Wix vs Shopify: an Unbiased Comparison for 2024

Comparing Wix and Shopify means putting two popular website builders head-to-head. Both platforms make it easy and fast to build a website and sell your products or services online. But which one is better for your online store? It really depends on your specific business needs.

In this blog, we are going to review Wix vs Shopify, focusing on key features like pricing, e-commerce tools, customer support, user-friendliness, and the ability to grow with your business. Each has its own advantages and drawbacks, which we discuss in detail in this review.

Wix vs Shopify: Brief Overview

At first glance, Wix and Shopify seem like very similar tools that promise to help you build a website or online store without needing coding skills.

Shopify vs. Wix features a showdown between two of the biggest names in e-commerce, and the numbers are impressive:

(Image Source: https://trends.builtwith.com/shop/traffic/Entire-Internet) 

• Shopify has more than 5.4 million users and holds a 28% share of the entire e-commerce market, making it the top platform.
• Wix Stores has over 3.7 million users and claims a 19% share of the e-commerce market, ranking second overall.

However, these two platforms were created for different purposes.

Wix was originally designed for building content-based websites, catering to users who wanted to create:

• Brochure sites
• Blogs
• Photography portfolios
• News sites

These types of websites focus on sharing information and showcasing content.

On the other hand, Shopify was specifically built to create online stores, with all its features designed for selling products.

Over the years, both Wix and Shopify have changed a lot. Wix has developed many selling features, while Shopify has improved its content management tools.

Now, you can use either platform to create a content-focused website or an online store.

Wix vs Shopify: Side-by-side Comparison

1. Ease of Use

Based on our testing, Shopify vs Wix eCommerce, for user-friendliness, we find that Wix is slightly easier to use than Shopify. However, you cannot change the Wix template, so that somehow may restrict your storefront visual. So, in the long run, we still recommend Shopify for your business.

Shopify Ease of Use

Shopify separates the dashboard from the editing system, which means you'll have to switch between the preview and the back-end to see how your site looks. This separation might take more time to set up your site just the way you want it. Moreover, Shopify also provides hundreds of attractive themes that make it easy to create a professional-looking store.

One great feature of Shopify is that you can change your theme without losing any content. Changing the style of your Shopify theme is simple and only needs a few easy steps

Please note that Shopify only has a few free options, which are still great enough, so if you choose a premium theme, you may need to pay more here.

If you're new to e-commerce builders, this helpful guide will walk you through the process to set up your Shopify store, so you'll know exactly what to do when creating your online shop.

Wix Ease of Use

Let’s take a closer look at how easy it is to use Wix. After you set up your store, you can easily build a successful Wix store without any trouble.

It is quite the same compared to Shopify, Wix’s drag-and-drop builder lets users manage everything on the front end simply by clicking on features like images, titles, and logos and dragging them wherever they want. This makes it very user-friendly, even for those without technical skills.

Wix also provides artificial intelligence tools, called Wix ADI and Wix Editor, to help you in the early stages of creating your online store.

However, there is one drawback to Wix: you can't change to a different template while keeping your store's data and design intact. This process can make using Wix feel more complicated and overwhelming compared to Shopify.

2. Themes and Templates

Both Shopify and Wix provide a variety of well-designed, responsive templates and themes to suit the needs of any store owner. Let’s compare them!

Shopify Themes and Templates

Shopify offers over 200 themes specifically designed for online stores, with prices ranging from $140 to $450. While this might seem expensive, each paid theme is both visually appealing and functional. Check out our favorite picks for the best Shopify themes to choose from.

If you want to add new elements or have an idea for a feature that could enhance your website, Shopify Liquid allows you to modify the underlying code easily. This means you can create different designs that can be freely personalized to meet your needs.

Wix Themes and Templates

Wix provides over 800 free and attractive templates for you to choose from. These eye-catching templates cover various styles and can be easily customized for selling products.

You can also elevate your store with Wix's coding language, Wix Velo.

With so many templates available, it might be challenging to pick the perfect one for your website. 

While all Wix templates are free, some exclusive and premium features may depend on your website plan. Additionally, you can't change the Wix template, which can limit how your store looks. This is a significant drawback for Wix when compared to Shopify.

