Wix Under the Microscope

Wix is the website builder giant. You’ve probably seen their adverts, and you’ve probably been on websites made by them, but if you want to know more, you’re in the right place. We’ll look at Wix’s history, how to use it and who it’s for. With a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), plus links to our in-depth articles, you’ll leave feeling enlightened. So, what is Wix? And could it just be the perfect website builder for you? Let’s get started…

What is Wix?

Wix is an online website builder that helps you create a website from scratch. It’s famous for its drag and drop editor, which means you can build a website by selecting elements you want, (eg. maps, images, or buttons), and dragging them to where you want them on your web page. It really is as easy as that. You don’t need any coding experience, technical skills or high-end software; all it takes with Wix is a few clicks and a bit of creativity!

The fact that it’s so simple to use makes it an extremely popular website builder. Over 132 million people use Wix worldwide! 82% of customers subscribing to Wix stay with them for a year or longer, and new users are signing up all the time, with an average of 45,000 new sign-ups every day. In fact, between April and June 2018, a huge 5.8 million users registered with Wix.

Best All-Round Website Builder

4.9

out of 5
Top Choice
Ease Of Use

4.4 out of 5 stars

Value For Money

3 out of 5 stars

Design Flexibility

4.6 out of 5 stars

Features

4.8 out of 5 stars

Help and Support

4.8 out of 5 stars

Customer Score

4.7 out of 5 stars

As you can see it’s got consistently high scores and is actually our best all-round website builder. Not only is it easy to use, but you can create professional looking websites without any technical experience. Want proof? Below you can see for yourself the quality of website that can be made on Wix:

wix website builder photography site
Wix website builder creates professional and aesthetic websites for professionals as well as personal projects - this is a photography website called Louise Amelie Whitehouse.

Pictured above is a photography website made using the Wix website builder. It’s just one of many professional looking Wix websites online.

Read our in-depth Wix Review for more information.

History of Wix

Wix was started in 2006 by three Israeli developers, Avishai Abrahami, Nadav Abrahami, and Giora Kaplan. When trying to create their own website for a business idea, they realised just how difficult, time consuming, and costly it could be. So they decided to build Wix, to make getting online easy for everyone no matter your budget or technical ability.

By 2009 Wix had 1 million users, which grew to 10 million by 2011.

wix interest over time graph
Wix has grown in popularity and size over the years, as shown in this graph showing the increased interest in Wix over time.

Over the years Wix has released numerous updates and software such as the Wix ADI, which uses artificial intelligence to create a website for you, and the App Market which allows you to grow your site through adding apps to your web pages. They’ve also  launched new editors to keep the Wix website builder fresh and up to date.

Today it has over 132 million users in 190 countries worldwide, with offices in Israel, the USA, Lithuania, Germany, Brazil, and Ukraine.

How to Use Wix

Wix caters for everyone. You can use it how you like. If you want to code, you can use the Wix Editor, but by far the most common way to use Wix is with drag and drop.

Drag and drop gives you the freedom to create a stylish website from a template. You simply select the element you want on your page (eg. an image, a contact form), drag it to where you want it, and drop it!

When you’re designing a website, what you see on the screen is exactly what it will look like once it’s live.

Wix’s extra features include eCommerce plans, which allow you to sell products, manage bookings, and accept payments through your website. Wix ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence) uses artificial intelligence to automatically create a website for you! Plus you have a vast choice of super stylish templates across a range of industries to choose from, and the option of adding video and multimedia to your website – Wix is ticking all the boxes.

How much does this cost you? The truth is, it doesn’t have to cost you anything! Wix has a free plan which you can stay on forever. But when you want to upgrade, so that you can sell through your site or use your own personalized domain name, the cheapest plan starts from just $16 a month. There are various premium plans depending on what you need from your site – you can read more in our Wix Pricing Review.  


Further Information

Read our Wix Ecommerce Review if you’re thinking of setting up an online store with Wix.

If you’re interested in selling online but aren’t sure if Wix is for you, why not check out our article on the best ecommerce platforms on the market today.

Who is Wix For?

With over 500 customizable templates, and eight price plans of varying levels (including the free version), Wix aims to have something for everyone. Here are just some of the people that use Wix:

  • Business owners
  • Online store owners
  • Photographers
  • Musicians
  • Designers
  • Restaurant owners
  • Bloggers
  • Artists
  • Teachers
  • Events businesses
  • Travel & tourism businesses
  • Beauticians

Our Wix Review goes into lots more detail on Wix’s features, templates, price plans, and more.

