Wix vs Shopify for UK ecommerce: value, fees and features compared

What to take away

Wix is cheaper for most UK shops up to about 1,000 card orders a month; Shopify pulls ahead above that, where its lower card rate offsets the higher plan price.
Plan prices in pounds, checked on 12 January 2026: Wix Core £17, Business £27, Business Elite £95 on annual billing; Shopify Basic £25, Grow £67, Advanced £344.
Wix Payments UK takes 1.9% plus 20p a transaction; Shopify Payments UK takes 2.0% plus 25p on Basic, 1.7% plus 25p on Grow, 1.4% plus 25p on Advanced.
Shopify adds a surcharge on orders paid through an external gateway: 2.0% on Basic, 1.0% on Grow, 0.5% on Advanced.
Refunds do not return the fee charged on the original payment at either provider, so returned orders still cost money.

UK plan prices in pounds, checked 12 January 2026

Both bill UK merchants in pounds and cut the price for an annual commitment. Figures are the monthly equivalent of a yearly plan.

UK plan prices

Tier	Monthly equivalent, annual billing
Wix Core	£17
Wix Business	£27
Wix Business Elite	£95
Shopify Basic	£25
Shopify Grow	£67
Shopify Advanced	£344

Wix Light, at £9 a month, cannot take online payments, so Core is the entry point for a shop.

Wix vs Shopify at a glance

Wix

Pricing in pounds: Yes, UK page
Card processing: Wix Payments plus third-party
App market: Smaller, more built in
Best fit: Single branded site
Verify before buying: Plan, gateway, apps
Exit: Order and customer export

Shopify

Pricing in pounds: Yes, UK page
Card processing: Shopify Payments plus external
App market: Larger, more subscriptions
Best fit: Multichannel, high volume
Verify before buying: Plan, gateway fee, apps
Exit: Order, customer, URL export

Shopify's larger app market is the trade-off: extras arrive as separate subscriptions, usually billed in US dollars. Our guide to the best ecommerce platform for a UK small business applies the same price and VAT checks across the market.

Card rates and the external gateway surcharge

The plan price is a floor, not the bill.

Card rates and surcharge

Provider and tier	Card rate	Fixed fee	External gateway surcharge
Wix Payments, Core and above	1.9%	20p	None published
Shopify Payments, Basic	2.0%	25p	2.0%
Shopify Payments, Grow	1.7%	25p	1.0%
Shopify Payments, Advanced	1.4%	25p	0.5%

Shopify's surcharge applies when a shopper pays through a processor other than Shopify Payments, such as Stripe or Worldpay. It is charged on order value, on top of that processor's fee. Wix charges no equivalent.

A refunded order keeps costing the merchant. On a £45 order the original fee is about £1.06 through Wix Payments and £1.15 through Shopify Payments on Basic.

Our comparison of UK payment gateway integrations shows how to test settlement timing against a bank statement.

Example: two UK order volumes costed

Assume a £45 average order value, paid by card through each platform's own processor, on the annual prices checked on 12 January 2026.

Two UK order volumes

200 orders (£9,000 of sales)

Wix: £228 on Core
Shopify: £255 on Basic

1,200 orders (£54,000 of sales)

Wix: £1,293 on Business
Shopify: £1,285 on Grow

At 200 orders Wix costs £27 less a month, about £324 a year. At 1,200 orders Shopify Grow edges ahead by £8.

Monthly fee maths on £9,000 sales

£9,000 | monthly sales, 200 orders at £45
£175 | card fees at 1.5% plus 20p
£2 | lost when ten refunds keep 20p
£90 | added by a 1% gateway surcharge

Ten refunds in the larger month leave roughly £10.55 of Wix fees and £10.15 of Shopify Grow fees unreturned. Shopify Advanced only wins above about £81,500 of monthly card sales.

Gateway and carrier apps for UK shops

Klarna and Clearpay are listed on both platforms. Their merchant fees sit in the contract, not on a public price list, and run above card rates.

Royal Mail's Click & Drop app is free with a Royal Mail business account; you pay postage and any collection charge.

Evri and DPD arrive through connectors such as Sendcloud and ShipStation, usually with a free tier and paid plans above it. Per-label cost comes from the carrier.

UK rules that shape the build

VATregister once taxable turnover passes the threshold.
Distance sellinggive the 14-day cancellation right and the pre-contract information.
Cookiescollect consent before analytics, advertising or chat cookies fire.

The VAT registration threshold is £90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months. GOV.UK's registration guidance sets out the rolling test.

Distance selling covers the information a buyer must see before ordering and the cancellation window. The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 carry both.

Cookie consent applies as soon as tracking runs. The ICO's PECR guidance explains what valid consent looks like. A self-hosted route changes costs, not rules, and our Shopify vs WooCommerce comparison for UK small businesses covers licence, hosting and VAT settings.

Common questions

Is Wix cheaper than Shopify for a UK shop?

At 200 card orders of £45 a month, yes: about £228 against £255, so £27. The gap closes with volume, and Shopify Grow is £8 cheaper at 1,200 orders.

Does Shopify charge extra when I use Klarna or PayPal?

It applies the external gateway surcharge when an order runs through a non-Shopify processor, which can include wallet payments. The rate is 2.0%, 1.0% or 0.5%.

Can I print Royal Mail, Evri and DPD labels from either platform?

Yes, through apps. Click & Drop is free with a Royal Mail account, and shipping connectors handle Evri and DPD labels, with per-label cost set by the carrier.

Do I need to charge VAT on my online sales?

Only once registered, which is compulsory above £90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months. Voluntary registration can pay off if you reclaim VAT on stock.