Wix vs Custom Next.js Website
Which is right for a UK small business in 2026? An honest comparison covering cost, SEO, performance, ownership, and a clear decision framework.
Last updated: 26 May 2026 · By Matt West, founder of Boostkit
The short answer
Pick Wix if you need to be online this week, your budget is under £500, the website is a digital business card, and you do not depend on Google rankings for leads.
Pick a custom Next.js site if your website is a major sales channel, you depend on organic search, you need integrations beyond Wix's app market, or you want full ownership of code and hosting. Custom typically costs £1,500-£10,000 upfront but pays back through faster page speeds, better SEO ceilings, and no platform lock-in.
Side-by-side comparison
The numbers that actually matter when you are comparing quotes.
| Factor | Wix | Custom Next.js |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | £0-£300 (template + setup) | £1,500-£10,000+ (build) |
| Year-1 total cost | £250-£800 | £1,700-£10,300 |
| Year-3 total cost (typical SMB) | £1,500-£3,500 (with app add-ons) | £2,000-£11,000 |
| Lighthouse mobile score (typical) | 30-60 | 95-100 |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 3-6 seconds | Under 1.5 seconds |
| Schema markup control | Limited (basic types only) | Full (any JSON-LD) |
| Time to launch | 1-7 days | 2-12 weeks |
| Edit content yourself | Yes, drag-and-drop | Yes, with CMS (Sanity, Payload, etc.) |
| Custom integrations | Limited to Wix App Market | Any API, any service |
| Platform lock-in | High (Wix-only hosting) | None (host anywhere) |
| Code ownership | No | Yes |
| Ongoing developer cost | £0 (or DIY) | £0-£500/month optional retainer |
Performance figures based on Google PageSpeed Insights tests across 50 Wix and 50 custom Next.js sites, May 2026. Cost ranges based on UK small-business builds in Boostkit's market analysis.
When Wix wins
- Budget is under £500 and you need to be online fast
- Site is a digital business card, not your main lead source
- You do not depend on organic search traffic
- You want to make content edits yourself with zero technical skill
- You are testing a business idea pre-revenue
- You expect to need the site for 12 months or less
When a custom Next.js site wins
- You depend on Google rankings for lead flow
- Lighthouse scores and Core Web Vitals matter to your conversion rate
- You need integrations with CRMs, booking systems, or bespoke calculators
- You plan to invest £500+/month in SEO or Google Ads
- The website is a major sales channel, not a brochure
- You want full ownership and the ability to host anywhere
- You have 3+ year time horizon for the site
The SEO gap, in three numbers
Where most Wix-vs-custom decisions are actually made.
Typical custom Next.js LCP under 1.5s vs Wix at 3-6s. Google's March 2025 study links top-quartile LCP to 24% more organic clicks at the same rank.
Custom builds routinely hit 95-100 on mobile Lighthouse. Wix sites typically land 30-60. This is the gap AI search engines and Google Core Web Vitals reward.
Custom sites are hostable on Vercel, Netlify, AWS, or self-hosted. Wix sites only run on Wix, so any future migration is a 4-8 week project.
A 60-second decision framework
Three questions. Honest answers. Done.
Does the website drive 30% or more of your new business?
Yes: go custom. The build pays back through faster pages, better SEO, and zero lock-in. No: Wix is probably fine for now.
Will you spend £500+/month on SEO or Google Ads in the next 12 months?
Yes: go custom. Wix's Lighthouse ceiling will cap your ad and SEO ROI. No: Wix saves you upfront cash you cannot otherwise justify.
Do you need bespoke functionality (integrations, calculators, custom flows)?
Yes: go custom. Wix's App Market has limits. No: Wix handles standard small-business websites well in 2026.
Scored 2+ "yes": a custom Next.js build is the right call. Scored 2+ "no": Wix is the smart choice right now, and you can always migrate later when the maths changes.
Common questions
The questions UK small-business owners actually ask when weighing up Wix against a custom build.
Is Wix cheaper than a custom website?
In year one, yes. Wix Business plans run £20-£35/month plus a domain, so roughly £250-£500 in your first year before add-ons. A custom Next.js website costs £1,500-£10,000 upfront with around £10-£20/month for hosting on Vercel or similar. By year three, total cost of ownership is often within 20% either way once you factor in Wix premium templates, app add-ons, and the cost of switching builders if you outgrow Wix.
Is Wix bad for SEO?
Wix is not bad for SEO in 2026, but it ceilings out fast. Wix sites can rank for low-competition local terms with good content. They struggle on (1) Core Web Vitals, especially LCP and CLS, because of bloated theme code; (2) schema markup beyond basic options; (3) technical SEO control (canonical URLs, hreflang, complex redirects); and (4) page-template flexibility for programmatic SEO. A well-built Next.js site typically scores 95-100 in Lighthouse and gives you full control. For competitive search terms, custom usually beats Wix.
When should I use Wix instead of hiring a developer?
Wix is the right call when: (1) you need to be online this week and your budget is under £500; (2) the site is a digital business card or single landing page rather than your main lead source; (3) you do not depend on organic search traffic; (4) you want to update content yourself without learning anything technical; (5) your business model does not need bespoke functionality like custom calculators, integrations, or e-commerce beyond basic Wix Stores. If three or more apply, Wix is the right choice.
Can I move from Wix to a custom website later?
Yes, but it is more painful than starting fresh on a custom stack. You will need to: re-export all content manually (Wix has limited export tools); set up 301 redirects to preserve any SEO authority; rebuild any custom forms, members areas, or integrations; and accept some short-term ranking turbulence. Plan for a 4-8 week migration project if you have a meaningful organic traffic base. If you are pre-traffic, migrating is cheap; if you have 5,000+ monthly visitors, it pays to get the structure right first time.
What about page speed: how much faster is a custom Next.js site than Wix?
A typical Wix site scores 30-60 in mobile Lighthouse and loads in 3-6 seconds. A well-built Next.js site scores 95-100 and loads in under 1.5 seconds. Google's Core Web Vitals study (March 2025) found that sites in the top quartile of LCP scores get 24% more organic clicks than sites in the bottom quartile, controlling for ranking position. For traffic-dependent businesses, that gap matters.
Will I 'own' my Wix site?
You own the content and the domain, but not the platform. Your site only runs on Wix. If Wix raises prices, changes terms, or deprecates a feature, you have no leverage. A custom Next.js site is your code, hostable anywhere (Vercel, Netlify, AWS, self-hosted), with no per-seat or per-feature licensing. For low-stakes brochure sites this rarely matters. For businesses where the website is a major sales channel, ownership is a real risk-reduction.
Wix vs Squarespace vs Webflow vs custom: which wins for SEO in 2026?
Ranked by typical SEO ceiling: (1) Custom Next.js on Vercel, full control, 95+ Lighthouse, best Core Web Vitals; (2) Webflow, strong technical SEO but expensive at scale; (3) Squarespace, clean code, decent speed, limited schema control; (4) Wix, improved since 2023 but still trails on Core Web Vitals and technical SEO depth. For most UK small businesses targeting competitive terms, the order matches build cost too: you get what you pay for.
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