Wix vs Shopify in 2026: Prices, Fees per Sale and Limits Compared

"Wix or Shopify?" Both let you build a store without code, both let you start for free, both now come with AI. What separates them is the numbers: what you pay to be able to take payments, what each order costs you, and when you hit the limits.

Here are those numbers, checked on the official Wix and Shopify US pages on October 5, 2026, followed by the verdict for your project.

The verdict for your project

Wix if your site mainly presents your business and selling comes on top. Shopify if you're building an online store and orders are the center of the project.

The real difference: a website that sells, or a store with a website

Wix is a website builder that can also sell. Shopify is a selling platform that can also build a website. The choice depends on what matters most to you.

On Wix, you start from a blank page or a template and place every element exactly where you want it. The store is a module you add, just like a blog, a booking calendar, or an online course.

On Shopify, everything starts from the product and the order: catalog, inventory, checkout, shipping, taxes, customers. The website is the storefront for that engine. You get less layout freedom than on Wix, since you work with a theme's sections, but every setting is designed to sell.

Pricing: what you actually pay to sell

Wix's cheapest plan, Light, doesn't accept online payments. To sell, you need at least Core at $29 a month billed yearly. Shopify Basic is also $29 a month billed yearly.

Checked on October 5, 2026. Wix prices are for yearly plans paid upfront, before tax.

Both let you start without paying. Wix lets you build your site for free, with Wix branding and no payments, and offers a 14-day money-back guarantee on paid plans. Shopify gives you a 3-day free trial with no card, then $1 a month for 3 months. The full first-year cost on Shopify is in is Shopify free.

Fees per order: what a $100 sale costs you

On a $100 card sale in the US, Wix Payments and Shopify Payments (Basic plan) both take $3.20. Wix is not cheaper per order, despite what many comparisons say.

Over a year, with 50 orders of $50 a month (600 orders, $30,000 in sales), card fees come to $1,050 on both, and the subscription to $348 on both (Wix Core or Shopify Basic, billed yearly). The cost is the same. The choice comes down to features.

Two things to know. On Shopify, if you take payments through a provider other than Shopify Payments, an extra 2% applies to every sale on Basic. On Wix, a refund doesn't give you back the original processing fee.

This math doesn't include apps. On Shopify, many advanced features come from apps, some of them paid. On Wix, more is included in the plan, but often only on the higher tiers.

Catalog limits

Wix caps you at 50,000 products and 1,000 variants per product. Shopify has no product limit and goes up to 2,048 variants. On Wix, several features depend on the plan you pick.

Wix has a real edge on one point: 6 options per product, versus 3 on Shopify. If you sell a configurable product (a piece of furniture with size, color, finish, legs, fabric, and handles), Wix handles it directly. For everything else, and especially as the catalog grows, Shopify gives you more room.

AI tools on both sides

Wix has an AI site generator and Aria, an assistant to design and evolve your site. Shopify has Sidekick, an AI assistant included from the Basic plan to help run your store. Neither one hands you a complete store ready to sell.

On Wix, you describe your business and the generator builds a site you then customize. On Shopify, Sidekick answers your questions and helps you change settings in the admin. Either way, you still have to create the products, product pages, collections, pages, and selling settings.

That's where AI store builders made for Shopify come in. With Scale Ova, you describe your project and a complete Shopify store is generated, products, collections, and pages included: a median of 12 minutes between opening a project and the first store, according to the Scale Ova 2026 report. The full comparison is in the best AI store builders for Shopify.

The downsides of each

Wix mostly limits you as the store grows. Shopify mostly costs you in apps and gives you less layout freedom.

Wix downsides:

• The Light plan can't sell online, you need at least Core.
• The catalog is capped at 50,000 products and 1,000 variants per product.
• Some features, like multiple currencies or dropshipping beyond a small quota, require a higher plan.
• A Wix site's design doesn't move to another platform if you switch.

Shopify downsides:

• Only 3 options per product, versus 6 on Wix.
• Many features come from apps, and the subscriptions add up fast.
• An extra 2% on Basic if you don't use Shopify Payments.
• Less layout freedom: you work with your theme's sections, not a blank canvas.

Switching platforms later

Moving from Wix to Shopify is doable: your products export to CSV, but your design has to be rebuilt.

Wix exports your product list and its data to a CSV file (digital products excluded). Shopify imports products from a CSV in its own format, so you either reformat the columns or use a migration app. The design doesn't transfer: you rebuild the store on a Shopify theme.

That's why the starting choice matters. If you already know online sales will be the core of your business, starting on Shopify saves you a migration. Next, the complete guide to building your Shopify store walks through the launch step by step. If you're comparing other platforms: Shopify vs WooCommerce, Shopify vs PrestaShop, and the comparison of online store builders.

Going further

If you go with Shopify, Scale Ova generates your complete store from a description, in minutes. You browse it and edit it for free, and a Scale Ova subscription is only required to publish it to Shopify.

FAQ

Sources

• Wix, plans and pricing (checked October 5, 2026)
• Wix, Wix Payments processing fees
• Wix, Wix Stores limits
• Wix, exporting your product list
• Shopify, pricing
• Shopify, adding variants