Webflow vs. WordPress: Differences, pros and cons in 2024

Webflow and WordPress are website-building platforms with unique features that make them each better for different types of businesses. WordPress is ideal for smaller companies and businesses looking for maximum control over their websites. Webflow is a stronger offering for larger businesses focused on flexible design with drag-and-drop features. 

In this guide, we will review both WordPress.com and WordPress.org. If you are looking for a website builder, you are more than likely going to go with WordPress.com since WordPress.org is more for developers. 

You will want to keep in mind pricing, blogging features, marketing tools and customer support options when choosing a website builder. Here’s a closer look at Webflow vs. WordPress to help you understand which may be best for your business needs.

Webflow vs. WordPress: Quick overview

Webflow is a website builder and hosting service in one, where you can build a website using a drag-and-drop editor. While there’s a free version, most businesses will need to upgrade to a paid plan. Upgrading to higher tiers enables more visitors. Plans range from $18 per month to $49 per month when billed monthly.

WordPress encompasses both WordPress.com and WordPress.org. WordPress.org, which is self-hosted, is more for developers. So, if you are looking to build a website for your business, you are more than likely going to look at a plan with WordPress.com. 

WordPress.org gives you complete control over your site and access to many plugins and themes to extend site functionality. WordPress.com is a bit more limited in the number of themes and extensions you can use, but it is still quite flexible. While there’s a free plan, most businesses will need a paid plan, which starts at $9 per month.

Pricing and value

Verdict: WordPress

WordPress offers a better value for the money for most small to mid-sized businesses than Webflow. Webflow makes sense for some midsized businesses but stands out for larger companies. WordPress gives you more flexibility for a lower cost.

Webflow pricing and value

Webflow’s free plan is extremely limited, and you can’t use your own domain, so most businesses using Webflow should use a paid plan. The lowest tier, for $18 per month when billed monthly, initially looks like a good value, offering 50 GB of bandwidth and up to 250,000 monthly visitors. However, it’s only for static sites and doesn’t include content management system (CMS) features for blogging.

That leaves most businesses needing the $29 per month plan (or $42 per month for e-commerce) to unlock most Webflow features. For mid-sized to large businesses, that’s a drop in the bucket. But for smaller companies, it’s a significant cost, and you can find a better value elsewhere.

WordPress pricing and value

With the WordPress.com free plan, you have unlimited traffic but can’t use all WordPress customizations or your own domain. The Starter plan for $4 per month allows you to use your own domain, which is a great value. However, to get more customization options, including premium themes and style customization, you’ll need the Explorer plan for $18 per month.

WordPress.org is free to download and use, but you need a website host to get your site live on the web. Cheap hosting may be slower and limiting, while premium hosting powers fast loading time for many visitors. Cheap hosting costs around $3 per month, while powerful hosting costs hundreds of dollars monthly. You can access thousands of free themes and plugins, though some premium plugins require monthly or annual subscriptions.

Web editor

Verdict: Tie

The Webflow editor is extremely flexible and designer-friendly. If you don’t have an idea of what you want, however, it’s potentially not the best choice. With thousands of themes and templates available, WordPress is easier to get started with and offers unlimited customization, but it doesn’t have the freeform drag-and-drop functionality you get with Webflow.

Webflow web editor

The Webflow editor is a freeform drag-and-drop editor. Users can place text and elements anywhere they want on the page with ease, and Webflow generates the necessary code automatically. For designers, that’s an attractive setup.

For business owners who don’t know much about website design, it can be more of a mixed bag, as you may be able to build a great website but have the potential to build a site with a less-ideal design too.

WordPress web editor

The default WordPress editor is a block-based system where you can place different sections on the page. With third-party themes, you can add pre-designed templates and customize them to your liking. It’s not quite as flexible as Webflow if you don’t know a little about code, but even without coding skills, you can build a high-quality site.

The ability to add third-party themes shouldn’t be understated. Both free and premium themes allow you to do nearly anything you want with your site. You can build anything you want (or hire someone) to customize pages and plugins with a combination of PHP, HTML and CSS code or install a theme and edit to match your branding and goals.

E-commerce functionality

Verdict: WordPress

Both Webflow and WordPress enable you to make e-commerce sales. Each offers pros and cons that could lead you to prefer one or the other.

Webflow e-commerce functionality

With Webflow, e-commerce is a premium feature priced at $42 to $235 per month when paid monthly. At the lowest price, you can add up to 500 e-commerce listings. For $84 per month, you can list 5,000 items. The cost is $235 per month for 15,000 items. At the lowest level, you’ll pay a 2% transaction fee in addition to payment processing costs. There’s no added fee at higher levels.

You can build your site using the drag-and-drop builder, and everything you need is integrated, including payment processing. You can accept card payments, Google Pay, Apple Pay and PayPal using the built-in features. There’s also a sales tracker, automatic sales tax features and other useful tools and add-ons.

