Best Website Builders for Designers

There are myriads of web building options for creative designers, who have an intention to develop websites for personal use as well as for professional web designers, who need functional tools to create portfolios or client websites with maximum efficacy and minimum investment of effort and time.

Experience, knowledge and skills matter a lot as well – the more proficient in web design you are and the more complicated the project is, the more advanced programs you have to use.

An important factor to consider is that both user groups generally tend to look for simpler web building tools. Newbies just need skills and practice to use more complicated programs, while web design pros usually have many tasks and face the necessity to search for a solution that will boost their productivity without compromising with the quality and professional look of projects they work on. Website builders prove to be the only reasonable solution for both groups of web developers.

Whatever web design skills and background you have, you’ll be interested to browse the reviews of the best website builders included in the list. Awareness of their pros, cons and special characteristics will help you create websites that will stand out from the crowd due to their quality and high end performance. Have a look at them now to decide on the most suitable web building solution.

Wix – The Best Website Builder for Designers

Wix – is the best all-in-one website builder for designers, which is an ideal choice for each user, irrespective of the available experience and programming knowledge. The system enjoys the utmost popularity with proficient web developers and newbies across the globe (over 147 million of registrations and 3,5 million of premium users). It allows building different types of websites from scratch and delivers the unsurpassed web design experience one can get when using the services of this kind. Wix offers a set of features and tools to cover the needs of both user categories. Take a look at some of them now.

For Newbies:

• Template Collection. Wix is one of the niche leaders, when it comes to the number of templates and their quality. The website builder currently offers over 550 themes, which are 100% customizable and mobile ready. This is the feature that appeals to newbies, who can choose any depth of template customization and number of tools needed for their projects.
• Wix ADI. Newbies, who choose Wix as the web building tool, mostly give preference to the Artificial Design Intelligence feature that allows creating websites in the automated mode without a line of coding required.
• Visual Effects. Wix offers a set of visual effects, integration of which will give your project extra performance and enhanced design. Some of the visual effects Wix can boast include parallax scrolling, transitions between pages, custom animations, mouseover effect, video background, 3D moving elements and animations, the use of live videos etc.
• Apps for Non-Tech Savvy Designers. You can visit Wix App Market to pick and use applications and add-ons that will simplify the web design process. Thus, you can choose HTML iFrame/Embed App, Custom Logo Design and many more.

For Professionals:

• Standard Website Editor. Proficient web designers are mostly interested in using standard Wix editor that allows for higher degree of manual website customization and flexibility of choice.
• Wix Marketplace. This is the place, where you can find and hire Wix partners – both freelancers and web design agencies – to complete any task for you. Just browse the community, find the experts to comply with your requirements (or submit your request) and wait for the feedback. There is also an opportunity to hire a graphic designer or a web marketer here to promote your ready-made project on the web.
• Corvid by Wix. This is a modern open development platform, which aims at helping users launch professional web applications to fit various niches and website types. Regardless of the mission the platform has, it does not require any coding proficiency and preliminary web design background. Instead, users can pick and apply any of the tools the platform offers to create impressive applications. At the same time, Corvid offers multiple options for professional designers, letting them use their front-end development skills to use and modify UI elements during the process of app development.
• Ascend by Wix. The free feature allows specialists get access to more than 20 tools available all in one place. They are helpful, when it comes to starting, managing and promoting your business.

Cost: Wix pricing policy is affordable and versatile as the website builder has several plans to fit any web design needs and budget. There is a completely free plan used to test the functionality of the system and start practicing your skills, building simple websites for personal use. As you decide to proceed to more complicated web design tasks, Wix allows choosing from several more detailed subscriptions available in two packages – Standard and Business. The cost of Standard subscriptions starts with $13/mo, while that of Business/eCommerce plans starts with $23/mo.

WordPress – Free CMS for Professional Website Creation

WordPress – is a free CMS for professional website creation, which is familiar to designers, who have ever been interested in website building. The platform has gained worldwide popularity due to the abundance of design customization tools, extensive integration options, rich plugin and template cholice. Let’s see what the system has to offer to first-time users and web design experts.

