What Should I Build My Website On? Wix, Shopify, or WordPress Explained

Choosing the right platform for your website can make or break your online presence. You're standing at a crossroads, looking at three of the most popular options: Wix, Shopify, and WordPress + WooCommerce. Each platform promises to deliver a stunning website, but they're built for different purposes and different people.

If you're a small business owner, entrepreneur, retailer, or content creator, this decision matters more than you might think. The platform you choose today will impact your site's performance, your ability to scale, and how much time and money you'll invest in maintaining your digital presence.

Wix attracts users with its drag-and-drop simplicity and beginner-friendly interface. Shopify dominates the e-commerce space with powerful sales tools and inventory management built right in. WordPress + WooCommerce offers unmatched flexibility and customization for those willing to climb a steeper learning curve.

This article breaks down the features, pros and cons, and real-world use cases for each platform. You'll discover which website builder aligns with your technical skills, budget constraints, and business goals. By the end, you'll have the clarity you need to make a confident decision about where to build your digital home.

Understanding Your Website Needs

Before you commit to any platform, you need clarity on what you're actually building. Your website goals will dictate which builder makes the most sense for your business.

Identify Your Specific Requirements

Here are some common website goals and their corresponding needs:

• E-commerce: If you're launching an online store, you'll require features like advanced inventory management and a seamless checkout process.
• Content Management: For those planning to publish regular articles, tutorials, or multimedia content, strong content management capabilities are essential.
• Portfolio Showcase: Building a portfolio to showcase your work will have different requirements compared to someone selling physical products.

Consider Your Technical Comfort Level

Your technical comfort level matters just as much as your business goals. Assess your skills and resources:

• No Coding Experience: If you've never touched code and don't plan to learn, opt for a user-friendly platform that allows easy customization without technical knowledge.
• Development Resources: If you have access to developers or possess coding skills, consider platforms that offer flexibility and control over design elements.

Plan for Future Growth

Scalability is crucial for long-term success. Think about your growth plans:

• Starting with 20 products but aiming to expand to 2,000?
• Need to add membership features or multi-language support in the future?

Choose a platform that can accommodate these changes and grow alongside your business.

Evaluate Your Budget

When considering budget, look beyond just the monthly subscription fee. Take into account:

1. Hosting costs
2. Premium themes
3. Plugins
4. Transaction fees
5. Potential developer hours

It's important to calculate the total cost of ownership for each platform option. A $29/month platform might actually cost you $150/month once you factor in all the additional expenses required to run your website professionally.

Overview of the Three Platforms

Before diving into detailed comparisons, you need to understand what sets each platform apart at its core.

Wix Overview

Wix operates as an all-in-one website builder designed with simplicity in mind. You get a visual drag-and-drop editor that lets you place elements exactly where you want them on the page—no coding knowledge required. The platform handles hosting, security, and technical infrastructure automatically. You can launch a professional-looking site within hours using their extensive template library or let their AI assistant (Wix ADI) build a customized site based on your answers to a few questions. Wix works well for service businesses, portfolios, small online stores, and anyone who values ease of use above all else.

Shopify Overview

Shopify exists specifically for selling products online. From day one, you get built-in shopping cart functionality, secure payment processing, inventory tracking, and shipping integrations. The platform connects seamlessly with social media channels, Amazon, and other marketplaces so you can sell everywhere your customers shop. Shopify handles the complex technical requirements of running an online store—from PCI compliance to abandoned cart recovery—letting you focus on growing your business rather than maintaining infrastructure.

WordPress + WooCommerce Overview

WordPress powers over 40% of all websites on the internet, offering unmatched flexibility through its open-source architecture. When you add the WooCommerce plugin, you transform WordPress into a powerful e-commerce platform. You maintain complete control over every aspect of your site's design, functionality, and data. The combination excels at content-rich websites that also need e-commerce capabilities—think blogs with product lines, membership sites, or media-heavy brands. You'll find thousands of themes and plugins to extend functionality, plus the ability to hire developers for custom features that match your exact specifications.

Wix: Pros and Cons

Wix positions itself as the accessible entry point for anyone wanting to build a professional-looking website without touching code. The platform's drag-and-drop interface lets you place elements exactly where you want them, making it feel like designing in a visual editor rather than building a website. With over 2,000 templates spanning industries from photography portfolios to restaurant sites, you'll find starting points that match your vision.

