Migrating from Wix to WordPress

By Dave McCormack, Managing Director at Bubblehub Media

Hi there, I'm Dave McCormack, Managing Director here at Bubblehub Media. Many businesses start with a Wix site. It's a good entry point. But as your business grows, you might find yourself needing more power, especially for SEO and customization. If you're thinking, "I need to migrate from Wix to WordPress to get better results," you're on the right track. This is a common and smart decision.

This website migration can seem like a big project. You might ask: "Is WordPress too technical?" "Can I keep my site's look?" "How do I transfer my Wix site without losing SEO?" These are valid concerns. At Bubblehub, we've guided many businesses through this Wix to WordPress migration. We've seen firsthand how it unlocks flexibility, boosts functionality, and significantly improves SEO potential. You can learn more about us and our approach to digital growth.

With over 10 years in digital marketing (as a certified Google Ads Partner and HubSpot Inbound Marketing professional) and a portfolio of over 150 successful website launches, we're here to make this process clear. This guide breaks down how to migrate from Wix into manageable steps. We'll cover transferring content from Wix, handling your Wix domain, and setting up your new WordPress site for success – all with your business goals in mind. We helped one retail client achieve a 200% organic traffic increase after their migration and SEO overhaul; we want to share that kind of strategic insight with you.

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Your Migration Roadmap: What This Guide Covers

1. Why WordPress Wins: Key benefits for SEO and customization
2. Smart Planning: Auditing your Wix site, setting goals, and backing up content
3. WordPress Setup: Choosing hosting and installing the software
4. Domain Management: Transferring or pointing your domain from Wix
5. Content Migration: Exporting Wix content, moving blog posts and pages
6. Design & UX: Recreating your site's look with WordPress themes
7. Essential Plugins: Adding functionality to your new site
8. SEO Protection: Implementing 301 redirects to preserve rankings
9. Post-Launch Checklist: Testing and optimization strategies
10. DIY or Expert Help?: Deciding your migration approach
11. Key Takeaways: Your migration success plan
12. FAQs: Common migration questions answered

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1. Why WordPress Wins: Key Benefits of Migrating from Wix (Especially for SEO)

Many businesses migrate from Wix to WordPress for one primary reason: growth. WordPress offers distinct advantages that can significantly impact your online presence, particularly your Search Engine Optimization (SEO). For a deeper dive into what an SEO agency does, check out our article What is an SEO Agency?.

• Unmatched Control and Customization: Wix is a "closed platform." This means your options are limited by Wix's own tools. WordPress is open-source. This gives you near-limitless freedom. Need a specific e-commerce feature for your Wix store alternative? Want unique functionality? WordPress has thousands of WordPress plugins and allows for custom development. (Bubblehub Insight: This freedom is why we build most of our client sites on WordPress – it adapts to their specific business needs. Explore our web design and development services to see how.)
• Significant SEO Advantages: This is a game-changer. While Wix has basic SEO tools, WordPress offers far more power to improve your Google rankings:
  • Advanced SEO Plugins: Tools like Yoast SEO or Rank Math (learn more about SEO tools on a resource like Moz Blog) provide deep control over on-page SEO (titles, meta descriptions), technical SEO (sitemaps, robots.txt), and structured data (schema markup). This level of control is crucial for effective Wix to WordPress SEO.
  • Content-First Platform: WordPress excels at content management, making it ideal for content marketing strategies that drive organic traffic.
  • Optimized for Speed: With the right hosting, theme, and configuration, WordPress sites can be very fast. Site speed is a key Google ranking factor. Our SEO agency services in Ireland focus heavily on this.
• Scalability for Growth: Your website needs to grow with your business. WordPress is built to scale. Whether you're expanding a WooCommerce store or building a high-traffic content hub, WordPress can handle it. Many businesses find their Wix website eventually limits their expansion, especially for eCommerce SEO.
• Full Data Ownership: With WordPress, you own your website files and database. You can move your site to any host. With Wix, your site and data are more tied to their platform.
• Vast Support Ecosystem: A huge global community uses and develops for WordPress. This means abundant resources, tutorials (like those on WordPress.org Support), and professional support are available.

