Wix vs. Shopify has been debated by online merchants for years. Indeed, choosing either Wix or Shopify will have a major impact on how your online store operates and shouldn’t be taken lightly!
Despite both being popular eCommerce platforms, both Wix and Shopify are fundamentally quite different and should be compared very carefully before choosing which is best for your own business. To that end, here’s a closer look at both platforms, specifically their pros and cons and how they stack up against each other in ten crucial areas, such as customization, SEO, pricing and more!
What is Wix?
Wix is an Israeli cloud-based platform founded in 2006 to help people build websites free of charge. Its “drag and drop” tools are currently being used by approximately 154 million registered users worldwide to create websites, with an average of 45,000 new account signups daily. It’s known for its unique design and eCommerce features available with Wix eCommerce that allow users to create custom-made websites within a short period of time.
While creating accounts and building websites are free to do, you’ll need to settle on a pricing plan before you can launch your website on Wix. The platform also offers users free domain names for one year.
What is Shopify?
Shopify, one of the most popular eCommerce platforms out there today, is a Canadian eCommerce platform founded in 2004. Over the years, its helped over 800,000 businesses establish their presence on the web through their easy-to-build online stores. Shopify is currently used in approximately 175 countries, making it global in scope.
With a Shopify account, you can access your own dedicated cloud-based eCommerce site, domain name, unlimited storage and SSL certificate.
What’s the Difference Between Shopify and Wix?
While Shopify is specifically dedicated eCommerce platform with full-range of built-in support for online merchants, Wix is actually a free website builder that requires the use of Wix eCommerce to create an online store for your business.
Wix Pros and Cons
Before making a decision on whether to use Shopify or Wix for eCommerce, here are some of the pros and cons of Wix to consider!
Wix Pros
- Simple editing interface
- Affordable eCommerce plans
- Availability of useful apps
- Easy to use, especially for beginners
Wix Cons
- Limited scalability
- Limited support
Shopify Pros and Cons
Below are some of the Shopify pros and cons you should know about before opting for this eCommerce platform!
Shopify Pros
- Robust customer support
- Over 100 payment options
- Wide array of eCommerce tools available
Shopify Cons
- May be too expensive for some merchants
- Limited customization options
Wix vs. Shopify
Apart from the basic pros and cons of these platforms, there are many other factors that should be considered too, including customization, marketing, ease of use, payment options and others. Before you make a final decision between either Wix or Shopify, it’s important to understand how they compare to each other. To that end, here’s how they stack up against each other in ten critical areas!
1. Customization
Shopify offers its users over 60 modern, trendy and responsive themes, both free and paid, that are easily customizable. With its live editor, you can even tweak the themes to blend with your specific products.
Wix, on the other hand, offers 60 free themes which are also modern and sleek. The only major downside is that these themes are not responsive, so customization takes more time and knowledge to carry out.
Verdict:
Shopify takes this round on customization thanks to its superior flexibility. Wix is strong in its own right in this regard, but can’t top Shopify overall.
2. Ease of Use
When it comes to choosing between Wix vs. Shopify, ease of use should also be considered.
Although Shopify might not be the easiest to use, its user experience is highly-rated and it takes just a few clicks to set up a store, especially with the availability of helpful tutorials.
Wix also fairs highly in this area, as it offers more basic online stores and, with its Wix ADI, you can even get a ready-made store within a few seconds. They also offer easy-to-understand guides and tutorials.
Verdict:
The winner here is Wix thanks to its lower learning curve and outstanding support for users in this area.
3. Marketing Features
Marketing your products on a Shopify store requires the use of multiple third-party apps, offering lots of flexibility but also making the marketing process somewhat disjointed.
Wix, however, offers its users an all-in-one marketing solution called Wix Ascend. Although available as a separate subscription, you’re able to effectively manage your marketing efforts without jumping from one platform to the other.
For social media integration, email campaigns, SEO and blogging, both Wix and Shopify offer solid options, but Wix holds the edge in these regards.
Verdict:
Wix is the winner here. With the platform offering users an all-in-one marketing tool like Wix Ascend, marketing campaigns take less time and effort to carry out.
