Wondering which is a better site platform among Webflow vs WordPress? Or want to know the differences between these site builders? If yes, then here it is.
To create a successful site, an important thing is to choose the best website builder. And among a long list, WordPress and Webflow are some of the top site platforms.
Both of these platforms have certain similarities and differences. However, we can make sure to you that both of them are feature-rich and easy to use.
But you need to choose only 1 of them for your site. To easily do so, here we provide you with a detailed comparison between these 2 site platforms in multiple areas.
So, let’s have a look at them.
A) Webflow vs WordPress – Overview
Webflow and WordPress are both popular website platforms. Using them, you can build any kind of website, whether a blog, eCommerce, portfolio, or business. And whichever you choose, you’ll get a simple interface and lots of options to create a beautiful site.
So, to determine which one is a better option, we need to compare them in terms of design, cost, support, and more.
But before moving towards Webflow vs WordPress, let’s have a quick overview of them.
What is Webflow?
Webflow is a cloud-based website builder with a visual web design tool. It provides you with an intuitive interface so you can easily drag and drop the elements on your page. Then, you’re able to customize the site with amazing color, font, and animation options.
And a plus point is that you get to build fully-responsive websites. As you can easily customize the site for different mobile versions side-by-side. Most of the other platforms can’t do that and you may require to use plugins. In Webflow’s case, you don’t.
Moreover, due to the presence of multiple content management tools, this platform is quite popular among professional web designers. That’s why, if you want to build a professional-looking website, then Webflow is the perfect choice for you.
It’s a hosted software that comes as Software as a Service (SaaS) platform. So, you get to select the paid features, upgrades, and hosting services easily in one place.
Furthermore, in Webflow, you can create your account and connect it to your domain name. Also, you get to download your site made on Webflow and rather host it on any other hosting platform.
What is WordPress?
WordPress is the most popular way to build your website or blog. It’s a simple yet powerful website-building platform that’s used by over 42% of sites on the web. And, you don’t need much coding knowledge to create your website.
Note that there are 2 versions of WordPress available: WordPress.org and WordPress.com. When you use WordPress.org, you need to manage the domain and host the site yourself. While the entire website creation is for free.
Talking about WordPress.com, it’s a hosted platform where everything is managed for you. All you need to do is create an account on WordPress, select a subdomain, use the themes, plugins, and keep your content. In this respect, it’s similar to Webflow.
But in this article, we’re specifically comparing WordPress.org with Webflow as it allows more power to users than WordPress.com.
Creating a simple or complex website with WordPress is easy and fun with exciting themes and plugins. What’s more, you’ll get tons of them in the WordPress.org theme repository and plugin directory.
If you aren’t aware, a theme lets you create and customize an attractive site. While WordPress itself has the basic functions for a site, you can add more features using plugins. Using them lets you add any functionality that you want on your site.
Now that we’ve known the basic introduction about both these platforms, let’s move to their comparison.
B) Webflow vs WordPress – Ease of Use
A site builder can have impressive features and functions. But what’s the need when one finds it difficult to use it.
As creating a site is not a daily task, so the site platform you select must be simple to use. That’s why you must look if the platform is beginner-friendly and doesn’t require technical knowledge.
Saying that, let’s compare and contrast Webflow vs WordPress on ease of use.
Is Webflow Easy to Use?
Webflow is a site builder plus hosting platform so you don’t need to manage much. You just need to select one of the pricing plans based on the type of site you’re creating and what you require. And you can add one later on the project from your dashboard.
So, moving forward with the setup process. First, you’ve to go to the official site of Webflow. Then, you’ve to create a free account there.
After you log in, you’ll be redirected to the dashboard. And Webflow provides a clean dashboard to manage your site.
Talking about the front-end, it gives a visual interface to design your content. You can write your content and design the layouts from live preview.
Note that you must select the template for your project beforehand. And then, you can edit with the visual editor. But due to tons of features, beginners may have difficulty finding what they are looking for. And it’s also because Webflow is made especially for designers and developers.
