Choosing the right ecommerce platform for your online store can be make or break for your business.
We understand that you've got a lot on your plate, so trying to understand the ins and outs of various ecommerce platforms can be mind-boggling at best and mind-numbing at worst. We've taken two of the most popular options, Shopify and Wix, and broken them down side by side so you can see the pros and cons quickly and decide which is right for your brand.
Shopify and Wix both offer plenty of advantages for new and growing ecommerce brands, but we're firmly planted in Team Shopify when it comes to functionality, user experience, scalability and customisation. Here's the full picture.
What Is Shopify?
Shopify is an extremely user-friendly ecommerce platform that offers fantastic functionality and customisation opportunities.
Whether you're launching your debut online store or migrating from another platform to grow your business, Shopify lets you tailor your website to your brand identity and required functionality. Shopify is equipped with a range of built-in ecommerce and marketing features that you can use immediately to drive growth. If you're after creative control, Shopify is miles ahead of Wix in terms of website customisation, integration compatibility, omnichannel selling and sales features.
Pros 👍
- Usability: An intuitive drag-and-drop interface is extremely user-friendly and easy to use.
- Support: 24/7 live chat support to help you with anything you need.
- Quick Setup: Shopify themes allow you to set up an online store very quickly so you can start selling right away.
- Flexibility: Thousands of integrations and plugins are compatible with Shopify to extend the functionality of your site.
- Lightning-fast: When in the right hands, Shopify offers great UX and a streamlined shopping experience thanks to its lightning-fast performance.
- Customisation: Shopify's user-friendly editor allows you to customise the look and feel of your site to reflect your brand.
- Scalability: Shopify is great for growing businesses. As your online store grows, you can easily upgrade to Shopify Plus which is aimed at higher-volume businesses.
- Responsive: Mobile-friendly and responsive, Shopify ensures all users encounter a great online experience, no matter what device they prefer.
- SEO: Shopify offers considerably stronger SEO features than Wix.
- High conversion rates: Shopify websites are loved by some of the world's biggest brands and have some of the highest conversion rates.
Cons 👎
- Pricing: Compared to Wix, Shopify is more expensive, but with the vast range of features and integrations on offer, it's worth it for serious sellers. Wix offers a free plan and Shopify does not.
What Is Wix?
Wix is a user-friendly and cost-effective platform that doesn't offer all of the bells and whistles that Shopify does.
Wix is a popular choice amongst individuals and small businesses who want to establish an online presence without having extensive technical knowledge. In comparison to Shopify, it does not offer the same level of customisation and lacks the extensive integration options and ecommerce features that Shopify provides. For those looking for a convenient and accessible ecommerce solution, it can be a good place to start.
Pros 👍
- Usability: An intuitive, user-friendly drag-and-drop interface that is extremely easy to use and learn.
- Content: Wix is great for building a content-first website where making sales isn't a priority but can be achieved.
- Quick Setup: Setting up a Wix store is very fast so you can get your site up and running in no time at all.
- Pricing: Wix is a cost-effective ecommerce solution which is great for individuals and micro businesses.
- Responsive: Wix is a mobile-friendly ecommerce platform.
Cons 👎
- Flexibility: Wix has a much smaller app ecosystem than Shopify, which limits the customisation and integrations available.
- Customisation: Wix websites are generally very generic and can't be completely optimised to your target audience or unique business goals.
- Scalability: Wix isn't a very scalable platform.
- Performance: Struggles with high-quality videos and photos which can significantly impact performance and page speed, resulting in poor UX.
- Low conversion rates: Wix sites tend to have low conversion rates largely due to the lack of flexibility and customisation needed to optimise an ecommerce site to convert.
Which Platform Is Best For My Business?
When it comes to choosing the right ecommerce platform for your brand, even with lists and lists of pros and cons, it can still be tricky to decipher which is best. Here are the clearest reasons to choose each.
Reasons to choose Shopify 👇
- You want to launch a successful ecommerce brand: Shopify's dedicated ecommerce features will set you apart.
- You want to maximise sales: Conversion-rate optimisation is much easier with Shopify thanks to its flexibility and range of integrations.
- You want to grow and scale your business: Shopify's functionality is far superior and allows you to scale your brand with a range of features.
- You want to utilise SEO: Shopify's SEO tools are much more advanced than those that come with Wix.
Reasons to choose Wix 👇
- You want a cost-effective and affordable website: Wix has a free plan available.
- You prioritise content creation: Wix has more friendly content creation tools.
- You're not looking for scalability: If you're happy with selling online as and when it naturally happens, you will be sufficiently happy with Wix.
We hope this clears things up. If not, we're always on hand to help. Why not take our 2 minute replatforming audit to find out which ecommerce platform will suit your needs?
