Square vs Wix are both powerful, easy-to-use platforms to build an eCommerce website, start selling and accept payments online. Nevertheless, while Square is strong for its integration with payment processing capabilities and Square POS, Wix is trusted for its beautiful templates and strong marketing features.
In this blog, we will compare the two platforms under nine key factors to help you pick an optimal solution for your demand and budget:
- Pricing
- Ease of Use
- Design and Customization
- Payment
- Integrations
- eCommerce Features
- Marketing Features
- Security
- Support
Let’s dive in!
Square vs Wix Quick Comparison
Square | Wix | Winner | |
Pricing | $0 - $79 | $17 - $159 | Square |
Ease of use | Square’s intuitive interface lets you easily manage all aspects of your online store. | Similar to Square, Wix is also famous for its unmatched ease of use. | It’s a tie. |
Design and customization | Square only has 28 templates and comes with basic customization options only. | Wix offers 800+ templates that give you more design freedom than Square. | Wix |
Payment | Square Online offers diverse payment methods with Square Payments. | Wix also offers various payment options but largely through integration with external payment providers. | Square |
Integrations | Around 300 apps that focus on eCommerce | Around 300 apps that specialize in eCommerce and personal website purposes. | It’s a tie. |
eCommerce features | Robust inventory management, multi-channel selling, and POS integration | Comprehensive product management and multi-channel capabilities | Square |
Marketing Features | Basic email marketing and social media tools | Advanced email campaigns and SEO features | Wix |
Security | Square's Risk Manage system provides additional security tools | Wix emphasizes its high-standard server security | It’s a tie. |
Support | 24/7 support for Premium users. Mon-Fri support during working hours for other plans | 24/7 support via live chat and phone support for users of all plans. | Wix |
#1. Square vs Wix: Pricing (Square Wins)
| Verdict: Square is a more affordable choice than Wix.
Even on its free plan, Square already lets you launch a functional online store. With Wix, you have to be on its Business plan ($36/month) to have access to some decent eCommerce features. |
For its eCommerce services– Square Online, Square offers three pricing packages, which include one free forever plan and two paid options. What we like about Square is that its free plan is actually a functional plan that allows you to list products and accept payments online.
Have a look at the detailed pricing plans Square offers:
Plan | Pricing | Transaction fees | Key features |
Free | $0 | 2.9% + 30¢ |
|
Plus | $29 | 2.9% + 30¢ |
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Premium | $79 | 2.6% + 30¢ |
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Wix also operates under the subscription model as Square. Nevertheless, it’s worth noting that Wix doesn’t offer a free plan. And though its starting price is $17/month, this plan doesn’t offer eCommerce features.
Here’s a summary of Wix’s offerings:
Plan | Pricing | Transaction fees | Key features |
Light | $17/mo | No eCommerce |
|
Core | $29/mo | 2.9% + 30¢ | All in Light plan, plus:
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Business | $36/mo | 2.9% + 30¢ | All in Core plan, plus:
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Business Elite | $159/mo | 2.9% + 30¢ | All in Business plan, plus:
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#2. Square vs Wix: Ease of Use (A Tie)
| Verdict: It’s a tie.
Both Square and Wix provide you with an intuitive dashboard where you can manage all aspects of your online store easily in one place. |
When it comes to ease of use, Square shines with its modern and clean user interface packed with all you need to run your online store like a well-oiled machine. This includes product inventory, customer reviews, order history, etc.
Editing your visual storefront is easy with the Square Online theme editor as well. Specifically, you have all the prebuilt design elements to customize on the left, like header, main banner, featured items, etc.
Like Square Online, Wix also stands out in the ease of use area. Within Wix admin dashboard, you can manage every aspect or manage important settings of your store like payment, marketing, analytics, etc.
And thanks to Wix’s drag-and-drop editor, you can easily click and drag various elements like images, titles, and logos to your preferred locations.
