By Mehdi HassanHow do you move from Wix to a custom Next.js site?
You rebuild it. Wix doesn't export sites in any format Next.js can use, so a Wix to Next.js move is a planned rebuild: audit the old site, design the new one, build it in code with a CMS, connect it to your product, move content, redirect URLs and launch.
The reason to do this, rather than move to Framer or Webflow, is product integration. If your marketing site now needs a signup flow that creates real accounts, pages that show data from your app, or the same components and auth as your product, code is the honest answer. If you just need a better-looking site, read Wix vs Webflow vs Framer first, and see our hub on outgrowing a website builder for every exit route.
When does a startup outgrow Wix for product reasons?
A startup outgrows Wix for product reasons when the site stops being a brochure and starts being the front door to the app. Wix's Velo lets you add code, but it runs inside Wix, not alongside your product's codebase, auth and deployment.
- Signup that creates accounts. The form should call your API, not just email a lead to sales.
- Shared auth. Logged-in visitors see a different nav, pricing or content.
- Live product data. Status pages, public templates, integration directories or usage counters pulled from your database.
- Shared design system. Marketing and app use the same React components, so both update together.
- Engineering ownership. Your team wants the site in the same repository, review process and deployments as the product.
If you're ticking only the last box, think twice. Engineers owning the site often means marketers waiting on engineers. Our piece on no-code vs custom code covers that trade-off.
Subdomain or same domain: how should the site and app fit together?
Decide this before anything else, because it shapes routing, cookies, analytics and SEO. There are three common setups, and each suits a different stage.
Setup | How it works | Best for | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
Site on main domain, app on subdomain | example.com is marketing, app.example.com is the product | Most startups | Separate deployments; shared auth needs care with cookies |
One Next.js project for both | Marketing pages and app routes in one codebase | Small teams with shared components | Marketing releases tied to product releases |
Separate Next.js projects on one domain | Routing sends paths to the right project | Larger teams | More setup; needs clear ownership |
For most seed-stage teams, the first option is simplest: a separate Next.js marketing site on the main domain and the app on a subdomain, sharing a component package. It keeps marketing changes away from product releases while still letting signup talk to the app.
What are the steps in a Wix to nextjs migration?
The steps are the same as any rebuild, plus product wiring. Treat the SEO steps as non-negotiable, because Wix's URL patterns almost never match a new site's structure.
Crawl and audit Wix
Export every URL with its traffic and links. Note blog posts on /post/ paths, which will need redirects.
Plan architecture
Choose the domain setup, the headless CMS and how signup reaches your app's API.
Write and design
Draft copy and design in Figma, including the signup and logged-in states.
Build in Next.js
Build pages as server-rendered components with metadata, sitemap and structured data.
Wire product features
Connect signup, auth checks and any live data. Test against a staging copy of the app.
Move content
Import posts into the CMS, re-host images and keep titles and descriptions that rank.
Redirect and launch
Add 301s for every changed URL, switch DNS, and monitor indexing, rankings and signups.
Can coding agents speed up a Wix to Next.js migration?
Yes, for the build. Agents can turn designs and old pages into components quickly. Vellum wrote that it migrated off Webflow with coding agents in about a week, and cursor.com was reportedly rebuilt in three days for about $260 in model usage.
The expensive parts are still human: deciding what to keep, mapping URLs, checking metadata and testing signup end to end. Our walkthrough of migrating with Claude Code shows the workflow on a Webflow site, and it applies to Wix too. Server rendering matters for AI crawlers as well; see why React sites can be invisible to them.
Hypothetical example: a seed-stage AI startup leaving Wix
For example, suppose an AI startup has a 10-page Wix site with 30 blog posts, and wants visitors to try the product from the homepage. The team chooses a separate Next.js marketing site on the main domain, the app on app.example.com, and a headless CMS for pages and posts.
The homepage gets a prompt box that sends a visitor into a pre-filled trial. Posts move from /post/ to /blog/ with 30 individual redirects. Marketers edit everything in the CMS, while engineers own only the signup component shared with the app.
How much does a Wix to Next.js migration cost?
Agency quotes we see for migrations typically range from $1,500 to $25,000, and Next.js builds sit toward the upper half because of engineering and CMS setup. Product features like auth and live data add cost on top of marketing pages.
Our website offer is $8,000, fixed, for up to six pages, plus $500 per extra page: custom design, a Next.js build, CMS and animation. Product integration and migration work are scoped on the intro call, and we include redirects and SEO checks in any migration we take on. For more on the economics, see Next.js marketing website cost.
