Best Website Builders For Mac

If you're researching what the best Mac website builder is, the answer is Wix. Boasting an impressive overall score of 4.8/5 awarded by our research and product testing team, thanks to its easy user interface, its massive feature list, and its reasonably priced plans, we things Wix represents the best value when it comes to website builders.

Rather than paying for Mac software, you pay a monthly fee – as low as $16 per month – to create and publish your website with Wix. There are regular Wix deals and discounts, too.

Since all of these web builders are hosted online, they work equally well with Macs and PCs. Therefore, aside from Apple compatibility, we've also considered some top priorities for Mac users, such as design features, ease of use, and customization options.

We've based our recommendations on independent tests and real-world user feedback. And while Wix came out top of the pile, Squarespace actually has better customer support options and Weebly provides the best free plan, so the results aren't clear cut.

Check out a summary of the top providers in the table below, or scroll down to learn more about the best Mac-friendly website builders, and iOS apps, on the market.

In this guide:

• Top Website Builders for Mac
• Website Builders vs Mac Website Software
• Verdict: What is the best website builder for Mac
• Frequently Asked Questions

Finding the right website builder has the power to make or break your online store. This is why we make sure every provider has undergone thorough research and user testing before they appear on our site.

When determining which is the best website builder for Mac users, our in-house insights team focused on a number of key metrics, including website features, design functionalities, value for money, customer support, customer satisfaction, and ease of use.

Then, after ranking the website builder against these key criteria, our research team awards each provider with a unique set of scores. These results then help to inform us which solutions have the most value, and why.

As you can see, we take product research pretty seriously at Tech.co. If you'd like to know more about how we find you the best technology, learn more about our research process here.

Top Website Builders for Mac

The website builders we've rounded up don't actually require you to install anything from the Mac App Store, which is always nice to avoid when you can.

You access all of the website builders below through Safari, Chrome or your preferred web browser of choice. This makes it quick and easy to create, edit and update a website – even if you're using a lower-powered MacBook Air, rather than a MacBook Pro.

We have carried out extensive user-based research to rank and rate the most popular website builders out there. We ask the same questions you do: How easy are they to use? What features can they provide? Do they offer good value for money? What sort of customer support is available? Based on the answers to these questions, we then create our scores based on these factors, and others.

Each website builder we rate is based on real life use, with our testers having hands-on time with each service to work out what's great, and what's not so great.

Below are the top Mac Website Builders to come out of our testing:

• Wix – Best overall website builder
• Squarespace – Best for growing businesses
• GoDaddy – Best for quick set up
• Shopify – Best for selling online
• Weebly – Best for Mac users on a budget
• Zyro – Best for beginners
• Duda – Best for well-rounded, comprehensive websites
• Jimdo Creator – Best for ease of use
• WordPress – Best for blogging and publishing sites

Wix – Best overall website builder

After user testing its software and comparing it against the best solutions on the market, we've decided Wix is the most Mac-friendly website builder.

This is in-part due to its great value and massive feature catalog including a logo maker, CRM functionality, and its email and social marketing capabilities. But this shouldn't come as a shock. With our research team declaring Wix to be the best website builder for small businesses as well as the easiest website builder for beginners, it's no surprise that the tool tops the charts for Mac users as well.

It's also refreshingly easy to use, with an intuitive drag and drop system, making it a great choice for new starters, as well as those with some experience. In fact, with our researchers awarding the platform a score of 4.4/5 for ease of use, it's one of the simplest to navigate on this list, sharing the top position with Duda.

If you're looking to spend some time away from the desktop, Wix also offers an impressive iOS app that lets users create and edit their website and manage their online store. This app is compatible with iPhone and iPads, making it accessible to all Apple users.

Wix users can also benefit from the ‘Wix App Market', which allows you to add functions to your site with just a click, from appointment booking to live chat. It also gives users powerful SEO tools to ensure that their website doesn't languish at the bottom of Google's search engine, giving you an excellent leg up for your website compared to competitors.

Additionally, if you're new to website design and don't really know what you're doing, Wix's powerful ADI, dubbed Wix ADI, will design a website for you based on a few criteria you provide. Just answer a few quick questions and you'll be all set up fast and easy. The online tool supports Safari versions 5 to 11 flawlessly too, so its Mac compatibility is no concern.

Wix offers a free version, but it's fairly basic, and we don't recommend it. By opting for a paid package and you can have a professional-looking website up and running in minutes, for minimal cost. With Wix's value for money score climbing from a 4 to a 4.2/5, it seems like the software is only becoming more affordable too.

While you'll have to pay to get the best from Wix, you can get started for free easily

Squarespace – Best for growing businesses

Squarespace's excellent range of templates enables website novices to whip up a professional-looking website in no time at all, and they are the linchpin of the service.

With 113 templates to choose from, there are plenty of options, and with pretty much every facet editable, there really is no limit to how your site can look.

While Squarespace offers a fantastic range of options for those looking to create a website that looks the part, the interface can be a little confusing for first-time users. Compared to Wix which has a solid ease-of-use score of 4.4/5, Squarespace lag slightly behind with a 4/4. While this isn't a dealbreaker, Mac users who are used to intuitive design might need to deal with steep learning curve.

