The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a Web Platform
WordPress vs. Wix vs. Squarespace vs. Hand-Coding vs. AI Website Builders – Which is Right for You?
Introduction
Selecting the best way to build a website can be overwhelming in 2025. Options range from fully hand-coded projects to all-in-one solutions like WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, and the latest wave of AI-powered site generators. Each method comes with unique strengths—and costs. This guide will help readers understand their choices, with a focus on total cost of ownership (TCO), site performance, user experience, and long-term expandability. Ultimately, the evidence shows WordPress is the best dollar-for-dollar investment for most businesses, bloggers, and creators.
Key Website Building Options
Hand-Coded Websites
Hand-coded websites put every line of HTML, CSS, JS, and server logic in the developer’s hands. No GUI or CMS stands between vision and reality, resulting in truly bespoke sites.
Advantages:
- Maximum design, SEO, and functionality control
- No platform restrictions—host anywhere
- Performance optimized to exact project needs
Disadvantages:
- Requires advanced technical knowledge, especially for scalability, responsiveness, and integrations
- Slowest path to launch; every new feature means new code
- Maintenance, upgrades, and security rests on the owner
This route is ideal for organizations with teams of skilled developers building high-traffic sites, custom applications, or unique web experiences. For most SMBs, agencies, and solopreneurs, the costs and risks outweigh benefits when compared with modern CMS platforms.
WordPress as a CMS
WordPress is the world’s most popular content management system, powering over 40% of all sites on the internet. There are two options: WordPress.com (hosted, limited flexibility) and WordPress.org (self-hosted, full flexibility). For TCO, control, and scalability, self-hosted WordPress.org is nearly always recommended.
Advantages:
- Free to install—only pay for hosting, domain, and premium themes/plugins
- Massive ecosystem: 10,000+ themes and plugins, including WooCommerce for robust e-commerce
- SEO-friendly by default; extensible with top plugins like Yoast and Rank Math
- Mobile responsive, accessible, and customizable at every layer (user dashboard, drag-and-drop editor, custom code)
- You own and control your website; no vendor lock-in
- Scales easily from simple blog to advanced business site or online store
- Huge community for help, forums, tutorials, and troubleshooting
Disadvantages:
- Requires regular maintenance (updates to core, plugins, themes)
- Plugins and poorly chosen themes can cause performance issues if mismanaged
- Advanced customization beyond basic editing may require PHP/HTML/CSS knowledge
- Initial learning curve for total newcomers
WordPress’s flexibility, low fixed costs, and open development ecosystem make it the most sustainable and adaptable choice for entrepreneurs, SMBs, agencies, and brands focused on growth.
Wix Website Builder
Wix offers a fast, friendly way to build professional-looking sites with its drag-and-drop interface and robust template library.
Advantages:
- Easiest tool for beginners—no coding required
- Over 2,000 templates for various business and creative needs
- Built-in SEO, e-commerce, AI features (text/image generation, chatbot site builder)
- All-in-one plans include hosting, domain, security, support, and updates
- Good mobile responsiveness
Disadvantages:
- Sites are locked to Wix hosting; migration requires complete rebuild elsewhere
- Template can’t be swapped after site launch, limiting long-term redesigns.
- External plugin support is more limited than WordPress; advanced features can mean higher monthly fees
- Performance issues can arise with large-scale sites or heavy customizations
- Monthly fees escalate with advanced features and collaborators
Wix is ideal for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small businesses wanting fast setup, integrated sales tools, and minimal technical hassle.
Squarespace Website Builder
Squarespace is best known for beautiful, design-focused templates and an easy-to-use drag-and-drop editor.
Advantages:
- Visually stunning templates tailored for portfolios, creators, and SMEs
- Integrated hosting, SSL security, e-commerce, scheduling, and analytics
- Mobile-optimized, intuitive interface for fast publishing
- Strong customer support and help center
Disadvantages:
- Advanced features require costly extensions or custom code
- Platform lock-in: sites are tied to Squarespace hosting, making migration complex
- Expanding or deeply customizing a site can get expensive fast
- Blog and e-commerce capabilities are solid, but less robust than WordPress for enterprise needs
Squarespace excels for high-design brands, creative professionals, and businesses that need a great-looking site without heavy code or customization needs
AI Website Builders
AI-powered web builders (including new solutions from Wix, Squarespace, and standalone AI platforms) use generative models to create design, structure, and even content with little human input.
Advantages:
- Ultra-rapid site setup—AI chatbots and templates produce sites in minutes
- Streamlined for non-technical users; include SEO, mobile-responsiveness, and copy/image generation
- Fast prototype or MVP launches
Disadvantages:
- Limited flexibility for advanced branding, integrations, and custom workflows
- Some platforms lock content into proprietary systems or are slow to update with latest SEO/tech trends
- Expansion can be harder; exporting or customizing AI-generated code usually requires expert help
- Total cost scales with required features; vendor lock-in is common
AI builders are rapidly evolving and great for small businesses or solopreneurs needing speed rather than deep control or scalability.
