Shopify vs Wix – Which is an Ideal Platform For Your Website? 

Written By:Callum
Last Updated: January 02, 2024
Reading Time: 5 minutes

Shopify has around 4.4 million active websites globally, whereas Wix has over 10.8 million, with 8.5 million live, showcasing the use of two of the most popular website-building platforms.

But which is an ideal platform for your website?

Selecting the correct platform for your brand’s website is essential as it evaluates its success. Shopify and Wix are the two most used website platforms that cater to different needs.

Wix is a versatile website builder that allows users to create websites using a drag-and-drop interface and is suitable for various website types, from simple blogs to complex e-commerce stores. Wix is suitable for small businesses, freelancers, or individuals looking for a website with an option to sell products, but primarily, it does not focus on e-commerce.

On the other hand, Shopify is an e-commerce platform designed to create and manage online stores. It is more suitable for businesses primarily selling products online, including inventory management, payment gateways, order tracking, etc.

Our expert team of web designers in Sydney check with business priorities and needs, whether to create a multi-functional website with some e-commerce capabilities or establish a robust online store! After analysing businesses’ demands, we suggest the best suitable website-building platform for the clients, enhancing the website appearance and functionality with additional features to make it more appealing and helpful for the target audience!

Still confused about the best platform for your business? Let’s get into the detailed discussion of Shopify and Wix in the sections below to know more!

Wix vs Shopify: Quick Comparison

Features Wix Shopify
Price $16 to $159 per month $5 to $2,000 per month
Online Payment Processing Fees Wix Payments: 2.9% + 30 cents; other fees vary by region and payment gateway Shopify Payments: 2.4% to 2.9% + 30 cents; other fees vary by payment gateway
Free Plan
Free Trial 14 days Three days (extendable to 3 months at $1 per month)
Free Domain  With annual plans. No
Templates 880+ (all free) 160+ (12 free)
Security  Free SSL, PCI DSS compliance, and built-in security Same security as Wix- added fraud prevention and PCI compliance
Abandoned Cart Recovery
Products 50,000 Unlimited
Accept Payments on Social Media
Customer Accounts
Gift Cards Available through gifted third-party app
Discount Codes
Sell Digital Goods 1 GB file size limit 5 GB file size limit
Multilingual Sites 180 20
Automatic Tax Calculations On Business Unlimited and Business VIP plans Built-in functionality for specific regions
Product Options and Variants Six product options; 100 variants per product; manage 1,000 total variants Three product options; 100 variants per product
Transaction Fees Shopify Payments: none; External gateways: 0.5% to 2%
Dropshipping Options On Business Unlimited and Business VIP plans Extensive options via third-party apps
Mobile Apps Wix Owner for iOS and Android Shopify and Shopify POS for iOS and Android
Integrations 300+ (not all e-commerce-focused) 6,000+ (e-commerce focused)
Customer Support Online help centre, call-back, email (Monday-Friday) 24/7 online help centre, chat, email, phone

SEO Optimisation Features 

Customisable Meta Tags ✓ Meta titles, descriptions, and URLs customisation ✓ Meta titles, descriptions, and URLs editing
Mobile Responsiveness ✓ Mobile-responsive templates ✓ Themes designed for mobile responsiveness
Structured Data ✓ Generates structured data for websites ✓ Automatically generates structured data
SEO Apps/Tools ✓ SEO Wiz and built-in SEO tools ✓ Various SEO apps available in Shopify App Store
Customisable URLs ✓ SEO-friendly URLs ✓ Creation of clean and descriptive URLs
301 Redirects ✓ Allows setting up 301 redirects ✓ Facility to set up 301 redirects
Google Analytics Integration ✓ Integration for traffic and performance insights ✓ Integration for detailed traffic and performance analysis

Process & Time Involved to Setup a Shopify Store 

  • Sign up on Shopify’s website and provide business information, like store name, email address, physical address, country, currency, contact information, legal business structure, tax identification number, business description and social media links.
  • Access the admin dashboard to add detailed product information and organise items.
  • Tailor the store’s appearance by choosing themes, customising layouts, and ensuring mobile responsiveness.
  • Connect an existing or new domain through Shopify to establish a distinct web address.
  • Configure payment gateways, shipping zones, and methods for a seamless transaction process.
  • Optimise content, titles, and URLs, integrating relevant keywords for better search engine visibility.
  • Thoroughly test the store’s functionality and checkout process before making it live for customers.
  • Employ marketing strategies through social media, email campaigns, and SEO optimisation.

Setting up a basic Shopify store varies between 1 to 2 weeks. However, complex customisations and extensive product listings might extend this timeline to 4 to 6 weeks. Post-launch, continuous monitoring and improvement using Shopify’s analytics tools are necessary for business growth.

Process & Time Involved to Setup a Wix Store 

  • Begin by signing up or logging into Wix and choosing a suitable template for your store.
  • Use the Wix Editor to customise the template, add branding elements, adjust the layout, and organise site elements.
  • Access the dashboard and add products with details like titles, descriptions, images, and pricing.
  • Configure payment methods, gateways, and shipping settings to ensure smooth transactions and deliveries.
  • Enhance visibility by customising meta titles, descriptions, and URLs and incorporating relevant keywords.
  • Preview and test your store’s functionality, connect your domain or purchase one through Wix.
  • Once finalised, launch your store and promote it through marketing tools like SEO, social media, and email campaigns.

Setting up a basic Wix store typically takes about a week. However, intricate designs or extensive product listings may extend this timeline to two weeks or more. Regular monitoring and improvements are essential post-launch for store growth.

Payment Gateways in Shopify

  • Shopify Payments: Shopify’s built-in payment gateway, available in multiple countries, provides seamless integration for credit card payments. As of the last update, Shopify Payments is available in several countries, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong SAR, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United States and the United Kingdom.
  • Third-Party Payment Gateways: Shopify allows integration with 30+ external payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net, 2Checkout, and more, offering flexibility for customers’ preferred payment methods.

Payment Gateways in Wix

  • Wix Payments: Wix’s native payment solution enables users to accept payments online using credit cards, including Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.
  • Third-Party Payment Integrations: Wix also integrates around 20 external payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, Square, and more, broadening the range of accepted payment methods for customers.

Conclusion

When choosing between Shopify and Wix, consider what’s most important for your business. Shopify is excellent if you want to focus on selling things online. It’s like having a specialised online shop with lots of tools to help manage everything. However, it might need more knowledge to set up fancy things.

On the other hand, Wix is like a jack-of-all-trades. It’s great if you want a website that does more than just sell stuff. You can add blogs, portfolios, events, and selling products. It’s easy for basic stuff, but you might want expert help for the more complicated bits.

Our website designers at Creato specialise in building websites on all platforms, be it Shopify, Wix, WordPress or any other, and the choice of the website building platform solely depends on the brand’s or businesses’ deliverables, preferences and budget.

Connect with our experts now to know more!

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Callum is the founder of Creato, a Sydney based design agency that specialises in creating holistic brands for Aussie businesses.

With a talent for crafting memorable and effective branding solutions, Callum has built Creato into a respected and successful agency. His work has been featured in various publications, including The Huffington Post, BuzzFeed, and Entrepreneur.

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