This is one of the most common questions I get from small business owners, and the honest answer is: it depends on what you're actually trying to do. Here's the real comparison, without the sales pitch either way.
WordPress: pros and cons
Pros: WordPress is the right tool if you plan to publish new blog content regularly yourself, need a large catalog (e-commerce with many products), or want non-technical staff to be able to edit pages without calling a developer every time.
Cons: WordPress sites need ongoing maintenance — plugin and core updates, security patches, and hosting that supports PHP and a database. Skip these and the site becomes a security risk. Heavier themes and plugin stacks are also the most common cause of slow-loading WordPress sites, which directly hurts both user experience and Google rankings.
Custom-coded (static HTML/CSS/JS): pros and cons
Pros: A custom-coded site loads faster because there's no database query or plugin overhead — every request just serves static files. It's also more secure by default (no plugin vulnerabilities, no login page for attackers to target), and cheaper to host and maintain long-term since there's nothing to update or patch.
Cons: Adding new pages or sections requires a developer (unless built with a simple CMS layer), and it's not the right fit for large catalogs or sites that need frequent content publishing by non-technical staff.
Which should you choose?
For most small businesses — restaurants, tourism operators, service providers, local shops with 5–10 pages that don't change content daily — a custom-coded site is usually the better long-term choice: faster, more secure, and cheaper to maintain. If you specifically need a blog you'll update weekly, or a large product catalog with frequent changes, WordPress (or a similar CMS) makes more sense.
I build both, depending on what fits the business. The goal is always picking the right tool for the job, not pushing one platform because it's easier for the developer.