Wix vs WordPress: Platform Comparison at a Glance

The move isn't about Wix being "bad." It's about recognizing when your business needs a more powerful, flexible platform to achieve its online goals.

2. Phase 1: Smart Planning – Your Foundation for a Smooth Wix to WordPress Move

Good planning is the first step to a successful Wix to WordPress migration. It saves time and prevents headaches later. If you're wondering where to start with SEO, planning is key there too.

2.1. Know Your Starting Point: Auditing Your Current Wix Site

Before you move, understand what you have:

• List All Wix URLs: Create a spreadsheet. List every page on your Wix site (Homepage, About, Services, Contact, Blog posts, etc.). This list is vital for redirects.
• Identify Page Content: For each Wix page, note the text, images, videos, and any special forms or Wix App features.
• Map Key Functions: What does your site do? (e.g., lead forms, online store, bookings).

2.2. Define Your Destination: Setting Goals for Your New WordPress Website

This migration is an opportunity to improve. Ask yourself:

• What works well on my Wix site that I want to keep or enhance?
• What are the limitations of my Wix website I want to overcome?
• What are my main business goals for the new WordPress site? (e.g., more organic traffic, higher conversion rates, better brand presentation). Our Bubble Blog often covers strategies for achieving these goals.

2.3. Safety First: Backing Up All Your Wix Content

Important: Wix does not offer a simple "export all content" button for moving to another platform like WordPress. You must back up manually.

• Save Text: Copy all text from every Wix page. Paste it into documents (e.g., Google Docs).
• Download Media: Download all your images, videos, and PDFs from your Wix media library or live site.
• Note Blog RSS Feed: If your Wix blog has an RSS feed (usually yourwixsite.com/blog/feed.xml), save this URL. It helps transfer blog text.
• Take Screenshots: Capture images of your key Wix pages for design reference.

This backup protects your work before you migrate from Wix.

3. Phase 2: Building on WordPress – Hosting Setup and Software Installation

Your new WordPress site needs a place to live (hosting) and the WordPress software.

3.1. Choosing Your WordPress Host: A Critical Decision for Performance

Unlike Wix, where hosting is included, you select your WordPress host. This choice heavily impacts your site's speed, security, and reliability – all vital for user experience and SEO. Bubblehub offers reliable web hosting packages designed for WordPress.

What to Look for in a WordPress Host:

• Speed and Performance: Choose hosts with SSD storage, current PHP versions, and good caching. A fast site is essential.
• Reliability (Uptime): Aim for 99.9% uptime or higher.
• Security: Look for firewalls, malware scanning, and free SSL certificates (HTTPS).
• Quality Customer Support: Responsive and knowledgeable support is key, especially if you're new to managing your own hosting.
• Managed WordPress Hosting: These plans often handle WordPress updates, backups, and security for you. This can be a good option for a smoother experience after Wix.
• Scalability: Ensure the host can support your site as it grows.

Bubblehub Recommendation: While cheap hosting exists, investing in quality Managed WordPress Hosting provides better performance and peace of mind for serious businesses.

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3.2. Installing WordPress Software: A Quick and Easy Step

Most good WordPress hosting providers offer a "one-click" WordPress installation tool. You can find general installation guides on WordPress.org.

1. Log into your hosting account's control panel.
2. Find the WordPress installer (e.g., Softaculous, WordPress Toolkit).
3. Follow the prompts: select your domain, set a site title, create an admin username and password.
4. Click "Install."

WordPress will be set up. You can then log into your WordPress dashboard at yourdomain.com/wp-admin.

4. Phase 3: Your Online Address – Managing Your Domain Name During Migration

Your domain name (e.g., yourbusiness.com) is crucial. Here's how to handle it when moving from Wix. If you're wondering if a .ie domain ranks better in Ireland, that's a separate consideration for your overall domain strategy.

