Now booking enterprise content platform builds for 2026. Contact us

Join us
Contact us

What we build

Who it's for

How we engage

Case studies

Industries

Partnerships

About

Writing

Tools

For startups Join us
Contact us
CMS comparison Wix vs WordPress

Wix vs WordPress

Wix is a closed-source site builder that runs on the vendor's cloud. WordPress is an open-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 16.

Book a call
  • Wix Site builder · Closed source · 21 of 28 built in
  • WordPress Traditional · Open source · 13 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Wix on 29 Sept 2026, WordPress on 29 Sept 2026. Plans and releases can change after those dates.

WAYF is an official Payload partner and top contributor. Every platform in the table is classified by the same published definitions, and each answer lists the vendor page it came from.

Feature comparison

Built inPaid tierPlugin or add-onLimitedNot available
Wix vs WordPress feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Wix Site builder
WordPress Traditional
Overview
What it is Hosted website builder with a CMS, business apps and hosting, run by Wix.com Ltd. Wix Studio adds an editor and workspace for agencies.Open-source PHP CMS that renders sites through themes and extends through plugins. Teams self-host it or buy managed WordPress hosting.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Wix website builder with Wix CMS, in Wix Editor and Wix Studio SaaS, continuously updated WordPress 7.1 core, self-hosted from WordPress.org Version 7.1.2, released 22 Sept 2026
Vendor Wix.com Ltd. wix.com WordPress.org community project (Automattic is the largest contributor) wordpress.org
Licence Closed source Proprietary Open source GPL-2.0-or-later
Hosting No self-hosting Vendor cloud Wix Headless serves the same content to a frontend you host. Self-hosting No vendor cloud Automattic's WordPress.com and many third-party hosts sell managed WordPress.
Built with Hosted SaaS, JavaScript through the Wix IDE, CLI and SDKPHP, JavaScript, React block editor
Database Wix CMS collections, managed by WixMySQL, MariaDB
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free plan. Light $17, Core $29, Business $39, Business Elite $159 per month billed yearly in the US. Free to start Free to download and self-host. Hosting and premium plugins cost extra.
Content modelling
Content model in code You define content types in files in your repository, review them like any other code and apply them from there. Imperative migration scripts alone count as limited. Limited Only Wix CLI apps and headless projects define collections in TypeScript files. 13 Built in Post types, taxonomies and meta registered in PHP.
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in 20 Plugin or add-on ACF or Custom Post Type UI plugins. Core has no content type builder. 12
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Editors add and reorder sections and saved components on the canvas. Built in Block editor with patterns and synced patterns.
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Wix Multilingual, with manual or automatic translation. 14 Plugin or add-on WPML or Polylang plugins. Core translates the interface only. 13
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in Resize and crop through image URL parameters. 15 Built in WordPress generates registered image sizes on upload.
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in Data Items REST API. 3 Built in 5
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in GraphQL endpoint over the same data as the REST API. 4 Plugin or add-on WPGraphQL, a canonical plugin on WordPress.org. 6
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Built in App webhooks, or an HTTP request step in Wix Automations. 16 Plugin or add-on WP Webhooks plugin. Core sends no outgoing webhooks. 16
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Built in Block themes and classic PHP themes.
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Draft status on CMS items, on by default for new collections. 11 Limited Edits to a published post go live on update. PublishPress Revisions adds pending drafts. 11
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Built in Scheduled status changes on CMS items. 11 Built in Scheduled publishing only. Scheduled unpublishing needs a plugin.
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Limited CMS keeps weekly and manual collection backups. Restores replace whole collections. 9 Built in Revisions with a visual scrubber since 7.0. 2
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Built in
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in Built in Block Editor and Site Editor edit content inside the theme's styles.
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Paid tier Approvals for site changes in the Wix Studio enterprise solution. 8 Plugin or add-on PublishPress plugins. Core has only the Pending Review status. 711
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Limited Release Manager publishes whole site versions and test sites. No grouped item releases. 12 Not available
Real-time co-editing Two or more editors can work on the same entry at once and see each other's changes live. Built in Built into the Studio Editor. 7 Not available Pulled from 7.0. Still experimental in the Gutenberg plugin. 3418
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in Not every permission is available to custom roles. 619 Plugin or add-on Plugins such as Members or User Role Editor. Core roles are fixed. 7
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available CMS permissions apply per collection. 20 Not available
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Paid tier OpenID Connect only, with the Wix Studio enterprise solution. 10 Plugin or add-on SAML or OIDC plugins, e.g. miniOrange SAML Single Sign On. 15
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Not available Not documented publicly. Plugin or add-on Simple History or WP Activity Log plugins. 14
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Built in One account or Studio workspace manages many sites, each on its own plan. Built in Multisite network in core, with shared users. 8
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Dashboard extensions add custom pages and widgets. 17 Built in Custom blocks, admin pages and meta boxes.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Wix App Market. Built in WordPress.org plugin directory.
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Built in Wix Forms. Plugin or add-on Form plugins such as WPForms or Contact Form 7. 17
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Built in Members Area handles sign-up and login. Built in Open registration with the Subscriber role. 7
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Built in AI text creator in the Wix and Studio editors. 18 Plugin or add-on Official AI plugin plus a connected provider. Core ships the AI Client only. 29
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in Wix MCP for docs, code and site API calls. 5 Plugin or add-on MCP Adapter plugin from the WordPress AI team. 10

Considering more platforms? Compare Wix and WordPress with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.

Where they differ

Wix and WordPress get a different status on 16 of the 28 features and the same status on 12. Wix has 21 built in on its baseline edition, WordPress has 13. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Licence
Wix is closed source (Proprietary). WordPress is open source (GPL-2.0-or-later).
Self-hosting
Wix cannot be self-hosted. WordPress can be self-hosted.
Vendor cloud
Wix has a vendor-run cloud. WordPress has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Wix, a different answer on WordPress 10

  • Content model in the UI Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Localization Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • GraphQL API Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Webhooks Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Drafts Wix: Built in. WordPress: Limited.
  • Real-time co-editing Wix: Built in. WordPress: Not available.
  • Custom roles Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Form builder Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • AI writing assistant Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Official MCP server Wix: Built in. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.

Built in on WordPress, a different answer on Wix 2

  • Content model in code Wix: Limited. WordPress: Built in.
  • Version history Wix: Limited. WordPress: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 4

  • Approval workflows Wix: Paid tier. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Content releases Wix: Limited. WordPress: Not available.
  • Single sign-on Wix: Paid tier. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.
  • Audit log Wix: Not available. WordPress: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

Full write-ups with worked examples and costs: WordPress vs Payload.

Wix against other platforms

WordPress against other platforms

Open the CMS comparison tool to put up to six platforms in one table.

We're booking content platform
engagements for 2026.

Twenty-five minutes to walk through the work and decide if we're the right team for it. Scoping and a fixed price come after.

Book a 25-min call Or email us instead