Let’s start with the easiest option: a website builder. This is an “all-inclusive” package, so to speak: a single company will usually provide the template (design), drag and drop editor, web hosting, domain name, email address and support. The web builder takes care of the difficult tasks.
This isn’t only useful for beginners. It simply depends on the project. Why complicate your life if there are easy ways to do things? Almost all site builders let you create a free basic website on a subdomain (e.g. yourname.sitebuildername.com), which is ad-supported. Using such a plan you can try it in detail before deciding if the cost is worth it.
However, if you want to take your business online, you should consider a paid plan. Prices start at around $8/month, but it includes all the essentials. Add around $1-6/month on top if you need a professional email address for your business website.
To better understand exactly how it works, please watch our step-by-step tutorial to website creation!
Pros:
- It’s very easy to use.
- You don’t need additional software or even hosting.
- You can start without technical knowledge.
- Updates and security aspects are handled by the website builder company.
- Predefined themes that you can adapt as you like.
- Mobile-optimized version included by default.
Cons:
- You can’t always add extra features (depending on the website builder).
- It isn’t as flexible since you’re dependent on the provider.
- They aren’t designed for very complicated projects that require a database (e.g. a job board or real-estate directories)
The most popular website builders are Wix , Squarespace, and Shopify (for ecommerce stores).
