There are many website builders on the market to choose from, but two of the most popular are Wix and HostGator. Both these providers offer an easy-to-use interface that lets anyone create their own site, without having any technical knowledge. But how do they compare? Which one is better for you? Let’s take a closer look at each company and what they offer.
Hostgator:
Hostgator is a hosting platform that offers a variety of different options for hosting such as shared, VPS, and dedicated. They also provide 24/7 customer support with live chat and phone. Hostgator has been in the industry since 2002 and they have over 10 years of experience.
Wix:
This company offers a range of tools to make it easier for people to build their own site without any coding, such as templates, apps, and plugins. They also provide 24/7 customer support via live chat and phone.
Designing a Website With Hostgator or Wix
Hostgator and Wix are two of the more popular website builders in the world. Both companies offer easy-to-use design builders with plenty of templates.
However, Hostgator is more inexpensive than Wix, it does include free domain hosting, free site builder, unlimited disk space, and unlimited bandwidth.
Whereas, Wix has a cleaner interface and is expensive than Hostgator. However, there are limitations with design choices on Wix when compared to Hostgator.
Hostgator’s site builder is better for beginners while Wix’s site builder would be better for experts because it has more features in their editor to help you create your website easier.
Hostgator Vs Wix: Site Builder Comparison
Hostgator:
Hostgator has a drag and drop site builder that lets you easily drag and drop your way to a professional-looking website. There are over 200 free templates with thousands of design combinations available to choose from.
You can also use this site builder to build a mobile-responsive website with ease, making it easier for your site to be viewed across all devices.
With Gator site builder you can use different templates from its various categories like business, blogs, portfolios, and more to create a website with various layouts. You can also use specific templates for mobile sites.
Also, it offers templates for eCommerce stores, real estate websites, event planners, and many others.
Overall, there are thousands of plugins and apps you can choose from to help customize your site, such as social media sharing buttons, carousels, etc.
Wix:
This website builder offers a user-friendly, drag and drop interface with over 40 different templates to choose from. It also lets you quickly customize your site via the Wix editor, so you can easily change fonts, colors, and images.
Also, it offers hundreds of different design styles to choose from including modern designs with large photos or photo galleries for business websites or traditional layouts with bold text for blogs.
They also provide responsive templates that give your customers a seamless experience across all devices. Overall, you can create an attractive website with Wix within minutes.
You can quickly edit your site via the online editor. And Wix also provides a unique blogging tool that lets you manage all your posts from a single screen, including categories and images.
Wix does not support hosting separately it’s only a website builder. If you’re looking for a complete website hosting solution, then check Hostgator.
Hostgator Vs Wix: Cheap Hosting Comparison
Hostgator:
Hostgator offer shared hosting plans for as low as $2.75/mo with a 45-day money-back guarantee, whereas their lowest price for a dedicated server is about $90/mo. Not thus, they also offer WordPress, VPS, Reseller hosting.
Along with hosting service and website builder, they provide a domain registration service that includes a free domain name for 1-year. As well as you can get an SSL certificate that will help to boost your visitor’s trust while converting them into customers.
Wix
In comparison, Wix has no separate hosting plans and domain registration services. It’s all packed in their hosting service. They offer a total of eight subscription plans(four for website plans & the other 4 for business e-commerce plans) with a free domain name only for the first year.
Their basic hosting plan starts at $4.50/mo and goes up to $24.50/mo, which is pretty expensive when compared to Hostgator. Also, they do not offer SSL certificates in a Basic plan for customers or free domain names like Hostgator.
Wix Vs Hostgator: Top Features
1) Speed:
When it comes to speed Hostgator is much faster than Wix. This is because of the fact that all hosting plans of Hostgator are optimized with speed in mind. Also, because of this speed difference not only Hostgator will load faster but it will also be safer for your website in comparison to Wix.
This is mainly because Google takes speed into consideration when it comes to ranking websites.
A study revealed that almost 53% of users expect a website to load in 2 seconds or less and almost 40% of users leave a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load.
2) Security:
When you think about website security, the first thing that comes into anybody’s mind is an SSL certificate. Although both providers SSL certificates to protect sensitive data like passwords and other financial information.
However, an SSL certificate is not enough for complete website security because it only protects the information from being intercepted by a third party, but it does not make your site secure from malware attacks.
