Wix, SquareSpace & WordPress. What’s the Best Option for Blogging?

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Wix, SquareSpace, or WordPress

When you’re starting a new blog one of the most important decisions you must make is which blogging platform to use. Nowadays, blogging is extremely popular, which has resulted in many options to choose from.

Wix, SquareSpace, or WordPress are the three most popular blogging platforms and website builders available. Each of them come with their own set of characteristics and benefits.

Not sure which is best for you? Read on to learn more!

Wix

Wix is a cloud-based website builder and blogging platform that allows users to create websites by simply dragging and dropping design features onto a blank template. Other than its internal applications, you can add external plugins or apps to enhance your website. These include e-commerce functions, social media buttons, forms, and email marketing.

Many online reviewers have stated that Wix is the best website builder on the market. It combines an easy process of creating a website with a wide range of flexibility to creatively personalize your website.

Another great advantage of Wix is its price. If you are short on cash Wix has a free website builder option that allows you to easily create a beautiful website for free. If however, you want a unique blog with advanced features then you can pay for premium upgrades that start at $5 per month.

SquareSpace

This is a website builder that incorporates many design tools such as templates, content management, domain hosting, e-commerce, and online support. When you sign up, there is a monthly subscription fee for its services. The costs range from $12 to $46 a month depending on the features you choose and the number of pages on your website.

SquareSpace has two options for website builders. If you know how to code, you can choose the developer’s version which allows you to manipulate the source code to create your unique website. Alternatively, if you only have basic knowledge of web design, then you can go with the standard version of SquareSpace.

With the second option, you can easily create your website using templates. At the moment SquareSpace has only 24 website templates so your site will not be one of a kind.

WordPress

WordPress is the most popular website builder for blogs. You can either choose the self-hosting WordPress or the hosted one. The self-hosted WordPress is a free open source software that you can use to create a website on your webserver.

The source code is customizable so experienced web developers can alter it to create awesome websites. On the other hand, if you are an amateur website owner you can use the free templates to quickly create a professional-looking website.

While the self-hosted WordPress software is free, you would still pay some costs from your web hosting company. If you choose to hire a web developer to design your website this would cost you extra. Depending on what features you choose, and the work you decide to outsource, WordPress could end up costing you more than SquareSpace and Wix.

With the hosted version of WordPress, you would pay a monthly subscription to use WordPress servers as well as their website templates and blogging software. There are many external plugins or applications that you can also add to make your website function better. WordPress has thousands of both free and costed templates that you can choose from to create your website.

One downside to WordPress is that it does not have its e-commerce function. You would need to purchase an external plugin if you want to sell things from your website.

Wix, SquareSpace, or WordPress- Which One Should You Choose?

All three blog platforms have advantages and disadvantages. The best one for you depends on what you are looking for.

Most Wix and SquareSpace users have no experience building websites hence they love the ease these options provide. If you need a website quickly, this might be the best option for you.

SquareSpace is also ideal if you don’t care about manipulating your website too much. It also has beautiful designs, so it is the best platform if you require a very aesthetically pleasing website.

WordPress is a great option for you if you have web design knowledge and want to create your customized site. The self-hosted version is open source, so it is a great option for those with a limited budget. WordPress is also great for big companies as it allows for websites with numerous pages to be built.

Breaking Down Feature Comparisons

The wide range of e-commerce plugins available at WordPress also makes it a better choice for businesses. SquareSpace has just one e-commerce functionality.

If you want to use your website primarily for blogging, then you should go with WordPress. Originally the website was created as a platform for bloggers so it has many properties that Wix and SquareSpace don’t have.

For example, with WordPress you can organize your posts into categories, the posts have an autosave function, and you can edit posts both in HTML and WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get). WordPress also allows you to save all your blog media in one place which is not possible with the other two.

SquareSpace is extremely easy to use for blogging because it was created for amateurs. You can edit your blogs just like you would a word document and your changes will be seen in real-time.

WordPress is a bit harder to use than SquareSpace. For example, to edit a webpage you have to go to the administration side of the website to make changes.

Wix is the easiest website builder to use so it’s the best choice for novices in web design. It has great tools for SEO marketing and guides you on the best ways to optimize your website pages for google rankings. Wix also has the best customer support over the phone, email and online chat. WordPress does not offer any customer support whatsoever.

What’s the Best Choice for You?

Choosing a website platform might seem overwhelming with all the details to go through. However, if you know what your goals are, then start from there and figure out which one has the best features and tools for you.

Whether you pick Wix, Squarespace, or WordPress, make sure that your site is well put together and a reflection of you and your business. For more information on which platform might right, check out this article.