Wix and Squarespace: quick to start, quick to hit limits
Wix Business Plan costs $16 per month. For a small business wanting online visibility without technical knowledge, that's a reasonable starting point. The editor works via drag and drop, you don't need a developer, and you're live within an hour.
The limitation is load time. Wix sites run on shared infrastructure with a lot of JavaScript. Google PageSpeed typically doesn't get Wix sites above 70, while a well-built Next.js site consistently scores above 95. That difference translates to ranking position.
You're also tied to Wix. Your content, design and domain setup are in their system. Exporting to another platform is practically impossible. That's not a problem as long as you're satisfied, but it limits your options if you want to grow later.
My honest advice: choose Wix if your budget is tight, your site stays simple, and you want to manage content yourself without help. For a business card with three pages, it's a legitimate choice.
WordPress: flexible, but you manage everything yourself
WordPress powers about 40% of the internet. That's for a reason: it's open source, there are thousands of themes and plugins, and you can build almost anything you want. But that 'almost anything' has a downside.
A standard WordPress installation with a premium theme ($50 one-time) and good hosting ($10-20 per month) is affordable. But you're responsible for updating WordPress core, themes and plugins yourself. Miss an update and you face security risks. Use cheap shared hosting and your site is slow.
If you have an agency build a WordPress site, you typically pay between €3,000 and €10,000 for a custom theme, then a monthly fee for management. The site is yours, but the knowledge to maintain it sits with the agency.
My honest advice: WordPress is a good choice if you publish a lot of content (blog, news), if you're technically capable enough to keep updates current, or if you want a large site with extensive plugin customization. For small sites or business owners without a technical background, the overhead is significant.
A traditional web agency: personal, but expensive
Agencies deliver design, strategy and technology in a package. You have a point of contact, you don't need to build anything yourself, and you get a professional end product. That has value, especially for companies that want to scale quickly or need complex integrations.
The price is high. An agency charges €5,000 to €15,000 for a standard business website. After that you pay monthly for hosting, management and adjustments. That's realistic for companies with budget, but too heavy for most small and medium businesses.
Agencies also work with multiple clients simultaneously. You're one of ten or twenty ongoing projects. Response times for adjustments are longer, and you're dependent on others' planning.
My honest advice: an agency makes sense if you have a large project, need multiple specialists simultaneously (design, marketing, SEO, development all at once), or if internal capacity is completely lacking. For smaller projects, it's heavier than necessary.
My approach: custom Next.js, without agency overhead
I build websites with Next.js, a React framework used by companies like Netflix and Vercel. The result is a statically generated or server-side site that consistently scores above 95 on Google Lighthouse.
You pay once for the build, then a fixed monthly fee for hosting and management. That fee is lower than an agency retainer because I have no account managers, project managers or designers contributing to your invoice.
You own the code. If you want to switch to a different system or another developer later, you take everything with you. No lock-in, no dependency on my platforms.
I'm honest about what I don't do: no large teams, no offline campaigns, no Wix-to-WordPress migrations. I focus on Next.js websites for entrepreneurs and smaller companies who take speed and findability seriously.
When which option fits
Four profiles, four honest recommendations.
Starting entrepreneur, tight budget
Start with Wix. It's affordable, works quickly and gives you control over your own content. Switch later when your site becomes too limited.
Blogger or knowledge business with lots of content
WordPress makes sense. Content management is mature, there are good SEO plugins, and you have full control over your publishing flow.
Small business owner who wants to be found
I can help. A fast Next.js site with a solid SEO foundation, without agency overhead and with direct communication.
Growing company with complex integrations
An agency fits better. You need multiple disciplines simultaneously, and the scale justifies the budget.