Websites & redesigns
Should my business website be built on WordPress or custom-built?
Short answer
WordPress suits a business that publishes often itself, such as news, projects or many product pages, and is willing to keep plugins updated. A custom-built static site suits brochure, menu and booking sites that change occasionally: it is faster, has nothing to patch weekly and costs very little to host. Online shops belong on an e-commerce platform such as PrestaShop or Shopify. The right choice depends on how often you will change the site yourself and what it has to do.
Last reviewed
WordPress
Good for: businesses that add content often, such as reference projects, news, recipes or a large product range, and want to do it themselves.
Watch for: plugins. Every plugin is code someone else maintains, and outdated plugins are the most common way small business sites get hacked. WordPress needs regular updates, which is what a care plan is for.
Custom-built
Good for: restaurants, trades and service businesses whose sites change a few times a year: menus, prices, hours, photos.
Why: a modern static build loads very fast, has no admin login to attack and no plugins to update, and hosting costs little or nothing. Simple content can still be edited through a lightweight editor or a care plan.
E-commerce platforms
Good for: anything with a basket and checkout. PrestaShop gives full control without a monthly platform fee; Shopify is simpler to run with one. Building a shop from scratch is rarely worth it for a small business.
Website builders
Wix, Squarespace and similar tools are fine for getting started. They become limiting when you need speed, specific integrations, multiple languages done properly, or to move the site elsewhere later.
The deciding question
How often will you change the site yourself, and what does it need to do? Answer that honestly and the platform usually picks itself.
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