Have you ever loved your Wix website but wished for a new, updated look? Maybe you’ve heard about the new Wix Studio and want to upgrade to its powerful new features. You’d think this would be simple, but many Wix users are discovering a frustrating truth: to change your design, you have to start all over again.
This isn’t a bug; it’s a fundamental part of how the platform is built.
The Template Trap: A Redesign Means a Rebuild
On Wix, a template is not just a skin you can change. It’s the entire foundation of your website’s structure, and your content is deeply tied to it. This means if you want a new design, you can’t simply apply a new template. You must:
- Create a brand-new website using the new template.
- Manually copy and paste every piece of content, image, and page from your old site to the new one.
This time-consuming and error-prone process is a major drawback that locks users into their initial design choices.
The Wix Studio “Upgrade” Isn’t an Upgrade at All
The same “start over” philosophy applies to Wix’s latest professional product, Wix Studio. While it promises advanced features and true responsive design, it comes with a major catch: you cannot upgrade an existing Wix Editor website to Wix Studio.
To use the powerful new features of Wix Studio, you have to create a new site from scratch and rebuild it from the ground up. This disregard for a user’s existing hard work highlights a significant flaw in their platform’s strategy.
A Pattern of Disregarding User Investment
This isn’t an isolated incident. This “start over” mentality is also evident in a recent change that has left countless community owners in the lurch:
Wix is discontinuing its popular Forums app and is urging users to switch to the Groups app. For a website owner who has invested years into building a community with organized, searchable discussions, a social-media-style “group” is a completely inadequate replacement.
This pattern suggests that Wix is willing to make major platform-level changes that require its users to put in significant extra work, even if it means abandoning the features they relied on.
There is a Better Way: True Freedom with UltimateWB
At UltimateWB, we believe that your hard work should not be tied to the platform’s whims. We are built on a different philosophy: you should have complete control and the freedom to evolve without fear.
- Change Your Design, Keep Your Content: With UltimateWB, your content is separate from your design. You can apply a new page format or design at any time, and your pages, blog posts, user posts, and products will all remain in place. It is much like how it is when you build your website without a platform – but a lot easier and faster, and no coding required (though it is optional!).
- True Responsive Control: Our platform is built with responsive design in mind, allowing you to easily adjust your website for any device without starting from scratch. Use the built-in Responsive app in the Styles Manager.
- Built-in Power: UltimateWB includes robust, built-in features like a full-featured forum that are fully supported and will not be removed.
If you are tired of the constant threat of having to rebuild your website, it’s time to choose a website builder that is committed to your long-term success.
Wix vs. UltimateWB: A Quick Comparison
| Feature | Wix | UltimateWB |
|---|---|---|
| Change template without rebuilding | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Upgrade path (e.g., to Wix Studio) | ❌ Start from scratch | ✅ Keep your site intact |
| Built-in forums | ❌ Being discontinued | ✅ Fully supported |
| Responsive design flexibility | ⚠️ Limited/custom CSS needed | ✅ Full control |
Ready to design & build your own website without the headaches of starting over to use a new design? Learn more about UltimateWB! We also offer web design packages if you would like your website designed and built for you.
Got a techy/website question? Whether it’s about UltimateWB or another website builder, web hosting, or other aspects of websites, just send in your question in the “Ask David!” form. We will email you when the answer is posted on the UltimateWB “Ask David!” section.