So, as a content creator, you may not find some of the common features that other popular CMS platforms like WordPress provide. Such as post types, categories, comments, tags, etc.
However, you can change the properties of the elements. Plus, you get to add new elements on its panel to be used later.
Is WordPress Easy to Use?
WordPress is free software so you get to download and easily use it for creating your site. However, you need a hosting service and domain name to begin website creation.
So, first, you must get a domain from one of the domain registrar companies. Then, purchase a hosting service from any of the hosting companies. While some companies provide both domains and hosting services like DreamHost, you can also get both from such companies.
After that, you need to download and install WordPress on your hosting account. Some hosting services also provide one-click WordPress installation when you set up the host.
When the installation is done, you must go to the WordPress admin dashboard. There, you can start creating and customizing your website. And doing that is also very easy with the visual block editor.
Also, you can select a theme of your choice whether free or premium. For that, you must install, activate, and configure it first. Then, using a template from the theme, you can keep your content there and customize it in real-time.
Similarly, for the addition of features and functionality, you can download, activate, and configure the WordPress plugins. And configuring a plugin is rather tough for beginners.
A plus point is that WordPress has a huge community that posts several articles and documentation online. So, with the help of that, it makes it comparatively easier for you to use WordPress.
Furthermore, if you want to test WordPress first, then you can also do that. You can download and install WordPress on your localhost. By doing that, you get to see the demo of your site and check the features of WordPress.
Winner? – Webflow
Both WordPress and Webflow have a visual editor with multiple templates and layout options. Moreover, the default editor of Webflow is simpler to use than WordPress. However, WordPress is more extendable as you can add a page builder that makes it much simpler.
Also, WordPress has a slight learning curve at the beginning. Whereas talking about Webflow, the learning curve can be denoted a little higher here than in WordPress.
But in the end, the winner of this round goes to Webflow. It’s because you won’t have to manage hosting and domain yourself. Also, the default editor itself is easier than that of WordPress.
C) Webflow vs WordPress – Design Options and Templates
Designers and developers can build their sites from scratch. But everyone that wants to build a site is not a designer.
One may use the available design tools to customize their site. However, it won’t look as good as a professionally designed site.
So, you must look for the design or customization options and templates on the site builders. Saying that, let’s see what Webflow vs WordPress offer for you.
Design Options and Templates in Webflow
Webflow offers you 500+ free and paid templates to choose from. And each of them is mobile responsive. Also, these templates suit multiple types of websites that you want to build.
As soon as you start a new project, you must select a template for it. Once you choose the template you want to use, you can’t change it later. If you wish to see the other template, you must create a new project and select the different one.
Now, going towards the design and customization options, editing your template is quite easy. With its visual design tool, you get a powerful visual editor. Using it, you can change any element to create your site as per your preference.
So, if you make changes to the layout elements like header, menu, and footer, then it will be applied throughout the site.
Moreover, Webflow contains rich interaction, 3D transforms, and animation tools. It includes scroll-based animations, interaction around mouse movement, hover animations, and more.
Design Options and Templates in WordPress
In WordPress, there are thousands of free, premium, and freemium WordPress themes. You can find the free themes on the WordPress directory itself. Also, there are other marketplaces like Themeforest that have a lot more premium themes.
Each theme contains multiple templates that suit various kinds of websites. And they are made responsive and compatible with all the major browsers.
So, you can use any of the professionally-designed templates provided by a theme of your choice. The best part is that you can change your site’s theme and template whenever you like.
Customizing a template is also easy in WordPress due to the use of a live customizer. You get to use the block editor by default in WordPress.
Not only that but you can use a page builder plugin to easily create and customize your web pages. With that, you get to drag-and-drop the elements and customize anything on your site.
