Making sure that your business has web presence is a critical part of building your brand. In order to build your brand effectively, you need a site that communicates your message clearly. It’s not just about words, but the design as well.

If your site is easy to navigate, prospective clients understand that it is much easier to work with your business than a competitor. This is an implied advantage derived from a positive first impression.

You understand that the question is not should you have a website, but should you use Wix or WordPress to build your site? The good news is both site builders offer different advantages for different businesses. As you read through the review, you will begin to see the site building platform that will help you decide the winner between Wix vs. WordPress.

Review Information

Before starting on the review, it is important to know the criteria upon which the comparison between Wix and WordPress will be based on. Whether you have lots of computer expertise or this is your first time dealing with creating a website, it is important to know exactly what you’re getting into when you weigh the difference between Wix and WordPress for your business.

The WordPress vs. Wix debate will be broken down into six different sections. These sections will help you better understand exactly which way is ideal for you to resolve the Wix versus WordPress question.

Editor

The editor is where all the magic happens. In terms of contrasts, this is where the biggest differences are found. What you will notice is that WordPress is in many ways more involved and intricate than Wix. These differences show up in the editing and building of the site.

Wix

Wix has an easy platform to learn and you don’t have to spend time studying up on the different aspects of how the editor works. There bottom line is with Wix, if you have experience with MS

Word or other Office software like PowerPoint, you’ll have an easy time with the drag-and-drop nature of the elements.

Wix uses the same drag-and-drop procedures to build pages. Basically, a page comes as a template and you change out the elements as you see fit. You can add text boxes, pictures, places for embedded video, etc. Editing works the same way; simply click on the element and get to work. The editor saves the work you do as you go and won’t publish it until you hit the button.

The bottom line with the editor is this: If you are looking to have an easy time changing out elements to your site, then Wix is the obvious choice. Businesses that are looking to create a site without many frills will be drawn to Wix because of the editor’s ease of use.

WordPress

WordPress is not so succinct. Thanks to the recent launch of the Gutenberg block-based editor, many WordPress aficionados are not as thrilled with its usability. There are some issues with the visual layout of the page along with what you can preview and switching between the editor and the published view can be tedious – especially to folks just starting out in WordPress.

The other difference is the WordPress work is done “off-site” in a sense. You will notice that creating something like a form is done with a plug-in and once you use the plug-in, a short code is generated to embed into the page. While this makes the editing at the end a bit easier and allows you greater flexibility, if you’re new to WordPress, this will take time to master.

However, when you look at all the things that can be done in the WordPress editor, it is easy to see why many developers enjoy this site builder. You have full control over everything that’s being done and can develop a site that works exactly how you want it.

If you are willing to take the time to learn the ins and outs of the WordPress editor, then this is the builder for you.

Open And Closed CMS

There is a major difference between having an open and closed CMS. The closed CMS only allows certain programs to work within the site builder while an open CMS allows anyone to develop a plug-in and bring it to the market. Think of it like Apple and Android with phones – there are lots of proprietary controls on developing an App for the App store, but with Android, there are less restrictions, so it is easy to develop tools for that platform.

Wix

Wix is very user-friendly because the App Market is curated. Wix has some safeguards built in to give you the tools you need without overwhelming you. The bottom line is if you are looking for an app to do a certain function, you will find it in the Wix App Market. Because the market is curated, you don’t have to worry about the app not working quite right on your site.

Wix also offers the same functionality with the themes. These are all pre-fabricated and are designed to work with whatever apps and elements you wish to add. There’s no need to ever deal with code and you can see what you’re doing and how it looks in real time.

There are even some options where you can design your own theme through the visual theme editor. This gives you a great level of control while also keeping you from getting lost in areas that you’re not familiar with.

The only time you may need outside help with Wix is if you are trying to do something a bit unusual. However, there is support for nearly every type of action you seek to undertake on your site. Wix is designed for the amateur user to build a site and the closed CMS ensures that all the tools available for site builders are fully vetted.

Wix is designed to be more straightforward and take the guesswork out of site building. You can choose among the different plug-ins and themes, and at the App Market, you can find additional items that will make building your site much easier. The closed system is curated by developers, so only the tools that work best with Wix designs are available, making this closed CMS user-friendly.

WordPress

If you are interested in learning the ins and outs of designing a WordPress site, then exploring the apps and plug-ins on WordPress.org and themes on Themeforest will be a great rabbit hole to fall into. No site builder offers the level of customization found with WordPress.

The problem arises with all of the different options. The reality is WordPress is quite confusing at times and the techy nature of the plug-ins makes it difficult for new users to learn and apply. The other problem is the wide range of options. There are many different choices and the selection can be intimidating to new users. The other issue comes from how plug-ins and themes may not work quite the way the developer intends. That’s why it is important to read reviews and learn about the potential bugs in these options.

Solving the problem with these WordPress plug-ins is daunting if you don’t have the ability to fix the improper code. For someone new to WordPress, it is very important to find blogs that recommend different plug-ins and learn about them from people who are experts. This will help you sort through all the options. Though WordPress offers much in terms of flexibility, there are many cases where too many choices just don’t work out.

Features

Not all sites have the same requirements for what site visitors need. Whether you are dealing with an open or closed CMS, the goal is to get the features needed so that your site effectively communicates unspoken messages of reliability to customers.

