Shared CMS collections: one source of content for every site
Updated: 23 hours ago
The same content lives in a lot of places. A product catalog on the corporate site, the regional sites and the campaign pages. A people directory on the careers site and the employee hub. A partner list on every dealer site. When each site keeps its own copy, someone has to keep every copy in sync, and eventually someone misses one.
Shared CMS collections in Wix Enterprise put that content in one account-level data layer. Structure it once, manage it from the enterprise dashboard and connect it to as many sites and templates as you need. Sites read from the collection, so an update shows up everywhere it's used, without duplication or versions drifting apart.
This deep dive covers how shared collections work, how governance and permissions apply, and where they fit for teams, partners and customers. The full feature spotlight is below if you want the two-page version.
Table of contents
How shared collections work
A shared collection lives in your enterprise account rather than on any one site, and it acts as a headless data source for any connected site or template. On the sites that use it, designers bind the data to repeaters, dynamic pages and other elements, while the content and fields themselves are edited centrally.
The same collection can surface in different layouts and formats on different sites. A destinations list might appear as a card grid on one travel site and as a booking menu on another, both drawing from the same up-to-date items.
Built into templates from the start
The Organization CMS Manager shares a collection with specific custom templates, so those templates ship with a predefined content structure. When a site is created from one of them, it automatically includes the collection and its existing connections to elements and pages.
Because collections are reused instead of cloned, every site inherits the same schema and relationships. New sites spin up with the right data model and live connections from day one, and the portfolio stays aligned as it grows.
Governance, permissions and architecture
Only the Organization CMS Manager changes shared collections, from the CMS in the enterprise dashboard, and that role owns schema, content and sharing. That limits who can edit high-value or regulated data and prevents local edits to sensitive content, while local teams keep design flexibility and read access.
Shared collections respect the standard CMS permission modes (Public, Form Submissions and Custom), which covers use cases from read-only catalogs to multi-site lead capture and collect-and-display scenarios.
For technical teams: shared collections are currently implemented as a hidden, automated site collection per enterprise account. For advanced integrations with Wix apps, Blocks or external data sources, teams connect through the API to that hidden site using its MSID. The Extend capability page covers the wider integration options, and the Build capability page shows the shared CMS alongside templates and brand kits.
How shared collections fit each enterprise use case
Company websites
Product catalogs, people directories and other core datasets stay consistent across brand, regional and campaign sites. Update an item once and every site that uses it reflects the change, which keeps a single source of truth across the portfolio. See how it works across company websites.
Partner websites
Corporate maintains the shared data partners rely on, such as product catalogs or partner lists, and every partner site reads the current version. Partners still manage their own local content alongside it. See how it works across partner websites.
Customer websites
Templates sit at the center of a credible customer website offering. For a software platform, shared collections give the templates you offer customers a consistent data model from the start, while customers launch and manage their own sites connected to the platform they already use. See how the offering works on customer websites.
Preview the full spotlight
The CMS Shared Collections feature spotlight covers the data layer, governance model and architecture on two pages.
Key takeaway
Shared collections replace copies with a single source. Content updates once, every connected site reflects it, and only the people who should edit sensitive data can.
About Wix Enterprise
Wix Enterprise is the enterprise web platform for organizations that want to move fast. Shared CMS collections, custom templates and brand kits give every site the same foundation while teams build what's local. Book a demo to see one collection power a portfolio of sites.
FAQ
What is a shared CMS collection?
A shared CMS collection is an account-level content collection that multiple sites and templates read from. Content is structured and edited once in the enterprise dashboard, and every connected site shows the current version.
Who can edit a shared collection?
Only the Organization CMS Manager can change shared collections, from the CMS in the enterprise dashboard. On consuming sites the data is read-only, though designers can bind it to repeaters, dynamic pages and other elements.
Do new sites get shared collections automatically?
Yes, when they're created from a custom template that uses a shared collection. The new site includes the collection and its existing connections to elements and pages.
Can shared collections connect to external data sources?
For advanced integrations with Wix apps, Blocks or external data sources, teams connect through the API to the hidden site that holds the account's shared collections, using its MSID.