Winner? – WordPress
In WordPress, the content and functionality are kept away from the design options. This makes it a lot more flexible and approachable than Webflow. Also, WordPress provides you with a wider variety of templates. That’s why in the case of the themes and templates, WordPress is better.
While in Webflow, the template options may be comparatively lower than in WordPress. But in terms of design options, Webflow is equally good as WordPress. It’s because of the amazing interactions and animations that it has.
Overall, WordPress is the winner when it comes to both design options and templates.
D) Webflow vs WordPress – eCommerce
Many websites are focusing on eCommerce and selling their items online. This may sound simple but setting up an online store with payment and overall management of it is quite hard.
eCommerce features help you to grow and run your business. So, you may also want to create a shop for your business online.
For that, let’s see what eCommerce features WordPress and Webflow deliver.
Creating an eCommerce Site Using Webflow
In Webflow, you need to buy the Ecommerce plan for building an online store. And the number of products you can sell from your site is based on the plan you choose. So, in the Ecommerce plan, the starting price is $29/mo for 500 products which is the Ecommerce Standard plan.
Webflow uses Stripe as the payment gateway. Along with that, it also supports PayPal, Apple Pay, and Web Payments.
Furthermore, adding products in Webflow is easy. You can simply add images, descriptions, and other information on your products. Also, you get custom checkout, shopping cart, and multiple product fields options to use.
Using Webflow, you get to sell software, apps, music, and other digital goods alongside physical items. But it’s not that suitable for selling membership or subscription-based products.
Creating an eCommerce Site Using WordPress
WordPress contains some in-built features to build an online store. However, it’s best to use one of the WordPress eCommerce plugins available. And there are lots of such plugins to easily create a shop.
Among them, WooCommerce is the most popular eCommerce plugin. Using it, you can sell any kind of product and service like physical, digital, affiliate, etc.
Moreover, WooCommerce includes lots of addons to add exclusive features to your store. And there are tons of WooCommerce themes that allow you to easily design the shop.
Other than WooCommerce, there are several other plugins. And some work specifically for an area. Such as, you can use MemberPress for selling digital subscriptions. And for the software downloads, there are plugins like Easy Digital Downloads.
Also, it can manage a store of any size i.e. small, medium, to large. So, you get to add products, descriptions, pricing, and manage everything essential for an eCommerce with such plugins. It includes inventory, shipping, analytics, and more.
In case of payment, you can choose among a wide range of payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe, etc. And some plugins integrate your store with these gateways in WordPress.
Winner? – WordPress
WordPress is more flexible than Webflow as you can sell anything from it. Also, it contains more add-ons and payment options.
While in Webflow, there are limitations on the number of products you can sell. On top of that, it’s costlier and comes with fewer features and integrations for an eCommerce site.
So, when comparing Webflow vs WordPress, it seems that WordPress is again the winner of this round.
E) Webflow vs WordPress – SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Want your site to rank higher on the search engines? Then, you must choose an SEO-friendly platform to create your site.
Speed, site structure, quality content, security, and many other factors are responsible for enhancing a site’s SEO. And having good SEO boosts your site traffic and ultimately ranks the site higher.
Both Webflow and WordPress have a set of features to improve the SEO of the websites that are built on them. So, let’s find out which one provides it better.
SEO in Webflow
From the in-built features in Webflow, you can easily optimize the SEO of your site. You get to edit the title tag, meta description, and URL for each webpage.
On top of that, it includes open graph settings that you can simply change. So, you can edit how your content will appear when it gets shared on social media platforms.
If you want the search engines to stop indexing your site, then it’s also possible.
Furthermore, there are more advanced SEO features on the premium site plans. It includes the ability to auto-generate sitemap, edit the robot.txt file, and much more.
Therefore, you won’t have to use any plugins to do so. The overall SEO controls and tools are already in Webflow. So, you need to look for them in their settings.
One thing to add here is that Webflow has a great page speed score than WordPress. This also helps in a better user experience.