WordPress e-commerce functionality

WordPress e-commerce features come through plug-ins. You can use a basic sales system with the default WordPress.com plan, but adding plug-ins enables you to build fully functioning e-commerce sites. You can build and run an e-commerce site for free with some plugins, but others require subscriptions or one-time payments for added features and integrations.

With WordPress.org, you can make unlimited customizations or build your own features, though hiring developers can be expensive.

Top e-commerce plugins include WooCommerce and Easy Digital Downloads, among hundreds of others. With WooCommerce and Easy Digital Downloads, basic features are free, and you’ll have to pay for add-on plugins for certain features, including additional payment systems, advanced listings and tracking, shipping management and taxes.

Blogging

Verdict: WordPress

WordPress began as a blogging platform and grew to do more with plug-ins and new features. Webflow has a fully featured blogging platform, but it’s much more limited.

Webflow blogging

Webflow offers an integrated blogging platform, referred to as its Content Management System (CMS). However, each plan limits you to a specific number of posts. While most businesses won’t have problems on the higher tiers, the $18 per month plan includes zero CMS postings. You’ll need to pay at least $29 per month to use Webflow for blogging.

If you decide to host your site with Webflow and add a blog, it offers integrated SEO and a web-based editor. There’s nothing else to install or set up once your blog section is designed and running.

WordPress blogging

WordPress started as a blogging tool, so its blogging features are robust and well-developed. With WordPress.com or WordPress.org, you can add unlimited blog posts. Plugins give you additional features and options, including enhanced SEO tools and design features.

With WordPress.org, you can make virtually unlimited customizations. With WordPress.com, you’re a little more limited but don’t have to worry about the backend infrastructure.

Marketing and SEO

Verdict: Tie

Marketing and SEO are critical for building traffic to your website. Webflow and WordPress both feature SEO tools utilizing the latest industry best practices.

Webflow marketing and SEO

Webflow includes the most commonly used SEO features, such as custom meta tags and descriptions, indexing controls, sitemaps, redirects and alt tags. Hosting is fully managed, and sites load quickly, enhancing Google rankings.

WordPress marketing and SEO

WordPress includes basic SEO features right out of the box. Using plugins like All-In-One SEO (AIOSEO) or Yoast SEO, you can add much more functionality, including social media integrations and additional search engine optimization features.

Performance and security

Verdict: Tie

Webflow and WordPress both offer excellent performance and security. However, with WordPress.org, the site owner is responsible for maintaining fast speeds and security plugins.

Webflow performance and security

Webflow performance and security features are included, and you don’t have to worry about doing extra work to optimize for site loading speed or to keep hackers out of your site. You’re likely safe if you follow online best practices, such as using unique passwords on every website. However, you can take some small steps to ensure it loads as quickly as possible.

WordPress performance and security

WordPress.com includes hosting and security features, so you don’t have to worry much about performance and security. Like Webflow, you can follow best practices to get a small speed boost and you should always keep your passwords secure to keep out bad actors. 

For WordPress.org, performance and security are a bigger concern. However, you can get fast speeds and additional security using a high-powered hosting provider and the best caching and security plugins.

Mobile app

Verdict: WordPress

Webflow doesn’t offer a mobile app, and WordPress does. However, neither is ideal for managing a website using your phone.

Webflow mobile app

Webflow allows you to build mobile apps, but there’s no official mobile app for Webflow. It’s designed to be used on desktop and laptop computers. Some third-party apps give you Webflow site management features, but they’re not made by Webflow, so they may not be a great option for most users.

WordPress mobile app

WordPress mobile apps give you helpful features on the small screen, but they’re not as good as the larger interface for the web. WordPress is a winner because it offers mobile apps, but they’re not very exciting.

Final verdict

Winner: WordPress

Overall, for the combination of cost, features and ease of use, WordPress is our top pick when comparing Webflow vs. WordPress.

Who is Webflow best for?

Webflow is a strong offering with flexible drag-and-drop features. But it’s better for larger businesses with access to a team of professional designers. Small businesses may struggle to get the best possible results.

Who is WordPress best for?

With unlimited flexibility and features, and the option to host and own your website, WordPress is our top choice. Whether you pick WordPress.com or WordPress.org, It’s better for small businesses looking for features, affordability and ease of use. Plugins and the ability to edit the code and develop custom plugins make it entirely malleable for meeting your goals.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Is Webflow better than WordPress?

Webflow is better for some businesses due to its integrated hosting and all-in-one features. However, cost, flexibility and ease of use make WordPress a better choice for most small businesses.

Is Webflow faster than WordPress?

Webflow and WordPress.com both feature state-of-the-art hosting that’s optimized for site speed. With WordPress.org, getting the fastest speeds requires plugins and optimal website hosting.

Is Webflow good for SEO?

Webflow includes built-in SEO tools following industry best practices. You can add and edit metadata and sitemaps and take advantage of other SEO-friendly features.