3. eCommerce Features Comparison

One important aspect to consider is the e-commerce features of Wix and Shopify. Here are the features we will be examining:

Shopify vs Wix: Inventory Management

When using Shopify, we can easily track the inventory and enjoy benefits like stock alerts, automated purchase orders, year-end inventory reports, and user account management. Shopify's inventory tracking system gives a complete control and insight into the business.

Shopify also offers a range of inventory apps and setup guidance to help merchants manage their inventory more easily.

With Wix, you can connect preferred inventory methods to store using open APIs, allowing everything to sync smoothly. This means you can automatically track the quantity of certain products in stock and set the inventory status manually for each item.

However, Wix lacks some of the built-in inventory management features that Shopify offers. It can be frustrating for businesses seeking an all-in-one solution. 

While Wix allows integration with external inventory systems through APIs, it doesn't provide the same level of inventory tracking, alerts, purchase orders, and reporting that Shopify does, which could create challenges for businesses.

Shopify vs Wix: Report and Analytics

Shopify provides a variety of reporting features, which you can access by upgrading to higher plans. With Advanced Shopify or Shopify Plus, you can gain in-depth analysis using filters, in addition to the basic insights available with Basic Shopify. 

In general, Shopify's analytics and reports help merchants review their store's recent activities, understand visitor behavior, analyze store speed, and examine transactions.

On the other hand, Wix lets you customize your business reports regarding website traffic, revenue breakdowns, customer shopping habits, and conversion rates. You can choose how to view your data, tailor your reports to highlight the information that matters to you, and even create new reports from scratch.

However, Wix falls short compared to Shopify regarding the depth of its built-in analytics features, particularly in higher-tier plans. While Wix offers basic analytics, Shopify provides more advanced options like custom report creation and detailed insights on critical areas like store speed, which are essential for business growth.

4. Payment Methods

Shopify Payment

Shopify has its own payment solution called Shopify Payments (you can read the full review), which helps merchants avoid transaction fees.

Shopify Payments includes features like fraud analysis, chargeback protection, and support for multiple currencies. However, it's not available in every country, and while you can avoid transaction fees, you'll still have to pay for the credit card fees of processing, which vary based on your plan.

Shopify also charges different credit card rates for each plan when using Shopify Payments. If you choose to use other payment processors, like Stripe, 2Checkout, PayPal, or Authorize, Shopify will add an extra transaction fee (ranging from 2.5% to 0.5%, depending on your plan).

Wix Payment

Wix supports all the major payment processors, such as PayPal, Stripe, and Square, using advanced online encryption and high-security standards.

Additionally, Wix provides "Buy now, pay later" options, giving customers more financial flexibility. Businesses can use Wix to offer these pay-later choices without any extra integration fees.

Wix also has its own payment solution called Wix Payments, which can be used for processing payments both locally and internationally, depending on availability.

5. Shipping Options

Shopify Shipping Options

Shopify helps you throughout the entire shipping process, from offering free shipping to coordinating with other shipping providers. You can set up various shipping rates, such as free shipping or flat rates based on regions.

With the Advanced Shopify plan, you can access third-party calculated shipping rates, allowing you to show customers the current courier prices during checkout. In short, Shopify ensures you have the support you need for shipping.

Wix Shipping Options

On the other hand, Wix allows merchants to ship products both locally and globally. For domestic shipping, you can use standard local rates and carrier integrations. On the cart pages, you can also provide standard or priority options for international shipping.

However, for international orders, you need to calculate actual shipping costs, including cross-border fees, tariffs, and taxes, before setting prices. Additionally, Wix does not provide printable shipping labels for tracking orders or setting tax rules for each product unless your business is located in Spain, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, or the US.

6. Marketing Features

Wix is an all-in-one marketing solution that comes as a separate subscription, letting you easily manage all your marketing campaigns in one place. On the other hand, Shopify depends on third-party marketing software. While this offers a lot of flexibility, it makes it harder to compare the two platforms fairly because of the many apps available.

To make things clearer, we'll break it down into three main categories and provide an honest comparison of Wix and Shopify:

• Email Marketing
• SEO Features
• Content Marketing Features

Wix vs Shopify: Email Marketing

Shopify has a built-in email tool that helps you promote your products and share updates. You can pick from various email templates, and they are fully editable, allowing you to add your personal touch.

Within your admin panel, you can manage everything, including tracking campaign reports to evaluate how well your strategy is working.

In this comparison, Wix also offers excellent email marketing features.

