Quick answer
The best website builder for small business depends on what the site is for: Shopify for a site that is mainly a store, Squarespace or Wix for a design-led site with a shop, and GoDaddy or WordPress.com for a low plan price. On a $50 card sale GoDaddy Starter takes the least in fees, $1.65; Wix Core and Shopify Basic take $1.75, Squarespace Basic $2.75 and WordPress.com Premium $3.75.
Nation, an AI store builder, publishes this page. It is pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai, so it is not in the list or the fee example. See where Nation fits.
How we compared
There is no single best website builder for small business, so every builder here is checked on the same five criteria and none is ranked. The first criterion decides more than price: a store-first builder suits a business that mainly sells online, and a website-first builder suits a business that mainly needs pages with a shop inside.
- What the builder is made for Some builders start from a website and add a shop. Others start from a store and add pages. Pick the kind that matches what most of your site will do.
- Plan price to take payments The monthly price of the cheapest plan that can take payments in the way shown, billed yearly, for a US business.
- Fees on each sale Card processing plus any transaction fee on one online order, read from each builder's own fee page.
- Free plan or trial What you can do before you pay: build only, publish without taking payments, or a short trial of a paid plan.
- Limits Fees you cannot switch off, plans that cannot take payments, and caps that change the real cost.
Best website builders for small business at a glance
Each builder is shown at its cheapest plan that takes payments in the way described. The source and check date for every number are listed under each builder and at the end of the page.
What each website builder keeps from a $50 sale
Fees are easier to compare on one order than as percentages. Example: one $50 order, paid online with a standard US card, with free shipping and no sales tax. On Wix Core that sale pays card processing of 2.9% + $0.30 through Wix Payments.
- GoDaddy $1.65 plus Starter $9.99/mo billed annually Card 2.7% + 30¢ $1.65
- Wix baseline $1.75 plus Core $29 a month (billed yearly, paid in full upfront) Card 2.9% + $0.30 $1.75
- Shopify $1.75 plus Basic $29 a month billed yearly Card 2.9% + 30¢ $1.75
- Squarespace $2.75 plus Basic $19 a month billed annually Transaction 2% $1, Card 2.9% + $0.30 $1.75
- WordPress.com $3.75 plus Premium US$8 a month, billed every 12 months Payment fee 4% $2, Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 $1.75
Assumes a $50 order, free shipping, no tax, a standard US card (not Amex) paid online, and no currency conversion. Shopify assumes Shopify Payments; another provider adds 2%. WordPress.com is shown on Premium with its Payments block, whose fee falls by plan (Free 10% / Personal 8% / Premium 4% / Business 2% / Commerce 0%), plus Stripe's card fee. A WooCommerce store on WordPress.com is left out, because the pricing page lists a WooCommerce transaction fee, 0%, only for Business and Commerce. Squarespace Basic and WordPress.com Premium charge more per sale than Wix Core but less for the plan, so they cost less than Wix in months with few sales and more as sales grow. Shopify Basic matches Wix Core on both.
Each website and online store builder in detail
Every builder gets the same five lines: price, fees per sale, what it is strong at, who it is best for and its main limit.
The baseline. Wix is a general website builder with a store built in, and Core is its cheapest plan that lists accepting payments.
- Price
- Core $29 a month (billed yearly, paid in full upfront). Business is $39 a month (billed yearly). The free plan covers building your website, adding products, setting up shipping and publishing your site, but to take payments you will have to upgrade to a premium plan.
- Fees per sale
- Card processing through Wix Payments of 2.9% + $0.30 for US cards other than Amex. Amex costs 3.7% of the transaction amount + 0.30 USD and PayPal costs 3.49% of the transaction amount + 0.49 USD.
- Strong at
- A full business site with pages and a shop in one editor: 2000+ website templates, and products with up to 1,000 variants each.
- Best for
- Small businesses that want a full website first and a shop as one part of it.
- Limit
- The free plan cannot take payments, and Light, at $17 a month (billed yearly), does not list accepting payments on its plan card, so selling starts at Core.
A website builder whose cheapest plan, Basic, sells online with a 2% transaction fee on top of card processing.
- Price
- Basic $19 a month billed annually, or $25 a month billed monthly. There is no free plan; every site starts with a free trial, and the trial runs for 14 days.
- Fees per sale
- A 2% transaction fee on Basic plus card processing of 2.9% + $0.30.
- Strong at
- Design-led sites where photos and layout carry the business.
- Best for
- Small businesses that care most about how the site looks and sell a modest range of products or services.
- Limit
- Basic adds 2% to every online sale, so a $50 order costs $2.75 against $1.75 on Wix.
A store builder first. It suits a small business whose website is mainly an online store.
- Price
- Basic $29 a month billed yearly, or $39 a month billed monthly. The pricing page offers 3 days free, then $1/month for 3 months.
- Fees per sale
- Card processing of 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic with Shopify Payments, and no transaction fee with Shopify Payments. Another payment provider adds 2%.
- Strong at
- Selling: Basic lets a business sell online, in person, and in AI chats.
- Best for
- Product businesses that expect their catalog and order count to grow.
- Limit
- Billed monthly, Basic costs $39 a month, and a payment provider other than Shopify Payments adds 2% to each sale.
GoDaddy's AI website builder, with a store and GoDaddy Payments on its paid plans. Each paid plan card lists the same product allowance: Unlimited products and services.
- Price
- Starter $9.99/mo billed annually, or $19.99/mo billed monthly. The free plan (Free, 50 AI credits/mo) is for building; you pay when you publish.