An example of a feature found on both platforms is a photo gallery. It’s simple – you upload photos and the gallery scrolls them. Having this feature is essential for any type of website developer. It is one of the critical ways for a business to showcase what they do and how well they do it.

Photos of happy customers provide more credibility to a business’s work than do reviews. Therefore, it is important to know exactly what types of features you need embedded into the different elements on your site.

Wix

What most people who build sites with Wix notice is that everything that is offered is going to fulfill nearly every need a site developer like you would have. The good news is the features covered in Wix include ecommerce systems, SEO help, and several other options, making your site run smoothly and look incredibly professional.

The reason why folks choose Wix is because most of the time websites are not trying to do something too crazy to capture customers. For example, a hardware store would not need to have an extensive database collection. Having simple features like contact forms and photo galleries are a great way to show off the selection in the store.

What you get with Wix is features within elements that do what is needed, no more or less. The uncomplicated nature of these elements is something most non-techie site builders appreciate.

WordPress

This is where WordPress shines – there are solutions to every type of feature. Many developers take what a feature can do and expand it. These plug-ins can make your site look innovating and cutting edge. When the expectation from your customers is that you deliver cutting edge services, then using the different features in WordPress is a great way to deliver this unspoken message.

Here’s are some plug-ins that WordPress developed features with:

• bbPress allows you to add discussion forums to your site and integrates them with the WordPress user system to make it easier to moderate discussions.
• Buddypress makes your website become a social network.
• Yoast SEO is very helpful with creating the proper SEO formula for your page. This plug-in is popular because it’s one of WordPress’s most user-friendly solutions.
• Advanced Custom Fields makes the creation of databases simple so you can act.

As you can see, there are a lot of ways that WordPress makes basic features that are much more easy to utilize for your site. So, if you are building a site that needs to be specialized, then WordPress is the way to go even if you have a learning curve that’s not as easy to navigate.

Themes

When it comes to how your site looks, appearances matter. Having a unified appearance across all pages leads to greater cohesion and positive impressions from your users. This results in greater click-through rates along with conversions.

Wix

With Wix, there is no need to ever mess with code to change out elements in a theme. That’s the good news – the bad news is your selection is not nearly as large as some may like. This is due to the design of the themes having to work universally across Wix’s different designs.

Customizing your themes is also very important and both site builders offer tools. Wix allows you to grab and move different elements on a page. You can change elements and delete ones you don’t want. Everything is saved as you work, so customizing in a pinch isn’t difficult.

WordPress

For themes, you will notice that WordPress once again has a larger selection. With more than 11,000 themes, it is clear you can find any type of theme for a site via WordPress. Wix is no slouch though, with more than 500 themes, it is easy to find a proper look for your site to stand out. What makes the themes different is how you can customize them to fit your business.

WordPress does have more themes, but with the greater selection also comes an increase in compatibility issues. You will need to resolve these issues with code, and for novice site builders, that can be quite difficult. This is another way in which WordPress offers greater flexibility, but you also need to know what you’re doing to leverage it effectively.

WordPress uses a tool called Customizer. This tool is where you can edit the theme and get different options. One of the best things to do is clicking the different elements. The clicking shows the different options for style along with helping you adjust as needed.

Pricing

For many site builders like you, cost is an inescapable reality. Since both site builders offer a variety of services, you can easily find a bunch of options that can take your site to the next level.

Wix

In the case of Wix, you will notice that everything you need comes in a single package. This includes hosting services, themes, customer support, apps, and ecommerce support. The pricing depends on how you would like to individualize your site. For example, if you have a dedicated domain, that will cost more.

The other area that Wix charges is in the App Market. Some apps are free, but not all.

WordPress

WordPress starts out free, but them it could get a bit pricey. The basic WordPress set up is free. There are some WordPress hosts that can charge a monthly fee. This varies though.

What doesn’t vary is that often you will pay for themes. You should be prepared to spend for a WordPress site. A good theme can run for roughly $40 or more. The good news is some WordPress developers have free plug-ins.

WordPress also has plug-ins that help with ecommerce. You can get a plug-in helping you properly set up shipping rates, for example. This is just one of the many ways that WordPress gives you a plethora of extra tools.

Customer Service

For people who are new to the site building endeavor, it is important to know you have experienced hands helping you get through the growing pains. Regardless of how the support is delivered, it is appreciated by customers.

Wix

Wix offers phone, chat, and e-mail customer support with every one of their packages. However, if you are willing to pay a little more, you can get VIP Support. The difference is with VIP Support you don’t spend time in a queue, instead you get support right away.

WordPress

The open source nature of WordPress means there is no dedicated customer support structure. That said, there are many folks who create the plug-ins that are willing to give you support. This helps the developer get a good review on the marketplace and allows them to fix any bugs in their plug-in.

Conclusion

Declaring a winner in the question of Wix vs. WordPress is difficult because both site builders offer a lot to the people who are using them. If you are not interested in a site that does a bunch of things, then Wix is perfect for you, but if you want to learn how to build an incredible site, then WordPress is the way to go.

However, a verdict must be reached, and the recommendation is Wix. This no-nonsense site builder provides their customers with incredible support and a wide selection. Instead of having to develop a site, everything is on a plate for you, so all you need to do is set up the site and get back to helping customers.