Unveiling Wix Studio: A New Era in Website Building and Design

I am excited to delve into the latest offering from Wix, the newly introduced Wix Studio, a comprehensive website builder unveiled on August 02, 2023.

The rebranding announcement took the Wix community, including myself and fellow Wix Partners on the Facebook group, by surprise. In a nutshell, Wix Studio is set to replace both Wix Editor and Editor X in the coming months. Currently, Wix Studio is gradually rolling out updates and is expected to extend the opportunity for users to migrate, similar to the transition from Wix to Editor X.

In my assessment, the introduction of Wix Studio marks a distinct and favorable choice. Although Editor X garnered attention, it did not achieve the impact envisioned by Wix. While the interface underwent changes, the overall performance remained rigid and sluggish, plagued by persistent glitches.

With eight years of Wix usage, three years of experience with Editor X since its initial release, and an additional three years using Webflow, I dedicated a continuous two-hour session to explore Wix Studio. My initial impression is highly positive, as Wix Studio demonstrates remarkable speed and responsiveness.

1. Intuitive User Interface

Wix Studio boasts an interface that blends elements from both Wix and Editor X, resulting in a clean, unobtrusive, and easily navigable design. The Inspector Panel has been streamlined to focus on width and height adjustments. This feature particularly benefits users who do not require precise element measurements. Personally, I prefer working with relative units for website design, rendering pixel-based dimensions unnecessary. This functionality enables fine-tuning of element behavior in relation to parent and child elements, facilitating dynamic scaling and fit within parent containers with a simple click.

A notable enhancement is the ability to horizontally stack elements, a feature previously limited to vertical stacking in Editor X. This straightforward implementation employs the flexbox property, bridging a notable gap in functionality.

Additionally, while the CSS grid is initially concealed, converting a section grid into a CSS grid is a seamless process, achievable with a single click.

2. Design Versatility and Customization

Wix Studio makes significant strides in the realm of no-code design. By combining Wix Studio with Velo and the new Wix IDE, a multitude of creative possibilities arise. Although Webflow offers greater flexibility for crafting highly customized websites, it comes with a steeper learning curve.

A pivotal enhancement within Wix Studio is the incorporation of five new avenues for crafting custom animations and interactions: entrance, loop, click, hover, and scroll. These options empower designers to dictate text movements during scrolling or trigger animations upon element clicks, expanding design potential.

3. Templates and Themes

Comparing the array of templates and themes offered by Webflow and the nascent Wix Studio reveals a somewhat limited selection within the latter, likely due to its recent launch. However, my primary focus resides in utilizing a platform that facilitates precise customization rather than templates. An appealing prospect would be for Wix Partners to contribute to a Marketplace akin to Webflow's, fostering a vibrant community-driven repository of diverse templates.

4. E-Commerce Capabilities

While Wix Studio shares its ecosystem with Wix and Editor X, the scope of e-commerce functionality remains consistent. In comparison to Webflow, Wix enjoys an edge in e-commerce features. Nonetheless, my preference leans toward Shopify due to its broader range of app options.

5. SEO Tools

Wix Studio aligns with industry norms by offering customizable meta tags, user-friendly URLs, sitemap integration, and other SEO-related tools. From a technical standpoint, Wix Studio generates its own code. Unlocking the potential of DOM-level access and CSS class reuse would further optimize performance, a possibility also available in Webflow, albeit in more advanced usage scenarios.

6. Performance and Loading Speed

An aspect that stands out across both platforms is impeccable performance, transitioning seamlessly from the editor to the live site. Wix Studio leverages AI, specifically the Wix AI Assistant and Responsive AI, to bolster mobile responsiveness and code generation. This innovation contributes to significantly streamlined workflows for Wix Partners.

7. Pricing Structure

Wix adeptly structures its pricing, catering to diverse needs. The business plan commences at $20 per month (billed annually), while Webflow's pricing starts at $23 per month. A noteworthy change in Wix Studio pertains to CMS item limits per plan. For instance, the Standard plan, accommodating online payments, offers 4000 CMS items. Scaling poses potential expense escalation, with the Elite plan, featuring 100,000 CMS items, priced at $149 per month (billed annually). This revision, attributed to enhanced technology driving editor performance, echoes a similar trend observed in Webflow, where premium AWS usage contributes to cost adjustments.

8. Support and Resources

Wix Studio's burgeoning nature is evident in its tutorial offerings. While room for improvement exists, Webflow's robust ecosystem, encompassing a Marketplace and forums, has witnessed substantial growth since its inception. Wix Studio can harness its expansive community to fortify its platform.

9. Third-Party Integrations

Although I have yet to delve deeply into Wix Studio's capabilities for custom code, the inclusion of NPM packages and the ability to incorporate custom CSS herald exciting potential. Both Wix Studio and Webflow provide an extensive range of third-party integrations. Notably, existing Wix or Editor X users will find a seamless transition to Wix Studio, effortlessly accessing familiar apps. Wix Studio introduces the Workspace feature, enabling partners to swiftly switch between projects across various accounts, streamlining workflows. While Wix Studio boasts native app solutions, more specialized use cases can be addressed through third-party applications.

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