How to tell which one you need
Ask what the visitor does. If they read, browse and contact you, you need a website. If they log in, create something, manage an account, or the site has to remember them and show them their own data, you need a web app, or a website with an app attached. Online stores sit in between: the product pages are a website, the cart, checkout and customer accounts are app features that platforms such as Shopify and WooCommerce provide ready-made.
Why the distinction matters for cost and platform
Websites are well served by WordPress, Shopify and similar platforms, and a regular business website at PrimaryDM starts at $2,000 CAD. Web apps are custom software: a developer designs the data, the accounts, the permissions and the screens, and the cost and timeline are quoted per project and typically run months rather than weeks. They are built with frameworks such as React and Next.js rather than a CMS. Choosing a platform is covered in the guide to picking a website platform.
Many businesses need both and get them from two tools: a WordPress marketing site and a separate app for customers or staff, linked together. Building the whole marketing site as a custom app, or forcing a CMS to behave like software, usually costs more and works worse.
Common examples
- Websites: a law firm site, a contractor's portfolio, a clinic's information pages, this page.
- Web apps: a client portal where customers see invoices, an online booking system with staff calendars, a quoting tool with saved projects, an inventory dashboard.
- Both: an online store, a membership site with gated content, a directory with user listings.