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4.1. Domain Strategy: Transferring Your Wix Domain vs. Pointing It

You have choices for your Wix domain when moving to WordPress:

• Transfer Your Domain: Move your domain registration from Wix (or its current registrar) to a new one, like your WordPress host.
  • Benefit: Manage everything in one place. Full control away from Wix.
  • Note: Transfer takes 5-7 days. Cannot transfer if domain is under 60 days old. Domain registrars like GoDaddy or Namecheap handle these processes.
• Point Your Domain: Keep your domain registered where it is. Change its DNS settings to point to your new WordPress site.
  • Benefit: Can be quicker to get your new site live.
  • Note: You'll manage domain and hosting separately. If Wix is your registrar, you still manage the domain there.

4.2. Step-by-Step: How to Transfer Your Domain Name from Wix

To transfer your domain from Wix:

• In Your Wix Account:
  
  • Log in. Go to "Domains." Select your domain.
  • Follow Wix's steps to unlock the domain for transfer.
  • Get the EPP code (Authorization Code) from Wix.

• With Your New Registrar:
  • Go to your new registrar (e.g., your WordPress host).
  • Choose "Transfer Domain." Enter your domain name and the EPP code.
  • Approve the transfer via an email (sent to the domain's admin contact).
• Wait: The transfer usually takes 5-7 days.

4.3. Step-by-Step: How to Point Your Existing Domain to Your WordPress Site

To point your domain to your new WordPress host:

1. Get DNS Info: Your WordPress host will give you Nameservers (e.g., ns1.yourhost.com, ns2.yourhost.com) or an A Record (an IP address).
2. Update DNS at Your Registrar:
   
   • Log into where your domain is registered (e.g., Wix account, GoDaddy).
   • Find DNS management settings.
   • Change the existing Nameservers to the new ones. Or, update the A Record to the new IP address.
3. Allow Propagation: DNS changes can take a few hours, up to 48 hours, to update globally. You can check propagation status using tools like DNSChecker.org.

Bubblehub Tip: To minimize downtime, consider building your WordPress site on a temporary URL from your host, then point your main domain once the site is ready.

5. Phase 4: The Content Shift – Moving Your Wix Content to WordPress Effectively

This phase involves moving your text, images, and blog posts from your Wix site to your new WordPress site.

5.1. Wix Content Export: What's Possible, What's Not

Key Fact: Wix does not provide a one-click tool to export your entire website (design, all pages, Wix App data) for a direct import into WordPress. This is a limitation of the Wix is a closed platform system.

• Blog Posts (Text): Often, you can import the text content of your Wix blog posts using an RSS feed.
• Manual Transfer Required For:
  • Static page content (Homepage, About Us, Services, etc.).
  • Website design and layout.
  • Images and other media files (these need to be downloaded from Wix and uploaded to WordPress).
  • Functionality from Wix Apps (e.g., Wix Stores, Wix Bookings – you'll need WordPress plugin alternatives). For e-commerce, you might explore options like those discussed in our Shopify Ireland guide if you were also considering other platforms.

Understanding this upfront helps manage expectations for the migration process.

5.2. Migrating Your Wix Blog Posts via RSS

If your Wix site has a blog, you can usually use its RSS feed to import the text of your posts:

1. Find Your Wix Blog RSS Feed URL: This is often yourwixsite.com/blog/feed.xml or similar. Check this URL in your browser; you should see XML code. Copy the URL.
2. Use WordPress Importer: In your WordPress dashboard, go to Tools > Import.
3. Install & Run RSS Importer: Find "RSS" in the list. If it's not installed, click "Install Now," then "Run Importer".
4. Import Feed: Paste your Wix RSS feed URL and click "Import Posts."

RSS Import Notes:

• Text & Titles: This method mainly imports post text and titles.
• Images Not Included: Images within Wix blog posts will likely not transfer. You must download these from Wix, upload them to your WordPress Media Library, and re-insert them into the posts.
• Formatting: Some formatting may need adjustment in the WordPress editor.
• Categories/Tags: Recreate your category structure in WordPress (Posts > Categories) and assign posts.

