: creating API Clients. Now, when a Connect application is installed, the platform can automatically generate the necessary API Client with the correct scopes. This ensures that the integration has exactly the permissions it needs to function—no more and no less. This reduces the risk of configuration errors and improves security.
To utilize this feature, adjustments are required in the
connect.yaml file located in the root directory of your Connector. Refer to the dedicated documentation tutorial for a detailed guide on the necessary steps and important considerations.Sandbox deployment type
Until recently, when creating a Deployment, developers only had two choices for type in the
DeploymentDraft: preview or production.Testing integrations became significantly more flexible with the introduction of the
sandbox deployment type. This feature allows developers to deploy Connectors into a protected "Sandbox" environment before going live. Unlike standard deployments, sandbox deployments are optimized for rapid iteration and testing, allowing teams to catch bugs and validate logic without affecting production workflows or hitting strict production validation rules.Sandbox is also now the default deployment type for Connectors.
Support for Custom Views
Merchant Center Custom Applications were already supported by Connect, allowing you to create brand new applications in the Merchant Center to extend its functionality. For example, you can allow Merchant Center users to manage or view resources which previously were accessible only via the API. But what if you just want to slightly modify an existing application?
Connect applications can now offer a more seamless user experience through Merchant Center Custom Views. This enhancement allows developers to register custom UI components that appear directly within the Merchant Center. For example, the built-in Products application can now have its own dedicated button to automatically translate product descriptions inside the Merchant Center interface, making it feel like a native part of the platform rather than a separate external tool.
Connect CLI enhancements
To support a "developer-first" workflow, the Connect CLI received a major update in mid-2025. These improvements focus on aligning the local development experience with the cloud environment and providing more robust management tools from the terminal.
Key enhancements
- Environment synchronization: the CLI’s Buildpacks version is now synchronized with the Connect API. This ensures that your application behaves exactly the same during local testing as it does when deployed to the platform.
- Modular code sharing: developers can now use common modules allowing you to share and reuse logic across different Connect projects. This significantly reduces code duplication and simplifies the maintenance of multiple integrations.
- Robust configuration validation: the validation engine for
connect.yamlfiles has been improved. The CLI now provides descriptive, actionable error messages, making it much faster to debug and fix configuration issues before attempting a deployment.
New deployment and management commands
The CLI now features a comprehensive suite of commands to manage the full lifecycle of your Connectors and Deployments:
- Connector management: use
connectorstaged describeto retrieve deep-dive technical details about a staged connector using its unique ID or key. - Full deployment lifecycle:
- Create and delete: easily spin up new
preview,sandbox, orproductionenvironments withdeployment create, or remove them usingdeployment delete. - Monitor and update: retrieve specific status details with
deployment describeor apply configuration changes and script updates to an active environment usingdeployment redeploy.
- Create and delete: easily spin up new
- Observability at scale:
- List: view all project deployments with
deployment listfor sorting and pagination, perfect for projects with many active integrations. - Logs: debug efficiently with
deployment logs, which now supports filtering by specific application and date ranges to help you pinpoint issues quickly.
- List: view all project deployments with
Simplified GitHub repository integration
The process for linking source code to a Connector was significantly improved in late 2025 with an enhanced GitHub repository selection process directly within the Merchant Center UI. This update provides a more intuitive and better-validated method for specifying the repository where your integration code resides.
By offering a streamlined, less error-prone setup flow, the connection between your development environment (GitHub) and the Connect hosting environment is now much smoother.
When creating a new Connector, you now have the option to connect directly with your GitHub account. This allows you to select your repository and tag from a convenient dropdown list, replacing the need for manual input. (Manual input is still available by selecting the “Connect with public third-party Git repository” option):
Summary
These 2025 updates to commercetools Connect focus on automation and developer experience. By automating API client setup, providing dedicated sandbox environments, and improving CLI tools, commercetools has made it significantly easier to build and scale a modular commerce ecosystem.