Wix Review (2024)

Us: “What do you want?”

You: “I want to build a website!”

Us: “Oh boy, how fun. There are a lot of options out there.

You: “Tell me which one to use. NOW!!!!”

Us: “Jeez fine, calm down. Do you want to learn HTML and completely customize your website or would you rather drag and drop using ready-made templates”

You: “Neither. I want to completely customize my website and if you make me learn HTML I will murder you.”

Us: “Okay… I guess we should talk about Wix then.”

I assume this is how a conversation would go between us. I don’t know why you’re a potential murderer in this scenario but web development can make people do crazy things.

The great news is that you won’t have to murder anyone to get the website you want! Woo-hoo!

In the end, if you’re looking for mass customization features while being able to build a stunning website without coding and extra headaches then Wix should absolutely be a top contender.

Who Website Builders are For

Enter: Website builders. The whole point of website builders like Wix is to let someone build a website quickly by taking out the need for any prior website development knowledge.

Even though Wix is one of the most well-known website builders and has a pretty good hosting platform, it does have its limitations. As a website builder.

Wix is simple and easy to use by nature.

Wix is made for people who want to be able to customize everything on their new website.

If your goal is being able to build a website that looks awesome all by yourself – Wix is number one. All without sacrificing speed and functionality.

Drag It-Drop It

There are numerous website development services that have drag-and-drop functionality like Squarespace and Weebly.

Generally, the design interface is as simple as it gets.

You take an element you want to build on the page and drag it into a preset grid.

This is ideal for editing that prioritizes speed and ease of use while lacking in customization. But what happens when that preset grid is taken away? Chaos?

You would think, but not with Wix.

The Freedom to Create Anything

No fires will be caused by Wix (that we know of) but in all honesty a little bit of chaos does ensue. Wix believes anything is possible with their website builder.

This is the slightly wacky zone Wix inhabits. Not only is it a drag-and-drop functional website builder, you can also place any element anywhere and do almost anything you can think of.

Wix’s software powers more than 20 million websites today, so clearly they’re doing something right. There are other website builders that do work without a preset grid but are truly horrible in how elements interact.

The Good

When I use different programs, I would often find myself thinking, “I wish I could do blah blah blah.” With Wix – “blah blah blah” always exists.

I honestly don’t think they left out anything you could want to do with the best website builders.

When creating your website you can make it look however you want it to look and the site configuration combined with onboarding are best in class.

Once you really get going with Wix – it can be fairly intuitive and easy to use which is an anomaly with a lot of builders.

Another aspect worth mentioning is the mobile experience. Every now and again you will have to tweak the mobile site separately from the desktop version.

Doing this is relatively painless and can help remove extra bloat from your original website. But hold on! Not everything is perfect.

The Bad

With such level of freedom there are numerous options and various tempting features. All of the sudden the straightforward and user-friendly website builder you chose has turned on you and you become overwhelmed. So much to learn! So little time!

Who Wix is Actually For

Wix is a good fit for you if you’re looking for  drag-and-drop functionality but you also have a little bit of patience to take the time to master the functionality of Wix.

Once Wix is mastered it is a powerful tool that will allow you to turn a blank canvas into a work of art.

Wix is for those who want to build a website on their own, without hiring anyone.

On the other hand, I would recommend Squarespace and Weebly to those who simply want a no-fuss, no distractions website.

Basically, the cool kids use Wix.

Let’s Break It Down

The Editor

The upside of the Wix editor is that it is as simple to use as you’d want it to be.

All it takes is a couple of hours using it to be somewhat proficient at.

Naturally, there are some pitfalls along the way, but nothing that can’t be resolved quickly.

Of course, the old issue of moving elements around and obstructing the other elements around is present.

Luckily, those and similar issues can be easily fixed with tools like undo, redo or snap-to-grid.

Below you can see one such example of a problem that usually occurs. Changing the font size makes the logo in another section bigger as well.

One thing we can promise – Wix definitely offers as much as any other similar editor on the market, if not more. And the more you get, the more fun you’ll have using it.

The great thing about such level of design autonomy is that you get a variety of cool features that you’d be hard-pressed to find in other editors, or that you’d have problems implementing into your custom made web presentation.

As we’ve mentioned, there are some quirks along the way, but nothing that should steer you away from this editor. The main things is that these problems are easily remedied.

And last, but not least (as we’ve been shouting out all around the place) is that it’s so easy to use. I mean, all you have to do is drag whatever you want accross the screen, and place it on your desired spot. That’s all there is to it. Just fantastic!

Elements

Please let us know if there are elements you want to add to a webpage and isn’t available on Wix. We tried, and we couldn’t find anything we wanted to do that wasn’t available.

If you contact the support team at the company they will probably add the feature as fast as they can anyways.

A ridiculous amount of possibilities is what you get with Wix. The list of elements to add is staggering.

So. Many. Options.

While this allows for the ability to customize the webpage in any way possible, it can also be overwhelming. Menus and small icons are in every nook and cranny of Wix.