Pros of Using Wix

The advantages stack up quickly:

• Pricing flexibility – Plans range from $17 to $159 per month, making it budget-friendly for startups and small businesses
• AI-powered setup – Wix ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence) can generate a customized site based on your answers to a few questions
• Mobile responsiveness – Your site automatically adapts to different screen sizes without extra work
• E-commerce capability – Support for up to 50,000 products handles most small to medium retail operations
• SEO guidance – Built-in tools and personalized checklists walk you through optimization steps
• Support ecosystem – Live chat assistance and an app marketplace with roughly 800 apps extend functionality

Cons of Using Wix

The limitations become apparent as you scale:

Wix features work beautifully for straightforward websites, but the platform shows its constraints when you need advanced e-commerce functionality. You won't find the sophisticated inventory management or multi-channel selling tools that dedicated platforms offer. Developers face restricted customization options compared to open-source alternatives. Using external payment gateways triggers transaction fees that eat into your margins. When comparing website platforms, Wix pricing plans deliver value for simplicity-focused projects, but complex stores quickly outgrow what the platform can handle efficiently.

Shopify: Pros and Cons

When you're serious about selling products online, Shopify features make it the go-to e-commerce platform for businesses at any stage. I've worked with clients who started on Shopify as solo entrepreneurs and scaled to multi-million dollar operations without switching platforms—that's the power of choosing a dedicated e-commerce solution.

The Advantages of Building on Shopify:

• Built-in payment processing: eliminates the hassle of third-party integrations, with Shopify Payments handling transactions seamlessly
• Inventory management: tools track stock levels across multiple locations and sales channels automatically
• Multi-channel selling: connects your store to Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, and other marketplaces from one dashboard
• Fraud protection: analyzes orders in real-time, flagging suspicious transactions before they become problems
• Scalability: supports everything from your first sale to enterprise-level operations handling thousands of daily orders
• 200+ professionally designed themes: give your store a polished look without hiring a designer
• 8,000+ apps: extend functionality for email marketing, customer reviews, subscriptions, and specialized features
• Strong SEO capabilities: combined with marketing integrations help you attract and convert customers

Where Shopify Falls Short:

The e-commerce platform benefits come at a cost. Monthly fees start at $29 but climb to $299 for advanced features, plus transaction fees ranging from 0.5% to 2% unless you use Shopify Payments exclusively. If you're building a content-heavy blog or portfolio site, Shopify's blogging capabilities feel limited compared to content-focused platforms. The learning curve exists—you'll need time to master the admin interface, customize themes, and optimize your store settings.

WordPress + WooCommerce: Pros and Cons

WordPress powers over 40% of all websites globally, and when paired with WooCommerce, it becomes a powerhouse for businesses that need complete control over their digital presence. This combination gives you access to unmatched WordPress customization options that neither Wix nor Shopify can match.

The Advantages of WordPress + WooCommerce

1. Unlimited Design Freedom

You're not locked into templates or platform restrictions. With thousands of themes and plugins available, you can build exactly what you envision. Need a custom checkout flow? Want to integrate specialized membership features? WordPress customization makes it possible through code-level access.

2. SEO Dominance

Plugins like Yoast SEO and Rank Math give you granular control over every SEO element. You can optimize meta descriptions, schema markup, XML sitemaps, and content readability scores. This level of SEO control helps you rank higher in search results compared to closed platforms.

3. Content-First Approach

If your business relies on blogging, video content, or educational resources alongside product sales, WordPress excels. The platform was built for content management, making it ideal for businesses that use content marketing to drive sales.

4. Advanced WooCommerce Features

The plugin supports unlimited products, complex product variations, subscription models, membership areas, and advanced shipping calculations. You can sell physical products, digital downloads, bookings, and services all from one platform.

The Challenges You'll Face

1. Technical Expertise Required

WordPress demands more technical knowledge than drag-and-drop builders. You'll need to understand hosting environments, security protocols, plugin compatibility, and regular updates. Many businesses hire developers or partner with agencies like The Virtual Connection to handle the technical complexity.

2. Ongoing Investment

Hosting costs range from $10-$100+ monthly depending on traffic and performance needs. Premium themes cost $50-$200, while essential plugins add another $100-$500 annually. Budget for security monitoring, backups, and maintenance work.

How to Choose the Right Website Builder For Your Business

Selecting the best CMS for small business starts with aligning platform strengths to your specific objectives. If you're launching an online store with plans to scale rapidly, Shopify's dedicated e-commerce infrastructure makes sense. Running a portfolio site or local service business? Wix delivers the simplicity you need without unnecessary complexity. Planning a content-heavy site with advanced SEO requirements? WordPress + WooCommerce gives you that power.

Your budget shapes every decision in this website platforms comparison. Calculate the true cost beyond advertised monthly fees—factor in domain registration, SSL certificates, premium themes, essential apps, and payment processing fees. Wix might show $17/month, but you'll likely need apps and upgrades. Shopify's $29 plan excludes transaction fees unless you use Shopify Payments. WordPress hosting starts around $10-30/month, but premium plugins and themes add up quickly.

