Wix vs Shopify for an Australian small business
What each really costs here with GST and Australian card fees, why US comparisons quoting Wix Payments don’t apply, how Afterpay, bookings and Australia Post work on each, speed for Australian visitors, what you can take if you leave, and the consumer law you meet on either. With a monthly cost calculator, a which-fits quiz and a launch checklist.
On This Page
Almost every "Wix vs Shopify" comparison on page one is written for the US. They quote US prices and Wix Payments fees, and Wix Payments isn't even available in Australia. This guide is for an Australian small business owner deciding between the two: a service business that sells a few products, or a small shop. It covers what each really costs here with GST and card fees, how Afterpay, bookings and Australia Post work on each, how fast each is for Australian visitors, what you can take with you if you leave, and the consumer law you have to meet on either. I build websites for small businesses and have no relationship with Wix or Shopify. Prices and rates come from each company's Australian pages and help centre.
- Mostly products, postedShopify. Australia Post is built in on every plan, the checkout is its core business, and its card rates are published in Australian dollars.
- Mostly services, a few productsWix. Bookings are built in from the Core plan, and there's no platform fee on store sales.
- Already on Cliniko, Fresha or TimelyYou may need neither. A good website linked to your booking software, plus payment links, often does the job.
Side by side, for Australia
| Wix | Shopify | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan that can sell | Core, AU$42 a month billed yearly, GST included | Basic, A$42 a month billed yearly (A$56 monthly), plus GST unless you give your ABN |
| Card fees | Your own provider: Stripe 1.65% + 30c, Square 2.2%, PayPal 2.9% + 30c | Shopify Payments: 1.7% + 30c on Basic, GST included; Amex 2.9% + 30c |
| Platform fee on sales | None on store sales; 4% on memberships and packages on Core | None with Shopify Payments; 2% on Basic with any other provider |
| Afterpay | Only through Square, which then becomes your card provider | A separate Afterpay app |
| Bookings | Built in from Core | An app, priced in US dollars |
| Australia Post | Through a third-party app | Built in on every plan, with a MyPost Business account |
| Staff logins | 5 collaborators on Core | None on Basic; 5 on Grow |
| Sites passing Core Web Vitals (Australian mobile visitors) | About 86% | About 80% |
| Sell you a .com.au | No | No |
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
What each really costs a month
The plans cost about the same. What differs is the card fees, and on Shopify, whether you use its own payments. Put in your numbers.
At small-shop sizes the two land within a few dollars of each other, and card fees are most of the bill on both. Shopify Grow only pays for itself on card fees at roughly A$48,000 a month of domestic card sales. Wix's monthly and two-year prices are only shown at checkout, so the calculator uses yearly billing for Wix.
- Wix Payments doesn't operate in Australia. US articles quote its 2.9% + 30c; ignore them. On Wix you connect one card provider, usually Stripe or Square.
- Shopify's 2% is easy to miss. It's charged on every order paid through a provider other than Shopify Payments, isn't returned when you refund, and includes Afterpay orders by my reading of Shopify's exemption list.
- GST on the platform's own bill. Shopify adds 10% unless you're GST registered and add your ABN. Wix's prices include GST, and it says ABN holders may be eligible for an exemption.
- You can't pass card fees on. Card surcharges on Visa, Mastercard, Amex and eftpos are banned. Build the fees into your prices.
Afterpay on each
On Wix in Australia, Afterpay only comes through Square, and Wix lets you connect only one card provider. So if you want Afterpay, Square processes all your cards: 2.2% online, and Afterpay orders at Square's Afterpay rate of 6% + 30c before GST. On Shopify, you install Afterpay's own app; Afterpay doesn't publish its merchant fee, and on Basic I'd expect Shopify's 2% to apply to those orders as well.
Bookings and services
Wix Bookings is built into Core and up: services, staff, calendar sync, deposits, and 50 to 250 text reminders a month depending on plan. If you sell memberships or class packs through Wix Pricing Plans, Wix takes 4% on Core, 2% on Business and nothing on Business Elite.
Shopify has no bookings of its own. Its App Store shows over 900 appointment apps; the popular ones have free plans and paid tiers from about US$5 to US$299 a month, billed in US dollars. They turn a product into a bookable service with a "Book now" button.
If you already book through Cliniko, Fresha, Timely or similar, neither matters: link your existing booking page from whichever site you choose. My booking systems guide covers those.