For Newbies:

• Easy-to-Use Interface. The interface of the system is quite simple and understandable. It makes it easy for newbies to add new pages, crop and insert images, add posts etc.
• Built-In Templates and Plugins. For those users, who have not worked with the system before, WordPress offers a set of built-in templates and plugins. Their choice and integration doesn’t require coding knowledge.
• Blogging. WordPress was initially created as a blogging system. Hence, its feature set is geared towards the development of this type of website. Adding and managing blog posts is easy and quick – right what beginners need!

For Professionals:

• Extensive Integration Options. If you can boast web design skills, you will certainly be interested in integrable templates and plugins. They will notably enhance your website design, but their installation may require certain degree of web design awareness. Among decent samples of WP plugins for designers, it makes sense to mention TablePress, Visual Composer, Beaver Builder, WP Touch Mobile, WP Retina2x, Elementor Page Builder, Meta Slider, Slideshow, Contact Widgets, Custom Facebook Feed, Instagram Feed, Easy Google Fonts, YouTube Plugin, Responsive Lightbox by dFactory and more.
• Design Customization Freedom. The use of programming skills ensures design customization freedom. WordPress allows for code editing options, which gives you an opportunity to develop, manage and update unique and impressive projects.

Cost: WordPress is free for everyone.You can download and install it at no cost. It’s even possible to launch simple sites with it for free. However, to deeply customize your projects, you’ll have to integrate external templates and plugins that are available in free and paid variants. Additionally, you won’t go without getting hosting and domain name for your ready-made website. This is also a paid service. Fortunately, the use of trusted hosting providers like the official WordPress Bluehost allows cutting down these expenses. Thus, the cheapest Bluehost plan will cost you $2.95/mo + domain name as a gift – that’s definitely a reasonable offer!

Webflow – Professional Website Builder for Creatives

Webflow – is a professional website builder for creatives, which allows starting and managing nearly all types of projects, including those that feature high complexity level. The platform comes with a drag-and-drop editor, customizable responsive templates and advanced website development tools that make it similar to standard Content Management Systems or professional web creation software like Adobe Dreamweaver. In this respect, Webflow mostly works great for experienced web designers working on the development of client projects yet it can also be used by those web designers, who intend to improve their skills.

For Newbies:

• Responsive Templates. As a design-focused website builder, Webflow grants access to the huge collection of responsive switchable themes, which are available in free and paid variants. All in all, there are over 200 high end templates here, which are completely customizable and there is also an opportunity to design an absolutely personalized website from scratch here, using the black canvas without any demo content.
• Template Editor. Webflow template editor is more complicated and unusual as compared to standard editors, but it can be mastered by ordinary users as well. The editor comprises the features of usual visuals editors along with widgets, multiple modules, folders and general settings section. These elements make up the so-called “CMS Collections” of the website builder. Users can choose from Designer and Editor modes to work in.
• Creation of Dynamic Content. The platform lets all users create truly unique dynamic content out of the available structures. Among the content types you can create with Webflow, it makes sense to mention galleries, blogs, forums, news feeds, web forms, event posters, photo/video presentations etc. Lightbox Gallery, Lottie and AfterEffects integration contributes to the creation of personalized and impressive content.

For Professionals:

• Advanced Design Customization. With Webflow, web developers can take full control of JavaScript, CSS3 and HTML5 codes to create unique web canvases. The system also offers high end style and class management options to launch quality and impressive ID templates and content elements.
• eCommerce. The website builder allows creating full-featured online stores that differ in complexity and functionality aspects. The system puts a user in charge of the web store development process, offering an exhaustive collection of page customization tools and eCommerce features. These include integrated shopping cart settings management, product list creation, inventory and design tools choice, shipping/payment/tax parameters set up, order management options etc.
• Powerful Animations and Interaction Tools. The system empowers web designers to build complex and visually-appealing animations without writing a line of coding. Thus, you can create and integrate scroll-based multi-step parallax and animations, connecting motion to the scrolling progress in order to get a truly stunning effect.

