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Wix Review (2024): Our Honest Opinion With Pros & Cons

Wix is undisputed as a champion of website building. Anyone looking for an easy website builder will undoubtedly find Wix in the results.

So what’s the deal with Wix? Founded in 2006, Wix has grown to serve more than 110 million people, with half of that coming from the last four years alone. Wix is especially famous for its free website building plan, easily one of the best free site builders around.

Is it all just hype? Or maybe, people just care about the free website builder and the actual premium services aren’t that good, huh? Or maybe Wix is genuinely popular, but its customers don’t know the true quality?

Everyone has reasons to be skeptical of a popular software, particularly one that brands itself as a “free ____” (be it free site builder, free VPN, free anti-virus, and so on).

Well, I’ve been testing Wix formally for a few months and using it on and off for years. I’ve watched it grow and I’ve grown in my expertise at the same time. And now, I would like to give an intimate review of how Wix stands as a website building service in 2018.

Pros

I think we should start with the positives…the things that have probably made Wix so popular.

First off: it’s very well-built. It combines features with ease of use, so it will allow users a good deal of control over their site’s design and content without making things too complex. Website builders are supposed to be easy to use, but Wix is in a class of its own.

A second pro: Wix has a free plan. This will matter to people differently, but as far as free website building goes, Wix’s site builder is definitely one of the best free builders—certainly the most well-featured.

free plan

In addition, uptime and response times are very good with Wix, at least by my measurements.

It sounds like a shortlist, but these things are pretty essential. Here’s a one-sentence summary: Wix is very good at what it aims to do.

Cons

Well, if Wix is good at what it aims to do…how can there be a cons list?

Because people don’t always understand if they need what Wix is aiming for. Wix is excellent at combining features and customization with usability. However, it’s possible people don’t need as much usability as they assume.

For example, it might not be too difficult for some individuals and small businesses to acquire, on their own: hosting, domains, and then use WordPress to manage their site’s content (keep in mind that WordPress is free, and can offer users high levels of control as well).

The main criticism you’ll hear of Wix isn’t unique to Wix, but something any website builder will entail. This is that you lose a degree of control.

Sure, it’s easy to manage what’s literally on your website, in terms of design and content, but you cede some control of the hosting process to Wix. In fact, you pretty much let Wix manage everything for you except for the building itself—and even that, they now have an AI tool for!

So the loss of some control over the siting process is an ironic drawback.

Related to this is the price. Many people can accomplish their projects by going to a more traditional hosting route. It can be more complicated (though of course, that depends on what you’re doing) but maybe cheaper.

Wix used to have a cheaper first-tier premium plan that could kind of do the trick—at least for individuals with light site-building needs. They’ve since gotten rid of it and their plans may now be a bit pricey for those who can take care of site-building in other ways.

Of course, for those who just need that easy, one-stop-shop, Wix is excellent.

Aside from that, my other issues with Wix less serious. One of them is the lack of live chat (though customer support is still overall solid).

The other would be a lack of transparency over security. This doesn’t mean Wix isn’t secure, but I would like to know more about their protocols.

In sum, I’ll stand by what I said about Wix being good at its goals: the serious downsides apply if you don’t really need the degree of usability and efficiency that is Wix’s main selling point.

Pricing and Features

Pricing and the features that come with x prices are always important. For Wix, this is especially the case, considering it’s operating on a freemium model.

A freemium model basically means there is a free option among paid options, with the free option presumably supplying a good enough taste of the service and the paid options being significantly better than the free service—in other words, the “full” experience.

Although Wix certainly delivers on quality, there can be little doubt its free version has contributed to its popularity. So, let’s start with that.

The free version is very well-featured. As a matter of fact, it’s probably the most well-featured free website builder out there, with the exception of Weebly. And even then, I would still give Wix the top spot.

While the free version has a ton of stuff—I mean, it’s basically a full suite—it can only be connected to the Wix subdomain and contains Wix ads, in addition to some other storage limitations.

And of course, if you want to truly build a website, you’ll need to invest in premium plans. Wix has two types: Website and Business & eCommerce plans.
A quick note on these: you can try them for 14 days risk-free. It’s not the usual 30 days, but it should be enough time to get a feel for the service.

Anyway: Website plans start at $11 a month with an additional two tiers. As recently as a few months ago, there were 4 plans with the first starting at $5. Though it was more basic, the first tier still allowed you to connect a domain, which is the essential bit.

wix plans

Now things start with “Combo,” which gives you 2GB of bandwidth, 3GB of storage, the domain, the removal of Wix ads, and a free domain for a year if you don’t already have one, plus 30 minutes of video max.

