Wix domain not connecting? Causes and fixes

If you connected your domain to Wix within the last two days, the most likely cause is that the change is still spreading across the internet. Wix says domain propagation "can take up to 48 hours to complete", and until it finishes your site may not load, may load on one device and not another, or may show a previous site. If your records are right, the fix is to wait.

If 48 hours have passed, the cause is almost always one of five things: the DNS records at your domain host are wrong or incomplete, a security feature such as DNSSEC or a DNS proxy is switched on, the site isn't published, the Wix plan has expired, or the domain is assigned to a different site in your account. Each has a specific fix, and Wix has a free checker that tests for most of them.

Start with the four basics

Wix's own checklist for a connected domain that shows no site has four points. Run through them before touching any DNS settings.

1. The site is published. A saved site that has never been published has nothing to show on the domain.
2. The site is upgraded. Wix states: "You must upgrade your Wix site before you can connect your domain." A free site can't use a custom domain, as we explain in what the free Wix plan can and can't do.
3. The domain is connected to this site, not just sitting in your Wix account.
4. 48 hours have passed since the last DNS change.

If all four are true and the site still doesn't load, open the Wix Domain Assistant. It tests, in order: whether the site is published, whether the domain has expired, whether a Premium or Studio plan is active, whether the domain is assigned to the right site, whether the DNS records are correct, whether the domain is active in a WHOIS lookup (the public record of who registered a domain), whether propagation is complete, and whether the SSL certificate has been issued.

What propagation is, and what it looks like

DNS (the Domain Name System) is the directory that tells browsers which server a domain lives on. When you change a DNS record, thousands of servers around the world have to pick up the new value. That spread is called propagation.

During those hours, Wix lists these as normal:

• Your site can't be reached, or works on one device or network and not another.
• The site that was previously on the domain still appears.
• Email sent to addresses on the domain may not arrive.
• Changes you publish may not appear on the live site.
• The browser shows a security warning, because "The SSL certificate will only be issued once propagation is complete."

Wix suggests whatsmydns.net to see how far a change has spread. Enter your domain, choose the record type (A or CNAME), and check whether locations around the world return the Wix values. Avoid editing records again while you wait. Each new change has to propagate too.

Know which connection method you're using

Everything after this point depends on the method. If you bought the domain from Wix or transferred it to Wix, you're on name servers automatically. If you bought it elsewhere, you chose one of the two when you connected it.

A quick way to tell which one you have: in your Wix account go to Domains → Domain Actions. If Manage DNS Records is offered, Wix holds your DNS. If that option is missing, Wix says the domain is connected by pointing.

Our guide to domains on Wix covers buying, connecting and DNS records in full. Here we stay with what goes wrong.

Fixing a pointing connection

Pointing fails more often than name servers because you enter the records by hand in another company's control panel. Log in to your domain host and check that the DNS zone contains exactly these two records, as of October 2026:

Then look for these common mistakes:

• Only one record was updated. Both are required. Wix warns that if you don't update both, "your site will not appear secure and your visitors may see a 'Not secure' warning message."
• Old records were left in place. A second A record for @ that still points to your old host means some visitors land on the old server. Remove it. The same goes for an old CNAME or A record on www.
• Legacy Wix values. Wix says that from January 17th, 2024 "some legacy DNS records are no longer supported for sites connected to Wix by pointing". If your domain was pointed years ago and has recently stopped working, compare your records with the table above.
• A "www.www." address in the browser bar. Wix says this loop means the records are set incorrectly or haven't propagated. Confirm both records, wait the 48 hours, clear your browser cache and flush your computer's DNS cache.

Fixing a name server connection

With name servers, you replace the name servers at your registrar with the ones Wix gives you. Those values are shown inside your Wix account for your specific domain, so copy them from there.