Platform selection criteria must include your technical capabilities. Can you troubleshoot issues independently, or do you need 24/7 support? Wix offers live chat assistance. Shopify provides extensive documentation and community forums. WordPress requires more self-reliance or access to developers who understand PHP, databases, and server configurations.

Scalability determines whether you'll outgrow your platform in two years. Will you need membership areas, multiple languages, complex product variations, or custom integrations? These requirements push you toward WordPress or Shopify's higher tiers.

The right digital services partner transforms this decision from overwhelming to strategic. At The Virtual Connection, we've spent 30+ years helping businesses choose website builders that match their growth trajectory—then building, optimizing, and maintaining those platforms so you can focus on running your business.

Conclusion & Next Steps

Choosing the right platform to build your website isn't a decision you should rush. You've seen how Wix, Shopify, and WordPress each bring different strengths to the table. The key is matching those strengths to your specific business needs, technical comfort level, and growth trajectory.

Take time to honestly assess where you are right now and where you want to be in two years. A simple portfolio site has different requirements than a growing e-commerce store planning to scale to thousands of products. Your budget matters, but so does the cost of choosing wrong—migrating platforms later can be expensive and time-consuming.

You might feel confident tackling a Wix site on your own, or you might realize that your vision requires the customization power of WordPress with expert implementation. There's no shame in admitting you need help. The smartest business owners recognize when to bring in specialists who can execute faster and better than they could alone.

The Virtual Connection brings over 30 years of web design and development experience to businesses exactly like yours. We've built everything from streamlined brand websites to complex, scalable platforms that integrate multiple systems. Our team doesn't just build your site and disappear—we become your long-term digital partner, helping you adapt as your business evolves.

Whether you need a complete website platforms comparison tailored to your specific situation, expert web design help to bring your vision to life, or ongoing support to keep your site performing at its peak, we're here to guide you through every step.

Ready to Make the Right Choice?

Stop second-guessing which platform is right for your business. Book a build website consultation with our team today. We'll review your goals, budget, and technical needs to recommend the best path forward—and we'll be there to execute it with you.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

What are the main differences between Wix, Shopify, and WordPress for small business websites?

Wix is a beginner-friendly drag-and-drop website builder ideal for small businesses and creatives seeking easy setup with over 2,000 templates and simple e-commerce support. Shopify is a dedicated e-commerce platform focused on scalable online stores with built-in payment processing, inventory management, and multi-channel selling. WordPress combined with WooCommerce offers unlimited customization and strong SEO capabilities, perfect for content-driven sites but requires higher technical knowledge or developer support.

How do I determine which website builder is best for my business needs?

To choose the right website builder, assess your primary website goals such as whether you need an online store, portfolio, or blog. Consider your technical skill level, budget including setup and ongoing costs, scalability requirements for future growth, and the availability of developer support. Matching these factors with platform strengths—Shopify for e-commerce growth, Wix for simple sites, or WordPress for content-rich flexibility—will guide your decision.

What are the pros and cons of using Wix for my small business website?

Wix offers an easy drag-and-drop interface with AI-assisted setup (Wix ADI), mobile optimization, affordable pricing ($17-$159/month), and a large app marketplace (~800 apps). It's suitable for beginners with simple e-commerce needs up to 50k products. However, Wix has less advanced e-commerce features compared to Shopify, limited scalability for complex stores, fewer customization options for developers, and transaction fees when using external payment gateways.

Why is Shopify considered a strong choice for e-commerce businesses?

Shopify is built specifically for e-commerce with features like built-in payment processing, inventory management, fraud protection, and multi-channel selling across social media and marketplaces like Amazon. It offers high scalability from startups to enterprises with over 8,000 apps to extend functionality and strong SEO capabilities integrated with marketing tools. The platform supports over 200 modern themes designed to optimize online sales.

What should I know about WordPress + WooCommerce before choosing it as my website platform?

WordPress combined with WooCommerce provides unlimited customization through themes, plugins, and custom coding. It's excellent for content-driven websites like blogs or multimedia sites and offers strong SEO capabilities via plugins like Yoast or Rank Math. While highly scalable with advanced product options and membership areas, it requires higher technical knowledge or hiring developers. Additionally, ongoing costs include hosting plus potential premium themes or plugins.

How can The Virtual Connection assist me in selecting and building the right website platform?

The Virtual Connection offers expert digital services tailored to growth-oriented businesses including design and development consultation. They help clients evaluate priorities such as budget, technical skills, scalability needs, and match these with the best platform choice—whether Wix, Shopify, or WordPress. Their comprehensive services ensure reliable support throughout the website building process. You can book a consultation through their contact page to get personalized guidance.