The next two Website tiers increase storage to 10 and 20GB respectively and grant unlimited bandwidth along with increased video hours. They also add ad vouchers, and a site booster and form builder app. The last tier has some email campaign functionality (limit of 10 a month) and some email support, plus priority customer support status.

There are many successful eCommerce platforms. If you want to build such a website for business, you can take a look at the Business & eCommerce plans. There are three Business & eCommerce plans. As you’d expect, the gist is that they take online payments, grant unlimited bandwidth, have higher amounts of storage (20GB to 50GB), have more video hours, and thankfully they are commission-free as well.

The higher tiers include more email campaigns and email support. They also all include Google Analytics and some ad vouchers.

Now, for the actual website builder application itself: it’s well-loaded.

wix layout

As you can see, it’s essentially a drag and drops editor as most website builders nowadays are. Don’t quote me on this, but I’m pretty sure Wix and Weebly helped popularize this format.

Anyway, you can edit basically anything on your site. Wix has a large selection of templates to choose from, or you can create a site without a template, or you can have Wix auto-generate a site.

Auto-generating a site might be good for hobbyists or anyone who just wants to experiment, but for anyone looking to make a more serious side, you can rest assured that there’s a solid selection and that you can edit them extensively.

As far as the quality of themes goes, it’s, of course, subjective, but to me, they seem fairly substantial. It’s common for free themes to be somewhat similar, and Wix does have its share of similar-looking themes, but there are enough that you’re still left with a great selection.

templates of wix

The builder also has a blog tool that works pretty well.

blog

post blog

As you can see, creating a blog post is about as straightforward as anything else. Every time you want to add an element to the page, you’ll be confronted with a ton of choices.

add tool

You can also edit code directly by activating a developer mode, view your edit history, edit how you view the builder application, and so on and so on. You can also install applications from Wix’s app store, and you can do it right in the site builder.

app-market

You can probably get the idea from here. I can’t list all the things you can do, because it’s too numerous. Rest assured—if you can think of it, you can do it.

That’s not too much of an exaggeration by the way. I first used Wix years ago as a younger man, and over the years I’ve seen the website builder get more and more complicated (not in a bad way).

As a matter of fact, there have been several tools I’ve noticed recently because I remember wishing Wix had them two years ago, or five years ago.

So frankly, you won’t have to worry about features with Wix. The only issue I can see is with resource allocation—similar or lower prices with some popular hosting companies allow for more storage, for example.

The thing to remember here is that while Wix does technically provide hosting, it’s mainly selling you the website building experience. And while hosting companies typically offer website building, they are mainly selling the hosting—so it’s not too unreasonable that Wix’s storage limits might be a little lower than expected.

Besides, the specs are still in the range of popular hosting options. I just wish Wix still had a cheaper first-tier—aside from that, it’s clearly a fantastic website builder for pretty solid prices.

Wix Ease of Use

Ease of use is always important, and I think I can confidently say that ease of use sections are typically the most straightforward ones I write in reviews. This is because many companies have by now mastered friendly user interfaces.

Well, Wix is so easy to use that I actually find it a little less straightforward to talk about. Because where can I even start?

Here’s one item: the thing that’s very handy about Wix’s building software is that it centralizes pretty much everything you need. You won’t need to leave the builder application much to do things, as basically everything you’d want to do can be done by clicking a menu on the left or right.

The earlier images are a good example: you can quickly add just about anything, be it a blog post, a piece of media of any kind, or even an app, and all from the menu on the left.

The one on the right deals with sizing, spacing, duplicating and deleting and rotating elements, and related functions. It can be moved as you work.

toolbar

You can also access your account and website settings within the website builder. This is all so extensive that the application itself feels like a big house that has everything you need to stay in for weeks without leaving.

The only complaint I have is that at times the builder feels a little overburdened with features. If you’re a complete beginner, it’s difficult to know where to start and there are so many symbols and shapes spread across the page it might be a tad overwhelming.

Ultimately, this is just the inevitable byproduct of having a lot of control over your site’s appearance. I can’t really imagine an easier way of giving the user control over their site—for now, this is likely the best we’ll get.

Of course, Wix’s ease of use is not limited to the site builder, even if it’s the main attraction.