#3. Square vs Wix: Design and Customization (Wix Wins)
| Verdict: Wix completely overshadows Square regarding design and customization.
Wix has 800+ website templates, while this number is only 28 with Square. Also, Wix offers more design customization than Square Online. |
Square has great-looking templates with many useful features. Nevertheless, they only have about 28 templates, which is much less than the number Wix has to offer.
Another unpleasant thing about Square Online design and customization is that you can't change Square templates much. Specifically, there's no way to add your own code, so you are limited in how unique you can make your site look.
Wix, on the other hand, has over 800 free templates you can change. These cover many different styles, so you can quickly make a website that matches your brand.
Not to mention that you can also add HTML code to your Wix site. If we have one thing to complain about, it’s the fact that Wix doesn’t let you switch to another template later. This could be a problem if you want to change your store's look in the future completely.
#4. Square vs Wix: Payment (Square Wins)
| Verdict: Square defeats Wis in terms of payment.
Both platforms offer various payment methods. However, as a specialized payment processor at its core, Square has a more integrated approach than Wix. Also, Square has a more competitive transaction fee for users on the Premium or custom plan. |
Wix has its own payment gateways called Wix Payments, allowing you to accept credit card payments (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, etc.) and many other options like Apple Pay, Google Pay, iDEAL, Pay Now by Klarna, or Giropay (depending on your location).
Wix Payments enables you to accept credit cards, accelerated checkout options, BNPL, etc.
Alt: wix payments homepage
Since Square is a payment processing platform at its core, Square does it better than Wix in terms of payment features. The first noticeable perk of Square is that if you pay for its highest plan, your transaction fee will be only 2.6% + $0.30, while Wix charges 2.9% + $0.30 for all plans.
In terms of payment options, there isn’t any big difference between Square and Wix except for the fact that all Square’s payment options are built. On the other hand, Wix expands its payment methods via integrations with third-party payment gateways.
#5. Square vs Wix: Integrations (A Tie)
| Verdict: It’s a tie.
Square vs Wix both offer around 300 third-party apps and add-ons. However, while Square’s apps are mainly for eCommerce, the use cases of Wix’s apps are more diverse. |
Square, with its expansive app marketplace featuring over 300 integrations, takes the win for providing a wide variety of functionalities that cater to all aspects of business operations. Apps on Square span across multiple categories with a strong focus on POS features like delivery, order, booking, items and inventory, etc.
The Wix App Store also has around 300 apps and add-ons, which include six main categories: marketing, selling online, services and events, media and content, design elements, and communication.
#6. Square vs Wix: eCommerce Features (Square Wins)
| Verdict: Square Online slightly edges over Wix.
It’s a close call, but Square Online slightly edges out Wix in built-in eCommerce features. Square Online’s unlimited product listings, superior inventory management, and seamless POS integration make it particularly strong for businesses with both online and offline presence. |
Both Square and Wix offer merchants a wide range of eCommerce features. However, with unlimited items supported, advanced inventory management, and seamless integration with Square POS, Square is a better choice than Wix for eCommerce websites.
Here’s a summary of how Square Online vs Wix stack up against one another regarding eCommerce features:
Feature | Square Online | Wix |
Product Listings | Unlimited items | Up to 50,000 products (on higher-tier plans) |
Inventory Management | Real-time sync across online and offline channels | Basic inventory tracking with low-stock alerts |
POS Integration | Seamless integration with Square POS | Limited built-in POS features |
Multi-channel Sales | Integrated online, in-person, and social media selling | Supports online store, Facebook, and Instagram |
Shipping Options | In-house delivery, on-demand delivery, curbside pickup | Multiple shipping options, real-time rates |
Abandoned Cart Recovery | Available on paid plans | Available on all plans |
Product Variants | Up to 250 variants per product | Up to 1000 variants per product |
Digital Products | Supported | Supported |
Gift Cards | Available | Available |
Customer Accounts | Optional customer accounts | Optional customer accounts |
#7. Square vs Wix: Marketing Features (Wix Wins)
| Verdict: Wix has superior marketing features than Square.