With Wix, you can choose from a wide range of email templates. Additionally, you have the option to create your own custom template from scratch to send to your customers.

Wix vs Shopify: SEO Features

When comparing SEO capabilities, Shopify is generally effective and can help you rank well if used correctly. Additionally, the themes available for your online store include options for social media linking and sharing, making it easier to promote your site.

However, there are some drawbacks. Certain URLs, like those for product pages (‘/products/') and blog posts (‘/posts/'), aren't very SEO-friendly. Also, Shopify users can't modify the Robots.txt file or Sitemap, which can be frustrating.

On the positive side, Shopify has many SEO apps available to help increase your traffic.

In contrast, Wix boasts a strong set of built-in SEO features for every site. With regular adjustments to SEO settings, this platform can effectively optimize your SEO processes. All Wix sites have a robust infrastructure that meets search engine requirements, providing a solid SEO foundation for competing in organic search.

Both the Wix ADI and Wix Editor can quickly list your site on Google. Additionally, Wix gives merchants more freedom and flexibility to customize their meta tags, URL slugs, canonical tags, structured data, and more.

Wix vs Shopify: Content Marketing

Content marketing is definitely a powerful method for achieving long-term success. With this budget-friendly strategy, merchants should focus on creating ebooks, webinars, tutorial videos, and, of course, blog posts. Let’s compare how Wix and Shopify handle blogging and content management systems (CMS).

While Shopify does have blogging features, they only offer basic functions for writing posts. You might find that it lacks important features like blogging analytics, social bookmarking, and search options. Overall, if you're used to more advanced CMS platforms like WordPress, you may find Shopify’s blogging capabilities quite limited.

On the other hand, Wix makes it easy to create beautiful blogs. The main drawback is its lack of archive functionality, which would allow users to access older posts. If you’re looking for that specific feature, you might be better off using a blogging-focused platform like WordPress.

7. Apps and Integrations

Wix and Shopify both offer app stores filled with free and paid apps to enhance eCommerce for users worldwide. 

However, when it comes to the number of available apps, Shopify takes the lead with over 8,000 apps. Its extensive selection allows Shopify users to access an amount of features and tools to improve their online stores. 

Shopify Apps and Integrations

The Shopify App Store has a large amount of functions that can help you expand your store. With over 8,000 apps available (including third-party options), you can find almost anything you need for selling online, such as no-code file upload apps and tools for sending personalized push notifications.

To make it easier for users to find what they need, Shopify organizes these apps into 12 categories and 9 collections. For instance, businesses can use apps like EComposer in the Store design category to customize their Shopify web pages without any coding skills—this is just the start of the many amazing apps you can explore!

Here is a list of must-have Shopify apps you should consider for your new website!

Wix Apps and Integrations

Compared to Shopify, Wix offers a smaller selection of over 300 apps and add-ons, organized into six main categories: marketing, online selling, services and events, media & content, design elements, and communication.

Wix's top business solutions, such as Wix Stores, Bookings, and Events, provide free basic features, but you’ll need to pay extra monthly fees for premium upgrades and additional functionalities.

8. POS System

You should pay attention to point-of-sale (POS) solutions to boost sales for both your online and physical stores. Let’s look at how Wix and Shopify compare in terms of POS support.

While both Shopify POS and Wix POS offer solid solutions for retailers, we believe Shopify POS provides the best omnichannel selling experience right from the start!

Shopify POS System

(Image Source: https://www.shopify.com/pos/features)

The Shopify POS system offers excellent features for easily managing products, employees, and inventory. This point-of-sale software lets you add as many items as you like, automatically organize products, and create various product options based on materials and colors.

(Image Source: https://www.shopify.com/pos/pricing)

There are 2 pricing plans for the Shopify POS system: Shopify POS Sell in person and Shopify POS Sell everywhere. 

Shopify POS Sell in Person:

• Shopify POS Starter: $5/month, ideal for sellers at pop-up shops and markets who don’t need a complete online store.
• Shopify POS Retail: $89/month, suited for busy retail businesses with high foot traffic, large inventories, and multiple employees.

Shopify POS Sell Everywhere:

• Shopify POS Basic: $25/month
• Shopify POS Retail: $65/month
• Shopify POS Advanced: $399/month

Shopify has tested different hardware options to ensure compatibility with their POS software. Recommended hardware includes the Countertop Kit, Tap & Chip Card Reader, POS Go, and Tap to Pay on iPhone.

