Adobe Commerce 2024 Release Calendar Announced

August 2023 brought welcome news for Adobe Commerce merchants and development teams. Adobe announced a significant shift in release strategy for 2024: rather than multiple feature-heavy releases, the calendar would focus on one core patch (Adobe Commerce 2.4.7) and five security-focused updates. This streamlined approach reflects merchant feedback on release fatigue and upgrade complexity.

The New 2024 Release Strategy

Adobe's 2024 calendar represents a fundamental philosophy shift:

• One Major Release: Adobe Commerce 2.4.7 scheduled for mid-2024, focusing on critical improvements and selected new capabilities
• Five Security Patches: Quarterly or as-needed security updates delivering vulnerability fixes without feature changes
• Extended Support Windows: Clearer end-of-life dates allowing merchants to plan upgrade timelines
• Reduced Release Churn: Fewer releases mean more time for testing, extension compatibility verification, and operational planning

This approach directly addresses pain points merchants highlighted: release cycles arriving faster than teams could test and upgrade, custom extensions breaking on each release, and continuous upgrade fatigue diverting resources from business initiatives.

Why This Matters

For merchants running stable Adobe Commerce installations, the new strategy is liberating. Rather than upgrading every quarter to stay current, teams can now plan strategically. Security patches address urgent vulnerabilities without forcing feature upgrades. Development resources shift from continuous patching to innovation and optimisation.

For development teams, the benefits are equally compelling:

• Longer development cycles for extension updates
• More time for regression testing and quality assurance
• Clearer roadmaps allowing better capacity planning
• Reduced emergency patching and hotfix releases
• Ability to invest in modernisation alongside feature development

Adobe Commerce 2.4.7: Expected Improvements

Adobe has signalled that 2.4.7 will focus on:

• Performance optimisations, particularly for large catalogue stores
• Database query efficiency improvements reducing query times
• Improved admin performance and responsiveness
• GraphQL API enhancements for headless commerce implementations
• Selected new capabilities addressing widespread merchant needs

The emphasis is stability and performance over quantity of features. This philosophy aligns with merchant priorities: retailers need platforms they can rely on, not platforms requiring constant upgrade chasing.

Security Patch Strategy

Five scheduled security patches provide predictable vulnerability remediation. Adobe commits to publishing security updates on defined dates, allowing merchants to plan patching windows. Critical vulnerabilities discovered between scheduled releases will still be addressed out-of-cycle, but the predictability of regular patches improves operational planning.

Migration Planning for 2024

Merchants running 2.4.5 or 2.4.6 should plan 2.4.7 upgrades for Q3-Q4 2024. This provides adequate time for:

• Extension compatibility verification
• Comprehensive testing in staging environments
• Performance benchmarking and optimisation
• Team training on new features and changes
• Change request and approval processes

Rather than reactive upgrade scheduling, merchants can now plan proactively with confidence that no urgent mid-year releases will force emergency timelines.

Implications for Merchants and Partners

Adobe's 2024 release strategy signals maturity and merchant focus. By reducing release churn and prioritising stability, Adobe is acknowledging that most merchants value reliability over constant feature delivery. The new approach benefits merchants needing platform stability, extension developers requiring longer testing windows, and agencies delivering customer projects within predictable release cycles.

Long-Term Platform Vision

The streamlined 2024 calendar represents Adobe's commitment to sustainable platform evolution. Rather than racing to deliver features, Adobe is investing in platform quality, performance, and developer experience. Merchants that have struggled with upgrade cycles can finally breathe. The 2024 approach creates space for merchants to innovate, optimise, and evolve their commerce strategies without constant platform disruption.