Guide · Updated October 2026
Who owns your website
Your domain, your content and the site itself can each belong to someone different. Here is who owns what on builders and custom sites, what to check before you sign, and how to get a site back.
Short answer
You should own three things outright: your domain, your content and data, and the finished website. At Chamberlin Design, once the build fee is paid in full you own the final delivered website, and any reusable code we bring is licensed to you forever, royalty-free. If you ever leave, you get your content, your data and a source code handover. Whoever builds your site, register the domain in your own name.
Builder or custom.
| Piece | Wix or Squarespace | Custom site, Chamberlin Design |
|---|---|---|
| Domain name | Yours, if registered in your name | Registered in your name |
| Words and photos | Yours | Yours |
| Design and code | Stays on the platform and cannot be moved to another host | Yours once the build fee is paid in full |
| Customer data and form entries | Exportable within the platform's tools | Yours, exportable any time |
| If you leave | Rebuild the site somewhere else | Source code handover, content and data export |
Chamberlin Design terms from our standard client agreement. Builder terms vary by plan, so check your own account.
Six things to check.
Five minutes with a contract now saves a lot of trouble later.
The domain is in your name
You should be the registrant, with your own login at the registrar. A designer can manage it, but it should be yours.
You have admin logins
To the domain registrar, analytics, Google Business Profile and Search Console, even if you never use them.
The contract says you own the site
Look for plain wording that the finished site belongs to you once it is paid for.
There is a way out
What you get if you leave: the files, your data and help moving, without a release fee.
Photo rights are clear
Stock photos are licensed, not owned. Your own photos stay yours.
Monthly fees are for service
A hosting plan should pay for hosting and help, not rent the site back to you.
If you have lost access.
It happens more than people think, and it is usually fixable.
01Find your domain
Look up the domain with a public registration lookup to see which registrar holds it.
02Request access or a transfer
If you are the registrant, the registrar can verify you and restore access. If someone else registered it, ask them in writing to transfer it.
03Ask for your files and data
Request the site files, form entries and any customer data in writing.
04Rebuild if needed
If the old site cannot be moved, rebuild it and redirect old URLs so you keep your place on Google.
From the builder
Every site I build has the domain in the client's name and a handover kit ready: the source code, an access letter and their data. Most clients never need it, which is how it should be. You should be able to leave any time, even though I hope you never want to.
Questions
Do I own my website on Wix or Squarespace?
You own your content and your domain if it is registered in your name, but the design and the site itself stay on the platform. You cannot move a Wix or Squarespace site to another host. You would rebuild it.
Who owns my domain name?
Whoever is listed as the registrant. Check with a public domain lookup or at your registrar. If your designer registered it under their name, ask them to transfer it to you.
What if my web developer disappears?
If the domain is in your name, you can point it to a new site. Request your files, then rebuild if needed and redirect the old URLs so you keep your search history.
If I stop paying for hosting, do I lose my site?
With Chamberlin Design, no. Once the build fee is paid in full you own the final delivered website, and if you end the hosting plan you get a handover so it can be hosted anywhere.
Do I own the photos on my website?
You own photos you took or paid a photographer to take with full rights. Stock photos are licensed for use, not owned.