SEO in WordPress
SEO is a major concern for everyone who wants to run a site. So, the developers of WordPress have also considered this. And accordingly built it SEO-optimized from the core.
That’s why WordPress also has great built-in SEO features. So, you get to add simple URLs, organize your content according to categories, add tags, manage permalink settings, and more. This helps the site to be visible to search engines using the built-in settings in WordPress.
Not only that, there’s more to offer for image SEO like the title, alt tags, captions, and more.
Not to mention, it includes multiple WordPress plugins that optimize your site. Some of the best SEO plugins include Yoast SEO, SEOPress, Rank Math, All in One SEO, etc.
Using such plugins, you’ll get additional SEO functions. Such as suggestions for choosing keywords, adding links, content readability, page redirection, and more.
To add more, there are SEO plugins especially for images as well. Plugins like Imagify, Optimole, etc. optimize the images so that the site loads faster.
Winner? – WordPress
Webflow has lesser SEO options available than WordPress. And you need to work with its settings to manage everything for the SEO.
In the case of WordPress, you can find several free and paid plugins from which you get to add SEO features. And they provide more features and flexibility than in Webflow.
With that, we keep the winner of this round as WordPress.
F) Webflow vs WordPress – Add-ons and Integrations
Being two popular website builders, there are a lot of different important features on them. However, it becomes impossible for any website platform to contain everything a site requires.
So, when you need additional features, then you’ve to use third-party tools, add-ons, or integrations. For that, the platform also must support these extensions.
Now, let’s look and decide which one of these meets your expectations and needs.
Add-ons and Integrations in Webflow
To add extra features to your site in Webflow, you must use third-party tools. And you’re able to connect Webflow with them through built-in integrations, seamless integration with Zapier, and custom code.
So, you can find tons of plugins and widgets for the integration. And the types of integration are based upon the feature you want to add. It includes eCommerce, email marketing, anti-spam, domains, and more.
As per these types, some of the popular tools that you can use are Shopify, Mailchimp, Get Response, Google Analytics, Ecwid, etc.
Zapier itself provides 750+ integrations. Now, you can collect feedback and connect the forms to other services. Such as Hubspot, Google Sheets, Slack, etc.
Plugins and Integrations in WordPress
By now, you may have known that there are loads of WordPress plugins out there. So, you can simply install, activate, and configure them to add the extra features you want on your site.
The major categories of plugins are to add a contact form, use page builder, maintain security, perform Google Analytics, SEO, etc. Also, most of these plugins have several add-ons to provide advanced and exclusive features.
Apart from them, WordPress also supports using third-party tools. This is because WordPress works seamlessly with the major providers. So, you can also add email marketing service, help desk, or live chat on your site. All these tools guide you to easily grow your business.
Winner? – WordPress
WordPress offers free and premium plugins and add-ons to integrate on the site. Also, you get to add third-party tools and applications for more exclusive features.
In contrast, Webflow allows you to add third-party services which are quite less than WordPress. Also, it’s rather difficult to integrate some of the tools in Webflow. For that, you need to follow tutorials on how to connect them to your Webflow project.
Thus, WordPress is the clear winner in terms of add-ons and integrations.
G) Webflow vs WordPress – Support
Building a website on a new platform takes a lot of hard work. You also need to have a clear understanding of it. There are even times when experienced users get stuck when they face an issue or get confused.
At such times, what you look for is the customer support options that your website builder provides. And every platform does provide support to its users.
A website builder with good customer support options enables you to easily get your answers and solve the issues you’re facing. That’s why you must check if your preferred platform delivers enough support to its users in a short time.
So, let’s have a look at the support options that Webflow and WordPress provide.
Customer Support Options in Webflow
The customer support options in Webflow are available on the Webflow University webpage. You can go to the Webflow University from the Support menu in the footer of its official website.
On this page, first, you’ll find a contact option. Here, you can send an email to their customer support team after entering the given fields. Also, it assures you that they’ll reply to you within 2 working days. And right below that is a FAQ section that contains answers to the commonly asked questions by its users.
