Wix vs WordPress: Picking a Winner (Pros & Cons)

1st July 2019

WordPress Management Services UK Wix Vs WordPress

Choosing which platform to use when creating a website can be a difficult decision. There are many platforms to choose from, and today we are looking at Wix vs WordPress.

The two competing platforms are perhaps the best choices on the market. They are different in many ways, and careful consideration should be taken before you commit to such a platform. The decision between WordPress and Wix will ultimately depend on your particular situation.

Both platforms have their pros and cons as well as their fans, but which is better? There’s only one way to find out, and that is, of course, to read our review!

We take a look at these options to give you a more informed view of which one will be more suitable for your needs. WordPress vs Wix for small business, corporations, charity or any other kind of website you can think of.

Checkout this post about business websites built on WordPress

Background

These platforms have been around for a while and have gained in popularity amongst content management systems. We first take a look at some of their background information.

Wix

Wix has been around since 2006 and is designed to make creating a site as straightforward as possible. It gives customers the power to create a professional looking site in as few steps as possible. To make the creation of a website easier, Wix includes hosting in its packages.

Wix has gained in popularity in recent years following the IPO of the business and a more significant focus on marketing. This has seen a rise in the number of sites running on the platform to a current high of nearly 3.4 million sites.

WordPress

WordPress was created in 2003 and is an open-source software platform. It was initially focused on the creation of blog sites but has since expanded to most different types of website.

The open-source nature of the platform means that anyone can modify and develop for it, not being owned by a business like Wix is. This has led to the platform becoming the go-to for many developers and companies alike.

It has become a top-rated platform, thanks in part to the versatility it offers. And the greater popularity means that more developers are creating for WordPress, leading to more options for users.

It’s estimated that around 34% of all websites are using WordPress, that’s some 75 million sites. It is, unsurprisingly, the most popular CMS platform with over half of all installations.

The WordPress.org site is the central hub for the platform, where you can download it and find out more. There is also the WordPress.com site which is owned by one of the original creators of the software.

This site is similar to Wix with hosting packages with WordPress already set up and more support options. Approximately half of all WordPress sites are hosted on this dot com site with the rest installed across the many other web hosting companies.

Site Creation

Wix Editor

Both WordPress and Wix give users the ability to create a website without the need to learn to code. With Wix, you sign up, select your theme from over 500 available and start customising.

The “what you see is what you get” interface allows you to drag and drop elements to suit your needs. This makes things very easy and intuitive for people new to creating a website.

You can even let the Wix artificial intelligence software create your website if you want. This system asks you a few questions about the sort of site you are looking to develop and builds your website based on your answers.

One issue with this system is that you can’t simply move to a different hosting provider if you want to. Any site or content created using their drag and drop system cannot be exported anywhere else.

If you want to move away from Wix, you will have to point your name servers at your new hosting and recreate your site design from the beginning. Then copy your text and images to the new pages making sure to name the pages the same as they were with Wix.

WordPress Classic Editor

WordPress, however, isn’t quite as user-friendly, and the number of options can be daunting to new users. There is a WYSIWYG interface as standard, but it doesn’t allow you to drag and drop to create your site. If you want to drag and drop, it is available via several different plugins, however.

Web hosting companies frequently offer a one-click WordPress installation. If this doesn’t work correctly or isn’t provided by your preferred hosting company, installing the platform can start to get a little tricky.

You can download the software to install it manually, and they claim it will only take 5 minutes, but this could put many people off.

Once you have successfully installed WordPress on your hosting account, you need to choose a theme and add plugins to extend what your website can do. It is estimated that there are over 11,000 themes to choose from, so you should be able to find something which meets your needs.

When comparing Wix vs WordPress, it is clear that the simplicity of Wix is the winner here. You don’t have to worry about web hosting or installing the platform, and it is already taken care of.

The out of the box easy customisation makes it simple for anyone without previous website building experience to create something which looks reasonable.

Customising Your Website

WordPress has a vast plugin store. When you need to add a function to your site, you will typically find that someone else has tried to do it before. There will often be several different plugins for you to choose from to fit your needs.

New plugins are uploaded for WordPress every day, and they currently have over 54,000 to choose from. With so many available, you can afford to be more discerning when it comes to selecting a plugin.

If you have an issue with a plugin, there may be several alternatives which could better suit your site. The rating system on the store allows you to see how well a plugin works on other people’s websites.

Wix has its app market to allow more functionality to your site. Wix themselves and third-party developers create the apps, but there are far fewer than are available to WordPress users.

The Wix app store has over 200 of the most requested features available to its users, a number which looks rather unimpressive compared to WordPress. This could leave you wanting if you are looking to create something on your site, which is a little beyond what is found on most websites.

When it comes to the features offered by the two platforms, the apparent winner is WordPress. Its popularity means that there are far more businesses working on creating plugins and themes for the platform. This allows you a better choice and many different options when looking to add specific functionality to your site.

Wix vs WordPress Pricing

Wix does offer a free plan which carries advertising and doesn’t allow you to use your domain name. Their pricing plans start at £3 per month for their most basic service.

Though with this plan they will display their advertising on your site and you are limited to 1GB of bandwidth. It seems somewhat unfair to charge £3 per month and still have advertising though.

Wix’s packages above that level range from £6 to £18 per month if you don’t need to accept online payments. Their e-commerce packages range from £13 to £22 per month and include unlimited bandwidth and commission-free online payments.

You can install WordPress on most web hosting packages, so you are given far more choice here. If you choose to use WordPress.com, they offer free ad-supported hosting, and their ad-free packages start from £2.25 per month. Their top package contains advanced e-commerce features and costs £36 per month.

When considering price in the Wix vs WordPress comparison, WordPress seems to have the advantage of being able to pick and choose from almost any web hosting provider. Even when we consider the WordPress.com hosting it still seems somewhat better value aside from the top e-commerce package.

You can go for simple hosting for a few pounds a month to a manage WordPress service that provides WordPress Care Plans

Pros and Cons

Wix – Pros

  • Easy site creation
  • All-in-one solution
  • Dedicated support

Cons

  • Once you have selected a theme, you can’t change it
  • Can be challenging to move your site away from Wix
  • Your website may end up looking very similar to many others.
  • A limited number of apps

WordPress – Pros

  • Vast customisation options
  • Able to change hosts
  • Can easily change themes
  • Flexibility

Cons

  • Can be confusing for new users
  • Lots of different plugins to maintain

Wix vs WordPress Verdict

In the final analysis of Wix vs WordPress, it seems like WordPress is a better long term solution for most people.

It allows for more growth of your website and gives you more options when developing your site and your business. If you are looking to create a relatively simple site and want the easiest option, Wix may be the best choice.

Though the Wix platform is excellent for newcomers, it does reduce your options. Also, you can’t just move your site somewhere else as they own the template you’ve used to create your website. This leaves you having to recreate your site from scratch if you aren’t happy with their service any longer.

This system probably means that Wix holds onto their customers more than traditional hosting companies do. This is good for Wix but not so for the customer, and not an issue if you choose your hosting when you install WordPress.

Gavin Pedley

Gavin Pedley

Gavin is the guy behind the award-winning ThriveWP. He has over 18 years of experience creating, developing, hosting and managing WordPress websites.

Gavin regularly shares his expertise via the ThriveWP blog and Youtube channel, where he creates informative and helpful WordPress tutorial videos.

Connect with Gavin on FacebookLinkedin or Twitter.

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