Best Website Builder UK Small Business 2026: Wix vs Squarespace vs Shopify vs WooCommerce
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Introduction: Choosing a Website Platform Without the Overwhelm
If you’re a UK small business owner trying to get a website online, the sheer number of options is enough to make you close the tab and put it off for another month. Wix, Squarespace, Shopify, WooCommerce — they all promise to be the answer, and they all look convincing.
The truth is they’re built for different things, and the “best” one depends entirely on what your business actually needs. This guide compares the four platforms most UK small businesses end up choosing between, with honest, current pricing in pounds and a clear steer on which suits which type of business. No jargon, no fluff — just a straight answer.
The Four Platforms at a Glance
- Wix — the flexible all-rounder. Best for service businesses and small shops that want a drag-and-drop builder with a free option.
- Squarespace — the design specialist. Best for creatives and brand-led businesses where the site needs to look beautiful.
- Shopify — the eCommerce specialist. Best for serious, scaling online stores.
- WooCommerce — the flexible, self-hosted option. Best for WordPress users and technical operators who want full control.
Let’s look at each.
1. Wix — Best All-Rounder
Wix is a drag-and-drop website builder that gives you enormous flexibility to place elements anywhere on the page. It’s beginner-friendly, has a genuine free plan, and covers everything from simple brochure sites to small online stores.
Pricing (UK, annual billing):
- Free — £0 (Wix ads, a Wix subdomain, no eCommerce)
- Light — £9/month (custom domain, no ads, no eCommerce)
- Core — £16/month (the cheapest plan that lets you sell online)
- Business — £25/month (multi-currency, subscriptions)
- Business Elite — £119/month
Wix Payments charges 2.1% + 20p per transaction, with no extra platform fee on top. Note that you can’t switch templates after publishing, so choose carefully at the start.
Best for: Service businesses, sole traders, and small shops that want flexibility, a free starting point, or the lowest entry price for a simple site.
2. Squarespace — Best for Design
Squarespace is the builder to beat on design. Its templates are widely regarded as the best in the industry, producing polished, professional sites with minimal effort. Unlike Wix, it also lets you switch templates after publishing.
Pricing (UK, annual billing, inclusive of VAT):
- Basic — £12/month (can sell online, but with a 2% transaction fee)
- Core — £17/month (0% transaction fee on physical products; the sensible seller’s starting point)
- Plus — £29/month (customer accounts, advanced analytics)
- Advanced — £79/month (advanced shipping, subscriptions)
There’s no free plan — only a 14-day free trial. Card-processing fees apply on all plans (2% + 25p, dropping to 1.5% + 25p on Advanced).
Best for: Photographers, restaurants, designers, and brand-led businesses where visual presentation is the priority.
3. Shopify — Best for Serious eCommerce
Shopify is the specialist for online stores. If selling is the core of your business — not a bolt-on to a brochure site — Shopify is purpose-built for it, with the best inventory, checkout, and app ecosystem of the four.
Pricing (UK, annual billing, excluding VAT):
- Starter — £5/month (social selling only — buy buttons for Instagram/TikTok, no full store)
- Basic — £19/month (full online store; 2 staff accounts)
- Grow — £49/month (formerly the “Shopify” plan; 5 staff, lower fees)
- Advanced — £259/month (15 staff, advanced reports)
- Plus — from £1,800/month (enterprise)
A crucial point on fees: Shopify charges a third-party transaction fee (2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced) if you use an outside payment gateway like Stripe or PayPal. Use Shopify Payments instead and that fee disappears — you just pay the card rate (2% + 25p on Basic, dropping to 1.5% + 25p on Advanced). Budget separately for premium themes (£150–£350 one-off) and apps (£5–£100/month each), which add up fast.
Best for: Businesses whose primary activity is selling online, especially those planning to scale or sell internationally.
4. WooCommerce — Best for Control and Flexibility
WooCommerce is different from the others: it’s a free, open-source plugin for WordPress that you self-host. That means you own everything — your data, your code, your site — and there are no platform transaction fees. The trade-off is that you’re responsible for hosting, setup, and maintenance.
Real costs (UK): The plugin itself is free, but a functional store realistically costs:
- Hosting: £5–£15/month on shared hosting, or £25–£80/month for managed WordPress hosting
- Domain: around £10–£15/year
- Theme: free options exist, or £50–£80 one-off for premium
- Extensions/plugins: variable, often £100–£200/year
- Maintenance: your time (or a developer’s) — plugins conflict, and WordPress updates occasionally break things
A small WooCommerce store can run for as little as £5–£15/month all in, and there are no platform transaction fees — you only pay your chosen payment gateway’s rate. But “free” refers to the software, not the store: once you add developer time, WooCommerce can end up costing as much as (or more than) Shopify.