Shipping in Australia
Shopify connects to Australia Post on any plan, using a MyPost Business account (not eParcel). It shows live rates at checkout and lets you buy labels from the admin. Live rates from other carrier accounts need Grow as an add-on, or Advanced.
Wix's built-in live shipping rates are for US Postal Service only. In Australia you set flat, weight or price-based rates, or install an app; the Australia Post apps in Wix's App Market have few or no reviews. Sendle has stopped shipping, so remove it from any old setup.
SEO and speed
Google's documentation favours neither. The practical differences:
- URLs. Wix pages sit at the root of your domain; the product page prefix can be removed. Shopify keeps fixed paths: /products/, /collections/ and /pages/.
- Redirects. Wix caps redirects at 5,000 a site; Shopify allows 100,000.
- robots.txt and structured data. Wix lets you edit both in the dashboard. On Shopify it's theme code, and Shopify won't support robots.txt edits.
- Real-user speed. In Google's Chrome data for Australian mobile visitors, about 86% of Wix sites pass all three Core Web Vitals against about 80% of Shopify sites. Shopify sends the first byte faster; Wix pages shift and stall less once they arrive. The gap moves month to month, and a heavy theme or app stack can fail on either.
If you leave
- Both export products, customers and orders as CSV. Shopify's product export leaves out the images, so keep the old store open until the import is done.
- Neither lets you take the design. Wix doesn't export blog posts; Shopify moves pages and posts only by app or API.
- Refunds. Wix gives 14 days' money back on new plans. Shopify subscription fees are non-refundable, but it keeps a closed store's data for two years.
- Your domain. Neither sells .com.au. Keep it with an Australian registrar and point it at the platform, and leaving becomes a settings change instead of a transfer.
Which one fits?
Before you launch, on either
The platform doesn't meet the consumer law for you. Your ticks save in this browser.
- Check whether you must register for GST. At the GST threshold, you have 21 days.
- Add your ABN to the platform's billing if you're GST registered.
- Turn on GST-inclusive prices. Show one total price, and state your minimum delivery charge if you know it.
- No card surcharges. Build card fees into your prices.
- Write a refund policy without "no refunds". If you offer change-of-mind returns, honour them.
- State dispatch and delivery times you can meet.
- Make order emails work as receipts with your business name, ABN, item, date and price, and be ready to issue a tax invoice on request.
- Check your terms for one-sided clauses.
- Set up payments: Shopify Payments needs an Australian bank account in AUD, not a savings account; on Wix, pick one card provider.
- Connect Australia Post and remove any Sendle rates.
- Keep your .com.au with an Australian registrar and connect it.
- Write titles and descriptions for every page and product, and plan redirects before you change URLs.
- Submit your sitemap in Google Search Console.
- Export a backup of products, customers and orders.
My view
If the shop is the business, use Shopify: posting parcels with Australia Post, managing stock and running a checkout are what it's built for. If the business is a service with a few products on the side, Wix is simpler and has bookings built in. And if you already have booking software and only sell a handful of things, you may not need a store platform at all: a fast site that sends people to your booking page and takes payment links will do. On any of them, a fast mobile homepage with one clear action decides whether people buy or book.
Questions I get asked
Is Wix or Shopify cheaper in Australia?
At entry level they're about the same: Wix Core is AU$42 a month billed yearly including GST, and Shopify Basic is A$42 a month billed yearly plus GST unless you give your ABN. Card fees decide the difference.
Does Wix Payments work in Australia?
No. Australian Wix sites connect their own card provider, such as Stripe, Square or PayPal, and pay that provider's fees.
Can I use Afterpay on Wix?
Yes, in Australia through Square. Because Wix allows one card provider, Square then processes all your card payments.
Is Shopify good for a service business?
It can be, with a booking app, but bookings aren't built in and the apps bill in US dollars. Wix includes bookings from its Core plan.
Can I get a .com.au on Wix or Shopify?
Neither sells one. Register it with an Australian registrar and connect it to either platform.
About this guide
Written by Joseph Alzein, founder of bdog. bdog builds websites for Australian small businesses and has no relationship with Wix or Shopify. Prices, rates and features were read from each company's Australian pricing pages and help centre; card rates from Stripe, Square and PayPal Australia; speed from the HTTP Archive's Core Web Vitals report for Australian visitors; the rules from the ACCC, the Australian Consumer Law and the ATO. Sources were checked on 13 October 2026. Prices change, so check before you sign. This is general information, not legal or tax advice.
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