Hostgator offers better website security than Wix. This is because this leading hosting provider has a SiteLock & CodeGuard plugin that protects users’ websites against viruses, malware, and other threats to data or finances.
In addition, it offers a daily malware scan for all customers to prevent their websites from being affected by malware. Not thus, you will get daily file backup. For this reason, Hostgator is more secure than Wix when it comes to website security.
3) Better Customization:
Customization is one of the main reasons most people look for a website builder. It allows users to have full control over how their website looks and feels.
However, this is true that both Wix and Hostgator provide customization options to their users. But when it comes to this, Hostgator offers more customizability options for users.
Hostgator allows you to edit your website’s HTML, CSS, and PHP coding. This means that every element of the site can be tweaked according to the user’s preference.
On the other hand, Wix does not allow users to make any changes in HTML, CSS, and PHP coding. Another drawback with Wix is that you cannot add a header or footer to your site with this tool.
You just have to use their built-in templates and design with drag and drop features. But customization range is not that wide.
Benefits – Hostgator Vs Wix
1) Performance:
Hostgator:
When you think about the performance of your website, you might be wondering how to determine performance. And the answer is page speed and uptime.
Hostgator offers better speeds compared to Wix because of speed optimization and other features like SSD drives. They also offer 99.9% uptime for all clients.
Wix:
Wix offers free SSL certificates to all clients. It also provides more server locations in comparison to Hostgator. So, overall it’s a good option for performance.
2) Ease of use
Hostgator:
When it comes to ease of use, Hostgator is very easy to use. They have a one-click installation for WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, etc. Also, they offer you free site migration with all plans.
Wix:
With Wix, you just have to sign up and use the tool. They also offer free site migration, but you must contact them to move your site from one Wix account to another.
In comparison to Hostgator, Wix is easier to use.
3) Technical support
Hostgator:
Hostgator is better than others in this category. They have an excellent customer service team that’s available for you 24/7. Also, they offer free site migration with all plans.
Wix:
Although Wix is a user-friendly tool that has 24/7 support, but when it comes to technical support, Hostgator is better than Wix.
Wix Vs Hostgator: Pros And Cons of Each Platform
Pros of Hostgator:
- Offers more benefits that are not available on Wix.
- Better support and technical assistance in comparison to Wix.
- Offer a free site migration service to all users.
- It is SEO-friendly and has a high page rank.
- Comes with a SiteLock plugin that protects from malware.
- Offers unlimited disk space with all plans.
- Has a one-click installation feature for over 400 apps including WordPress, Joomla, etc.
Cons:
- Sometimes there is occasional downtime.
- It lacks customizability features.
- Renewal prices are higher.
Pros of Wix:
- Offers easy-to-use tools for all users, especially beginners.
- Free SSL certificates are available for all users.
- Allows you to have a mobile app for your site within minutes.
- One can get a free domain name for up to one year.
- Mobile responsive and SEO friendly.
Cons:
- It lacks some important features like header, footer, and customizations.
- Prices of new plans are higher than Hostgator’s new users.
Which Is Better To Use?
After doing this full comparison between Hostgator and Wix, we could conclude that Hostgator is better than Wix.
It offers more features and has a better support system, whereas Wix lacks some features that Hostgator offers.
Some of the free services offered by Wix like free SSL certificates and mobile apps are also offered by Hostgator.
Also, the starting price of Wix’s new users is higher than that of Hostgator. So, I can say that this comparison proves that it is better than Wix for its users.
Hostgator Is It Really Worth It? Answer: Yes.
Our Conclusion:
After doing this full comparison of Hostgator vs Wix, I can conclude that Hostgator is a good option for new users and offers plenty of features like unlimited disk space, one-click installation for over 400 apps, and free site migration.
Although its renewal price is slightly higher than Wix, but when you consider its features, it’s worth it. You can use Wix if you have no more dreams to establish your site and just want to launch it as soon as possible.
Moreover, Wix offers readymade business and e-commerce solutions with lots of features and integrations. All are easy and simple to use. So for readymade e-commerce and business solutions, Wix is better than Hostgator.
However, if you desire better performance, free site migration, and more features, I recommend you to go with Hostgator. If you are thinking to start a new site or blog, Hostgator is the best option for you.