4. Sales Features
In this aspect, whether you sell digital or physical products or actual services, both platforms come with distinctive features that improve sales. From product presentation to proper inventory management to abandoned cart recovery, both are strong in their own right.
Shopify allows unlimited variants of product images in order to further appeal to customers, while Wix offers built-in product video functions to improve the customer experience. You can also add zoom effects to listed products.
With its multiple payment options and effective shipping options and operations, Shopify also never leaves users stranded.
Verdict:
Shopify takes this one narrowly, though is especially great for online merchants with larger, more complex stores. For those with minimal orders, Wix can also work well.
5. Payment Options
Both Shopify and Wix offer users many options when it comes to payment for goods and services.
Whether you choose to go with Shopify or Wix for eCommerce, there are hundreds of payment gateways supported by both. From credit cards to PayPal, Moolah, Stripe, Square, POS, Apple Pay and other options, both platforms are great in this regard.
Verdict:
Ultimately, Shopify has more options and thus wins this round.
6. SEO Capabilities
Both platforms offer users solid SEO support overall.
Both Wix and Shopify offer the ability to modify page headings, product descriptions, page titles, alt text and lots more. Sitemaps are available to enable users to effectively track their store’s conversions on social media.
Both Wix and Shopify offer the ability to add extensions to URLs, and while Shopify automatically helps you create a redirect after a modification, Wix will only send you a reminder to create a redirect.
Verdict:
Both eCommerce platforms are solid in this area, though Wix offers more robust SEO support overall.
7. Page Speed
A variety of tests carried out showed that both platforms load at different speeds.
For example, with a GTmetrix test, Shopify scored 92 percent while Wix scored 65 percent. With a Pingdom test, Shopify scored 85 percent while Wix scored 82 percent. The total loading time for Shopify was one to four seconds while that of Wix was up to nine seconds.
Verdict:
Shopify clearly wins this round, offering faster load times and overall page speed - especially critical given the rapid growth of mobile eCommerce.
8. Courier Integration and Shipping Settings
Both platforms offer users a wide range of options when it comes to courier integration and shipping settings.
Wix and Shopify both offer free shipping on certain goods, flat rates, weight-based rates and specific shipping rules. While Shopify offers you the option of printing and buying labels, Wix does not. Shopify also offers real-time shipping using FedEx, USPS and UPS, another feature Wix lacks. It also offers dropshipping through Rakuten and Shipwire while Wix doesn’t.
Verdict:
While Wix has improved a lot recently in this regard, it’s still no match for Shopify overall when it comes to shipping.
9. Support
When choosing between Wix or Shopify, support should also be taken into account. The two eCommerce platforms do indeed offer users support, but in different ways.
For example, Shopify offers round-the-clock support through email, chat and phone. They also publish tutorials and frequent blog posts which are very informative for their large, global community.
Wix, on the other hand, offers support through phone and forums, limited strictly to business hours. However, it also offers great tutorials and insightful blog posts.
Verdict:
Shopify wins here. Not only is their support highly-rated, it can be accessed through more channels and more frequently.
10. Pricing
Finally, pricing is another key component in the Wix vs. Shopify debate.
Apart from its Lite Plan, which costs $9.00 per month, Shopify’s Basic Plans start at $26.00 per month.
Wix eCommerce pricing, however, starts at $23.00 per month.
It should also be noted that on Shopify, you must pay fees on all your transactions no matter the plan with the exception of Shopify Payments, while Wix does not charge such fees. Shopify also limits staff accounts, while Wix doesn’t.
Verdict:
Although Shopify offers more plans than Wix, its hidden costs and transaction fees can add up fast. Wix wins this round with its simpler pricing structure.
Wix vs. Shopify: Choose the Platform That Suits You
When it comes to choosing Shopify or Wix, it’s important to weigh both eCommerce platforms carefully to choose which is best for your business.
If you’re looking into dropshipping, need advanced features for your online store and a large number of payment gateways, Shopify is probably for you. If you’re an eCommerce beginner who likes simplicity, Wix is likely your best bet.
Fortunately, Easyship integrates with Shopify to help online merchants ship worldwide seamlessly. Sign up today to make your eCommerce aspirations a reality!