Check these points:

1. All the old name servers are gone. If your registrar still lists one of the previous host's name servers alongside Wix's, results will be inconsistent.
2. The change was saved at the registrar, meaning the company you pay for the domain each year.
3. The default Wix records are intact. In Domains → Domain Actions → Manage DNS Records, the A record and the www CNAME should hold Wix's defaults. If someone edited them, follow Wix's reset instructions, and use the values Wix shows you in your account. Wix's help pages are not consistent about the default CNAME value, so don't type one from memory.
4. Your email records were re-added. This doesn't stop the site loading, but it can break email after a switch. Wix copies MX records across automatically. Any other records your email provider needs must be added in Wix by hand. See business email on a Wix site for the setup.

Turn off DNSSEC and DNS proxies

DNSSEC is a security feature that digitally signs DNS records. A DNS proxy, such as Cloudflare's, routes visitors through another company's network before they reach your site. Wix states: "Wix does not support the use of Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) or DNS Proxies like Cloudflare. To ensure DNS propagation, please make sure these options are not enabled before connecting your domain to a Wix site."

What to do:

• At your domain host, find the DNSSEC setting and make sure the domain is not signed. Ask the host's support if you can't find it.
• If your DNS runs through a proxy service, switch the proxy off for the Wix records or move DNS management away from the proxy.
• If your domain host has a CAA record on the domain (a record that limits who may issue security certificates), remove it. Wix says CAA records are not currently supported for pointed domains.

One distinction: Wix sells a private registration and DNSSEC add-on for domains registered with Wix itself. That is a separate case from a domain held at another company and connected to Wix, where DNSSEC needs to be off.

The domain is on the wrong site, or two sites want it

If you have more than one site in your Wix account, a domain can be assigned to the wrong one. The symptom is that the domain loads, but shows an old or unfinished site. In your Wix account, open Domains and use Assign to attach the domain to the correct site.

Two related situations:

• You want to change method. Moving from pointing to name servers is not a setting. Wix requires removing the domain (Domains → Domain Actions → Remove from Wix) and connecting it again.
• You are swapping the domain on a live site. Wix deletes custom code snippets tied to the old domain when a different domain is assigned. Copy any snippets under Custom Code before you switch.

When a working domain suddenly disconnects

If the domain worked last month and nothing was changed, look at billing and registration before DNS.

• The Wix plan expired. A custom domain needs an active Premium or Studio plan. Wix says: "If your plan status is Expired, you must upgrade to a new plan to reconnect your site to your domain."
• The domain registration expired. A lapsed domain is disconnected from the site. After you pay to renew, Wix says it can take up to 48 hours for the site to be live again.
• The contact email was never verified. Registrars must confirm a domain owner's contact details under ICANN rules (ICANN is the body that oversees domain names). If you ignored Wix's "Verify domain contact info now to keep your site live" email, the domain is deactivated until you confirm. Go to Domains, choose Resend Confirmation Email, click the link in the email, and allow up to 48 hours.

Our guide to what to check when a Wix site is down covers expired plans and domains in more detail, including what happens to a domain in the weeks after it lapses.

The domain connects but shows "Not secure"

This usually isn't a separate problem. Wix issues the SSL certificate (the file that enables the padlock and https) automatically, and only after propagation is complete. If the warning is still there 48 hours after your last DNS change, the cause is normally a missing record, DNSSEC, or a CAA record. We cover those steps in fixing "Not secure" and SSL errors on Wix.

When to ask for help

Contact Wix support if the Domain Assistant reports no problems and the site still doesn't load after 48 hours. If you connected by pointing, expect Wix to send you to your domain host for anything inside the host's control panel, because Wix has no access to it. Send the host the two records from the table above and ask them to confirm the zone contains those records and no conflicting ones, with DNSSEC off.

Conclusion

Most Wix domain connection problems come down to time or to two DNS records. Confirm the site is published and upgraded, compare your records with what Wix expects, switch off DNSSEC and any proxy, and then leave the settings alone for 48 hours. If a domain that used to work has dropped off, check the plan, the domain renewal and the verification email first. If you'd like someone to sort out the DNS and check the rest of the site's setup while they're there, our Wix website services team can help, and the Wix security guide explains how to protect the accounts involved. More guides are in our Wix hub.

Frequently asked questions