Wix vs
custom-built website
Specifically about Wix
In our general article CMS vs custom-built website ↗ we compare CMS platforms in general with custom-built websites.
Here we zoom in on Wix. Wix is the best-known drag-and-drop builder in the Netherlands, popular with freelancers and small business owners. We find out what's really going on: vendor lock-in, cost, SEO, and where Wix is genuinely good — and where it isn't.
Wix in a nutshell.
Wix in a nutshell.
Want to drag and drop your way to a website without understanding any of the tech behind it? Wix is usually your first stop. Just know this: once it's built, you're stuck with it too. Wix simply has no export button.
The biggest
difference with Webflow
The biggest
difference with Webflow
With Webflow, if you ever want to leave, you at least get clean, exportable HTML and CSS. With Wix, that option simply doesn't exist. There's no export button, no way to move your website to another hosting provider. Your design and functionality stay tied to the Wix platform forever.
That makes the vendor lock-in with Wix even more direct than with Webflow: you own your own words and content, but not your website as a whole. The more pages, blog posts, or products you add, the higher the cost of any future switch becomes. The cheapest time to leave Wix is before you've built much on it.
Wix website
- ✓ Very low barrier to entry, no technical knowledge needed
- × No export option, full lock-in
- × Limited control over technical SEO
- × Costs add up with extra features/apps
- × Templates quickly feel recognizable
DYKZ custom-built website
- ✓ 100% W3C valid, proprietary HTML
- ✓ You fully own your website, no lock-in
- ✓ Full control over technical SEO
- ✓ No recurring platform subscription
- ✓ Unique design, no template recognition
What exactly is Wix?
Wix is an all-in-one website builder: hosting, security, updates, and a drag-and-drop editor are all bundled into one subscription. You pick a template, drag blocks around, type your text, and publish. There's also an AI feature that generates a first draft for you based on a few questions.
That makes Wix attractive for freelancers, coaches, small local business owners, and anyone who wants to get online quickly without hiring a developer. It is, however, a closed ecosystem: you're not building on open-source technology like with WordPress, but entirely within Wix's own infrastructure.
Why DYKZ doesn't use Wix
At DYKZ, we deliberately don't build Wix websites, but hand-written custom work instead. Not because Wix can't do anything, but because with Wix you remain a tenant forever, on a platform you have no control over, with no way to ever move out. At DYKZ, the website and the code are entirely yours. You decide where to host it and what to do with it, without a platform company making that choice for you.
Wix vs DYKZ, point by point
1. Vendor lock-in with no export option
Wix: This is by far the biggest downside. There's no way to export or move a Wix website to another hosting provider. If you ever want to leave Wix, in practice you start a complete rebuild, page by page, product by product.
DYKZ: You own the code, the website, and the domain entirely yourself. Want to move to another hosting provider? You simply take your fully working website with you.
2. Costs that add up
Wix: The free plan is unusable for a business: Wix ads, no custom domain, no e-commerce. Paid plans range from around $17 a month for a simple site up to $39-159 a month for more extensive business features. Since March 2026, Wix also charges extra transaction fees (2-4%) on subscription payments through the Pricing Plans app, on top of your monthly plan.
DYKZ: A higher one-off investment upfront, but no ongoing platform subscription afterward, and no extra transaction fees imposed by the platform itself.
3. Limited technical SEO control
Wix: The basic SEO tools (meta titles, meta descriptions, a sitemap) are handled well. But deeper technical factors like server-side caching, custom schema markup, and control over hosting performance are far more limited with Wix than with a platform where you control the source code yourself.
DYKZ: Full control over every technical detail, from schema markup to load times, because you write the code yourself instead of working within the limits of a platform.
4. Templates that stay recognizable
Wix: Hundreds of ready-made templates make it easy to get started quickly, but major structural changes later on are considerably harder than with platforms built from scratch. As a result, a Wix site can end up feeling slightly "template-like" to visitors.
DYKZ: Every website is built from the ground up, specific to your brand. No template you're later trying to reshape into something unique.
5. E-commerce, with a nuance
Wix: Unlike Webflow, Wix Stores does support iDEAL, through a connection with Mollie or Stripe — a fair point in Wix's favor. For a small Dutch webshop, that can work perfectly well. For more complex or fast-growing webshops (tiered pricing, advanced inventory management), you do run into the limits of Wix Stores; a dedicated e-commerce platform is often more future-proof.
DYKZ: We build a payment integration with Mollie and iDEAL just as well, with no platform ceiling on what you can do as you grow.
