Switching from Wix to WordPress
Switching from Wix to WordPress usually trades Wix’s all-in-one simplicity for WordPress’s greater flexibility, plugin ecosystem, and ownership of the underlying code and hosting.
Why teams switch from Wix to WordPress
Full control over hosting and code
WordPress (self-hosted, via WordPress.org) lets you choose your own host, install any plugin, and avoid platform lock-in that comes with Wix’s closed system.
Larger plugin and theme ecosystem
Thousands of free and paid WordPress plugins cover SEO, e-commerce, forms, and membership features that would require Wix’s more limited app market or custom code.
Better long-term SEO flexibility
WordPress gives more granular control over URL structure, schema markup, and site speed optimization than Wix’s more templated approach.
Switching Cost & Friction Estimator
Estimate the real hidden cost of moving from Wix to WordPress — not just the subscription price.
How to migrate your data
WordPress.com and self-hosted WordPress both offer an official Wix import tool, but it only covers part of a typical site.
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Run WordPress’s official Wix importer | Use WordPress’s built-in Wix import tool to pull over static pages, images, the site title, and menus. |
| 2. Recover blog posts via RSS | Since the importer cannot pull blog posts directly, use Wix’s RSS feed with the RSS Import plugin to bring across roughly the 20 most recent posts, then manually recreate older ones. |
| 3. Choose and configure a WordPress theme | Wix templates don’t carry over, so pick a WordPress theme and manually rebuild fonts, colors, and layout to match (or intentionally redesign) your old site. |
| 4. Rebuild forms, e-commerce, and custom code | Recreate Wix’s contact forms, any Wix Stores product catalog, and custom-coded elements using WordPress plugins, since these don’t transfer via import. |
| 5. Set up 301 redirects | Map old Wix URLs to their new WordPress equivalents with 301 redirects so search rankings and inbound links survive the move. |
| 6. Test, submit sitemap, and go live | Verify all pages and posts render correctly, submit an updated XML sitemap to Google Search Console, and point your domain to the new WordPress hosting. |
Pricing during the transition
Wix bundles hosting into its plans; self-hosted WordPress software is free but requires separate web hosting.
| Plan | Wix | WordPress |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Free plan: $0/month (Wix branding, limited storage) | WordPress software itself: free, but requires paid hosting to go live |
| Entry paid tier | Light: around $18/month | Basic shared hosting: around $3-13/month (e.g. Bluehost, SiteGround) |
| Mid tier | Business: around $40/month | Managed WordPress hosting: around $20-40/month |
WordPress.org software is free and open-source, so its real cost is hosting plus any premium themes or plugins you choose to add — unlike Wix, which bundles hosting into every paid tier.
Feature-parity checklist
Wix trades flexibility for simplicity; WordPress trades a steeper learning curve for far more control.
| Feature | Wix | WordPress equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of setup | Drag-and-drop editor, no hosting to manage | Requires choosing and configuring hosting separately |
| Design flexibility | Locked to Wix’s editor and template system | Thousands of themes plus full code-level customization |
| Plugin/app ecosystem | Wix App Market, smaller and more curated | 60,000+ plugins covering nearly any feature |
| E-commerce depth | Wix Stores, solid for small catalogs | WooCommerce plugin, scales to large stores |
| Ongoing maintenance | Wix handles updates and security | Site owner (or host) manages updates and security patches |
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my Wix blog posts transfer to WordPress automatically?
Only partially — WordPress’s importer can’t pull Wix blog posts directly, so you’re limited to roughly the last 20 posts via RSS, with older ones needing manual recreation.
Does my Wix site design carry over to WordPress?
No, Wix templates don’t transfer at all — you’ll pick a WordPress theme and rebuild the visual design from scratch.
Will I lose my Google rankings after switching?
Not if you set up 301 redirects from every old Wix URL to its new WordPress equivalent and resubmit your sitemap; skipping this step is the most common cause of ranking loss.
Is WordPress actually free?
The WordPress software is free and open-source, but you’ll pay for hosting, a domain, and likely some premium themes or plugins, so total cost isn’t zero.
Can I migrate a Wix Stores catalog to WooCommerce?
Not automatically — you’ll need to export products as CSV from Wix and reformat them for WooCommerce’s import tool, or use a paid migration plugin.
Canonical data for the tools on this page
Every pricing fact, rating, AI billing model and switching guide we hold on each tool, on one page — with the date each figure was last verified.