Wix is very easy to use for the actual creation process. As mentioned, you have the option of letting Wix auto-generate a site for you, though I don’t know how seriously I recommend that.

website creation

choose

Other than that, things are still pretty straightforward: you can view all the sites you’ve created from one dashboard, and quick drop-down menus let you access more settings (including those for email hosting and campaigns, billing, and vouchers, etc).

Yes, ease of use is common nowadays, but few companies can beat Wix at it.

Wix Customer Support

Customer support is pretty essential, and if your product is an easy to use tool for creating things online, you’d better believe you’ll need some customer support no matter how easy to use you are.

So what does Wix offer in this regard? Wix has a help center that functions as a knowledge base. It’s not too bad.

help center

It’s not bad. I think Wix is a straightforward enough service that it doesn’t need a huge litany of reading material or documentation. A little more would be nice, but it’s definitely good enough for most things.

The thing that I find unfortunate is Wix only has phone and ticket support. It should be good enough to get your problems solved, but I think a lot of people prefer live chat (myself included), and the fact that you can’t get it even with a top-tier account is a bit sad.

request

Nonetheless, the phone and ticket support are pretty solid—I’ve never had a truly complicated problem, to be honest, but when I’ve interacted with representatives they’ve been helpful and friendly.

One last thing: this isn’t formally part of Wix’s customer support, but it’s worth noting that Wix’s large community of users are a resource in their own right. The community, whether on Wix’s blog and forums or on outside sites, is full of people with a ton of problems and solutions.

Chances are you can find answers from fellow users as easily as you can on Wix’s help center.

So to put it simply, Wix has decent customer support, but it’s nothing phenomenal. Live chat is unfortunately missing and the knowledge base could be a little more in-depth, but Wix still has almost everything you need and a solid community of users to help you out.

Security and Reliability

Here’s the final measure for Wix: is it secure, and is it reliable in its performance?

Let’s take the first point. Because Wix basically handles everything about your website for you, it’s good to have high expectations about their security protocols. Except, there’s one problem.

I can’t really find any official information about them. That’s not to say that Wix doesn’t have security…but the lack of transparency is a little unfortunate and does make me skeptical. Still, there are a couple of things I fished out.

Wix is PCI-compliant, but that’s pretty standard.

pci compliance

Another thing I was able to find after looking around a bit was Wix’s Whois domain privacy option: Wix lets users choose between keeping their domain registration details public or private when either buying a domain from Wix or transferring one, which is good to have.

Aside from those two, Wix has some protocols to make sure that eCommerce is safe, and that your purchase of a Wix plan is safe, and there are apps you can install on Wix’s store to make your store even more secure (and thus appealing) to customers.

Wix also describes the employment of full-time security experts and the use of “advanced security tools,” plus regular internal audits to maintain the ISO/PCI certifications. I believe them, but I wish there was more information, and that it was more accessible—I found this in their support pages.

And then that’s about it. Sorry, folks. How about the performance though?

wix uptime

Uptime
100%
Response Time
166ms
Here’s the average Uptime:
  • Sep 2021: 100%
  • Aug 2021: 100%
  • July 2021: 100%
  • June 2021: 100%
  • May 2021: 100%
  • Apr 2021: 100%
  • Mar 2021: 100%
  • Feb 2021: 100%
  • Jan 2021: 100%
  • Dec 2020: 100%
  • Nov 2020: 100%
  • Oct 2020: 100%
  • Sep 2020: 100%
  • Aug 2020: 100%
  • Jul 2020: 100%
  • Jun 2020: 100%
  • May 2020: 100%
  • Apr 2020: 100%
  • Mar 2020: 100%
  • Feb 2020: 100%
  • Jan 2020: 100%
  • Dec 2019: 100.00%
  • Nov 2019: 99.98%
  • Oct 2019: 100.00%
  • Sep 2019: 99.97%
  • Aug 2019: 99.60%
  • Jul 2019: 99.79%
  • Jun 2019: 100%
  • May 2019: 99.91%
  • Apr 2019: 99.93%
  • Mar 2019: 99.99%
  • Feb 2019: 100%
  • Jan 2019: 99.96%
  • Dec 2018: 100%
  • Nov 2018: 100%
  • Oct 2018: 99.96%
  • Sep 2018: 100%
Here’s the average Response Time:
  • Sep 2021: 103ms
  • Aug 2021: 88ms
  • July 2021: 153ms
  • June 2021: 127ms
  • May 2021: 140ms
  • Apr 2021: 167ms
  • Mar 2021: 137ms
  • Feb 2021: 133ms
  • Jan 2021: 145ms
  • Dec 2020: 162ms
  • Nov 2020: 142ms
  • Oct 2020: 132ms
  • Sep 2020: 178ms
  • Aug 2020: 214ms
  • Jul 2020: 251ms
  • Jun 2020: 213ms
  • May 2020: 173ms
  • Apr 2020: 164ms
  • Mar 2020: 208ms
  • Feb 2020: 179 ms
  • Jan 2020: 241 ms
  • Dec 2019: 215 ms
  • Nov 2019: 241 ms
  • Oct 2019: 200 ms
  • Sep 2019: 259 ms
  • Aug 2019: 543 ms
  • Jul 2019: 367 ms
  • Jun 2019: 422 ms
  • May 2019: 420 ms
  • Apr 2019: 314 ms
  • Mar 2019: 315 ms
  • Feb 2019: 299 ms
  • Jan 2019: 307 ms
  • Dec 2018: 329 ms
  • Nov 2018: 302 ms
  • Oct 2018: 351 ms
  • Sep 2018: 386 ms