6. Two parallel editors, no way to switch
Wix: Alongside the Classic Editor, a second, newer editor now exists since Editor X was folded into Wix Studio. Both exist side by side with slightly different capabilities, and there's no way to switch editors afterward without starting over. Pick wrong, and you're stuck with it.
DYKZ: No platform choices you have to guess correctly upfront. The website is built around what you actually need, not around what one particular editor happens to support.
When is Wix a good choice?
Despite the downsides above, Wix is a solid choice in a number of situations:
- You're a freelancer, coach, or local business owner and mainly need a straightforward, business-card-style website.
- You have no technical knowledge and don't want to build any, and value convenience over full control.
- You don't expect to grow quickly or change your website's structure much.
- Your webshop stays small and simple, without complex pricing tiers or large product counts.
- You don't feel strongly about owning your website in the long run.
In short: for a simple, quick-to-launch website with no growth ambitions, Wix can be a reasonable choice — as long as you knowingly accept the lock-in.
When is DYKZ custom-built the better choice?
Specifically compared to Wix, custom-built at DYKZ is the better choice if:
- You don't want to be stuck with one platform forever, with no way to export.
- You expect to grow in content, products, or functionality.
- Full technical SEO control matters to you, not just the basic settings.
- You want to stand out, without a template thousands of others are also using.
- You don't want a recurring platform subscription with the risk of extra costs the platform adds down the line.
- You'd rather have one dedicated point of contact than a closed platform whose limits you have to discover yourself.
The conclusion
Wix specifically
Wix isn't a bad platform by definition: for a simple business-card website with no growth ambitions, it can work perfectly well, and on one point (iDEAL via Mollie/Stripe) it actually does better than Webflow. But the vendor lock-in with Wix is the most rigid of any platform we've compared: there simply is no way back.
Want a fast, simple website and don't mind the trade-off? Wix can be an option. Want a website that's fully yours, with full technical control and no risk of ever being stuck with one platform? Then a DYKZ custom-built website is the more logical choice.
Still not sure, or want to know what this means for your specific situation? Feel free to get in touch for a no-obligation consultation.
Frequently asked questions
About switching from Wix
Frequently asked questions
About switching from Wix
Open and transparent
Can DYKZ take over my existing Wix website?
Yes, there are absolutely possibilities for this, though it works a bit differently than with WordPress or Webflow, for example. Wix doesn't offer an export feature. Instead, we carefully review your existing website and, where needed, carry over text, images, and structure by hand. That way we rebuild your site as hand-written custom code, without you having to copy or rethink anything yourself.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I switch from Wix?
Not if the switch is handled carefully. We set up 301 redirects from every old URL to the new page and carry over your existing content and metadata by hand, improving it where needed. Ranking loss during a platform switch is almost always caused by a sloppy migration, not by the switch itself.
Can I bring over my products from Wix Stores?
Yes. Since a direct export isn't possible, we carry over your product information (names, prices, descriptions, photos) by hand from your existing Wix webshop and rebuild it within your new custom website, including your own payment integration such as Mollie with iDEAL.
What happens to my Wix subscription after the switch?
You cancel that yourself, usually only once the new website is live and you've confirmed everything works properly. As soon as that subscription ends, the ongoing monthly cost (and any transaction fees) that come with Wix disappear too.
How long does switching from Wix to DYKZ custom-built take?
That depends on the number of pages and products on your current site, since manually carrying over content takes a little more time than with a platform that offers an export feature. Generally expect two to four weeks once we have access to your existing website.
Is switching from Wix to custom-built expensive?
The one-off investment is comparable to a new custom-built website, since everything is rebuilt from scratch by hand. On the other hand, your monthly Wix costs (subscription, apps, any transaction fees) disappear entirely. You'll receive a clear quote upfront.
Sources
DYKZ values transparency and clarity. This article was written based on our own experience and publicly available data specifically about Wix. We're happy to share those sources. Feel free to get in touch with any questions or feedback.
- Optimum7 — Why You Shouldn't Use Wix: 7 Reasons (2026)
- TheGuideX — 10 Best Wix Alternatives in 2026
- Kreatix — 7 reasons not to build a Wix website in 2026
- Fuseo — Building a Wix website isn't always a good idea
- Wix Help Center — Connecting Mollie as a Payment Provider
- DYKZ — CMS vs custom-built website (general article)
Ready for a website that's actually yours?
Get in touch
Get in touch for a no-obligation conversation about your project. Together we'll figure out which approach best fits your goals and budget.
I'll think along with you and give honest advice on what DYKZ can do for you. Even if Wix turns out to be a better fit in your case.