About Developing Websites

Developing websites on Wix using Velo APIs offers a unique blend of flexibility, ease of use, and powerful features. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting, Wix provides the tools and technologies needed to craft visually appealing and fully functional dynamic web applications:

  • Interactive UI: Use Wix's powerful editors to build sites with custom UI, behaviors, and interactions using the $w() API.

  • Full-stack development: Leverage a robust suite of developer tools and Wix APIs to build and deploy with efficiency and security. Integrate your code with the editor UI to enhance and extend its capabilities.

  • Content management: Use the Wix CMS and its data APIs to manage, serve, and display content dynamically at scale.

  • Wix business solutions: Connect directly to production-ready solutions like eCommerce and Bookings, and extend them to deliver a tailored experience for site visitors.

  • Zero-setup backend: Implement complex workflows and automations with a fully supported Node.js environment. Wix handles infrastructure, hosting, and scaling so you can focus on your code.

  • 3rd-party integrations: Expand a site's capabilities by adding apps, npm packages, and external services such as payment providers and marketing tools.

    Note: Until now, custom code on Wix sites was implemented using Velo APIs. You can now use the JavaScript SDK for most functionality. Learn more about Developing Websites with the SDK and how to migrate from Velo to the SDK.

Technologies

Build with trusted, industry-standard tools tailored to Wix's platform. Utilize your existing skills and leverage the following technologies to create and manage dynamic web applications:

  • JavaScript: When developing a site with Wix, you write both frontend and backend code in JavaScript, calling Wix's JavaScript APIs to incorporate interactive and dynamic functionality.
  • Node.js: Wix provides a robust Node.js environment for running your backend code.
  • MongoDB: Wix uses MongoDB as the database for its CMS system, offering a flexible and scalable solution for managing and storing content.

Development environments

Pick the environment that fits how you build. Wix offers several development environments to match your workflow:

  • Editors: Use the built-in code editor in Wix Studio or the Wix Editor to write and manage code alongside the visual site editor. No setup required.
  • Local IDE: Use a local IDE, such as VS Code, for the flexibility and power of a full-featured development environment on your own machine. Set up via GitHub integration and manage your project using the CLI. Pair with AI tools to provide local AI coding clients the context they need to build and manage your project.
  • Wix IDE (Beta): Use the Wix IDE, a VS Code-based online IDE for Wix Studio sites.

Wix AI tools

For AI coding clients like Claude Code, Cursor, and VS Code, install the Wix Plugin to give your AI client the context it needs to build and manage your project.

The Wix Plugin includes:

  • Wix Skills: A collection of self-contained instruction sets for Wix development tasks. This includes the Wix Headless skill, which can scaffold and deploy a complete headless project from a single prompt.
  • Wix MCP: A Model Context Protocol server that lets your AI tool search Wix docs, scaffold code, and call Wix APIs directly from your IDE.

To install just Wix Skills, run:

Copy

Note: Add -g to install globally and make Wix Skills available across all your projects.

Programmatic docs access

Beyond the Wix Plugin, you can pull Wix docs into any tool or workflow:

  • llms.txt index: Browse a structured index of all documentation at dev.wix.com/docs/llms.txt.
  • Markdown format: Append .md to any documentation page URL to retrieve the Markdown version of that page.
  • Page menu: Use the Ask Assistant dropdown on any documentation page to copy the page as Markdown or get a direct link to the Markdown version.

Developer journey

Ready to get started? Here's what to expect at each stage of the development process, from a blank canvas to a fully functioning site:

  • Get started: Explore the Wix ecosystem and browse the API Reference and potential 3rd-party integrations to see what you can build. Take some time to review best practices and any limitations to ensure a smooth development process.

    Note: Until now, custom code on Wix sites was implemented using Velo APIs. You can now use the JavaScript SDK for most functionality. Learn more about Developing Websites with the SDK and how to migrate from Velo to the SDK.

  • Code: Start coding using 1 or more Wix development environments to write, manage, and debug your code. Build both frontend and backend to deliver a fully functional and user-friendly site.

  • Test: Preview and thoroughly test your site throughout development. Use the built-in tools to test your code in isolation and as a whole. Create test sites to experiment without affecting a live site, and use logs to monitor and debug issues.

  • Publish: Use the editor or the CLI to publish your site once you've thoroughly tested it.

  • Maintain: Monitor your site using logs and the monitoring dashboard to track performance and resource usage. Consider upgrading your premium plan to scale your site effectively and avoid hitting plan limitations.

  • Grow: Become a Certified Wix Partner to offer your development services or sell apps to an audience of 250M+ users.

Community

  • Join the Wix Developers Discord server and forum to ask questions, discuss complex topics, and collaborate with other Studio creators.
  • Contact customer care for support with platform issues, billing, or account questions.
  • Follow the Wix changelog for up-to-date information about Wix features and APIs.
  • Subscribe to the Wix newsletter to receive the latest updates and feature announcements.

Next steps

Start building or explore the resources below to go deeper:

Website development on Wix is transitioning to the JavaScript SDK. Learn how to migrate from Velo to the SDK.

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