Wix Domains: Buy, Connect, or Transfer

Every Wix site gets a free wixsite.com address automatically; a custom domain (like mystunningwebsite.com) requires a Premium or Studio plan, and you can either buy that domain through Wix or connect one you already own from another registrar. Which route you take changes who manages your DNS records, whether you get a free year of registration, and what happens if you ever want to leave. Here's what Wix's own Help Center says about each option, checked September 2026.

What's the difference between my free wixsite.com address and a custom domain?

Wix's Help Center describes the starting address plainly: "free Wix URL: siteprefix.wixsite.com/siteaddress" (Wix, "Changing Your Free Wix URL"). You can personalize the prefix and the site-address portion of that URL, but "wixsite.com" itself stays in it.

To remove that and use your own domain, you need a paid plan. Wix's Help Center states it directly: "Once you've upgraded to a Premium or Studio site plan, you are eligible to connect your own domain and remove 'Wix' from the URL" (Wix, "Domain Structure after Purchasing a Site Plan"). The same page adds: "If you haven't yet purchased your own domain, you can purchase one directly from Wix." In other words, upgrading your plan doesn't hand you a domain automatically — it just makes you eligible to attach one, whether that domain comes from Wix or from an outside registrar.

Wix also draws a clear line between the two purchases you're actually making. Its Help Center explains: "A domain is a unique, virtual address for your site (e.g., www.mystunningwebsite.com). In order to connect your own domain, you first need to purchase one, either from Wix or from another domain host" and separately, "A site plan is an upgrade for a Wix site. Purchasing a Premium or Studio plan allows you to connect your own domain (either purchased from Wix or from another domain host), remove the Wix ads..." (Wix, "Purchasing a Domain vs. Purchasing a Site Plan"). A domain and a site plan are two separate products that Wix happens to sell together; you need both to get a custom-domain site with no Wix branding. Your free wixsite.com address doesn't disappear once you connect a custom domain, either. Wix's Help Center states it plainly: "Even if you decide to purchase a site plan and connect a domain, your site is still accessible through your free Wix URL" (Wix, "Keeping the Free Wix URL") — our Wix free plan guide covers what else is and isn't included before you upgrade.

Wix's pricing for plans and domains varies by billing region and currency, so this guide doesn't print numbers here — check wix.com/plans or wix.com/domains for the current price in your account.

What does the free domain voucher include, and what are its conditions?

Some Wix plans come with a domain voucher rather than requiring a separate domain purchase. Wix's Help Center is specific about who qualifies: "The free domain voucher is offered as a gift with purchase of selected yearly or multi-year Premium or Studio plans. If you chose a monthly billing cycle, you won't receive a free domain voucher" (Wix, "About Your Free Domain Voucher"). Monthly plans are excluded entirely, regardless of which tier you pick.

The same article sets a real deadline on using it: "The 1 year free domain voucher enables you to claim a free domain for one year. The voucher is valid for two months from the date that you purchased your plan." Miss that two-month window and the voucher is gone, even though your plan continues.

A few other conditions matter before you plan around it:

• It's a first-purchase perk only: "This voucher is only included with the first-time purchase of a site plan. It is not included when renewing a plan or upgrading an existing plan."
• It covers registration, not privacy: the domain it buys "does not include privacy protection", which Wix sells separately.
• It still asks for a payment method up front, because the free part is only the first year: Wix states you "won't be charged for the first year of the subscription. This allows our system to process renewal payments so your domain stays live after your first free year" — meaning the domain renews at Wix's standard rate afterward unless you cancel it.

If you already own a domain elsewhere and would rather redeem the voucher against a transfer instead of a brand-new registration, Wix documents that path separately under "Redeeming Your 1 Year Free Domain Voucher When Transferring Your Domain to Wix" — check that article before you transfer if you're holding an unused voucher.

How do I connect a domain I already own to Wix?

If your domain is registered somewhere other than Wix — Namecheap, GoDaddy, or any other host — you don't have to move the registration to use it on a Wix site. Wix's Help Center describes this as domain mapping: connecting keeps the registration where it is while pointing the URL at your Wix site. There are two ways to do that, and Wix recommends one over the other.