Do We Recommend Wix?

Best All-Round Website Builder

4.9

out of 5
Top Choice
Ease Of Use

4.4 out of 5 stars

Value For Money

3 out of 5 stars

Design Flexibility

4.6 out of 5 stars

Features

4.8 out of 5 stars

Help and Support

4.8 out of 5 stars

Customer Score

4.7 out of 5 stars

We recommend Wix because of its excellent ease of use, value for money, and creative flexibility.

The drag and drop function is incredibly easy to use, suitable for beginners and intuitive in design. You can create a stylish, professional looking website in a matter of hours, with absolutely no coding or head scratching required!

The range of templates cater to a wide variety of industries and personal styles – with over 500 themes to choose from, there really is something for everyone. The numerous apps and features available make it a great choice whether you’re setting up a personal blog or launching your business online. You have tons of creative control so you can make your website exactly how you want it, without having to worry about running into technical trouble.

The joy of Wix is you can create a highly customized site quickly, cheaply, and without knowing a single line of code.

FAQs

What is Wix?

Wix is an online website builder that uses an easy drag and drop editor, so that you can edit your page as it appears once published. You can create your own website without any technical experience.

How expensive is Wix?

Wix has a free plan which you can stay on for as long as you like. But, if you want to remove Wix ads, use your own personalized domain name, or accept payments through your site, you will need to upgrade. The cheapest paid plan is called Combo and starts from $16 a month. The other plans scale up in price and features – you can read more on pricing in our Wix Pricing Review.

Does Wix offer a free trial?

Yes, Wix offers a 14 day free trial on all its paid plans. This is a great way of trying out the extra features available and seeing if it’s right for you without any financial risk or commitment. The free plan doesn’t have a time limit on it, so you can choose the best time to upgrade without pressure.

How does Wix work?

The Wix website builder works by providing pre-designed templates from a range of different categories and industries for you to choose from. Once you’ve decided you can change as much or as little of this template as you like by dragging elements such as text boxes and images around the page, adding completely new features, or deleting content you don’t want. Read our Wix Review for a detailed look at this website builder.

Can I have two websites on Wix?

Yes! You can create as many sites as you like under one account – so you only need to sign up once, and you can have unlimited sites! But remember a Premium plan is valid for one site only – so if you want more you can either pay for extra Premium plans, or create more free sites without the extra features.

Does Wix offer hosting?

Yes! Wix hosts your website for you, so you don’t need to search around for hosting providers or pay extra for hosting services. In fact, you don’t have to think about it at all: Wix manages all the updates and technical side of this for you, so you can relax!

Is Wix better than other builders?

Wix is the best all-round website builder on the market. It performed really well in our research and user testing, and offers amazing value for money and creative control. But it’s not the only option out there! You can read about the top 10 Wix alternatives in our in-depth comparison, to make sure you find the best builder for you.

Wix is at the top of its game, but competitors like Weebly and Squarespace have a lot to offer too. If you’re feeling torn, why not check out our comparison chart for a side by side breakdown of the top website builders. Find out who wins in our Wix vs Weebly review, or learn more about the pros and cons of the two most popular builders in our Wix vs WordPress comparison. If you’re looking for something creative, read Wix vs Squarespace to find your perfect match.

Who Are We?

Here at Website Builder Expert our aim is to provide you with clear, honest, and reliable information to help you find the answers you’re looking for.

We’ve tried and tested Wix, and found it to be the best all round builder on the market.

Why listen to us? We conduct research to write data-driven and balanced articles, so whether you’re a total beginner or tech-savvy guru, you can rely on us to give you high quality and accurate content.

Written by:
Lucy Carney is a Content Manager at Website Builder Expert, specializing in website building, ecommerce, and digital marketing. Previously working as a Writer and then Senior Writer on the brand, Lucy has 6 years of hands-on experience testing web building platforms including Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify. Lucy is passionate about using her knowledge to help small business owners build their online presence and achieve their goals. She’s reported on industry trends over the years, attended events such as the eCommerce Expo, and advised readers directly with over 400 comment replies on the site to date. Her work has also featured on other online publications such as the Shopify Partners Blog, Usability Geek, Serpstat, and Open Source, and has over 100 articles published on the Website Builder Expert blog.