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5.3. Manually Transferring Your Wix Pages (Homepage, About, Services)

For your main website pages on Wix, the process is manual:

1. Create New Page in WordPress: In your WordPress dashboard, go to Pages > Add New.
2. Open Wix Page: In another browser tab, open the Wix page you are transferring.
3. Copy Text: Select and copy the text content from the Wix page.
4. Paste into WordPress: Paste the text into the WordPress page editor.
5. Bubblehub Tip: Use "Paste as plain text" (Ctrl+Shift+V or Cmd+Shift+V) to avoid messy Wix styling. You will style it using your WordPress theme.
6. Recreate Structure: Add a Page Title. Use WordPress heading blocks (H1, H2, H3) to match your Wix page's structure. This is good for readability and SEO.
7. Save or Publish.
8. Repeat for every static Wix page.

5.4. Handling Your Images and Media Files Correctly

Images from your Wix site generally need to be moved manually:

1. Download Media from Wix: Ensure you have downloaded all images, videos, etc., from your Wix site (from your backup in Phase 1).
2. Upload to WordPress Media Library: In WordPress, go to Media > Add New. You can drag and drop files or use "Select Files" to upload them to WordPress.
3. Insert into Pages/Posts: Edit your WordPress pages/posts. Use the WordPress editor to insert your uploaded images.
4. Add Alt Text: For every image, add descriptive alt text. This is vital for SEO and accessibility.

This careful, manual content from Wix to WordPress transfer ensures a clean setup and allows you to optimize as you go. (Bubblehub offers expert content migration services if this feels too time-consuming. Contact us for details.)

6. Phase 5: Design & User Experience – Crafting Your New WordPress Site's Look

A common concern: "I love my Wix design! Can I keep it?" Let's address this. If you're looking for inspiration, see how we approach graphic design at Bubblehub.

6.1. Recreating Your Wix Design in WordPress: Possibilities and Opportunities

Not directly. Wix and WordPress use entirely different design systems. You can't "export" a Wix design and "import" it into WordPress.

However, you can aim to:

• Recreate the look and feel.
• Match your branding (colors, fonts, logo placement).
• Often improve upon the design with WordPress's greater flexibility.

Think of it as an opportunity to refresh and optimize, leveraging the UX-first principles we champion at Bubblehub. If you need help, consider how to choose a website designer.

6.2. Selecting the Right WordPress Theme for Your Brand

A WordPress theme controls the overall appearance and layout of your WordPress site.

• Thousands Available: Free themes in the WordPress theme directory (Appearance > Themes > Add New), plus premium themes from marketplaces like ThemeForest or directly from developers.
• What to Look For:
  • Aligns with Your Brand/Industry: Does it suit your business?
  • Responsive Design: Looks great on all devices (desktop, tablet, mobile). This is non-negotiable.
  • Customization Options: How easily can you change colors, fonts, layouts?
  • Good Reviews & Regular Updates: A well-supported theme is crucial for security and compatibility.
  • Lightweight & Fast-Loading: Avoid bloated themes that slow down your site.
  • Plugin Compatibility: Works well with essential plugins (like WooCommerce if you need e-commerce).

Bubblehub Insight: For businesses serious about a unique, conversion-optimized design, a quality premium theme or even custom theme development (a service we offer, check our web design Dublin page for examples) is often the best long-term investment.

6.3. Customizing Your Theme: Using the WordPress Customizer and Page Builders

Once you install and activate a theme (Appearance > Themes):

• WordPress Customizer: Most themes use the built-in Customizer (Appearance > Customize) for real-time changes to colors, fonts, headers, footers, etc.
• Page Builders: For those who liked Wix's drag-and-drop interface, WordPress page builder plugins like Elementor or Beaver Builder can provide a similar visual editing experience. Many themes are built to integrate smoothly with these.

A Note on Page Builders: While they offer great design freedom, it's important to choose a well-coded page builder and theme combination.

7. Phase 6: Powering Up – Essential WordPress Plugins for Functionality and Growth

WordPress plugins add functionality to your site. After your Wix to WordPress migration, installing a few key plugins is crucial.

• SEO Plugin: Yoast SEO or Rank Math.
• Security Plugin: Wordfence Security or Sucuri Security.
• Caching Plugin (for Speed): WP Rocket (premium) or LiteSpeed Cache.
• Backup Plugin: UpdraftPlus.
• Contact Form Plugin: WPForms or Contact Form 7.
• Analytics: MonsterInsights or Site Kit by Google (to easily integrate Google Analytics).
• Image Optimization Plugin: Smush or ShortPixel.
• (If E-commerce): WooCommerce. For insights on e-commerce SEO, see our article on why SEO is important for eCommerce.