- Fees per sale
- Card processing of 2.7% + 30¢ through GoDaddy Payments. Disputes cost $15 each, and instant payouts cost 1.75%.
- Strong at
- Low running cost: the lowest card rate of the five builders here.
- Best for
- Small businesses that want a simple site that sells products or services, at a low plan price.
- Limit
- The low Starter price needs annual billing; monthly it is $19.99/mo. Starter's site limit: Publish 1 site.
Hosted WordPress. The Payments block comes with Premium, Business, and Commerce, and WooCommerce can be installed on Personal, Premium, Business, and Commerce.
- Price
- Premium US$8 a month, billed every 12 months, or US$18 a month billed monthly. Personal costs US$4 a month, billed every 12 months ($48 a year); like every paid plan it can install WooCommerce. The free plan costs US$0, runs on a WordPress.com subdomain (yoursite.wordpress.com), cannot install plugins and does not include a custom domain.
- Fees per sale
- The Payments block takes a payment fee by plan (Free 10% / Personal 8% / Premium 4% / Business 2% / Commerce 0%), and Stripe adds 2.9% + US$0.30. Business and Commerce take 0% on WooCommerce payments.
- Strong at
- Content: blogs and article-heavy sites, with a store added through WooCommerce when needed.
- Best for
- Small businesses that publish a lot of articles and sell a few products or services next to them.
- Limit
- On Premium the Payments block fee makes it the most expensive per sale here, and if the plan expires the fee rises to 10%.
Which one fits you
Your website is mainly an online store and you expect to add products.
Shopify
A store-first builder with card processing of 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic and no transaction fee with Shopify Payments.
You want a design-led site with a shop inside it.
Squarespace or Wix
Both start from a website. Squarespace Basic costs less, $19 a month billed annually, but adds 2% per sale. Wix Core costs $29 a month (billed yearly, paid in full upfront), and its fees on a $50 sale come to $1.75 against $2.75.
You want the lowest fees per sale and a low plan price.
GoDaddy
The lowest card rate here, 2.7% + 30¢, and Starter at $9.99/mo billed annually.
You publish a lot of articles and sell a little.
WordPress.com
Premium, at US$8 a month, billed every 12 months, takes payments with its Payments block, and any paid plan can add WooCommerce later.
You want a free plan to build on before you pay.
Wix, GoDaddy or WordPress.com
Wix's free plan covers building your website, adding products, setting up shipping and publishing your site; to take payments you will have to upgrade to a premium plan. GoDaddy's free plan is for building only, and WordPress.com's free plan costs US$0 and has no expiration date.
Where Nation fits
Nation
Category: an AI store builder
Nation says one description of what you make builds the store, then agents handle orders, customers and delivery and run ads, content and social posts, with you approving the work. Because pricing is not announced yet, it is not scored or compared on fees here.
Limits today
- Status: pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai.
- Pricing and fees: not announced yet.
- Shopper marketplace: no shopper marketplace has been announced.
- Track record: no independent reviews or public stores yet.
Nation publishes this page. Nation is not ranked or scored here and will not be added to the list or the fee example until signup is public and pricing is published.
Describe what you makeDisclosure and method
Nation, an AI store builder, publishes this page. Nation is not ranked or scored here and will not be added to the comparison until signup is public and pricing is published.
The list covers five website builders that a US small business can use to publish a site and take payments online. No builder paid to be included, and none of the links are affiliate links.
Every plan price and fee was read on the builder's own pricing or fee page on 2 Oct 2026, then re-read in a separate check. Each builder's section names its source, and the full list is below.
Questions about website builders for small business
What is the best website builder for small business?
The best website builder for small business depends on what the site has to do. Shopify suits a business whose site is mainly a store. Squarespace and Wix suit a design-led site with a shop inside it. GoDaddy has the lowest card rate here, 2.7% + 30¢, and WordPress.com suits a business that publishes a lot of articles.
What is the best free website builder for small business?
The best free website builder for small business depends on whether the site must take payments. Wix lets you publish a store for free, but you will have to upgrade to a premium plan to take payments. WordPress.com's free plan cannot install plugins. GoDaddy's free plan is for building only. Squarespace offers a trial of 14 days, and Shopify offers 3 days free, then $1/month for 3 months.
What is the best ecommerce website builder for an online store?
The best ecommerce website builder for an online store is usually a store-first builder such as Shopify, which charges 2.9% + 30¢ per card sale on Basic, with no transaction fee with Shopify Payments. Wix and Squarespace also run online stores, built on top of a website. GoDaddy charges the lowest card rate here, 2.7% + 30¢, through GoDaddy Payments.
Which website builder has the lowest fees per sale?
GoDaddy has the lowest fees per sale of these website builders: 2.7% + 30¢ through GoDaddy Payments, or $1.65 on a $50 card sale. Wix and Shopify come to $1.75, Squarespace Basic to $2.75 because of its transaction fee, and WordPress.com Premium to $3.75 with its Payments block fee.
Do website builders charge transaction fees?
Some website builders charge a transaction fee on top of card processing. Squarespace Basic takes 2% of each online sale, and the WordPress.com Payments block takes a fee by plan: Free 10% / Personal 8% / Premium 4% / Business 2% / Commerce 0%. Shopify has no transaction fee with Shopify Payments, but another payment provider adds 2%.
Is Nation a website builder for small business?
Nation is an AI store builder, pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai, and its pricing is not announced yet, so it cannot be compared with these website builders today. Nation is not scored or ranked on this page, and it will be added to the comparison only once signup is public and pricing is published.