Wix POS System

Wix also has its own Wix POS system, but it’s not as robust as Shopify’s. Here are some basic features of Wix POS:

• Mobile and POS systems
• Integration with Wix Payments
• Acceptance of major credit cards through Wix Payments
• Includes POS software with an option to purchase hardware

However, Wix POS is only available for merchants in Canada or the US. This means that many Wix users need to set up a different POS integration instead of using Wix POS.

If your store is located in the US or Canada and operates in the bookings or events sector, Wix POS can effectively meet your in-person selling needs. The platform has strong features for managing bookings and appointments.

9. Speed and Performance

Research shows that a website should ideally load in under 3s to prevent users from leaving. When we compare loading speeds between Wix and Shopify, Shopify stands out with a faster loading time!

In this part, Shopify is slightly over Wix with a faster loading speed!

Shopify Speed and Performance

Shopify’s new web performance dashboard

It can be clearly seen that Shopify stands out as one of the best alternatives to Wix when it comes to performance. It is typically the second-fastest platform in tests. 

Mobile loading speeds are impressive, which helps keep customers engaged on your site. According to the current performance test, Shopify has an average loading time of 1.3 seconds! Clearly, Shopify outperforms Wix in terms of loading speed, which is essential for any website's success, especially in eCommerce.

Wix Speed and Performance

However, Wix offers options to enhance your site's structure and performance. They provide specific guidelines to optimize elements like your homepage, text, animations, and images. 

By following Wix's recommendations for loading times, you can maintain a speed of 85% to 90%. Additionally, you can explore Wix's best practices to further boost your site's performance.

10. Customer Support 

Shopify Customer Support 

Support is a crucial feature included with all Shopify plans, making it easy to connect with their support team. You can reach out them via email or live chat, and their support pages are offered in 21 different languages. If you're a Shopify Plus customer, you can also get phone support.

Shopify delivers excellent customer support. Like other eCommerce platforms, you can seek help from Shopify experts and fellow users in the forum or find answers in their documentation and video tutorials. The Shopify Changelog is also available for the latest updates.

You can access live support 24/7 through email, live chat, and phone via the Shopify Help Center, with typical response times of just a few minutes.

In addition to talking with support staff, you can use the Shopify Chatbot for quick answers to your questions. It can guide you through the help documentation while you wait for assistance.

Wix Customer Support 

Wix is well-known for its many helpful instructional videos. Simply hover your mouse over the question marks in the editor, and small bubbles will pop up to quickly answer your common questions.

The Wix help center is also available for all guides and blogs, it’s a worthy place to start discovering the basis before searching for Wix customer support since it’s not 24/7.

For live support, you can submit tickets and request a callback on Wix. There is always support available in English, but for other languages like French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish, support is only available during business hours.

Others also read

• Shopify vs Square: Which Platform to Pick
• Shopify vs Amazon: Which is Better for Business?
• Detailed Comparison: Pros and Cons of Shopify vs Etsy

Wix vs Shopify Pricing

To compare Wix and Shopify pricing fairly, we need to consider both options. Wix appears to be cheaper for starting a new eCommerce website. However, Shopify provides more powerful eCommerce features, making it a better fit for businesses of all sizes.

1. Free plans and trials

The main difference between Wix and Shopify in terms of pricing is that Shopify has fees for all its plans, while Wix offers a completely free option. Shopify does provide a free trial, but it's short—only 3 days. After the trial, you can pay just $1 for your first month, but this low-cost extension might not be available forever.

Wix’s free plan is quite limited; you can't sell products, connect a custom domain, and it includes unavoidable Wix ads. However, it does allow you to explore the platform and see whether or not if it fits your needs.

To fully benefit from Wix, you'll need to choose a premium plan, which leads us to the next point.

2. Wix Pricing Plan

Wix offers five pricing plans:

• Light — $17 per month
• Core — $29 per month
• Business — $36 per month
• Business Elite — $159 per month
• Enterprise — negotiable pricing

Here are the key differences to note among the Wix premium plans:

• Storage Space: The amount of storage for text, videos, and images varies by plan, with higher-priced plans offering more.
• Access to Apps: The 'Core' plan and above include the 'Events Calendar' app and the SEO app 'Get Found Today' with your subscription.
• Forms: More expensive plans allow you to create more data capture forms with additional fields.
• Ecommerce Features: The 'Light' plan does not offer eCommerce capabilities, while higher-tier plans provide enhanced selling functions, like better tax calculations and dropshipping options.
• Support: Priority support is only available with the 'VIP Business Elite' and 'Enterprise' plans.