Overall, while Square Online offers solid basic SEO and marketing features suitable for small businesses, Wix provides a more comprehensive and advanced set of tools for businesses looking to optimize their online presence and marketing efforts. |
Square wins in the eCommerce round, but in the marketing battle, Wix takes the lead. Here’s how Square vs Wix has to offer regarding marketing and promotion tools:
Square Online | Wix | |
SEO |
|
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Mobile Optimization | Responsive design, fewer customization options | Advanced mobile editor for fine-tuning |
Email Marketing | Basic built-in tools, limited customization | Robust Ascend platform with advanced segmentation |
Social Media Integration | Simple sharing buttons, basic product feeds | Comprehensive tools, including post scheduling |
Abandoned Cart Recovery | Available on higher-tier plans, basic customization | Available on Business plans, advanced targeting |
Customer Reviews | Basic review system on product pages | Advanced system with rich snippets for SERP |
Analytics | Basic built-in Google Analytics integration | Comprehensive suite with detailed reports |
#8. Square vs Wix: Security (A Tie)
| Verdict: It’s a draw.
Both platforms prioritize customer data protection and secure checkout processes. Square's Risk Manage system provides additional security tools, while Wix emphasizes its high-standard server security. |
Square keeps your online store safe with good security features. They use PCI compliance, built-in SSL security, and strong payment data protection. This means your customers can buy things safely and easily. Square also gives you a Risk Manage system, which helps you handle disputes and watch out for fraud at no extra cost.
Wix also makes sure your website is very secure. They use SSL web security, which creates safe and private connections (HTTPS) to protect your visitors' information.
Wix uses the best security for payments, called Level 1 PCI Compliant and TLS 1.2 servers. This means your website follows the strictest rules for keeping payments safe, so your visitors' transactions are completely secure.
#9. Square vs Wix: Support (A Tie)
| Verdict: Wix offers better customer support than Square.
Square provides 24/7 phone support, but only for its Premium plan users. Other plan users have limited support hours from 6 am to 6 pm, Monday to Friday. On the other hand, Wix offers 24/7 support for all plans. |
When you choose Square for your online business, you will find that customer support varies based on your plan. If you are a Premium plan user, you will enjoy the convenience of 24/7 phone support, allowing you to get assistance whenever you need it. However, if you are on other plans, your support access is more limited. you will only be able to reach out for help from 6 am to 6 pm, Monday through Friday.
On the other hand, Wix gives users of all plan 24/7 live chat support in multiple languages. Additionally, you will have the option to use phone support during business hours. If you prefer community-based assistance, you can also tap into Wix's large forum, where you can connect with other users for help and advice.
Which is better between Square and Wix?
Now that we have walked you through a head-to-head comparison between Square vs Wix, have you found the platform that best aligns with your business? Well, at the end of the dat, it all boils down to your focus, doesn’t it?
Choose Square over Wix if you | Choose Wix over Square if you |
Need an affordable, all-in-one solution for seamless in-person and online sales with robust payment processing and inventory management. | Prioritize design flexibility, extensive marketing tools, and a more comprehensive website builder for a broader range of business types. |
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Frequently asked questions
Which is better, Square or Wix?
Both platforms have strengths, but they serve different needs. Square is better for small businesses with physical locations needing integrated payment solutions. Wix excels in design flexibility and is ideal for a wider range of business types.
Is Square compatible with Wix?
Yes, Square is compatible with Wix. Though Wix primarily uses its own payment system (Wix Payments), it supports integration with 80+ processors, including Square.
What is the downside of Wix?
Here are a few downsides of Wix according to our clients migrating from Wix to another platform:
- Limited customization for advanced users
- Potential performance issues affecting site speed
- Difficulty in switching templates without rebuilding
- Some SEO limitations compared to more specialized platforms
- Higher pricing for full functionality, with auto-renewal contracts