Cost: Webflow stands out from the crowd due to its versatile and extensive pricing policy. The website builder has the never-ending free plan, which is enough to test the entire feature set of the platform. If you decide to start building professional projects with the system, you’ll be offered to choose the subscription available in one of two plan groups. The cost of the most affordable Site Plan Pack starts with $12 per month, while that of the cheapest Account Plan Pack constitutes $16/mo.

Squarespace – Easy Website Builder for Web Designers

Squarespace – is an easy website builder for web designers and one of the most recognizable platforms for entrepreneurs and creatives from all over the world. The system can be used to start different types of projects, but it excels at the development of online stores, professional portfolios, blogs and small business websites. The website builder has quite a distinctive set of features to meet the needs of newbies and web design pros. Let’s have a look at some of them now.

For Newbies:

• WYSIWYG Editor. Being a WYSIWYG website builder, Squarespace is an intuitive and easy-to-use platform for first-timers. It lets you control the web design process from the very beginning and up to the publication and further website management stage. Mind that all the edits made in the process of website creation are saved automatically, which makes the preview option not available. As a result, it’s impossible to see the final project version until its publication, which is not quite convenient, especially for beginners.
• Responsive Designs. Squarespace offers high quality and completely customizable templates, the number of which, however, is somewhat smaller as compared to other website builders. A convenient drag-and-drop editor of the system allows for simple project customization, due to which you can effectively create blogs, portfolios, restaurant and wedding websites, online stores and other types of projects.
• Useful Integrations. The system grants access to multiple add-ons and widgets you can pick and integrate into your project. You can apply functional analytic tools (Google Analytics or Squarespace Metrics App) to control your website performance, social media buttons, contact forms, photo/video galleries and other elements that will contribute to your website functionality.
• Logo Maker. When it comes to website development, having a quality logo that represents your business is definitely an advantage. The platform offers a handy Logo Maker tool that lets you upload, customize or design your own project logo from scratch. The system offers multiple web design tools and elements that help you get the most out of your logo development process.
• Blogging Platform. With Squarespace, everyone can set up and manage a blog to drive user attention and boost customer satisfaction rate. The integrated engine lets you publish and update posts, integrate RSS feeds, add geolocation tags, enable user comments etc.

For Professionals:

• Portfolio Design Focus. Squarespace features a distinctive portfolio design focus that allows creating and managing professional portfolios. The website builder grants access to the set of integrated elements and options, including a Cover Page Builder, Checkout Page Editor for Digital Stores, HTML/CSS editing options, Logo & Title editing tool etc. There is also a high end Style Editor here that lets you pick the required web page styles to fit your current project requirements and goals (blog pages, index pages, blog and event pages, cover pages, galleries etc.).
• Marketing Tools. The website builder is rich in marketing tools that contribute to effective website promotion after its publication and quality interaction with the target audience. It’s possible to start and manage email marketing campaigns, make use of extensive content import/export option, integrate links to emails and images into your website, choose among multiple email layouts you can customize to your liking etc.
• eCommerce. The platform makes it possible to launch and manage quality small-to-mid-sized web stores. Among th eeCommerce features you can make use of, it makes sense to mention integrated shopping cart set up, image/video embedding options, product display parameters set up, SSL Certificate connection and more. There is also an opportunity to adjust shipping/payment parameters, add product variations, implement loyalty programs etc.
• Unfold Storytelling Toolkit. The advanced storytelling tool – Unfold – allows designing professionally looking social content to further spread it in corresponding resources. Users get access to over a hundred of designer templates and customization elements that make it possible to create unique and attention-grabbing content for social sharing.
• Professional Developer Platform. Squarespace Developer Platform lets you create custom websites for professional use. This is a nice choice for everyone, who just intends to start (or already manages) independent web design business projects. There is an opportunity to integrate with 3rd party services, customize ready made templates or design the one of your own from scratch.

