This article is part of our complete Wix guide.
A WordPress to Wix migration is one of the most common requests we get from small business owners who are tired of plugin updates, hosting bills and security warnings. Moving your website from WordPress to Wix can give you a simpler, all-in-one platform, but there is no one-click button that copies a WordPress theme, plugins and settings across. A migration is really a rebuild plus a careful content and SEO transfer. Done well, you keep your rankings and enquiries. Done badly, you lose traffic for months.
This guide walks through exactly how to move a WordPress site to Wix: what transfers automatically, what you must rebuild, how to protect your Google rankings with redirects, and how long the process usually takes.
Key takeaways
- WordPress themes and plugins cannot be moved to Wix. You rebuild the design on Wix and transfer the content.
- Blog posts can often be imported with Wix’s WordPress blog import tool; products can be moved with a CSV file.
- 301 redirects from every old URL to its new Wix URL are the single most important step for keeping your SEO.
- Keep the WordPress site live until the Wix site is finished, tested and the domain is switched.
- Plan for a crawl, an inventory and a redirect map before you touch any design.
In this guide
- Should you move from WordPress to Wix?
- What can and cannot be migrated
- What to do before you start
- How to move WordPress to Wix step by step
- How to keep your SEO rankings
- Replacing WordPress plugins with Wix features
- Common migration mistakes
- WordPress to Wix migration checklist
- Frequently asked questions
Should you move from WordPress to Wix?
Before you migrate, be honest about why you want to move. Both platforms are good; they simply suit different owners. WordPress gives you total control, a huge plugin library and the ability to host anywhere. Wix gives you a managed platform where hosting, security, SSL and core updates are handled for you, plus a visual editor that non-technical people can use confidently.
Moving to Wix usually makes sense when:
- You spend more time fixing plugin conflicts, updates and hosting problems than running your business.
- You want staff to edit pages without breaking the layout.
- Your site is a brochure site, a service business, a booking business, a portfolio or a small-to-medium online store.
Staying on WordPress is often the better choice when you rely on highly custom functionality, very large content libraries, membership systems with complex rules, or you need full server access. If you are still deciding, read our balanced comparison of Wix vs WordPress for SEO and our WordPress website guide. We build on both platforms (see our WordPress services), so we have no reason to push you either way.
What can and cannot be migrated from WordPress to Wix?
The table below summarises what moves across and how. Feature names change from time to time, so always check the current Wix Help Center for the latest import options.
| WordPress item | Can it move to Wix? | How |
|---|---|---|
| Theme and design | No | Rebuild in Wix Editor or Wix Studio using a template or custom design |
| Plugins | No | Replace with built-in Wix features or Wix App Market apps |
| Blog posts | Usually yes | Wix Blog’s WordPress import tool, then manual clean-up |
| Pages | Content only | Copy text and media into new Wix page layouts |
| Images and files | Yes | Download from the media library, upload to Wix Media Manager |
| WooCommerce products | Yes, with work | Export to CSV, reformat to the Wix Stores CSV template, import |
| Customers and subscribers | Partly | Export contacts to CSV and import into Wix contacts (check consent rules) |
| URLs and SEO data | Manually | Recreate titles and meta descriptions, set up 301 redirects |
What to do before you start the migration
Most failed migrations go wrong before any design work begins. Spend a day on preparation and you will save weeks of traffic recovery later.
1. Crawl and inventory your WordPress site
Use a crawler (such as Screaming Frog, or your SEO plugin’s sitemap) to list every URL: pages, posts, categories, tags, products, product categories and attachment pages. Export it to a spreadsheet. This becomes your master list.
2. Find out which pages actually matter
In Google Search Console, export the pages with clicks and impressions over the last 12 months. In Google Analytics, note your top landing pages and conversion pages. These are the URLs you must protect most carefully.
3. Record your SEO settings
Export each page’s SEO title, meta description and focus keyword from Yoast or Rank Math. You will recreate these on Wix, ideally improving them as you go. Our title tag guide is useful here.
4. Decide on your new URL structure
Wix uses fixed prefixes for some content types, for example blog posts typically sit under a /post/ path and products under /product-page/. Static pages can usually keep the same slug. Write the new URL next to each old URL in your spreadsheet. This is your redirect map.
How to move your website from WordPress to Wix step by step
Here is the process we follow on client projects. It keeps the old site live and earning until the moment the new one is ready.
- Create your Wix site and choose a plan. Start from a template or a blank canvas in Wix Editor or Wix Studio. Our comparison of Wix Editor vs Wix Studio helps you pick. Check current plans on the official Wix plans page; you will need a premium plan to connect your domain.
- Build the design and page structure. Create the header, footer, navigation and page layouts first. Match or improve the old site’s information architecture so visitors and Google find the same topics in the same places.
- Import the blog. Add Wix Blog, then use its WordPress import option to bring in posts. Afterwards, review each post for broken formatting, missing images, embedded shortcodes (which will appear as plain text) and internal links that still point at old URLs.
- Move page content. Copy text from each WordPress page into the new layouts. Upload images to the Wix Media Manager with descriptive file names and alt text; see our Wix image SEO guide.
- Migrate products (if you have a store). Export WooCommerce products to CSV, reformat the columns to match Wix’s product import template, then import. Check variants, prices, stock, and images on a sample before importing everything. Our guide to adding products and variants in Wix Stores covers the details.
- Rebuild forms and functionality. Recreate contact and quote forms, bookings, newsletter sign-ups and any calculators. Connect them to Wix automations so enquiries still reach your inbox.
- Recreate SEO settings. Add SEO titles, meta descriptions, social share images and structured data for each page, and set up your business details.
- Prepare 301 redirects. Import your redirect map into the Wix URL Redirect Manager (it supports bulk upload from a CSV). Test a sample before going live.