Additionally, there are more resource options available for easy support. There’s a link to go to the Webflow Forum. Here, you can post your question and get help from Webflow users, experts, and staff. So, it’s a community where you can connect and help each other to learn.
Furthermore, Webflow also offers you a massive library of articles, courses, and lessons. All of them are on several topics for you to learn web design and development alongside Webflow.
Customer Support Options in WordPress
WordPress as a community-driven software provides lots of free customer support options. On the navigation of WordPress.org, you can see the Support menu.
The first option in its dropdown menu is Documentation. There, you can see detailed documentation on getting started, installing, using, customizing, and everything on WordPress.
And from the Forums dropdown menu, you’ll see the WordPress community forum. Here, you can learn, share, and troubleshoot from developers, other users, and enthusiasts. There are discussions related to WordPress installation, accessibility, and more.
Note that each plugin or theme you look for on WordPress.org has a support section to discuss that particular theme or plugin. So, you need to go to that specific theme or plugin. And then click on the View support forum to visit the individual forum.
Along with that, the premium products in WordPress also offer you dedicated customer support. You can check and get one through their official sites.
Winner? – Tie
WordPress provides good customer support as it’s available in multiple languages. Also, it has a large community forum and detailed documentation. Apart from them, tons of other sites written by experts and enthusiasts continuously share blogs about WordPress. However, there’s no direct support by experts for everyone.
While in Webflow, you may think you’ve to figure things out on your own because it’s a new platform with a lesser community. And, it’s a little difficult to solely depend on the email support option. But there are multiple courses and tutorials for you to learn in its Help Center. Also, it provides priority support for premium users.
That’s why this round’s point goes to both WordPress and Webflow with a tie.
H) Webflow vs WordPress – Pricing
The criteria for choosing a site platform also highly depend on its price. It’s because you’re more likely to select the one that falls under your budget.
Initially, the web creation may be free of cost but you can add premium themes and plugins. So, the pricing is generally based on the hosting service and domain that you use or what the site builder offers you.
That’s why let’s compare the pricing of Webflow vs WordPress.
Price of Creating a Site in Webflow
You can start creating your site in Webflow for free. Then, you’ve to choose a site plan to go live. Also, there are account plans that unlock exclusive features.
So, there are 2 kinds of plans on Webflow. They are discussed in more detail below:
Site plans
When you choose this plan, you need to pay per site. Also, you need to connect it with your domain name. The price of the domain is not included in this plan.
Based on what kind of site you’re creating, it’s further divided into 2 plans. They are:
- Site plans: If you want to create a personal, business, or blog site, then choose this plan. Based on the type of site, the price differs. So, the Basic level costs $12/mo, the CMS level is $16/mo, and the Business level is $36/mo. For the Enterprise level, you need to contact Webflow.
- Ecommerce plans: For the customers to buy your products and then checkout, you need to choose this plan. It’s available in Standard, Plus, and Advanced levels. They cost you $29, $74, and $212, respectively.
Account plans
To be able to manage multiple site projects at once, choose this plan. Using it, you can add your logo, create a team dashboard for working on multiple projects, and more.
Moreover, you can host the sites in Webflow or download the code to host them in your preferred company.
It’s also further available in 2 plans, they are:
- Individual plans: For working individually, choose this plan. There are 3 levels in it namely Starter, Lite, and Pro. The Starter level is for free while the other two cost $16/mo and $35/mo, respectively.
- Team plans: To work collaboratively with a shared dashboard as mentioned above, choose this plan. The Team level is at the price of $35/person. While for the Enterprise level, you need to contact Webflow.
Price of Creating a Site in WordPress
WordPress allows you to create your site for free. All you need to pay is for the premium themes and plugins if you decide to use them. However, the free ones are also great, to begin with.
