If you are choosing between Wix, WordPress, and Squarespace, the real question is not which one is best overall, but which one fits how you want to run your site. Wix and Squarespace hand you a hosted, all-in-one builder, while WordPress hands you the keys and the control.
My short answer: if you care about owning your site and ranking long term, I lean WordPress. But Wix and Squarespace each earn their place for the right person, and below I will show you exactly where each one wins.
Wichtigste Erkenntnisse
- WordPress still runs about 41.9% of all websites (W3Techs, May 2026), while Wix sits near 4.3% and Squarespace near 2.5%, so this is one giant and two smaller, well-built specialists.
- Wix is the easiest to start with: true drag-and-drop, with nothing to host or update yourself.
- Squarespace wins on design polish out of the box, which suits portfolios and clean brand sites.
- WordPress gives the most control and the highest long-term SEO ceiling, but you manage hosting, updates, and security yourself.
- Cost is closer than it looks: Wix and Squarespace bundle hosting into the plan, while WordPress is free software plus hosting you pay for separately.
- If you expect to grow, sell, or rank seriously, the control WordPress gives you is hard to replace later.
Hosted builders vs self-hosted: the split that decides everything
Before comparing features, you need the one distinction that drives all the others. Wix and Squarespace are hosted, closed platforms: you sign up, build inside their editor, and they run the servers, security, and updates for you. You never touch the plumbing, but you also cannot leave with your site if you outgrow them.
WordPress here means self-hosted WordPress.org, the open-source software that you install on your own hosting with your own domain. Nobody owns your setup but you, so you get full control, but you also carry the maintenance. Think of it like renting a serviced apartment versus owning the house: one is easier day to day, the other is yours to change however you like.
Where Wix fits
Wix is the friendliest on-ramp of the three. The editor is genuine drag-and-drop, so you place things exactly where you want them on the page, and there are hundreds of templates plus an app market for extras like booking or a small store. For a beginner who wants a clean site up this weekend without learning anything technical, it is hard to beat.
The honest catch is lock-in. You cannot swap templates freely once you publish, and there is no clean way to export your site to another platform later, so what you build on Wix tends to stay on Wix. For a simple local business page or a portfolio that is fine; for something you plan to grow and rank hard, that ceiling matters.
Where Squarespace fits
Squarespace is the design-first choice. It offers fewer templates than Wix, but they are all polished, mobile-responsive, and genuinely good-looking out of the box, which is why creatives, photographers, restaurants, and small product brands gravitate to it. If you want something that looks professional with almost no design effort, this is the smoothest path.
It is still a walled garden, though. You get fewer third-party integrations than WordPress, less freedom to customize beyond what the templates allow, and the same you-cannot-take-it-with-you limit as Wix. Squarespace trades flexibility for polish, and for the right user that is a fair trade.
Where WordPress fits
WordPress is the one I reach for when control and longevity matter. Because it is open-source with a vast plugin ecosystem, you can build almost anything on it, from a simple blog to a full store, and you own every part of it. It also gives you the deepest SEO control of the three, with full command over titles, schema, redirects, and site structure rather than whatever the builder decides to expose. Most of that control comes through a dedicated SEO plugin like Rang Mathematik.
The trade-off is real work. You handle your own hosting, updates, backups, and security, so there is more to manage than a hosted builder. That starts with picking a solid host; for most people a fast, affordable option like Hostinger is plenty to begin with, and you can read my full picks in this guide to the bestes Webhosting für kleine Unternehmen. Scaling is rarely the blocker people fear either, as I covered in whether WordPress kann eine Million Besuche bewältigen.
How the pricing really compares
Pricing looks simple on Wix and Squarespace because hosting is baked into the plan, and looks confusing on WordPress because it is not. WordPress software is free; what you pay for is hosting and any premium themes or plugins you choose. That separation is why a WordPress site can be the cheapest option or a more considered investment, depending on the host you pick.
| Platform | Entry plan | Higher tiers | What you are paying for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wix | Free plan, then about $17/mo (Light) | Core ~$29, Business ~$39, Business Elite ~$159/mo | Builder plus hosting, all bundled |
| Squarespace | About $16/mo (Basic) | Core ~$23, Plus ~$39, Advanced ~$99/mo | Builder plus hosting, no free tier |
| WordPress.org | Software free; budget hosting from a few dollars/mo | Scales with your host and premium add-ons | Hosting and optional themes/plugins, paid separately |
The numbers above are annual-billing prices and shift over time, so treat them as a guide rather than gospel. The pattern, though, is steady: the hosted builders charge a predictable monthly fee that quietly climbs as you need ecommerce or more storage, while WordPress lets you control the spend by choosing your own host.
Market share and why it matters for you
Market share is not a reason to pick a platform on its own, but it does tell you something about ecosystem and staying power. According to W3Techs, WordPress powers about 41.9% of all websites as of May 2026, with Wix near 4.3% and Squarespace near 2.5%.
That gap is not about quality, it is about reach. A platform this widely used means more developers, more themes and plugins, more tutorials, and more people who can help when you are stuck, which is exactly the kind of safety net that pays off years down the line. Wix and Squarespace are smaller, but both are stable, well-funded companies, so you are not betting on something that will vanish.
Quick side-by-side comparison
| Faktor | Wix | WordPress | Squarespace |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benutzerfreundlichkeit | Easiest, drag-and-drop | Moderate, some learning | Easy, section-based |
| Design flexibility | Good, within templates | Highest, fully customizable | Polished but more limited |
| SEO control | Decent, but capped | Deepest control of the three | Good, less granular |
| Hosting and upkeep | Done for you | You manage it | Done for you |
| Am besten geeignet für | Beginners, simple sites | Growth, stores, serious SEO | Design-led brands, portfolios |
So which one should you actually choose?
Honestly, for most people reading this I would build on WordPress, because the control it gives you over design, SEO, and growth is the thing you cannot buy back later once your site matters. Yes, it asks for a little more effort up front, but a beginner-friendly host and a good theme remove most of that pain on day one.
The exceptions are clear, and I do not want to talk you out of them. If you want the simplest possible start for a small site you will not push hard on SEO, Wix is the gentlest option. If design polish is the whole point and you want it beautiful with near-zero fuss, Squarespace is excellent. All three are good tools; the right one is simply the one that matches where your site is headed, not just where it sits today.
Still unsure which platform fits you?
If you would like a second opinion before you commit, mit uns arbeiten oder E-Mail and I will point you to the platform that matches your goals and budget. Choosing well now saves a painful rebuild later.
Änderungsprotokolle
01 Jul 2026
- Refreshed for 2026 with current market-share figures, up-to-date Wix and Squarespace pricing, and a clearer verdict on who each platform genuinely suits.
Want our posts to show up more often on Google?
One step & Google will surface this site in your Top Stories.