You can check detailed uptime score here.

As you can see, Wix has both excellent uptime and good response times. This is very good news, as Wix is first and foremost a site builder, not a hosting company: it means they haven’t neglected the essentials.

Nonetheless, there is a slight disclaimer I’d like to add here. Because Wix basically handles everything in this process, and because of the scripts Wix sites usually run on, they technically respond quickly. However, flashy Wix sites may still take a little longer to load for visitors.

Aside from that slight discrepancy between load time and response time, I’d say I’m pretty impressed by Wix’s performance, even if I’m iffy about their security.

Do I Recommend Wix?

After all that information, let’s take a step back and review where we stand with Wix.

Wix is not cheap, but it’s not too expensive if you really need what Wix is offering. I think the main downsides of Wix apply if you mistakenly go with Wix, and realize you didn’t really need that degree of user-friendliness.

To be sure, Wix is genuinely excellent at what it’s supposed to be: an easy, feature-rich, website builder. It is all those things and more, with great uptime and overall consistent performance, and not-bad customer support.

If you’re sure you need an easy, efficient way of building a website, and you don’t mind spending a little extra, Wix is a good way to go.

If you want an easy site building experience, but you can afford to take some extra steps and don’t mind doing so to reduce the cost, you have viable alternatives in the form of general hosting.

I’ll say that because Wix is successful for its goals, I recommend Wix.

And if you’re still unsure whether you and Wix would be a good fix, you can always try them risk-free for a couple of weeks!

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May 29, 2023

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I have used Wix in the past and it has a lot of potential and great tools for beginners who don’t know how to make a site in html. I personally used it in high school for a school project and it is very user friendly! I really appreciate the dedication of the team to build a great site to help people learn to make a site. I still think they should try to make it more accessible to free users that can’t afford to spend money on the site. But otherwise it is a great place for students and bloggers alike!


Apr 01, 2023

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With the help of numerous configurable templates and drag-and-drop capabilities, Wix's cloud-based website builder lets users construct and design their own websites. One of the main strengths of Wix is its ease of use. The website builder is intuitive and user-friendly, making it a great option for those who do not have experience in website design or coding. Additionally, Wix offers a wide range of templates to choose from, making it easy to find one that suits your needs and preferences. Another advantage of Wix is its flexibility. The platform allows for extensive customization, including the ability to add features such as e-commerce functionality, blog sections, and social media integration. Wix also offers a range of marketing tools, including email marketing, SEO optimization, and social media marketing. One potential drawback of Wix is its pricing structure. While it offers a free plan, many of the more advanced features require a premium subscription. Overall, Wix is a great option for those who are looking for a user-friendly and flexible website builder. However, it is important to consider pricing and potential migration issues before committing to the platform.


