Wix isn’t why you don’t rank. Usually.

Not any more, and the reputation lags the product by years. Modern Wix handles the fundamentals competently: editable titles and metas, clean-ish URLs, automatic sitemaps, structured data controls, canonical management and server-side rendering of content. The genuine constraints are narrower than the folklore: limited control over some technical outputs, less flexible URL structures for complex sites, and performance ceilings on media-heavy templates. For local service businesses and small brochure sites, Wix is rarely the reason a site does not rank.

Four that matter. URL structure rigidity on blog and store paths, which constrains information architecture on larger sites. Server-side control gaps: no true log-file access and limited redirect logic beyond the built-in tool. Performance ceilings on heavy templates and apps, particularly Core Web Vitals on media-rich pages. And scaling friction: past a few hundred pages, editorial and technical management becomes painful in ways WordPress or a coded site would not.

The same order as anywhere, executed within the platform: fix indexation and duplication first (Wix's SEO Setup Checklist covers the base, then we go past it), then information architecture with the URL structures available, then genuinely useful page content per service and location, then structured data via the markup editor, then image and app discipline for speed. Most Wix sites we audit have never used the platform's own advanced controls, which is a cheaper first move than migration.

Only for structural reasons, not reputational ones. Migrate when you need URL architecture Wix cannot express, when you have outgrown its editorial management at scale, when performance stays red after genuine optimisation, or when you need integrations the platform blocks. Do not migrate because a forum said Wix is bad: migrations carry real ranking risk, and we would rather quote a fix than a rebuild you did not need.

Yes on disciplined builds, with more effort than a coded site: the platform serves media through its CDN and lazy-loads sensibly, but heavy templates, video backgrounds, oversized hero images and accumulated third-party apps push field data red. The work is subtractive: strip unused apps, compress and correctly size media, avoid autoplay video above the fold, and simplify animation-heavy sections. We measure against CrUX field data because that is what ranks.

Adequately: it supports LocalBusiness structured data, location pages and the standard on-page signals, which is most of what local ranking needs from a website. The heavy lifting in local SEO happens off the site anyway (Google Business Profile, reviews, citations), so a Wix local business is rarely platform-constrained. Multi-location businesses past a dozen sites start to feel the management friction.

One-off Wix optimisation projects from £800: platform controls configured properly, structure and content fixed, schema added, speed work done. Ongoing retainers from £650/month for local businesses, £950/month where competitive content and links are needed. Migration advice is free during the audit, including the honest answer that you should stay put.