Wix vs a custom website
Wix is a hosted website builder: you design pages in its editor and Wix runs the site on its servers. A custom build is designed and coded for your business, and you choose where it is hosted.
Stay on Wix if the site is a small brochure site and the editor does what you need. Move to a custom build when the site needs features Wix cannot provide, connections to your own systems, or code you can take to another host. GetQuickSites builds custom websites and moves sites off Wix.
What Wix handles for you
Wix looks after hosting, security updates and the editor, so there is nothing to install or patch. It also covers the main search settings: you can add structured data markup, edit your robots.txt file and set up 301 redirects.
For a small site with a few pages and no connections to other systems, that is often enough.
What you cannot take with you
A Wix site runs only on Wix. Wix's help centre explains that your site must run on Wix's servers, so it cannot be exported to another host.
If you leave Wix, the pages are rebuilt elsewhere. Your content can be copied across, and your domain can be transferred away from Wix.
With a custom build, the code, design and content we produce for your site are yours at handover. Our ownership and handover page sets out the detail.
When a custom build makes sense
- The site needs features that Wix and its app market do not provide.
- Enquiries or bookings need to go straight into your CRM or booking system.
- You want the code and the hosting under your own control.
If none of these apply, staying on Wix may be the simpler choice.
Costs to compare
Wix charges a subscription for as long as the site runs, and its plans page lists the current prices. A custom build is quoted against a written scope, and hosting is a separate cost that depends on the site. Whichever you choose, ask for the costs that continue after launch in writing.
Our pricing page explains how we quote, and our guide to how much a website costs lists the one-off and ongoing costs to compare.
Moving off Wix
We rebuild the pages, copy the content across and send each old Wix URL to its new address with a 301 redirect. Google recommends permanent redirects for a site move and says to expect temporary ranking changes while it recrawls the site.
Our platform migration page covers how we plan the move, and the step-by-step migration checklist lists what to check before and after launch.
Frequently asked questions
When should I move from Wix to a custom website?
When the site needs features, integrations or hosting control that Wix cannot provide. If Wix does what you need, there is no reason to move.
How much does a custom website cost compared with Wix?
Wix charges a monthly or annual subscription for as long as the site runs. A custom build is quoted against a written scope, with hosting as a separate cost, so the comparison depends on what the site has to do and how long you run it.
Can you move my content from Wix to a custom website?
Yes. We copy the text and images across, rebuild the pages and set up redirects from the old URLs. Wix sites cannot be exported as code, so the design itself is rebuilt.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I move off Wix?
Rankings can change during any site move. Google recommends a 301 redirect from each old URL and says to expect temporary fluctuation while it recrawls the site, so we map every URL before the switch and do not promise unchanged rankings.
Talk to us about your Wix site
Book a call and we will look at your current site and what a move would involve.