GoDaddy vs Wix: Which Solution Is Right for Your Website?

Choosing between Wix vs GoDaddy can be challenging, since the two platforms offer a very different array of services. GoDaddy focuses mostly on domains and web hosting, whereas Wix is an all-in-one website builder and hosting platform.

However, lately GoDaddy is presenting more of a challenge to Wix with its new website builder tool. When you take that into account, the differences between what GoDaddy offers and what Wix provides are not as significant.

In this article, we’ll compare GoDaddy vs Wix on ease of use, hosting, ecommerce features, and website building-tools. Let’s get to it!

GoDaddy Website Builder vs Wix: An Introduction

GoDaddy is one of the most popular web hosts, and offers reasonably priced plans of many types:

This provider also offers a broad selection of tools for webmasters, including payment processing, email marketing, and a website builder. The latter is a drag-and-drop solution with pre-built elements you can use to easily and quickly create web pages:

This is very similar to the functionality that Wix offers:

With Wix, you get access to a website builder, business resources, and the option to create a mobile app for your online business. Plus, you’ll get hosting bundled in, and can choose from free and premium plans.

Whether you prefer to use Wix or GoDaddy will largely come down to which website builder best suits your needs, and what your budget is.

GoDaddy vs Wix: Website Builders and Ease of Use

Wix is known as one of the top website builders on the market, and that’s the core of its service. When you create a new site, you’ll start by providing information about what kind of website you need:

Once you’re done, Wix will set up a basic site for you using one of its templates:

From there, you can customize the site design using the Wix editor. This editor includes a broad range of pre-designed elements that you can place anywhere you want in the site design. Every element comes with customization options, which enables you to make your website look unique.

While the GoDaddy website builder is a newer product, it’s similar. You’ll start by answering simple questions about what type of site you want to create:

The GoDaddy website builder will set up a template using the information you provide. Then you get to edit the design of the site, by clicking on specific parts of a page to add new elements:

Although both Wix and GoDaddy offer drag-and-drop editors, the experience of using GoDaddy is not as intuitive. It can be hard to find even the most common elements, such as paragraphs or lists, which makes editing pages take longer:

Overall, Wix offers a more intuitive design and customization options. However, both platforms provide plenty of unique website templates and useful elements that you can use to create a wide variety of pages.

GoDaddy vs Wix: Online Store Features

Both Wix and GoDaddy enable you to use their website builders to create online stores. They also offer payment processing options, so you can sell products or services online.

In addition, both Wix and GoDaddy’s plans provide several more specialized tools for businesses. With the GoDaddy website builder, you get access to appointment functionality, cross-selling with Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, and the option to sync inventory across platforms:

GoDaddy’s plans also enable you to create email marketing campaigns and manage social ads. Some of these features are only available on the more advanced plans.

Wix also offers options for both online stores and service websites. This platform enables you to set up online stores that incorporate products from multiple channels, and you get access to over 80 payment options:

You can also use Wix to offer services online. You’ll get access to booking features, live chat, waitlists, and appointment functionality.

Overall, Wix and GoDaddy offer similar features for ecommerce sites that focus on digital or physical products. However, Wix has an advantage in functionality if you plan to offer services online.

GoDaddy vs Wix: Hosting Plans and Pricing

Finally, let’s talk about pricing. Wix does offer a free tier. However, that tier includes Wix branding and ads and doesn’t allow for a custom free domain, which makes it a poor fit for professional websites.

Wix’s premium plans start at $16 per month, which includes the website builder, hosting, and a free domain for one year:

The various plans offer differing levels of bandwidth and storage, along with more advanced features. If you want access to basic ecommerce functionality, you’ll need to get at least the ‘Core’ plan for $27 per month.

With GoDaddy, you can get basic shared hosting for as low as $6.99 per month. If you want the GoDaddy website builder as well, however, the ‘Basic’ plan costs $9.99 per month, and doesn’t include any limitations in bandwidth or storage:

That plan also includes starter business features, such as payment options, sales tracking, and email marketing tools. If you want full ecommerce functionality, you’ll need the ‘Commerce’ plan, which starts at $20.99 per month.

It’s worth noting that Wix and GoDaddy are only similar in pricing for the first year. When you renew your hosting contract, GoDaddy plans become much more expensive. If you want to pay by the month, your costs will also be higher.

When comparing both Wix vs GoDaddy pricing, the former is the winner overall. It offers a broad set of features for a lower (and more consistent) price. However, GoDaddy’s higher-tier plans provide options that Wix doesn’t, such as email marketing tools and appointment functionality.

An Alternative To Using Wix vs GoDaddy To Build Your Website

As you can see, both of these solutions have their unique pros and cons. Each can be useful for certain types of users.

However, the issue with platforms such as the GoDaddy and Wix website builders is that they’re hosted solutions. That means you’re locked into a single platform for both creating and hosting your website. You’re not able to shop around for a hosting provider that offers excellent performance, and migrating your site can be a challenge if you ever decide you’d like it hosted somewhere else (or find the website builder’s options insufficient).

If you want more control over your website’s design and performance, it can be better to choose a web host that gives you full control over what kind of software you use. That’s precisely what SirsteveHQ does:

With SirsteveHQ, you can pay for any hosting plan you like. There are budget-friendly options for beginners, VPS plans that provide excellent performance, and for large-scale business sites and stores.

Plus, you’ll be able to use whatever platform you prefer to build your website. For instance, you can opt for WordPress, which is a full Content Management System (CMS) rather than a website builder. That means it offers far more flexibility than either GoDaddy or Wix does:

You can use WordPress to create just about any type of website you can imagine. Thanks to the thousands of free and premium plugins and themes, you can choose exactly what features and functionality to add to your site. If you want to build an ecommerce store, for example, the free WooCommerce plugin and its many extensions make that simple.

Creating Your Website with WordPress and SirsteveHQ

With WordPress and SirsteveHQ, you get total control over every aspect of your new site. Plus, getting started is simple.

First, you’ll need to choose your web hosting plan. We’d recommend opting for a WordPress-specific hosting plan, designed specifically for the needs of WordPress sites.

If your budget is small, don’t worry – you can start with a more cost-efficient plan, and scale up over time as your site grows.

You’ll also need to choose a domain name for your website. Aim for something simple but catchy, and directly relevant to your website’s purpose or offerings. Don’t forget to carefully consider your Top-Level Domain (TLD) as well.

After that, installing and setting up WordPress is simple. Once your site is up and running, you can choose a theme, which will determine your site’s look and layout (and can be further customized). Then you can browse the many available plugins to add the features you need:

As for website building, you have plenty of options. WordPress includes a user-friendly site builder called the Block Editor, where you use elements called ‘blocks’ to create pages quickly and easily. If you want access to even more options, there are also many powerful but easy-to-learn page builder plugins you can add to your website.

Conclusion

When you compare Wix vs GoDaddy, it’s important to understand that they’re very different platforms. Wix is a website builder with plenty of features to support ecommerce and service websites. GoDaddy is primary a web hosting platform, but it also offers a site builder as a part of certain plans.

For most users, Wix comes out on top overall. It offers a more user-friendly experience than GoDaddy does, and its pricing is more affordable as long as you don’t need anything too complex. However, both options pale in comparison to WordPress paired with a quality web host like SirsteveHQ.

Have you tried Wix or GoDaddy, and what did you think about them? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!