How To Unpublish A Wix Site | The Comprehensive Guide
By Sam Nguyen
In this article, we will guide you on unpublishing a Wix site. Besides, we will discuss potential risks and alternatives to unpublishing your Wix site. Let’s dive right in!
Key Takeaways
- Unpublishing and Republishing Process: There are 4 main steps to unpublish a Wix website.
- Benefits of Unpublishing a Wix site: Unpublishing hides your Wix site while keeping it in your dashboard.
- Risks and Alternatives of Unpublish your Wix site: Instead of unpublishing, you can try deleting, no-indexing for select visitors, or using a “Coming Soon” page during changes.
Step-By-Step On How To Unpublish A Wix Site
Step 1: Log into your Wix account
First, you must log into your Wix account, which has the website you want to unpublish.
Step 2: Choosing the Wix website that you want to unpublish
After successfully logging into your account, please choose the website you want to unpublish on the Wix top navigation bar.
Step 3: Go to the ‘Settings’ section
After choosing your site, go to the left sidebar and click the ‘Settings’ button.
This action will navigate you to the ‘Settings’ page. On that page, select “Website settings” to continue.
Step 4: Unpublish your Wix site
Now, you will see the ‘Website Settings’ page, similar to the image below. You must click the ‘Unpublish’ button on your right hand.
A small pop-up titled “Unpublished your website” will be shown. You must click the red icon “Unpublished” to complete the process.
How to Republish a Wix Site
If you want to return your Wix website online, you must do it differently than the abovementioned unpublishing process.
The very first step is choosing the site which you want to republish. After that, you need to navigate to the sidebar on your left.
Under the “Site & App” button, you need to click the “Website” button below.
Your website information will be shown to look like the image below. Now, you need to click on the “Edit Site” button.
Wix will open a new tab on your browser. Please wait a bit before it loads completely.
The new tab in your browser will look like the image below. The final step you need to do is to click on the “Publish” icon in the top right corner.
Now, your site is republished and can be accessed by anyone on the internet.
Why Should I Unpublish A Wix Site?
Unpublishing a Wix website can be an intelligent move for various reasons. Unlike deleting, unpublishing doesn’t wipe your site off the internet and Wix’s servers. Instead, it takes your site from public view while keeping it accessible in your Wix dashboard. Below are several reasons for unpublishing a Wix website:
Unpublish A Wix Site for Maintenance
Maintenance is the most common reason for Wix users to unpublish their sites. When you unpublish, you can work on your site’s appearance, structure, and content behind the scenes. This is especially valuable when you’re making significant changes or improvements.
Businesses seeking to overhaul their site find this helpful, as it avoids showcasing unfinished or messy work to visitors. Even high-traffic sites benefit by avoiding disruptions during adjustments.
Unpublish A Wix Site for optimizing for Core Web Vitals
Unpublishing is useful when optimizing your Wix site for the update of Google’s Core Web Vitals. This update emphasizes user experience, including loading speed, interactivity, and visual stability.
By unpublishing your site, you can focus on enhancing these aspects without affecting your site’s public image. Running tests to ensure your site is speedy and reliable becomes more straightforward when it’s not accessible to everyone.
Expert Advice
Remember, unpublishing doesn’t cancel your domain or your subscription to Wix’s paid plans. You must disable auto-renewal in your site’s settings to end these commitments. Wix provides clear guidelines for canceling premium plans and domains, so refer to their policies for more details.
In summary, unpublishing your Wix site is a strategic move. It lets you refine your site away from prying eyes, make significant updates, and optimize for improved user experience. Just remember to manage your domain and subscription settings separately if you decide to go this route
Potential Risks Of Unpublishing A Wix Site
Unpublishing your Wix site might seem simple, but it comes with potential risks you should be aware of.
Decline in Search Rankings
One significant risk is the possibility of your site’s rankings slipping in search engines like Google. Search engines take notice when your site is offline for an extended period. They favor websites that are active, responsive, and consistently updated.
Sites that need these qualities may see a drop in their search rankings. So, if your site stays unpublished for too long, you could lose the visibility and traffic you’ve worked hard to achieve.
Impact on Your Brand Reputation
Your website is often the face of your brand in the digital world. Imagine if someone, like a customer or an investor, tries to visit your site and discovers it’s not accessible. This situation can influence their opinion of your brand.
Over time, this could weaken trust and confidence in what you offer. This, in turn, might lead to your brand becoming less well-known, less respected, and potentially even less profitable.
Missed Opportunities for Engagement
Knowing that when your Wix site is unpublished, you miss out on valuable opportunities to engage with your audience is essential. An active and accessible website allows you to communicate important messages, share updates, and interact with visitors.
Unpublishing your site temporarily could mean losing out on connecting with potential customers, addressing their inquiries, and keeping them informed about your offerings. This lack of engagement might lead to missed chances for building relationships and fostering customer loyalty.
Alternatives to Unpublishing My Wix Site
If you’re not sure about unpublishing your Wix site, there are other choices you can consider. Let’s take a look at some different options:
Deleting Your Wix Site
Deleting your site suits those who no longer need their Wix website. This could be because their business is permanently closed or they don’t plan to use the site’s services.
Deleting your site removes its data from Wix’s servers entirely. However, remember that this is irreversible, so only choose this option if you’re sure you won’t need the site again.
No indexing Your Wix Site
If you want your site accessible but not visible in search engines, no indexing is a good choice. It’s different from unpublishing and deleting.
By no indexing, your site remains available for direct visitors but won’t appear in search engine results like Google. This is helpful when making significant changes but still needs certain individuals to access the site through specific links.
Using a “Coming Soon” Page
You can opt for a “Coming Soon” page to keep your site active during changes. This is an easy solution that doesn’t involve unpublishing or no indexing.
Wix offers free templates for this purpose. It allows you to showcase a message that your site is undergoing improvements while keeping it accessible to visitors. This option is great for those concerned about the impact on SEO and search engine visibility.
How To Unpublish A Wix Site: FAQs
Bottom line
Unpublishing your Wix site allows you to work on it privately for maintenance and improvements without erasing it from Wix’s servers. While it offers benefits, be aware of potential risks like search ranking decline and missed engagement opportunities.