- Test on desktop and mobile. Click every link, submit every form, place a test order and check that tracking codes fire.
- Connect your domain. Point the domain to Wix following our guide on connecting a custom domain to Wix.
- Submit your sitemap and monitor. Verify the Wix site in Google Search Console, submit the sitemap and watch coverage and traffic daily for the first few weeks.
Not keen on doing all of this yourself? Our team handles complete Wix migrations and builds with a fixed price and a full redirect map included.
How to keep your SEO rankings when moving to Wix
Google ranks URLs, not businesses. When those URLs change, you need to tell Google where everything went. Here is what protects your rankings:
- One-to-one 301 redirects. Redirect each old URL to the most relevant new page, not everything to the homepage. Category and tag archives can redirect to the closest blog category or topic page. Our full walkthrough of Wix 301 redirects explains bulk imports and testing.
- Keep content equal or better. Do not cut long, ranking pages down to a few lines because the new design looks cleaner with less text. Thin content is a common reason rankings drop after a migration.
- Preserve internal links. Update in-content links to point to the new URLs directly rather than relying on redirects.
- Match titles and headings. Keep the main keyword focus of each page. You can improve wording, but avoid changing the topic of pages that already rank.
- Check indexing. After launch, use the URL Inspection tool in Search Console on your most important pages. If something is missing from Google, our guide to Wix sites not showing on Google will help.
- Run an audit after launch. Use our Wix SEO checklist to catch missing meta data, broken links and duplicate titles.
Replacing WordPress plugins with Wix features
Most WordPress plugins have a native Wix equivalent or an app in the Wix App Market. Mapping them early prevents nasty surprises late in the project.
| WordPress plugin type | Wix equivalent |
|---|---|
| Yoast / Rank Math | Built-in Wix SEO settings, SEO Setup Checklist, redirect manager |
| Contact Form 7 / WPForms | Wix Forms with automations |
| WooCommerce | Wix Stores and Wix Payments |
| Booking plugins | Wix Bookings |
| Membership plugins | Wix Members Area and Pricing Plans |
| Custom post types / ACF | Wix CMS collections and dynamic pages |
| Custom PHP functionality | Velo by Wix code or a custom Wix app |
If your WordPress site used custom code, look at Velo by Wix and the Wix CMS and dynamic pages. Where no suitable app exists, we can build a custom Wix app for you through our Wix app development service.
Common WordPress to Wix migration mistakes
- Switching the domain before the site is ready. Visitors and Google see a half-finished site. Build first, switch last.
- Redirecting everything to the homepage. Google may treat these as soft 404s, so the ranking value of the old pages is mostly lost.
- Forgetting images inside posts. Imported posts sometimes still reference images on the old WordPress server. When that hosting is cancelled, the images break.
- Breaking email. Changing nameservers without recreating MX records can stop your business email. Note your email records before touching DNS.
- Cancelling WordPress hosting too early. Keep it, or at least a full backup, for a few months in case you need to recover content.
WordPress to Wix migration checklist
Use this as a final go-live check:
- Full WordPress backup and content export saved offline
- Every old URL listed with a matching new URL
- All blog posts imported and cleaned (images, headings, links)
- All pages rebuilt with equal or better content
- Products, variants and stock checked against the old store
- SEO titles, meta descriptions and alt text added
- Forms tested and notifications received
- Bulk 301 redirects imported and spot-checked
- Analytics and tracking connected
- Domain connected, SSL active, email still working
- Sitemap submitted in Google Search Console
Need help with a WordPress to Wix migration? Let MIVAQ do it for you
At MIVAQ we have built and migrated sites on both WordPress and Wix, so we understand exactly what needs to move and what needs rebuilding. For a WordPress to Wix migration we:
- Crawl your current site and build a complete URL and redirect map
- Design your new Wix or Wix Studio site to match or improve your brand
- Import and clean up your blog posts, pages, images and products
- Replace plugins with Wix features, apps or custom Velo code
- Recreate SEO settings, set up 301 redirects and connect your domain safely
- Monitor Search Console after launch and fix any issues
You get a fixed-price quote up front and a free consultation to review your current site. Learn more about our Wix design and migration services and our Wix SEO service, then get in touch:
- WhatsApp: message us
- Email: hello@mivaq.com
- Form: send your project details
Related Wix guides
- How to move your website from Wix to WordPress
- How to redesign your Wix website without losing traffic
- How to build a Wix website step by step
- How to start an online store on Wix
- Wix website maintenance checklist
- The complete Wix guide
Frequently asked questions
Can I import my WordPress site into Wix automatically?
Not the whole site. Wix can import WordPress blog posts, and products can be imported by CSV, but your theme, plugins and page layouts must be rebuilt on Wix.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I move from WordPress to Wix?
You should not lose them permanently if you keep your content, set up 301 redirects from every old URL and resubmit your sitemap. A short fluctuation after launch is normal.
How long does a WordPress to Wix migration take?
A small brochure site can take one to two weeks. Sites with large blogs or online stores usually take three to six weeks, depending on content volume and custom features.
Can I keep my domain name and email?
Yes. You connect your existing domain to Wix and keep your email provider by leaving its MX records unchanged when you update DNS.
Can MIVAQ migrate my WordPress site to Wix for me?
Yes. We handle the full migration, including design, content, products, redirects and SEO, for a fixed price. Contact us for a free consultation.
Conclusion
Moving from WordPress to Wix is a rebuild with a careful content and SEO transfer, not a copy-and-paste job. Inventory your URLs, rebuild the design, import content, map every redirect and only then switch the domain. Follow that order and you can enjoy a simpler platform without losing the traffic you worked hard for. If you would rather hand the whole job to specialists, tell us about your site and we will send a fixed-price plan.