Wix's own comparison states the two methods directly: "Name servers (recommended): Wix hosts your DNS records so you can manage them directly from your Wix account." and "Pointing: Your domain host stores and manages your DNS records on their platform" (Wix, "Pointing vs. Name Servers Domain Connection Methods").

Wix is explicit about why it prefers name servers: "We do not recommend pointing because we're unable to assist you in another DNS host's account. However, if your domain has complicated DNS records that you prefer not to reconfigure, pointing may be your best option." So the trade-off is support, not capability — pointing still works, but if something breaks in your DNS setup, Wix can't reach into your registrar's account to fix it. Name servers put that troubleshooting inside Wix's own dashboard instead.

Some Wix features specifically require the name servers method rather than pointing, according to Wix's own documentation, so if you're relying on pointing to preserve existing DNS records, confirm the feature you want doesn't have that requirement before you commit to it. If you're not sure which record type your registrar needs for either method, our CNAME vs A record guide explains what each record type actually does and why builders split root and www domains between them.

How do I transfer a domain into Wix?

Transferring is a different, larger step than connecting: it moves the domain's registration itself to Wix, so Wix becomes your registrar of record instead of your original host. Wix's Help Center lays out the mechanics of what that changes: once transferred, you manage the domain's registration and renewal payments, contact information, and DNS records from your Wix account, rather than splitting that across two providers.

Two prerequisites matter before you start. First, Wix's Help Center states: "Your domain must be unlocked before you begin the transfer. In most cases, you can contact your current registrar to unlock the domain. In some cases, your domain might be locked due to ICANN's 60 day lock policy" (Wix, "Transferring a Domain Purchased Elsewhere to Wix") — so a domain you registered or moved very recently may not be eligible yet, independent of anything you do in Wix. Second, you'll need an authorization code (the EPP code) from your current registrar, which Wix asks you to paste in during setup. Once that's submitted, Wix says "we send you an email to confirm that we received your transfer request. As long as your domain is eligible and the authorization code you entered is correct, the transfer will complete within 7 days." Wix also recommends turning off Private Registration (WHOIS Privacy) at your current registrar first, so you don't miss a transfer-related email during the process.

How do I transfer a domain away from Wix?

The reverse path exists too, and it carries a warning worth reading before you start it. Wix's Help Center puts it directly: "We recommend keeping your domain with Wix as your host if possible. If you transfer your domain away, your Wix site is disconnected, and Wix is no longer able to assist with managing your domain." (Wix, "Transferring Your Wix Domain Away from Wix")

The steps mirror an inbound transfer: your domain needs to be unlocked first, and Wix sends a transfer authorization code (EPP code) to the registrant contact email on file for the domain — so make sure that inbox is one you can actually access before you request it. Once the new registrar completes the transfer, your domain's contact information, DNS settings, and renewal payments move entirely to that new provider's account, and Wix drops out of the picture. If you're moving your whole site off Wix, not just the domain, read our guide to transferring a domain away from a website builder first — it covers what else (email, redirects) can be affected by the same move, across several builders including Wix.

Where does Figment fit in?

Nowhere directly — Figment isn't a domain registrar and doesn't sell or manage domains. Figment publishes a website from a Figma design through its Figma plugin; connecting a domain to a Figment site is a separate step handled the same way most hosting platforms handle it, through your own registrar's DNS settings. If your domain question is really whether to move your site off Wix, that's a bigger decision than the domain itself, and this guide isn't the place to make that call for you.

Bottom line: your Wix site always has a free wixsite.com address; a custom domain needs a paid plan plus either a Wix domain purchase, a redeemed voucher, or a domain connected from elsewhere. Connecting keeps your registration where it is and asks you to choose between name servers (Wix manages DNS, and Wix recommends this) or pointing (your original host keeps managing it). Transferring moves the registration itself, in either direction, and always carries an unlock step and an authorization code. Check Wix's Help Center for the live steps in your account before you start any of these.