Leaving Wix: a move you can trust, step by step

Most people who want to leave Wix put it off for the same reason: they are afraid of losing something. Pages, photos, enquiries, a hard-won spot in Google. That fear is reasonable, because Wix does not give you your site in one file. But it can be done safely, and the safety comes from following a clear order.

The one rule behind every step is this: your Wix site stays live and untouched until the new site is ready and you have signed it off. If anything goes wrong along the way, your visitors never see it.

Step 1: Take stock of what you have

Before anything moves, make a full list. Your sitemap is the best place to start. Add /sitemap.xml to your web address and it lists every public page and blog post.

Then list what the site does: contact forms, bookings, a shop, member areas, newsletters, chat. Write down the job each one does for you, not the name of the Wix app. Many of those jobs are covered by a Domma CMS Tool. Some may be best left with a service you already use.

Step 2: Save everything Wix will let you take

Wix has no whole-site export, but much of your content can still come with you:

• Images and files - download them from the Media Manager.
• Shop products - export them as a CSV file from your store's product list.
• Contacts - export them as a CSV file.
• Form submissions - export each form's entries as a CSV file.

Keep these somewhere safe. They are your backup, whatever happens next.

Step 3: Copy the pages and posts across

Domma CMS does the heavy lifting here. In Tools > Maintenance > Import a site, choose Copy a live site and type your Wix address. It reads every public page of your site, the same way a search engine does, and takes the words, headings, images, documents, blog posts with their dates and authors, and your main menu. Nothing on your Wix site changes.

Before anything is created, you see a preview: what will be made, which pages came across with little text, and any addresses it could not read. Layouts, forms, shops and bookings are not copied; those are rebuilt with Domma CMS Tools. Then check each page against your list from step 1. This is also the moment to fix the things that annoyed you on Wix: slow pages, awkward menus, content you never got round to updating.

Step 4: Keep every address working

Wix uses addresses like /post/my-first-post for blog posts, and your new site may use different ones. Every old address on your list needs a redirect to its new home. Import a site sets these up for the pages and posts it copies; add any others by hand. Bookmarks keep working, links from other sites keep working, and search engines carry your ranking across to the new page instead of finding a dead end.

Step 5: Test on a staging address

The new site is built on a separate staging address, away from your visitors. Check it on a phone and a computer. Send every form, open every download and visit every old address on your list to make sure it lands on the right page. Nothing goes live until this list is complete.

Step 6: Switch the domain, then wait

Once you are happy, point your domain at the new site. If Wix registered your domain, you can transfer it away. Domains are usually locked for 60 days after they are registered or transferred, so check before you pick a launch date.

Do not cancel your Wix plan straight away. Keep it for a few weeks while the new site settles. That way, you always have something to go back to.

Coming from Squarespace?

The plan is the same, with one head start. Squarespace can export your site as a WordPress-format file (look for Import & Export in your settings). Upload it in Import a site and the same preview follows. The file holds your basic pages, one blog and gallery pages. It leaves out shop products, events, audio and video, your styling, and any blog after the first. The images are not inside the file, only links to them: Import a site downloads them from Squarespace at full size, so keep your account open until the import is done.

Want us to do it for you?

We offer paid migration help. We review your current site first, agree exactly what moves, and send you a price before any work starts. You approve the new site before the domain changes. See CMS migration services, or if you are on WordPress, read this guide instead.