The 'Core' and 'Business' plans are often seen as the best value, as they offer a good balance of features for basic brochure websites or online stores.

Regarding the 'Wix Enterprise' plan, it is designed for larger corporate users and offers more personalized support and access to consultants. Pricing for this plan is flexible and based on specific requirements.

3. Shopify Pricing Plan

(Image Source: https://www.shopify.com/pricing) 

Shopify has five monthly pricing plans:

• Shopify Starter — $5 per month
• Basic Shopify — $25 per month
• Shopify — $65 per month
• Advanced Shopify — $399 per month
• Shopify Plus — starting at $2,300 per month

Shopify offers a free trial that will be in just 3 days, which is shorter than many other eCommerce platforms that offer 7 to 14 days. However, there is a promotion allowing you to extend this trial to 1 month for only $1, which you can find online.

You can also save on Shopify costs through its ‘credits’ system, allowing you to apply 1% of your sales toward your subscription. This program is in trial mode and may vary by location. Additionally, if you pay for a year upfront, you can save 25% on your subscription. For instance, the annual prices for the ‘Basic,’ ‘Shopify,’ and ‘Advanced’ plans are $29, $79, and $299, respectively.

The features available depend on the plan you choose. Here are some key differences:

• The Starter plan doesn’t allow for a fully customizable online store; it offers a basic storefront with limited customization. You can sell on social media channels like Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, as well as in-person at a point of sale.
• User access varies: the Starter and Basic plans allow one user, the Shopify plan allows five users, and the Advanced Shopify plan supports up to 15 users.
• Credit card and transaction fees decrease with higher-priced plans.
• Better shipping discounts are available on the Shopify plan and above, while real-time carrier shipping is exclusive to the Advanced plan and higher.
• The Advanced plan offers features for international selling, including estimating and collecting duties and import taxes.
• The Shopify Plus plan is tailored for larger businesses, featuring advanced security, APIs, improved server uptime, task automation, and dedicated support.

Here’s a brief comparison:

• Entry Level: Shopify Starter is much cheaper than Wix's entry-level paid plan but offers limited features, mainly focused on social selling.
• Basic eCommerce: Wix's Core plan is a little bit cheaper than Shopify's Basic plan while providing similar features for starting an online store.
• Scaling Up: Shopify's higher pricing plans are generally more expensive than Wix's, but they offer more robust features and better scalability for growing businesses.

Wix vs Shopify: Pros and Cons

If you’ve looked at all the features mentioned above and are still unsure, this table comparing the pros and cons of Shopify versus Wix might help you make a decision.

For more details on the advantages and disadvantages of Shopify, click the link to learn more.

The Verdict

When comparing Wix vs Shopify, the right choice depends on your website's purpose. 

Shopify is one of the top e-commerce platforms if you're looking for a powerful online store with many features and the ability to grow. Although Shopify's plans can be expensive, the investment is worth it due to its built-in e-commerce features and over 8,000 third-party integrations.

On the other hand, Wix is a better option if you want a website builder focused on content, with basic e-commerce capabilities. Wix offers budget-friendly plans, greater design flexibility, and is very easy to use.

FAQs

1. Is it better to use Wix or Shopify?

The choice between Wix and Shopify depends on your specific needs. 

• Shopify is for serious e-commerce, offering robust features and scalability.
• Wix is better for content-focused websites with basic e-commerce. 

2. What can Shopify do that Wix can't?

Shopify offers several key features that Wix doesn't, including:

• Dedicated e-commerce features: Product variants, inventory management, shipping integrations, and tax calculations.
• Payment processing: Shopify Payments.
• Point of sale (POS) systems: Hardware & software for in person sales.

3. Can I use Shopify with Wix?

While you cannot directly use Shopify with Wix, there are workarounds:

• Use an iframe to embed your Shopify store into a Wix website.
• Some apps can help integrate Shopify and Wix, but they may have limitations.

All in all, the best choice will be based on your needs and technical expertise.