How to Transfer a Domain from Squarespace to Wix

Having a professionally built website is crucial regardless of your brand or business type. Your customers need your visually appealing and, at the same time, effective and informative online presence. That’s why it’s essential to make the right choice of a website builder. And if you have been on Squarespace for a while and find it doesn’t suffice your needs anymore, it’s time to consider switching to Wix.

When considering changing your Squarespace domain to a more user-friendly one, Wix can be the right choice. Moreover, it can also be a good option for website owners whose online stores have outgrown the suggested capabilities of their current solution. Wix is a revolutionary site-building platform well-equipped with tools to satisfy even the most scrupulous clients’ requirements.

Thanks to our in-depth guide, you will cope with the domain transfer from one platform to another easily and quickly.

Why Choose Wix Over Squarespace

Wix and Squarespace are two giants in the website-building market, both of which come with the right quantity of tools to create quality websites from scratch, regardless of the required niche or size.

However, Wix appears to be a preferable option in many cases. Particularly:

• Wix is more customizable than Squarespace. The customization of the latter is based on content blocks. On the other hand, Wix introduces a full-fledged drag-and-drop editor, which is way more beginner-friendly than Squarespace. No custom code is required.
• Wix offers an unstructured page building: something great for those users who look for a tool to place design elements exactly where they want them to appear. For unlimited creativity, Wix is simply irreplaceable.
• Wix introduces Artificial Design Intelligence. This tool automatically creates a design for a site based on the user’s provided information during the quick introductory survey.
• Wix is much easier for both website building and management. It’s very intuitive and beginner-oriented. This solution is highly recommended for those users who want a professional website yet have no time for a steep learning curve or budget to hire a specialist.
• Wix appears more beneficial in terms of eCommerce. The thing is that it not only offers point-of-sale integration but also accepts payment upon delivery during an offline sale that Squarespace does not provide.
• Furthermore, while Squarespace offers only PayPal and Stripe payment gateways, Wix introduces as many as 30 options!
• Wix has an automatic website backup feature, whereas Squarespace users have to perform a backup manually.
• Especially for inexperienced users, Wix has a one-of-a-kind SEO Wiz feature. It helps you get an effective SEO plan with complete control over meta titles, descriptions, and custom URLs.
• Wix users will love to find out they have a big array of ways to use for contacting customer support if they encounter any problems. You can reach Wix support through social media, email, phone, and blogs. The Help Center holds a myriad of articles on all possible uses of Wix. And all this assistance is available round the clock, whereas Squarespace lacks an on-page editor and 24/7 phone support.
• And finally, Wix boasts of an affordable pricing system. For businesses, it has a separate range of Business plans priced from $17 to $35 per month, compared to the $26 to $40 per month set by Squarespace. These plans are great for a growing business’s requirements.

Connecting vs. Transferring a Domain

Before you start the domain transfer, it’s crucial to understand the difference between connecting and transferring a domain. Transferring a domain means moving it from one registrar to another: in our case, it is from Squarespace to Wix. Normally, this process requires five business days or simply a week.

After completing the domain transfer, all your contact information, registration payments, and DNS settings will be managed by Wix. Your domain and website management will be performed from one place.

On the other hand, connecting a domain means simply pointing it to Wix servers. In this case, the domain will remain outside of Wix at your current registrar Squarespace, while you will need to update DNS settings. This process only takes two business days at maximum.

If you still hesitate about whether you need to connect your domain or transfer it, Wix specialists are always ready to assist. In all cases, connecting and transferring a domain to Wix is possible only if you are at least a Premium account owner.

How to Switch from Squarespace to Wix

When you come up with a firm idea of switching from Squarespace to Wix yet not losing your already functioning website and its traffic, you can either apply to a team of web developers or do that yourself. Surely, a specialist will do the job more professionally and efficiently, but that will cost a lot. By dedicating some time and effort, you can save on your expenses.

Before introducing the detailed guide on how to switch from Squarespace to Wix, let us remind you that you can transfer only such domain names to Wix as .com, .guru, .net, .org, .email, .club, .xyz, .company, .today, .solutions, .ninja, .agency, .photos, .directory, .tips, .technology, .land, .space, .pictures, .biz, .rocks.tokyo, .photography, .info, and .tv.

Perform these steps, and soon you will get your site perfectly operating on Wix. For a start, you must enable the transfer from your current domain host.

1. Request the authorization code, otherwise referred to as the EPP code, and expect it to be sent to the email address you registered your domain with.
2. Unlock your domain by requesting it from Squarespace. Note that this is possible only if it has been at least 60 days since you registered the domain, changed the contact information, or last transferred it. If so, you’d better connect your domain to Wix and wait till 60 days pass.
3. Disable the DNSSEC. This is vital for successfully completing the domain transfer, as Wix doesn’t currently support DNSSEC. Accordingly, if it’s enabled at Squarespace, you must turn it off before proceeding.

Now, when you have the EPP code at hand, while your domain is unlocked and your DNSSEC is off, you can start the domain transfer.

1. Sign up at Wix and subscribe to the Premium plan for a free domain transfer.

2. Access your Account Settings.
3. Look at the middle of the top section to locate the “Domain: Not connected” option quicker, and click on the “Connect Domain” under it.

4. Search for the “Advanced: Transfer your domain registration to Wix” option and click the blue hyperlink while ignoring any big button nearby.
5. Take your time to read the instructions, as Wix is pretty straightforward when it comes to guiding its user on the platform. Choose “Start Transfer.”

6. Submit the currently operating domain that you want to transfer.

7. You will spot a drop-down menu. Open it, find your Squarespace name, and choose it. Wix must know where the target domain was purchased from. Click “Continue.”

8. Now log into your Squarespace account from a new tab in the browser. All the steps ahead must be performed with two tabs opened.

9. Go back to your Wix account and tap “I logged in.” Also, if you have successfully unlocked the domain, click “I unlocked it,” too.
10. Enter the authorization code you have obtained from Squarespace in the respective field and click “Continue.”
11. Choose the extension period (the minimum is one year) and click “Continue” again.

12. Check the contact information you have provided and update any if necessary. Here again, opt for “Continue.”
13. Choose either Private or Public registration before you hit “Continue.”
    1. The Private Registration allows keeping all your personal information in WHOIS completely private. Instead, once you choose this option, Wix substitutes your personal data with its details. As a result, you are safeguarded against identity theft, unwanted solicitations, and domain hijacking.
    2. Public Registration, on the other hand, displays your personal information on WHOIS. When registering, Wix will automatically list an alternative email address and phone number, referring to any person who tries to contact you, yet to a dedicated online form. This intends to minimize spam, yet it isn’t as secure as Private Registration.
14. The final step implies choosing the payment means. To confirm it, click “Submit Purchase.”

This is all on your part. The rest is left to Wix tech specialists. The company will contact you to confirm your Squarespace domain transfer initiation and start the process. Your domain will be connected to your Wix account in a week or five business days.

Concluding Thoughts

Overall, the domain name transfer procedure from Squarespace to Wix is time-consuming and pretty challenging. However, if you follow all the steps above in the right order, you won’t encounter any mistakes or problems, and your site will successfully start being hosted by Wix.

Note that although the domain transfer is not charged, you must buy at least one extra year of domain registration. Also, when choosing Private Registration, an additional fee will be applied.