To install a plugin: Go to Plugins > Add New in your WordPress dashboard, search, "Install Now," then "Activate."

8. Phase 7: Protecting Your SEO – Implementing 301 Redirects from Wix to WordPress

This is a CRITICAL step. When you move from your old Wix URL structure to new WordPress URLs, you need 301 redirects. A 301 redirect permanently tells search engines a page has moved.

Why are 301 redirects vital when migrating from Wix to WordPress?

• Preserve SEO Rankings: Passes "link equity" from old URLs to new ones. Without them, you lose SEO value. For more on preserving rankings, you might find resources like Google's guide on redirects helpful.
• User Experience: Prevents visitors from hitting "404 Not Found" errors.
• Avoid Duplicate Content.

Important Note: Effective redirects generally require a custom domain name with your Wix site. If you used a free Wix URL, direct redirection is usually not possible.

How to Set Up 301 Redirects (Recommended Way):

1. Use a WordPress Redirection Plugin: We recommend "Redirection" (free and popular).
2. Install and activate the plugin.
3. Add Redirects: In the plugin, specify "Source URL" (old Wix path) and "Target URL" (new WordPress URL).
4. Example: Old: /#!about-us/c1ger -> New: https://yourdomain.com/about-us/

Test your redirects thoroughly! This is fundamental for good Wix to WordPress SEO.

9. Phase 8: Launch & Beyond – Post-Migration Checks and Optimization Strategies

Your new WordPress website is live! But some final checks are needed. For ongoing optimization, consider strategies like those discussed in our guide to investing in digital marketing.

• Thorough Testing: Check links, forms, device compatibility, image loading, and proofread.
• SEO Setup: Configure SEO plugin, submit XML sitemap to Google Search Console. Verify your site.
• WordPress Settings Check: Permalinks (set to "Post name"), Reading Settings (ensure search engines can index). Delete default content.
• Performance Optimization: Test site speed with tools like Google PageSpeed Insights.
• Monitor & Iterate: Track analytics (Google Analytics), check Google Search Console for issues.

WordPress Migration Post-Launch Checklist

10. Phase 9: DIY or Expert Partner? Deciding the Best Migration Path for Your Business

Should you migrate your Wix site to WordPress yourself, or hire an agency like Bubblehub Media?

Consider DIY If: Your Wix site is simple, you're tech-savvy, have ample time, and a very limited budget.

Consider Bubblehub Media If:

• Your Wix site is complex (large e-commerce, many Wix Apps).
• SEO is critical and you need it done right. Our SEO Kildare services show our local expertise.
• You want a professional, custom design for your new WordPress site.
• Your time is valuable and better spent on your business.
• You want to avoid common migration pitfalls.
• You need strategic guidance.

At Bubblehub Media, Wix to WordPress migrations are a core service. We handle planning, content migration, custom web design, SEO, setup, and support.

11. Phase 10: Key Takeaways: Your Wix to WordPress Migration Success Plan

Moving from Wix to WordPress is a strategic step for online growth.

Key Points:

• Why WordPress? Superior SEO, customization, scalability, data ownership.
• Plan Carefully: Audit Wix content, set goals, back up everything.
• Content is Manual: Be prepared to manually move most content.
• Domain Strategy: Decide to transfer or point your Wix domain.
• WordPress Essentials: Quality hosting, good theme, key plugins.
• Redirects are Vital: Use 301s to preserve SEO when you transfer Wix site.
• Test & Optimize: After launch, check everything and continue to improve.
• Get Help When Needed: For complex moves, expert help is invaluable.

Ready to take the next step? If this feels like a lot, we're here to help.

Contact Bubblehub Media today for a free, no-obligation consultation. Let's discuss your Wix site and how we can make your migration to WordPress smooth and successful.

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12. Phase 11: Common Questions: Wix to WordPress Migration FAQs

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