Looking for an option to edit an aspect of the page may appear in a spot you would never think to look.

There are quite a few elements that set Wix into the upper-echelon of website builders. The neatest and niftiest element has to be the video background.

You can grab your phone, record your dog licking his nether-bits, and make it the background of your modern art website.

Other elements worth mentioning are the full-width strips and galleries. Full-width strips allow you to organize your website into the cleanest of sections with a beautifully structured layout.

Galleries (seen below) let you grab a bunch of pictures and throw them together in an aesthetically pleasing way. I won’t use the same example that I did for background videos – but you get the idea.

Themes

One weird aspect of Wix that should be mentioned is that you can’t change your theme. Most website builders allow you to use one theme for a while and when you want to test out another one you just switch it.

Themes are supposed to translate to mobile well. For the most part they do – just like any other website builder, it doesn’t work perfectly. You might have to go in and change a few things.

A familiar topic appears – there are a million options.

The best thing about Wix is that you can truly make your website yours. The problem is it can be hard to find what you’re looking for and a lot of options will have you asking why they exist and who is using them.

Knowledge Base

If you feel overwhelmed, Wix has got your back.

A tip for getting better at using any software: Use their damn knowledge base. I guarantee every time a question has been asked the Wix customer support team wrote a knowledge base article to address that question.

Why do I know this? Because the Wix Help Center is one of a kind. When going through the Editor part of the help center, you get to choose between hundreds of valuable guides and articles.

You’ll get to crack any feature and learn how to use it just by browsing through this extensive and helpful library. You can learn about SEO if you have the time for it. Wix is really epic in this department.

Blogging

The blogging pages are kind of the opposite of the rest of Wix for whatever reason.

The blogging options for the website builder are as simple as they come.

It’s basically a structured text editor that allows you to add images. I’m not complaining as I think a blog section works best this way.

Wix still offers everything you could want as a blog owner. It allows authors, categories, drafts, cover photos, view counters, avatars, like counters, and read time estimates.

SEO

Wix has a pretty bad SEO reputation on the great wide web. The main reason for this is because pre-2016 Wix was built on Flash technology, which is really bad for SEO. Wix also had a few other issues with URL structures and adding alt attributes.

While Wix still isn’t the best when it comes to SEO – John Muller, a senior employee at Google has said, “Wix websites work fine in search.” What else can you ask from a website builder?

If you’re using Wix, then chances are you aren’t an SEO expert so fine might be fine for you.

Wix offers what most users will want or need for SEO. While you won’t be setting the world on fire with insane SEO capabilities – Wix can still get the job done.

The only time Wix should be avoided is you really plan on going all out with SEO. This usually isn’t the case for people that are using website builders in the first place.

Pricing

Wix does not have a free trial. What the hell!? No free trial? Why isn’t there any?

It’s simply because a Wix created website can be used for free–forever.

When using the free version of Wix your domain name will have this format: username.wixsite.com/siteaddress. To use a custom domain you will have to upgrade to a Premium Plan.

The Premium Plan does include a free year of domain hosting on top of all the other benefits offered as well as the option to purchase Google’s G Suite to use a custom email address.

Wix does get pricey but the price is definitely worth it if you aren’t tech savvy. Leveling up with Wix can help you level up your website in a few different ways. Each tier offers meaningful benefits. The middle tiers will usually suffice for most subscribers.

Artificial Design Intelligence

Wix ADI is the first of its kind, and is still in its infancy–and as a result, what is promised falls a little short to be honest. What the ADI does is asks you various questions and applies that to an algorithm that creates a site for you.

It takes all the options of element, themes, and layouts and grabs from every combination.

What is Promised: ADI currently promises a stunning site that is one-of-a-kind.

What to Expect: What ADI really does is give you a solid head start in your web design, just don’t expect it to cover the entire process.

Rather than taking the time to look through all of the themes and layouts the software picks for you based on preferences and questions asked. It’s a time-saving and decision-mitigating feature – and there is nothing wrong with that.

With time, this tool could hopefully become much more.

Conclusion

An incredible 88% of people who used Wix would highly recommend it to a friend. At this point, I would say that we’re friends – and would like to formally recommend Wix to you.

If we had time there would be a neat ceremony with trumpets and confetti. We know you need to get to building your website so I won’t hold you up any longer. Head over to Wix’s pricing and plans page to get started.

Wix News

• Wix reports a rise in its shares in the first quarter – May 15, 2020 – Wix’s shares have soared after a strong first three months of the year. The increased demand and interest from the customers during the pandemic led to some seriously improved results. 
• Wix introduces Editor X – February 5, 2020 – Wix launched a new platform geared towards helping web designers and agencies specifically. Users will get a chance to use a number of added features like Flexbox, Grid and many other modern CSS solutions.

References and image credits:

• Spericorn.com
• EmailBoster.com
• ClearEditorial.co.uk
• RSWebsols.com