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Web Design · Houston

Wix vs custom website: what Houston home service pros actually need.

By Brian Vasquez — Vasquez Web Studio · Houston, TX

Wix and Squarespace are fine for portfolios and hobby blogs. For a Houston contractor trying to rank in local searches and convert homeowners into estimate requests, they create more problems than they solve.

Side-by-side comparison

FactorWix / SquarespaceCustom (Next.js)
Mobile performanceLCP often 3–5s on mobile dataLCP target under 1.4s — engineered to spec
Local SEO controlLimited schema, no control over URL structureFull schema markup, custom URL structure, service area pages
Monthly cost$17–$159/month, ongoing foreverOne-time build cost, minimal hosting after
Service pagesOne template for all servicesDedicated page per service, keyword-targeted
Page speed scoreTypically 40–65 on LighthouseTarget 90+ on Lighthouse, enforced per page
Content ownershipPlatform-dependent, hard to migrateYour site, your code, portable

The bottom line for Houston contractors

If your goal is to look online, Wix is fine. If your goal is to rank in Houston local searches, load fast on mobile data, and turn visitors into estimate requests — a custom site pays for itself in the first few months of additional calls.

Most Houston contractors who switch from Wix to a custom Next.js site see LCP drop from 4–5 seconds to under 1.5 seconds, and their Lighthouse performance score improve from 40–60 to above 90. That performance difference directly impacts how Google ranks the site.

Ready to move off Wix? A free consultation will cover your current site speed, ranking gaps, and exactly what a custom site would cost.

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