Apart from them, you also have to pay for getting a domain and to conduct hosting on the platform of your choice. And there are lots of affordable hosting services available for your WordPress website. Such as DreamHost, SiteGround, BlueHost, etc.
Each of them has its own set of features and pricing plans. You can also check the article on the best hosting services to know about them. For instance, DreamHost provides you with a domain and hosting service starting at the cost of $2.59/mo.
Winner? – WordPress
In WordPress, you’ve to do hosting and domain registration but the pricing on such services is cheaper than in Webflow. Also, you get many features for free in WordPress due to the presence of free plugins and themes. It even includes the ability to create an eCommerce store.
On the other hand, Webflow may have its hosting service but it’s quite confusing. There are multiple plans as per different requirements. Also, it’s rather costly. Plus, the basic features for an online store are in a paid plan.
So, in this round, WordPress is the clear winner.
I) Webflow vs WordPress – Pros & Cons
We’ve looked at different areas for both Webflow and WordPress. Now, let’s sum up and know the pros and cons of each.
Webflow – Pros & Cons
Pros of Webflow
- It’s a hosted platform with multiple plans as per the type of your site and your needs.
- Offers an intuitive web design interface with drag-and-drop functionality.
- Able to create your site with multiple mobile versions easily.
- Ability to export code for download and host in another platform.
- Comes with beautiful scroll-based animations.
- Supports integration to multiple marketing tools and other applications.
Cons of Webflow
- There’s a high learning curve when using Webflow. Especially to the ones who have never done web development. So, it’s more focused on developers and designers.
- It’s more expensive than open-source software like WordPress. Also, the multiple plan variations may be confusing.
- Must select the template for a project at the start.
- Need to choose the premium plan even for creating an eCommerce site.
WordPress – Pros & Cons
Pros of WordPress
- Completely free to use and open-source platform. It means you can use, study, and alter it as per your requirement.
- Provides full control and ownership of your WordPress site.
- Able to create any type of website as it contains thousands of themes and plugins.
- Using the SEO plugins enables you to easily optimize your content and help you rank higher on search engines.
- Contains a massive community of experts and supporters. So, you’ll get 24/7 support.
- Offers in-built features that allow you to create a site without technical knowledge.
Cons of WordPress
- As a self-hosted platform, you need to manage the domain, hosting, security, etc. by yourself.
- Has a little learning curve at the beginning due to the process of WordPress setup. But once it’s done then it’s much easier.
- Limited customization options in the free version. Most features on plugins are on the paid version.
- You need to carefully check and choose the themes and plugins you’re going to install and use. Some might contain malicious codes.
Our Recommendation
Depending on your needs, the choice becomes yours on which website builder you want to select. Both Webflow and WordPress contain good features and functions for your site. Along with the pros, both of them have their cons. So, it’s all up to you at the end.
However, if we’ve to choose one, then we’ll pick WordPress over Webflow. And there’s no doubt about it. By the results of the above comparison on multiple factors, you may have already guessed that. Haven’t you?
WordPress is a more flexible and powerful platform with a lot of options. From design options to integrations, you can easily use WordPress for building any kind of website. And all of it at a lower price. Plus, you can manage your costs and spend for what you only need.
But if you decide to choose Webflow, then why not. It provides you with an amazing web design tool with lots of animations and interactions. And you won’t have to manage the hosting. Although, keep in mind that it has limited CMS features, integrations, and flexibility.
That’s all that we’ve to say.
Conclusion
And, we are at the end of this article.
We hope you are now able to distinguish between Webflow vs WordPress. And, also clear about which site builder to prefer, it’s either Webflow or WordPress.
If you’re still unable to decide the platform for your site, then we’ve already included some related articles for that. So, check out our blogs on WordPress vs Wix and WordPress vs Medium.
In case you’re already using any of these platforms, then do share your views on them. Also, we’ll be happy to help you if you’re having any more confusion.
Lastly, we want you to stay connected with us on Twitter and Facebook.