Dec 02, 2022

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Uso Wix da anni (dal 2019) per un sito amatoriale, ho provato diverse forme del servizio, dal pacchetto base a quello premium. Esperienza tediosa e con tanti problemi che sconsiglio. Wix promette una composizione facile per utenti senza esperienza di programmazione, purtroppo le funzionalità dell'editor sono a malapena decenti. La grande offerta di funzioni si scontra coi limiti terrificanti dell'editor: l'editor è lentissimo, farraginoso, con enormi problemi di stuttering (non dipende dal mio pc nè dalla linea internet, entrambi di fascia medio-alta) L'organigramma di gestione pagine è pessimo, non permette di creare una struttura con sottopagine ramificate, bisogna gestirle da sè tramite i link (consente 1 solo sottolivello di ramificazione). Molte delle funzioni e dei box caricabili sono pesanti, difficilmente modificabili. Va tutto a scatti, si blocca, si sfasa. Ci vuole una gran pazienza. Pessimo il servizio premium, usato per un anno e per cui non ho mai ricevuto risposte soddisfacenti ai problemi incontrati. Va bene le risposte automatiche e i link alle guide sul servizio base, ma sul premium è lecito aspettarsi di più. Continuo a usarlo perchè ci ho lavorato troppo a lungo e ormai lo uso saltuariamente, conscio dei suoi limiti. Tornassi indietro non lo userei. Peccato perchè le funzioni sono tante e il potenziale è enorme, il problema è che quasi niente funziona come dovrebbe. Se l'editor venisse perfezionato e il drop-in degli oggetti reso più facile e fluido, sarebbe un ottimo servizio per chi ha poca esperienza. Nei 3 anni di utilizzo però non ho visto nessun passo avanti e nessuna miglioria. p.s. chi dice che usare Wix è "divertente" deve avere un'idea molto bizzarra e distorta del divertimento, dalle parti del masochismo. p.p.s. potete visitare il sito che ho costruito con Wix, per renderlo funzionale (e per restare sano di mente negli aggiornamenti) ho tenuto una struttura il più elementare possibile.


Jul 14, 2022

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I overall really recommend using Wix to create your websites. It's really easy and simple all in one place. The website is really easy to navigate and learn how to set up. The wide variety and scale of themes and templates they give you to make your own custom website is amazing. The usability of the tools included in the program is so helpful too. The features on the program are awesome as well such as the online scheduling software, logo makers, professional blogs, and even more! In my experience I would definitely recommend using Wix to create a website for yourself or business its accessible and affordable.


Jul 13, 2022

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I used Wix to build the current version of my wife’s business website. It’s been live for nearly three years now, and we’ve yet to experience any problems. Prior to WIX, the site was created and hosted on GoDaddy… and that was bad. Constant issues requiring tech support assistance, along with terrible lack of creative tools in the builder, lead to a sub-par site, with never ending problems. I am far happier with WIX than I was with GoDaddy. I find the mobile version of her site works great, and zero complaints from her clients means it must be working well on most devices. I noticed you were leaning into the virtues of Squarespace pretty hard. Unfortunately, Squarespace has quite a “morality” complex, and has deemed my wife’s business falls outside of their narrow idea of what is considered “moral”. WIX takes a more hands-off, live-and-let-live, non-discriminatory approach, by not dictating what people can have on their sites.


Jul 06, 2022

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This is my review for the Wix website, I personally used this service for many of my first websites and I believe that from my knowledge that this service is one of or if not the BEST services for beginners who do not have the knowledge of coding. The uptime is amazing, the performance is almost 5 stars but of course it isn't fully coding so it is hard to get to that level. The value for the money is 4 stars due to it being built for beginners and people who don't want to code. And finally the customer service is amazing and quick. This hosting service is amazing and I would recommend it to any beginners or even pros.
Winford L. Uribe
https://wix.com


Jul 05, 2022

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Wix is a fantastic website that offers free website hosting and a lot more. It can help people who want to start a business or something similar but don't have the money to do it. Wix is helpful in this situation because you can host a website there for free! Wix has a built-in site editor that makes it easier for you to design the ideal website as your firm is just getting started. Wix provides excellent website templates with a wide range of styles and additional functionality. The hosting is always available and of the best quality. The best web hosting must be provided on the website! I've already recommended this website to all of my online friends, and now you should too!
Nolan Mastrodicasa
https://blcklst.com/


Jul 04, 2022

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Wix offers wonderfully reliable website hosting, which to the naked eye may seem great, but when you have a closer look, you see the truth behind Wix's clever marketing. Wix drags users in by showcasing its cheap prices and offers that are impossible to decline. But once you get your website up and running using Wix, that's when they hit you. Wix starts to take small fees and taxes that were never stated in the original sign-up. When trying to contact customer support, it is often that you will not receive any contact for multiple days. My longest experience was 5 total days with no response. Overall Wix is quite useful for beginners, but if you are looking to keep a website up for a long period of time, I would recommend staying away.


Mar 19, 2020

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Wix is a good platform for creating a website as it offers drag and drop site builder and there are 1000s of template available but for web hosting, I don't think it is the right platform. I had tried their $13 plan which is a good plan for a personal website and it was not good at all. I found my website speed was quite slow ideally the website should load under 3sec but mine was quite low 10 to 12sec. I hope they will fix this issue fast.