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For most Australian businesses in 2026, WordPress remains the safest default for content-heavy sites, Shopify dominates standard e-commerce, and Custom Next.js wins where performance, custom functionality or differentiation matter most. Choosing the wrong platform can cost $5,000 – $15,000 to fix within 18 months. Here's an honest comparison from an agency that builds on all three.
The full feature-by-feature comparison. Detailed breakdowns and recommendations follow below.
| Feature | WordPress | Shopify | Custom Next.js |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Content sites, blogs, brochure sites | Standard e-commerce, drop-shipping | Performance, differentiation, web apps |
| Typical build cost (AU) | $3,500 – $15,000 | $5,000 – $20,000 | $10,000 – $50,000+ |
| Build timeline | 3 – 8 weeks | 3 – 6 weeks | 8 – 14 weeks |
| Monthly platform fee | $0 (self-hosted) | $45 – $645/mo | $0 (self-hosted) |
| Hosting cost (AU) | $30 – $50/mo | Included | $30 – $80/mo |
| Performance (PageSpeed) | Partial | Partial | Yes |
| SEO control | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Customisation ceiling | Partial | Partial | Yes |
| Plugin / app ecosystem | Yes | Yes | No |
| Self-manage content easily | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Vendor lock-in | No | Yes | No |
| Long-term cost predictability | Partial | Partial | Yes |
The honest case for and against each platform — including when not to pick it. Most agencies skip the "avoid" section. We don't.
The flexible default for content-driven sites
Choose WordPress when:
Avoid WordPress when:
Real costs (AU, 2026)
Build: $3,500 – $15,000. Hosting: $30 – $50/mo. Maintenance: $200 – $500/mo. Premium plugin licences: $300 – $800/yr.
Common use cases
Professional services sites, healthcare practices, news and media, education, charity and not-for-profit, multi-location businesses with location pages.
The e-commerce industry standard
Choose Shopify when:
Avoid Shopify when:
Real costs (AU, 2026)
Build: $5,000 – $20,000. Platform: $45 – $645/mo. Apps: $50 – $300/mo typical. Transaction fees: 0.5 – 2% if not using Shopify Payments.
Common use cases
Retail e-commerce, fashion and apparel, beauty and cosmetics, consumer goods, drop-shipping, multi-channel sellers (Shopify + Amazon + eBay).
When performance and differentiation are the business case
Choose Custom Next.js when:
Avoid Custom Next.js when:
Real costs (AU, 2026)
Build: $10,000 – $50,000+. Hosting: $30 – $80/mo. Maintenance: $250 – $500/mo. No platform fees, no plugin renewals.
Common use cases
High-traffic marketing sites, web applications, multi-brand portfolios, performance-critical businesses, design-led brands, headless CMS setups for editorial control.
Six common scenarios and the platform that usually wins. Not absolute — your situation may differ — but a strong starting point.
"I'm a small business with 5 – 15 pages, no e-commerce"
Lowest cost, fastest to launch, easiest for your team to update later. Avoid the temptation to over-engineer.
"I sell products online — physical or digital"
All-in-one solution. Payment, inventory, shipping, security and PCI compliance handled. Build cost recovered within months at most product volumes.
"I'm a multi-location business or franchise"
WordPress handles location pages and multi-site setups well. Custom Next.js wins if you need a location finder, booking integration, or unique per-location functionality.
"I need lightning-fast performance for SEO or conversions"
WordPress and Shopify can be optimised, but custom Next.js consistently delivers 90+ PageSpeed scores out of the box.
"I'm building a custom platform or web app"
Off-the-shelf platforms can't host the functionality you need. Custom build is the only realistic path.
"I want my brand to feel premium and one-of-a-kind"
Both give enough design control to break out of template patterns. Custom wins on motion, layout, and load time. Shopify Plus wins if e-commerce is the focus.
Patterns we've seen across hundreds of Australian small business projects. Each one costs money to fix later — usually more than the original build saved.
We see this monthly. A consulting business launches on Shopify because the templates look good, then pays $45 – $645/month for a platform they don't use as e-commerce. WordPress (or custom) costs less and serves the use case better.
Custom builds need 60 – 120 hours of senior developer time. Quotes under $10,000 mean cut corners somewhere — usually on design, testing, or post-launch support. Spend $5,000 on WordPress instead and reinvest the rest in marketing.
WooCommerce works for 20 – 200 products. Beyond that, performance, security, and PCI compliance all become harder than they need to be. Migrate to Shopify or BigCommerce before the pain hits.
A $1,500 WordPress site and a $12,000 WordPress site are not the same thing. The difference is custom design, performance optimisation, security hardening, structured data, and someone who knows what they're doing.
If an agency only quotes one platform regardless of your needs, that's a signal. Reputable agencies build on multiple platforms and recommend based on your business, not their comfort zone.
We build on all three — Custom Next.js, WordPress, and Shopify — plus BigCommerce, Plasmic, and Strapi when the project calls for them. As a Shopify Partner, a BigCommerce Partner, and a Synergy Wholesale Partner, we get better pricing on platforms and infrastructure that we pass through to clients.
Our recommendation process is the same on every project: scope the actual business need, look at content volume and update cadence, look at e-commerce requirements, look at performance and integration needs, and then recommend the platform that fits — not the one that's easiest for us to build. We'll tell you when WordPress is the right answer even when custom would be more profitable for us.
See our Brisbane website cost guide for honest pricing across all platforms, or see our web development packages for what we deliver and at what price point.
Tell us about your business in 2 minutes and we'll send back a tailored platform recommendation with realistic pricing — no sales pressure.
WordPress is cheapest upfront ($3,500 – $15,000) and lowest in monthly fees. Shopify costs $45 – $645/mo on top of build cost. Custom Next.js has the highest build cost ($10,000+) but lowest long-term running costs and no platform lock-in.
Yes, but it's expensive. Migrating between platforms typically costs $3,000 – $10,000 plus rebuilding designs and integrations. Choose the right platform from day one — the second-best platform you commit to is cheaper than the right one you switch to in year two.
Worth it when performance, custom functionality, brand differentiation or zero vendor lock-in are real business priorities. Not worth it for a standard 5-page brochure site or a small product catalogue — WordPress or Shopify deliver more value at lower cost in those cases.
These are DIY-friendly visual builders, sitting between WordPress and Shopify in capability. Wix and Squarespace work for very simple sites under $5,000 budget. Webflow is more capable but harder for non-technical users to maintain. Most established Australian businesses outgrow them within 12 – 24 months.
BigCommerce is a strong Shopify alternative for businesses with complex catalogues, B2B requirements, or wanting more built-in features without paying for apps. Shopify wins on app ecosystem and brand recognition. RAVENCI is a partner of both — we recommend based on your specific catalogue and feature needs.
WooCommerce works well for sub-200-product catalogues attached to a content-led business. Shopify wins above 200 products, in checkout reliability, security, and ongoing maintenance simplicity. If e-commerce is the primary business, choose Shopify. If it's a side feature on a content site, WooCommerce is fine.
WordPress: 3 – 8 weeks for most small business sites. Shopify: 3 – 6 weeks for standard stores. Custom Next.js: 8 – 14 weeks for typical builds, longer for web apps. Add 2 – 4 weeks if you need content production or branding work alongside development.
All three can rank well — the platform matters less than the build quality. Custom Next.js gives the most SEO control and consistently fastest performance. WordPress with proper SEO plugins (Yoast, Rank Math) is highly capable. Shopify works for product SEO but is more constrained for content marketing.