Client acquisition4 min read
Webflow, Wix, WordPress or custom — the real cost
Listed prices, the cost of bilingual, what you can take when you leave, and where the data goes: Webflow, Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, and custom.
I code custom websites, so I have a bias. Here is the comparison I would still give a friend opening a business: the prices each platform lists, what bilingual costs, what you can take with you if you leave, and where your customers' data goes.
Prices were read on the official pages on 7 October 2026. They are in US dollars unless stated otherwise, and the price billed in Canada may differ: check before you decide.
At a glance
| Base price | French + English | If you leave | Data | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Webflow | $25/mo (yearly) with CMS | + $9/mo per added language | HTML and CSS, without CMS content | United States |
| Wix | about $17 to $40/mo | included | the site cannot be moved | several countries, no choice |
| Squarespace | depends on the plan | Weglot, from €15/mo | partial export to WordPress | United States |
| WordPress.com | $4 to $45/mo (yearly) | paid plugin | export of posts and pages | not stated |
| Custom | from CA$3,500, once | planned from the start | everything is yours | where you choose |
Webflow
The plan that fits a brochure site with a blog costs $25 a month billed yearly, or $39 monthly. A shop starts at $29 a month with a 2% fee on sales; the fee drops to zero at $74 a month.
Bilingual is an add-on. Localization costs $9 a month per added language, billed yearly. Translated URLs and routing by visitor language need the higher tier, at $29 per language.
Export exists, with limits. It needs a paid Workspace plan, separate from the site plan. Webflow exports HTML and CSS, and states that dynamic CMS content cannot be exported.
The data is in the United States. Hosting and the content delivery network are listed as American in Webflow's subprocessor list, and I found no Canadian region option.
Costs people forget: each person who edits the site takes a paid seat, from $15 to $39 a month.
Wix
Plans run from about $17 to $40 a month billed yearly, depending on whether you take payments and how many collaborators you need.
Bilingual is included. The multilingual tool is native, with no plan surcharge. Automatic translation includes 3,000 words, then is paid.
The site cannot be moved. Wix says so directly: a Wix site has to be hosted on Wix's servers. The content you create belongs to you, but you cannot take the site with you, and blog posts cannot be exported to another platform.
You do not choose where the data goes. Wix states that visitor data may be stored in the United States, Ireland, South Korea, Taiwan, and Israel, and that the server cannot be selected.
Squarespace
Three plans, with about 30% off for annual billing. The basic plan takes 2% of shop sales; the higher plans take none.
Bilingual goes through Weglot. Squarespace has no native multilingual. The Weglot integration is free up to 2,000 words and one language, then costs €15 a month for 10,000 words.
Export is partial. Squarespace exports to WordPress's format: simple pages, one blog page, text, and images. Product pages, style settings, and custom CSS do not come along.
WordPress
WordPress means two different things.
WordPress.com is a hosted platform: $4 to $45 a month billed yearly. Payment fees run from 8% on the cheapest plan to 0% on the most expensive. The export contains posts, pages, and comments, without the theme or plugins.
Self-hosted WordPress is open-source software you install with the host of your choice. It is the only one of these options where you choose the host's country, and where you can move everything. The software is free; hosting, plugins, and upkeep are not.
Bilingual needs a plugin. WPML costs €99 for the version that fits a business site. Polylang has a free version and a Pro version from €99 a year.
Custom
A site coded for your business costs more up front: my tiers start at $3,500, and every option is priced on the pricing page. French and English are built into the structure from day one. The code, content, domain, and data are yours, with the host you choose.
What you pay for is design and code work, once, instead of rent.
Which one to pick
Wix if you are testing an idea on a small budget and you edit the site yourself. Bilingual is included. You accept that you cannot leave with the site.
Squarespace for a portfolio or a simple services site, in one language.
Webflow if a marketing team edits the site every day and wants control of the design. Count the seats and the languages into the price.
Self-hosted WordPress if you publish a lot of content, want to choose your host, or need a specific plugin.
Custom when the site is a source of revenue and not a business card: you depend on being found in Google, you serve customers in two languages, you need to know where their data is, or you want to be able to change provider without rebuilding everything.
If you are torn between a platform and a custom site, a review of your current site is free. If a platform is enough for you, I will say so.
Sources
Official pages read on 7 October 2026.
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