Cost: Squarespace is a moderately-priced website builder, which has plans to meet any needs and web design goals. The system does not have a free plan yet there is a free 14-day trial that lets you test all the features of paid subscriptions before choosing the one to upgrade to. The cost of paid plans starts with $12/mo.

Weebly – Great Solution to Create a Portfolio Website

Weebly – is a great solution to create a portfolio website and one of the easiest website builders to start any other web-based project. The platform delivers a broad spectrum of design customization tools, rich set of responsive templates, multiple integration, eCommerce and marketing options. The system is equally understandable to newbies and proficient web developers as it has much to offer to both user categories. Take a look at the most distinctive features of the website builder to realize what exactly it has in stock.

For Newbies:

• Blogging Platform. Weebly comes with a reliable and feature-laden blogging platform that makes it possible to connect a blog to your website in a matter of minutes. This lets you engage user attention by posting and updating niche-related articles, integrating media files and other related content, scheduling new publications, enabling commenting option, sharing posts in social networks etc. There are multiple blog templates to choose from to make your blog unique and completely personalized.
• Block Integration. To simplify the process of website development for beginners, the website builder offers a variety of blocks available in the dashboard. Along with standard website elements like slideshows, galleries etc., the platform allows for code embedding that helps give your project high end look.
• Extensive Content Editing Options. Complexity of the website customization process depends upon the skills level of users and their expectations. Generally, Weebly uses content grids, but there is also an opportunity of DIY website editing. Thus, even a newbie can edit text blocks here, modify the settings of the existing elements, resize and crop frames etc. Absence of inline editing and input masks makes the platform a great pick for non-techies.
• Mobile Editing. Users can also edit their websites via their mobile devices as there is a separate web application, which allows for this process. All the steps of mobile website customization are completed with a few clicks here, while the process itself is quite intuitive and convenient.

For Professionals:

• Deep Template Customization. Weebly templates are responsive by default, while its WYSIWYG editor allows users customize their projects in a visual mode. Professional web developers, however, additionally have access to the advanced HTML/CSS editor, which lets them customize their projects to the advantage, getting a high end result.
• Advanced Integrations. The website builder delivers a broad choice of widgets, apps and add-ons you can pick and integrate into your project. The list of these elements includes slideshows, image collections, media files, maps, search boxes and what not. Availability of the “Embed Code” feature allows adding the required number of elements to your web page to give it high end look.
• eCommerce. Weebly has gained strong eCommerce focus after its merge with Square. Thus, the system now lets you start all types of eCommerce projects, irrespective of their complexity level and functionality. The engine comes with integrated shopping cart and deep web store design customization options, versatility of eCommerce features, payment/shipping options, search filter area, CSV product import/export, exclusive loyalty offers and many more.
• Weebly Promote Tool. If you plan to get involved in professional website development, Weebly Promote tool will certainly come in handy to you. It encompasses extensive email marketing features, including an opportunity to choose from different email types and layouts (bulletins, event and product presentations, promo newsletters etc.). These features boost the efficacy of email marketing campaigns launched with Weebly.

Cost: Weebly offers moderate pricing policy, letting its subscribers choose from several types of plans. The website builder has a free plan that lasts for the unlimited period of time, letting you test the system’s functionality and several paid plans included into two packages – for Standard and eCommerce websites. The cost of Weebly subscriptions starts with $4/mo, which is a truly affordable offer for everyone.

Bottom Line

The need for quality websites keeps growing and so does the demand for high quality web building tools. This is where website builders prove to be useful both for beginners and professionals.

What you should also realize is that these systems cannot be considered the alternative to hiring experienced web designers, especially if you require individual approach to your project creation. On the contrary, many professional web developers use website builders as handy, feature-laden and powerful tools that help them speed up their work on client projects without compromising with the result.

As to beginners, website builders serve a pretty nice basis to acquire or boost their web design skills, get the required practice and just experiment with different types of systems to launch simple websites for personal use.