Best for: WordPress-first businesses, content-heavy or blog-driven stores, and technically confident operators who want maximum control and no platform fees.
Quick Comparison
| Platform | Type | Starting price | Cheapest way to sell online | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Website builder | Free / £9 (Light) | £16 (Core) | Flexible all-rounder |
| Squarespace | Website builder | £12 (Basic) | £12 (Basic, 2% fee) or £17 (Core, 0%) | Design |
| Shopify | eCommerce platform | £5 (Starter) | £19 (Basic) | Serious eCommerce |
| WooCommerce | WordPress plugin | Free + hosting (£5–£15/mo) | ~£5–£15/mo hosting, no platform fee | Control / flexibility |
The Pricing Reality: Watch the Fees
The headline subscription is rarely what you actually pay. Across all four platforms, the real costs to watch are:
- Transaction fees. Squarespace’s Basic plan takes 2%; Shopify surcharges 0.6–2% if you don’t use Shopify Payments; WooCommerce charges no platform fee (just your gateway’s rate); Wix has no extra platform fee beyond its card processing.
- Card-processing fees. Every platform charges these in some form (typically 1.5–2.1% + a small fixed fee) — they’re unavoidable in eCommerce.
- Add-ons. Premium themes, apps, and plugins can quietly add £10–£100+ per month, especially on Shopify and WooCommerce.
For a low-volume store, the platform fee matters most. For a high-volume store, transaction fees dominate — which is why serious sellers gravitate to Shopify’s higher tiers (lower fees) or WooCommerce (no platform fee).
Which Should Your UK Business Choose?
- A service business or sole trader (plumber, consultant, coach) that mainly needs a professional presence: Wix (from £9/month) or Squarespace (from £12/month) if design matters.
- A creative or brand-led business (photographer, restaurant, boutique): Squarespace, for its templates.
- A small shop selling a modest range of products: Wix Core (£16) or Squarespace Core (£17) for an all-in-one site with a store, or Shopify Basic (£19) if selling is your main focus.
- A serious or scaling online store: Shopify — it’s built for it.
- A WordPress-first or content-heavy business, or a technical operator: WooCommerce, for control and no platform fees.
None of These Handle Your Tax
Whichever platform you choose, remember: website and eCommerce platforms are not accounting software. None of them connect to HMRC or handle VAT returns and Making Tax Digital. Even running a store on any of these, you’ll need separate accounting software — such as QuickBooks, Xero, or FreeAgent — to stay MTD-compliant. All four can export sales data into your bookkeeping software, but the tax side happens elsewhere.
FAQ
What’s the cheapest way to sell online in the UK?
On paper, WooCommerce is cheapest — a basic store on shared hosting can run for £5–£15/month with no platform transaction fees — but it requires technical setup. Among the hosted builders, Squarespace’s Basic plan (£12/month) lets you sell with a 2% fee, or Wix Core (£16) and Squarespace Core (£17) let you sell with no platform fee. Shopify Basic is £19/month. Shopify’s £5 Starter plan only supports social selling, not a full store.
Is Wix or Squarespace better for a small business?
Both are excellent website builders. Wix is more flexible, cheaper at entry (£9 vs £12), and has a free plan; Squarespace has better templates and lets you switch them later. For design-led businesses, Squarespace; for flexibility and lowest cost, Wix.
Should I use Shopify or WooCommerce for my online store?
Shopify is simpler, faster to launch, and handles hosting and maintenance for you — the pragmatic choice for most non-technical sellers. WooCommerce is more flexible, has no platform transaction fees, and can be cheaper at scale, but requires technical management. Choose Shopify for convenience, WooCommerce for control.
Do any of these connect to Making Tax Digital?
No. They’re website and eCommerce platforms, not accounting software, so none connect to HMRC or handle VAT and Making Tax Digital. You’ll need dedicated accounting software such as QuickBooks, Xero, or FreeAgent, though you can export your sales data into it.
Conclusion: Our Recommendation
There’s no single “best” website platform — the right choice depends on your business:
- For most service businesses and sole traders, Wix is the sensible all-rounder, with a free plan and low entry price.
- For design-led and creative businesses, Squarespace produces the most professional-looking sites with the least effort.
- For serious online stores, Shopify is the specialist and generally the best long-term choice.
- For WordPress users and technical operators, WooCommerce offers unmatched control and no platform fees.
The good news: Wix has a free plan, Squarespace and Shopify offer free trials, and WooCommerce is free to install. Try the one that matches your business type, build a test site, and you’ll quickly know whether it fits. And whichever you pick, pair it with proper accounting software to keep the HMRC side of things handled.
Pricing and features correct at time of writing. Plans and capabilities are subject to change — always confirm current details on the provider’s website before purchasing.