Web hosting with an AI website builder and the Horizons AI app/site builder (now part of Hostinger AI Builder).
Shopify vs Webflow
Features, pricing, strengths and trade-offs — and which one fits your situation.
The verdict
Summary
Shopify is best for businesses whose main goal is selling products online, from first sale to large catalogues, while Webflow is best for design and marketing teams building custom, CMS-driven websites with near-developer control. Shopify has a medium learning curve, compared with high for Webflow. Webflow has a free plan, while Shopify offers a free trial.
Which should you choose?
Choose Shopify if…
- You need businesses whose main goal is selling products online, from first sale to large catalogues
- You're one of: online retailers, d2c brands, businesses selling in person and online
- You want something quicker to learn
- Most complete commerce feature set among hosted builders
Choose Webflow if…
- You need design and marketing teams building custom, CMS-driven websites with near-developer control
- You're one of: web designers and agencies, marketing teams at startups and saas companies, content-heavy sites with structured cms
- You want a free plan (Shopify only has a trial)
- High design freedom with clean, semantic output
At a glance
| Shopify | Webflow | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Businesses whose main goal is selling products online, from first sale to large catalogues | Design and marketing teams building custom, CMS-driven websites with near-developer control |
| Free plan | Trial only | Yes |
| Starting price | From $29/mo | From $15/mo |
| Learning curve | Medium | High |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android, API | Web, API |
| Ideal for | Online retailers, D2C brands, Businesses selling in person and online, Dropshippers | Web designers and agencies, Marketing teams at startups and SaaS companies, Content-heavy sites with structured CMS, Designers moving from Figma to production |
Feature comparison
| Shopify | Webflow | |
|---|---|---|
| AI site generation | Yes | Paid Workspace plans |
| E-commerce | Yes | Yes |
| Blog / CMS | Yes | Yes |
| Hosting included | Yes | Yes |
| Custom domain | Yes | Paid site plans only |
| Code / content export | Limited | Static code, paid plans |
| SEO tools | Yes | Yes |
| App / plugin marketplace | Yes | Yes |
| Design freedom | Medium | High |
IncludedLimited / higher plansNot available— Not confirmed
Security & enterprise
| Shopify | Webflow | |
|---|---|---|
| Business / enterprise plan | Yes | Yes |
| SSO (SAML / OIDC) | Shopify Plus (SAML) | Enterprise plan |
| SCIM user provisioning | — | Enterprise plan |
| SOC 2 | Type II | Type II |
| ISO 27001 | Yes | Yes |
| HIPAA (BAA available) | — | — |
| GDPR DPA | Yes | Yes |
| Data residency options | — | — |
| No training on your data | — | — |
| Audit logs | — | Enterprise plan (API) |
| Admin controls | Yes | Yes |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
From each vendor's security documentation. "—" = not confirmed. What to ask vendors · Compare all tools
What each tool does
Shopify
Shopify is a hosted e-commerce platform that provides an online store, checkout, payments, inventory, shipping and point-of-sale in one system. Stores are built on themes that can be customised visually or in Liquid code, with Sidekick and Shopify Magic generating store designs, content blocks and copy from prompts. A large App Store extends it for marketing, subscriptions, reviews and more.
Key features- Hosted storefront with themes and visual editor
- Shopify Checkout and Shopify Payments
- Sidekick AI assistant that edits themes and generates blocks
- AI store builder that generates a storefront from a description
- Inventory, shipping, tax and POS tools
- App Store with thousands of apps
Webflow
Webflow is a visual web development platform where users build with real HTML and CSS concepts such as classes, flexbox and grid, then publish to Webflow's hosting. It includes a flexible CMS, e-commerce, localization and an AI site builder that generates a site with a design system from a prompt. It is used by designers, agencies and marketing teams that need custom sites without hand-coding.
Key features- Visual designer based on HTML and CSS box model
- Flexible CMS with custom collections
- AI site builder on paid Workspace plans
- Webflow Ecommerce with Stripe and PayPal
- Localization and hosting on a global CDN
- App marketplace installed inside the Designer
Pricing
Shopify
Free plan: no (free trial). Paid from $29/mo billed annually (Basic)
Webflow
Free Starter plan; Basic site plan $15/mo billed yearly
Prices last checked September 2026. Plans change often — confirm on each vendor's site.
Pros and cons
Shopify
Strengths- Most complete commerce feature set among hosted builders
- Very large app and theme ecosystem
- Scales from a small shop to high-volume stores
- Mobile app for managing orders and products
- Many common features depend on paid third-party apps
- Extra transaction fees when not using Shopify Payments
- Blogging and content tools are basic compared with WordPress or Squarespace
- Full site design cannot be exported to another platform
Not ideal for: Portfolios, service businesses and content-led sites without much to sell will get better value from Squarespace, Wix or Framer.
Webflow
Strengths- High design freedom with clean, semantic output
- One of the most flexible CMSs among hosted builders
- Static HTML, CSS and JS export on paid plans
- Large community, templates and app ecosystem
- Steeper learning curve than Wix or Squarespace
- Code export excludes CMS, e-commerce and forms functionality
- E-commerce is limited to Stripe and PayPal with product caps
- Separate site and workspace plans make pricing confusing
Not ideal for: Beginners wanting a quick site with minimal learning, and large stores, will be better served by Wix, Squarespace or Shopify.
Integrations
Shopify
Webflow
FAQ
What is the main difference between Shopify and Webflow?
Shopify is built for businesses whose main goal is selling products online, from first sale to large catalogues; Webflow is built for design and marketing teams building custom, CMS-driven websites with near-developer control.
Is Shopify or Webflow cheaper?
Shopify starts from $29/mo and Webflow starts from $15/mo (as of September 2026). On entry price, Webflow is cheaper — but compare what each plan includes, since limits differ. Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site.
Do Shopify and Webflow have free plans?
Webflow has a free plan, while Shopify offers a free trial.
Which is easier to use, Shopify or Webflow?
Shopify is generally quicker to learn (Shopify: medium, Webflow: high learning curve).
What are good alternatives to Shopify and Webflow?
Other website builders tools worth comparing include Hostinger, Wix and Squarespace.
