Webflow vs. Shopify: Which One Should You Use in 2025

Over 26% of small businesses struggle with selecting the right eCommerce platform. 

Meet Jane (one of those from the 26%)

She’s a business owner, who spent weeks with her team, designing the website, only to realize it wasn’t attracting customers. 

She knew she needed an online store but felt stuck choosing between Webflow and Shopify. 

Choosing the wrong one could mean wasted time, money, and lost sales. So, which platform is the right fit? 

Let’s help Jane by making it easier to decide between Webflow vs. Shopify. 

What is Webflow?

Webflow is a web design tool that features a CMS and a hosting platform. It helps businesses create user-friendly and responsive websites.

What is Shopify? 

Shopify is specifically meant for e-commerce platform businesses who are looking to run an online store. This platform also offers hosting services which businesses can take advantage of. 

Webflow Vs Shopify: Setting Up

1. Webflow

Design-First Approach

Webflow does not provide a guided onboarding process specifically for e-commerce. You start with a blank canvas or a template. 

This means you need to manually design your store layout. A Webflow design agency can help you with that. 

Manual Configuration

You would be manually required set up the navigation, product pages, and checkout flow. 

This helps differentiate your brand from the competition, which means more clicks and eventually an increase in conversions.  

Hosting & Security Require Setup

Webflow provides hosting but requires a separate setup for custom domains. 

You must configure your own SSL certificate and site settings for security.

Payment Setup Takes More Steps

Webflow supports only Stripe and PayPal, meaning fewer payment options compared to Shopify. You must manually configure Stripe to accept payments. 

Limited Pre-Built Apps

Webflow does not have a built-in app store like Shopify, meaning you have to rely on third-party integrations via Zapier or APIs, which takes more time and technical knowledge.

2. Shopify

Step-by-Step Onboarding

Shopify provides a setup wizard that guides you through the entire process, from creating an account to adding products and setting up payments.

Pre-Built Store Themes

In this Webflow vs. Shopify debate, the latter offers over 100 free and paid themes that are mobile-responsive and ready to use. 

You can select a theme, add a logo, customize colors, and launch your store. 

This however may sound easier option but lacks customization, meaning your store would look like any other. 

One-Click Apps & Integrations

Shopify’s App Store allows you to integrate third-party tools with one click. Whether it’s payment gateways, marketing tools, or dropshipping apps, everything is just a click away. 

Automatic Hosting & Security

Shopify includes hosting and security in its pricing, meaning you don’t have to worry about technical configurations like SSL certificates or server setup. 

Shopify also optimizes speed and performance automatically.

Webflow Vs Shopify: Features Overview

Features of Webflow

1. Visual Web Design & Development

• You can create layouts visually without writing code.
• The websites you create with Webflow will automatically be adjusted for different screen sizes.
• These include scroll-based animations, hover effects, and micro-interactions.
• A dynamic content system for blogs, portfolios, and business sites.

2. Hosting & Deployment

• Webflow’s hosting server is backed by AWS, which means fast and reliable infrastructure.
• If you have an existing domain, you can connect that with Webflow or purchase one from Webflow. 
• Webflow websites are frequently backed up to prevent any data loss. 

3. E-commerce Capabilities

• If you want to focus on branding and stand apart from the competition, Webflow allows you to create customized stores.
• Helps businesses track and manage inventory, allowing for forecasting and strategic decisions. 
• Brands can customize the checkout pages to create a better user experience. 

4. Custom Code & Integrations

• You can add HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for advanced functionality (as shown above).
• Connect with tools like Zapier, Google Analytics, and Mailchimp, for better visibility of what’s going on and how you can improve various aspects. 
• Hire developers to access Webflow’s API to extend its functionality. 

Features of Shopify

1. Inventory & Order Management

• Your brand can track SKUs, stock levels, and variants. If the customer returns your product, order processing and exchanges are streamlined via Shopify.
• You can have all sales (both online and offline) in one place via Shopify POS. 

2. Analytics & Reporting

• With in-built tools, you can track sales, customer behavior, and traffic.
• Generate performance reports to understand what’s going well and what isn’t. This will help you make sound strategic decisions. 

3. Multichannel Selling

• With Shopify, you can sell on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.
• List products on Amazon, eBay, and more.
• Update a picture or product description with Shopify’s app.

4. International Selling

• Shopify accepts payments in local currencies if your customers are from all over the world. 
• You can translate the entire store, as per the language in that region. Such as German, if someone in Berlin visits your Shopify store. 
• Integrates with carriers like DHL, UPS, and FedEx.

5. Shipping & Fulfillment

• If the order is in bulk or is selling during an off-season, you can negotiate discount rates with your vendors. 
• Generate shipping labels directly.
• You can install third-party apps such as Oberlo for dropshipping.

SEO: Webflow Vs Shopify

1. URL Structure & Customization

Webflow

• Offers full control over URL structures, enabling clean, customizable, and hierarchical URLs.
• Allows removal of unnecessary subdirectories, reducing URL depth.

Shopify

• Restricted URL structure.
• Cannot fully modify or remove these pre-defined URL structures, which may impact SEO flexibility.

2. Page Speed & Core Web Vitals

Webflow

• Uses cleaner HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, resulting in faster page loads.
• Allows manual optimization of assets, including custom lazy loading and WebP image formats.
• Offers built-in CDN (Content Delivery Network) through Fastly and AWS.

Shopify

• Themes often rely on third-party apps, which increase page load times due to excessive JavaScript and CSS.
• Although it uses CDN (Cloudflare), excessive liquid code in themes can slow down performance.
• Shopify’s default lazy loading is automatic, but it does not allow granular control like Webflow.

3. Technical SEO Features

Webflow

• Offers direct control over meta titles, meta descriptions, and alt text.
• Allows users to customize robots.txt and edit canonical tags manually.
• Provides structured data (Schema.org) integration without third-party plugins.

Shopify

• Automates some SEO fields, but does not allow full customization of robots.txt.
• Requires third-party apps (e.g., SEO Manager) for structured data and rich snippets.
• Some themes may use dynamic meta tag generation, which is not always SEO-optimal.

Pricing Plan: Webflow Vs Shopify

Factors That Impact Pricing Plan

Shopify Pricing Plans

1. Starter Plan – $5/month
2. Basic Shopify – $39/month
3. Shopify (Standard Plan) – $105/month
4. Advanced Shopify – $399/month
5. Shopify Plus – Starts at $2,000/month

Webflow Pricing Plans

Webflow Site Plans (For Hosted Websites)

1. Basic Plan – $14/month (billed annually)
2. CMS Plan – $23/month
3. Business Plan – $39/month
4. Enterprise Plan – Custom Pricing

Webflow eCommerce Plans

These plans are required if you want to create an online store with Webflow.

1. Standard Plan – $29/month
2. Plus Plan – $74/month
3. Advanced Plan – $212/month

Conclusion

In this Webflow vs. Shopify, it’s important to consider the main purpose of the website. Webflow is a great choice for those who prioritize brand design and content marketing for their online store.  

On the other hand, Shopify is the best option for those who are focused purely on growing an e-commerce business. 

It offers powerful sales tools, including features for dropshipping and subscriptions, making it ideal for businesses that need advanced selling capabilities that require little to no customizations.