CMS Critic

Best Website Builders

The following is a list of the Best Website Builders which we have put together to help those in search of the right product to build their website.  The website builders listed here are well established, are actively developed and have proven themselves as some of the best website builders in the industry.

Clicking on each of the best website builders, will take you to a page where you can learn a bit more about the particular website builders and view a demonstration video (if available).

Every year, we run the Critic’s Choice CMS Awards where we have a category for Best Website Builder. Check out who the latest winners are or peruse the list of best website builders below.

If you are aware of a particular website builder that you think should be added to this list, please contact us and we will consider adding it to the list.

  • Squarespace - (trial & paid)
    - A very powerful website builder and winner of the “Best Website Builder” for 2012 in our Critic’s Choice Awards. Ideal uses are portfolio sites, artists, designers and bloggers.
  • Edicy – (free & paid)
    - A solid website builder that specializes in building multilingual websites with a focus on small business and not for profits.
  • Gutensite – (free & paid)
    - A website builder with  a good interface and solid support. Used frequently for church sites, small businesses and portfolio websites.
  • IM-Creator – (free & paid)
    - A popular website builder that offers a simple to use interface that is ideal for fashion designers, photographers, musicians and artists.
  • Jimdo – (free & paid)
    - A website builder with integrated eCommerce features heavily used for art, fashion, music and portfolio style websites.
  • Light CMS – (paid)
    - A popular website builder amongst developers and designers due to it’s integrated eCommerce and white labeling capabilities.
  • Webstarts.com – (free & paid)
    - One of the oldest website builders around with a strong presence and integrated eCommerce capabilities. A good choice for small business and artisan type websites.
  • Weebly – (free & paid)
    - One of the most popular website builders out there with a very large client base and a strong platform based on ease of use.  Used frequently for small business websites.
  • Wix – (free & paid)
    - Perhaps the second largest website builder out there, Wix offers an easy to use interface and is used largely for portfolio, art and small business websites.
  • Yola – (paid)
    - A popular website builder with a heavy focus on small business websites. Used frequently for restaurants, health and fitness and similar small businesses.

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below as to which are your favorites.

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  • Tim L.

    I started making websites oh… probably over a decade ago now with straight HTML and CSS when it appeared on the scene. It’s really amazing how user friendly and intuitive everything is these days. I was just working on a website on Wix for a client. Very easy to get around on.

  • Kelly

    There are so many good ones out there it’s hard to choose which is perfect for you. I mean, when it comes down to it, they all offer great functionality and support. Read the reviews from users, I guess is a good way to narrow it down, and then just go with one. Most of your success is up to you, not the website building platform anyway.

  • RobP

    I’ve used both Weebly and Wix in the past, and am currently about to check out Squarespace more closely, as it seems to have more capabilities. I’ve also used WordPress in the past, which is a little more cumbersome to individualize for different needs. Too many addons to search up all the time.

  • Cmarten

    I see a lot of women I know using Weebly for their small businesses and person sites too. They usually opt for the free version, which I would always discourage as it doesn’t look very professional unless they get a true domain name. I never really knew there were so many options. I’ve been a dedicated WordPress user – hosted on my own – for quite some time now.

  • http://walthamstowtimes.co.uk/ WT

    Aren’t ImpressPages, SiteCake and Berta websites builders as well?
    http://sitecake.com/
    http://www.impresspages.org/
    http://www.berta.me/

    • http://www.cmscritic.com Mike Johnston

      Impresspages is not but Sitecake and Berta are. Thank you for pointing them out.

      • http://walthamstowtimes.co.uk/ WT

        You’re right.
        In fact, after I dug around, found out about ImpressPages MultiSite which is a website builder: http://www.ipmultisite.com/

  • http://www.rjmasters.co.uk Richard Masters

    i am surprised some other large ones are not on the list. In particular Jimdo, Yola and Moonfruit.

    • http://www.cmscritic.com Mike Johnston

      Jimdo and Yola were added, Moonfruit was not as I don’t consider it amongst the “best”