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25 Comments

Webflow vs Wordpress

Recently created my first Webflow site (have set up many wordpress sites in the past) and have to say I was super impressed!

Here is where I think Webflow wins over Wordpress.

  • Intuitive dashboard and editing tools. I always find Wordpress clunky and difficult to navigate. You often have to install plugins and then jump between them to get everything how you need. Webflow is a dream to use in comparison, everything feels in the right place.
  • Convention over configuration. You spend an age configuring Wordpress (themes, plugins, settings), whereas in Webflow there is generally one way to do any given task, with a simple UI menu for doing it.
  • Built for design. There is buckets of functionality around design, including a feature set around creating animations. This makes it possible to create great looking designs with very little coding knowledge.
  • Simple click and create CMS. You can create custom structures for your data, all in the dashboard, no coding required. This then links seamlessly to your UI components. Coming from a developer background where you often spend hours coding your data schema, this was a very pleasant surprise!

For me, this all results in the ability to create great looking content websites in days or even hours, whereas it takes a week of messing around in WP to get everything just right.

Here is where I think Wordpress wins

  • Huge ecosystem built over the years. Plugins and apps for everything. Hundreds of forums and sites to learn and get help. 99.9% of business website requirements have been solved with WP (SEO, ecommerce etc etc). Webflow by comparison is still a baby, where you get the 20% of features that solve 80% of requirements, but will struggle to find more.

Going forward, Webflow will probably become my go-to option for simple content sites, unless there is some unusual requirement that hasn’t been implemented yet, in which case I will fall back to Wordpress (or something else).

Be interested in hearing other opinions?

  1. 5

    One of the major issues with Webflow is in their free plan I can't set up my own custom domain.
    And I already tired of paying monthly subscription just for hosting.
    So I created Site2Static (shameless plug)
    To easily hosting it for free at Netlify.

    1. 2

      Nice plug :)
      Interesting idea! How will you manage updates, does it stay in sync? I think this will be great for people with apps who need a seperate marketing site and don't want to pay for another lot of hosting.

      1. 2

        I'm planning to add a feature that can sync your original site periodically (each 1 hour).

        Yup, also that way you can even launch a landing page to validate your ideas for pretty cheap (just pay the custom domain).

    2. 1

      Sorry about noticing the Site2Static. I was blown away by the tool. @dwicao Thanks for building this tool, mate. Amazing work.

  2. 5

    I decided to create a minimal personal website (http://jamalx31.com/) and decided to go with Webflow after I tried out Squarespace. I found Webflow so powerful, it's like you are using photoshop to design your website and it's instantly live and ready to use.

    1. 1

      Looks nice, super clean. I need to get one of these as well so I can list my dead projects... there are a few of em!

  3. 3

    If you are building a basic website, I would say that any online web builder that is not versioned is a good option.

    I would add to the Pros:

    • No upgrade issues
    • free SSL (although not sure if others provide this)
    • It's not WordPress.

    and Wix specific:

    • It has 2 sizes, web and mobile and I think this is all one needs.
    • If you know JS, you can (not saying you should) build pretty much anything with Wix
    • The "Apps" available are vast and pretty good (I know people who have used this in detail)

    I have recently built a couple of websites using Wix (I know, I shudedered [typo but works] when I heard people say this but its actually pretty good and has more functionality than you might think)

    My opinion on using Wix sites here in a blog post (building 2 websites once from scratch and one using a template: Titled: Can you really build a website with wix-com
    https://www.brightertools.com/post/can-you-really-build-a-website-with-wix-com

    1. 1

      Carrd is an amazing one-page builder but all these tools are great really

  4. 3

    I've used Wordpress quite a bit in the past, including for my website. But I've recently started looking at different solutions, especially things that integrate with other nocode tools such as Zapier and Memberstack.

    I went around the houses A LOT. Adalo, Bubble, AppGyver, plus a few more, and Webflow for me is the one that has blown me away. It's so simple to make a good looking site in such a short amount of time.

    I'm also a big advocate for accessibility, and Webflow makes it super easy to make an accessible site too.

    The biggest advantage though is probably the amount of stuff built into Webflow that you can only solve in Wordpress with a bunch of plugins that require independently configuring, updating, tweaking etc. Things like SSL and minified JS, as just a couple examples from many.

    1. 2

      I haven't used many other nocode tools so its good to hear your experience that confirms what I found. Completely agree about the inbuilt stuff in Webflow. It makes the ratio of speed to building vs quality of product extremely favourable. Webflow for the win!

  5. 2

    Interesting comparison of these tools.

  6. 2

    If you could only pick one though, to use for the rest of time, which would it be?

    1. 1

      Nice question. Errrr.... WP?? I guess if you only get one you need a more complete solution to cover all the bases.

      1. 1

        Fair enough. I'd go webflow all day haha

  7. 2

    We had our expert session today at no-code campus, and this question came up :)
    Thank you for posting here today it helped me explain the advantage of Weblow vs WP.
    Which other tools have you used?

    1. 1

      Still beginning the nocode journey tbh. Looking at Bubble for my next project, I've read it has more functionality than Webflow so you can build richer apps.

      1. 2

        I'd skip Bubble and go straight to Appgyver 😃.
        It's way more advanced and the pricing, well can't beat it really, free up to $ 10M ARR 🚀.
        What's your next project?
        Or is it too hush hush 😇?

        1. 1

          If AppGyver is more advanced than Bubble, does that mean the learning curve to master the tool is even steeper?
          Also, do you happen to know web apps / sites that have been developed with AppGyver?

        2. 1

          Cheers for recommendation. Ill check it out.
          Not hush hush, just have too many ideas and need to pick one!

  8. 2

    I've used webflow for some projects and indeed it is great.

    There are a number of reasons you can end up saddled with Wordpress for a project (client comfort, special function requirements, etc.), and in those cases, Elementor-within-Wordpress is also a nice solution (like webflow, Elementor is a great pagebuilder for designers who don't want to get bogged down in hand-written CSS but want pixel-perfect designs).

    1. 1

      Yeah agreed. Elementor is what come to my mind when using Webflow for the first time.

  9. 2

    In my opinion Webflow is the next generation Wordpress.

    1. 1

      lots of webflow love on IH!

  10. 2

    Nice insights @dan_cwa thanks for sharing.

  11. 1

    I run flowjam.co/webflow where I offer unlimited Webflow work for a flat fee. I've seen the majority of clients are transferring their WordPress site to Webflow. Most of them are doing so for the interactions and CMS.

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