While the number of active websites changes every day, there are more than a billion websites out there, according to Netcraft’s 2018 survey. Creating a website can be intimidating, especially if it’s your first. You want to make sure that it stands out for the other noise on the internet. To do that, you need to make sure that you have a beautiful website to make that happen.
But, if you don’t have coding skills, building a website that doesn’t look like it’s out of the 1990s can seem out of your reach. A site done by a professional can cost thousands of dollars, and it might not be possible either. So how can you get the website of your dreams? Thanks to website builders, you can create a stunning product within minutes. Many web hosting providers will have hundreds of templates to choose from that can accommodate all of your needs.
No matter if you need a website as a hobby, for business, or as an online store, there is a website builder out there for you. To help make it easier for you, we have created a list of our top 13 best website builders.
Squarespace
You have most likely heard of Squarespace before. They have done some memorable Super Bowl ads, and you most likely have seen their ads pop up on Youtube or Facebook. Squarespace is popular, reasonably easy to use, and is well-thought out, so everything is available at your fingertips.
Squarespace requires everything you need to create a beautiful website. No matter if you want to create a hobby website or an online store, Squarespace tries to be an all-in-one platform with templates engineered towards some of the most popular categories so you can have a site that fits your specific needs.
Some of Squarespace’s features include:
- Style editor
- Easy to switch between templates
- Mobile-friendly website designs
- Customizable content layouts
- Custom CSS
- Drag-and-drop management
Weebly
Weebly offers fully customizable templates, so if you want ultra-modern or bold and classic, they will have something for you to fit your design needs. Their customization tools allow you to control everything about the template including font, header, color scheme, and all other major design elements. They make it easy for everyone, even someone with no design skills. However, if you do have some coding skills, they do offer full HTML and CSS control for a unique look.
Weebly’s features include:
- A drag and drop editor
- Interactive content elements like text, photos, maps, and videos
- Video Backgrounds
- Full-width images and color backgrounds
Site123
Site123 advertises themselves as “by far the easiest free website builder,” and it is true that they are extremely easy to use. Their website builder contains hundreds of templates, and they can help you to create small online shops, blogs, landing pages and more without having to write a line of code. All skill levels will find that their interface (which is available in more than 15 languages) is very intuitive and understandable, helping all to create a completely custom website in minutes.
Best Features of Site123 include:
- Professional domain name included with all plans
- Analytics to help you understand and grow website traffic
- Easily add a store to the website
Wix
Wix is similar to a PowerPoint presentation, meaning you can drag any element anywhere on your website. This type of blank canvas website builder can be a bit intimidating at first, but Wix is relatively easy to use. Wix pages are built by adding different elements – you can choose between variations on shapes, icons, buttons, boxes, and audio players. There are hundreds of options, including integration with 3rd party apps. The problem is that all those options mean you can get confused and bogged down by all the choices. However, its flexibility makes it a good option as a site builder.
Best Features of Wix
- More than 500 designer-made templates
- Drag & drop template
- App market
- Mobile optimized
- Scroll effects
WordPress.com
A common misconception about WordPress.com is that it is the same as WordPress; it isn’t. Most people only think of WordPress as WordPress.org, which is the most popular source content management system (CMS). Even though WordPress.com is built using WordPress.org, it is not the same thing. The interface of WordPress.com is a simplified version which is something you would expect to see in a website builder.
WordPress.com is a bit different from the typical drag-and-drop editors, and instead, it uses a form-based editor which separates the content of pages from the design. Unfortunately, this means the pages are designed within context. WordPress is not as intuitive as Squarespace or Weebly, but it is the best for blogging.
WordPress features:
- Excellent blog features
- Flexible promotions editor
- Stats and analytics
- Mobile friendly
For more help on WordPress, check out our helpful article on how to get started with WordPress.
Voog
For those looking for a multilingual website, Voog is an excellent choice. The editor is a bit more plain and spare than other website builders who jam in tons of features. You can choose from hundreds of templates and can build your page by dragging and dropping elements from the dashboard onto your page. However, the layouts for the pages are often inflexible so you can’t easily customize the templates to fit your needs.
Top features of Voog:
- Multilingual
- Mobile-friendly
- Can easily create an online store
- Can run a reselling business through Voog
SiteBuilder.com
SiteBuilder boosts that you can get started on building your website in just three easy steps.
- Pick a template between the hundreds of customizable templates
- Choose a domain for your website
- Publish your website
While of course, it does take a bit more work than that, Sitebuilder.com is easy to use and helps you get up and running fast. Their dashboard is quick to pick up, even for newbies, and is relatively uncomplicated. Where the website builder shines is in its e-commerce features, so if a digital store is your goal, check out Sitebuilder.com. For more help on how to improve your online store, check out our article on how to increase your e-commerce revenue.
Sitebuilder.com’s top features:
- Free hosting and domain name
- Drag and drop editor
- Payment methods include PayPal, Stripe, and 2Checkout
- Ability to create and manage coupons
- Multiple gateway integration, tax, and shipping settings
Simvoly
Like most website builders, Simvoly is extremely easy to use thanks to its clear, intuitive drag-and-drop interface. There are hundreds of customizable, responsive design site templates. With their dashboard, you have full control over the page design, and they have a great way to build funnels, which increase your conversion rate.
Top Features of Simvoly:
- Funnel builder
- A/B Split Testing
- Detailed analytics
Duda
Duda is not as intuitive as some of the other companies on this list like Weebly and Squarespace. It can feel a bit disorganized and overwhelming, and it can take a while for new users to get used to it. There are many different small, hidden menus throughout Duda so that you have to make sure you are keeping track of all of them to make sure you are utilizing Duda to the fullest.
Features of Duda:
- One-click SSL
- Drag & Drop Template
- Stats and analytics
- Hosted on AWS with 99.99% uptime
Strikingly
Strikingly stands out from all the other websites on this page because it allows you to build one-page websites. Navigation is reasonably simple, but it does offer more limited options for customization than you might want. The responsive design in both mobile and desktop are impressive, but many of the standard features require a premium paid account.
Features of Strikingly:
- E-commerce functionality with no transaction fee
- Analytics
- Built-in HTTPS
SnapPages
SnapPages feels more like a CMS than a typical website builder. Instead of having one interface for everything, you navigate through an admin before editing pages. You can choose between 21 section templates to help get you started, and it allows you quite a bit of control over the different section. SnapPages is a good option for the basics.
Top Features of SnapPages:
- Modern designs
- Simple drag & drop editor
- Cloud hosting
- Mobile optimized
GoDaddy
GoDaddy is another big name on this list thanks to their prominent Super Bowl commercials in past years. They recently updated their website builder, making it easy to use without requiring you to spend a lot of time on the design. GoDaddy also offers generous storage and a simple interface. However, if you want to customize their templates, you are extremely limited in your options, and you can’t edit photos. If you are looking to start an online store through GoDaddy, you will have to pay for an upgrade.
Best features of GoDaddy:
- SEO optimized
- Free SSL
- Thousands of templates
uKit
uKit is a website builder that makes everything accessible for you to create a stunning website. They offer strong features like live chat, MailChimp signup forms, Google search and more. However, the main drawback of uKit is that many of their themes aren’t unique and look too similar. If you want to customize the templates, it is limited and hard to do so.
Top Features of uKit
- Mobile friendly
- Unlimited pages, photos, videos, or traffic
- Easy drag and drop
- Sell online with convenient payment methods like bank cards, PayPal, and more.