Comparing Speed, User Experience, Expandability, and Cost: The Data
Speed
- AI builders and Wix/Squarespace: Sites live in hours (drag/drop or AI prompts)
- WordPress: Quick for simple sites via drag-and-drop plugins (Divi, Elementor, Visual Composer), but more planning is required for advanced features or multi-language sites
- Hand-coding: Slowest—days or weeks for simple sites, months for advanced builds
User Experience
- Wix/Squarespace: Highest for non-technical users, excellent design and onboarding
- WordPress: Very good for those who learn the dashboard; unmatched for custom UX with developer input
- AI: Decent but generic UX; lack of fine tuning is common
- Hand-coded: Can be best for niche/complex needs if developer is highly skilled
Expandability
- WordPress: Highest—10,000+ themes, plugins, and endless integrations; full ownership and ability to custom-code scaling solutions
- Hand-coded: Unlimited if you have coding resources
- Wix/Squarespace: Moderate—expansion means higher monthly plan fees and platform limits, migration is hard
- AI builders: Limited—only add features available on the platform; custom integrations usually not supported
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
| Platform | Initial Setup | Ongoing Costs | Expandability Costs | Migration Costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress | Free (software); $36–600/year hosting | $0 (core); plugins/themes vary | Competitive for features; most upgrades one-time | $0; export and move freely |
| Wix | $17–$159/month^5 | All-in-one plans; features scale with cost | Advanced features higher-tier plans | High; full rebuild elsewhere |
| Squarespace | $16–$65/month | Platform fees recurring; features scale | Custom features require extensions/costly upgrades | High; hard to migrate |
| AI Builders | Varies, but often subscription | Locked to platform, exported code sometimes available | Expansion is usually limited or costly | High or impossible |
| Hand-coded | Labor intensive, $0 software | Highest maintenance, ongoing dev cost | Unlimited, but labor scales with site size | None; portable code |
Dollar-for-dollar, WordPress (self-hosted) offers the lowest total cost of ownership with the most flexibility, scalability, and long-term value for nearly all use cases, from blogs to enterprise stores.
In-Depth: WordPress Advantages
Cost Control
WordPress is open-source and free to use. Your only essential costs are the hosting (as little as $36/year for starter plans, $100–$600/year for business/e-commerce hosting), domain registration ($10–$20/year), and optional premium themes or plugins ($30–$200 one-time or annually).
Unlike Wix or Squarespace, which bundle all features into plans and charge recurring fees even for basic needs, WordPress allows owners to pick and choose only what they need—and change or upgrade providers at any time. Your investment scales precisely with your requirements.
Performance
WordPress is engineered for performance. With the right hosting, you’ll enjoy fast load times, responsive themes, and complete SEO control. Caching plugins, optimized images, and robust mobile support outperform Wix/Squarespace sites of comparable size, especially as traffic grows.
Access to the latest web technologies, CDN integrations, and advanced security measures are just a plugin away, so WordPress sites scale without losing speed.
Expandability
WordPress’s plugin and theme ecosystem is unmatched. Want to add a store, advanced analytics, membership portals, online learning (LMS), or multi-language support? There’s a plugin. Need a new booking system, CRM integration, gated content, or marketing automation? It’s available—and most upgrades are a one-time fee, not a recurring cost.
Developers can custom-code integrations and features, so the site can evolve indefinitely—something no all-in-one builder offers for the same price.
Ownership and Control
With WordPress (especially self-hosted), you own everything. Your site, data, files, design, and traffic are yours. No vendor can change your terms, delete your content, or restrict features. You can migrate to a new host in minutes, upgrade or swap themes, and never lose access or pay surprise fees. This level of control is impossible with Wix, Squarespace, or most AI builder tools.
When Wix, Squarespace, or AI Builders Make Sense
Wix and Squarespace deliver rapid deployment, easy design, integrated security, and support for those who do not want the responsibility of site maintenance, plugin vetting, or scaling their own infrastructure. Their platforms are best for those who value design, speed, convenience, and simple workflows above deep control or scalability.
AI builders are perfect for fast prototyping, MVP launches, and basic informational sites, but they’re limited when it comes to scaling complex businesses, deeply customized branding, or migrating to new hosts.
For high-velocity startups, personal portfolios, event sites, or basic shops, the convenience may outweigh the lack of control and higher long-term costs.
Conclusion: WordPress Is the Value Leader
While hand-coding offers maximum flexibility at maximal labor cost, and Wix/Squarespace/AI tools deliver fast, beginner-friendly launches with recurring fees and platform lock-in, WordPress stands alone in combining low upfront and ongoing costs, best-in-class expandability, and full ownership/control.
For businesses, entrepreneurs, and creators who care about site performance, SEO, customizability, and the ability to grow, adapt, or migrate at will, WordPress offers the lowest total cost of ownership and the best long-term value.
Whether building a blog, business portfolio, e-commerce store, or community hub, WordPress remains the strategic choice—dollar for dollar.
Ready to build a scalable, high-performing website that keeps costs in check? Choose WordPress and book a free consultation to explore how we can help build an effective site.