Usability aside, one of Squarespace's top features is its blogging function. Posts look the same when they're being written as to how they will on the finished page, removing the need to continually go back and forth, previewing the site. Additionally, for businesses that need help getting to grips with the software, Squarespace excels when it comes to help and support. Our research team recently gave its customer support options a score of 5/5, which is higher than its ever been awarded before.

If you like the sound of Squarespace, you can try it for free for 14 days or find out more about its pricing

GoDaddy – Best for quick set up

GoDaddy is a huge force in the web building industry, with 20 million users. One of the reasons for its popularity, aside from its extensive marketing budget, is the ease with which it lets users create new sites thanks to a simple drag and drop system.

According to our research, GoDaddy also provides the quickest setup process for a website, so you can get your online presence established in just minutes. What's more, the provider offers great customer support options 24/7, for any issues that might crop up as you're building your dream page.

Sounds good, but do we recommend it? We used to insist that GoDaddy wasn't a great option, but the website builder has added some serious functionality in recent years, allowing for more customization and better templates across all its plans. The website builder is also fully compatible with Windows and Mac devices, so we can confidently recommend them to anyone looking for a quick website.

GoDaddy provides Mac users with great bang for their buck too. Securing a 4.4/5 score for value of money, the website builder is more wallet-friendly than the frontrunners Wix and SquareSpace. It's not the best value provider on this list though, that honor goes to Weebly.

Check out our GoDaddy review for more info

Shopify – Best for selling online

Shopify is a website builder with hundreds of practical features, but its strengths really lie in omnichannel selling. The platform allows businesses to sell across multiple channels including Instagram, Facebook, and Amazon, and it's also able to scale easily with growing online scores.

In fact, with a customer score of 4.6/5 and a help and support score of 4.1/5 our research team has ranked the software pretty highly across the board.

Mac users can benefit from Shopify's full suite of features, including abandon cart recovery, product management, and dropshipping tools. With endless customization options available, our research suggests Shopify has better design tools than Wix too.

However, despite its strong feature set, after user testing the product, our researchers found it's not as easy to use as lots of its competitors. While this shouldn't put off Mac users with lots of digital experience, it might make Shopify less suited to businesses using website building software for the first time.

The online tool is pricier than many of its rivals, too. While the website builder can be available for as little as $26 per month (paid annually in advance), larger stores can expect to pay as much as $299 per month for the service. Compared to cheaper providers like Wix and Squarespace — which offer website building services for as little as $14 and $16 per month respectively — these prices can look a little steep. What's more, with Shopify charging extra for transaction fees and additional integrations, it might not be the perfect option for businesses on a budget.

Interested in learning more about how much Shopify could cost your business? Read our review of its pricing plans here

Weebly – Best for Mac users on a budget

We don't recommend free plans, but we must admit that Weebly has one of the best. It doesn't put the same restrictions that other platforms do, so you can actually get a functional website live for free with Weebly.

Plus, Weebly has a lot of great value plans, providing a lot more functionality than you'd think for the price. This is why our researchers decided to award the website builder full marks (5/5) for value for money, beating both Wix and Squarespace to the post. And with lots of SEO and knowledge guides, you can optimize your website performance easily.

Unfortunately, Weebly isn't great if you're looking for a shining example of design. While its drag-and-drop editor is Mac-friendly, many users have noted that the templates are quite outdated, particularly compared to competitors like Wix. Still, it's a great option for businesses on a strict budget, particularly if you can do without the more design-focused templates.

If you want to add features to your site, Weebly has an extensive app store, offering over 300 to choose from. One nice touch is the app review system, where users can leave ratings for the apps they have used, giving you guidance on which ones would work best for your site.

Like the sound of Weebly? Take a closer look at how it compares to Wix

Zyro – Best for beginners

Outside of a free plan, you won't find many website builders more affordable than Zyro. We've pegged Zyro down as ‘one to watch' for some time now, and with this special deal from Tech.co, you can get started with the software for only $2.61 per month, a staggeringly low price for any website builder.

It's worth noting that this low price does come at a cost. Zyro is definitely a more stripped-down version of a website builder, not providing most of the advanced features found on your average platform. In fact, the software has only secured a score of 2/5 for business features, ranking it far below all other providers on this list except for Jimdo.

This is a bit of a double-edged sword, as the software is easier to use than most other website builders on this list, and is well suited for beginners who have never built a website before. This makes it perfect for Mac users looking for a cheap option that aren't interested in Weebly's free plan.

Check out our Wix vs Zyro guide to see how these two options compare

Duda – Best for well-rounded, comprehensive websites

If you're a Mac user who is new to website builders, these last few options could work for you – especially Duda.

With a notably easy to use interface that provides plenty of guidance for newbies, Duda walks you through the process to really make ease of use a priority. Plus, with plenty of templates aimed at all kinds of businesses, you won't be burdened by the paradox of choice too much.

Unfortunately, Duda has a few downsides. For one, it's definitely too expensive for the limited features it provides. With monthly prices starting at $14, it's more expensive than other solutions like Wix, SpareSpace, and Weebly, as well as lots of Mac-specific software. For this reason, our research team has given it a dismal score of 1.7/5 for value for money, making the least economical product on our list.

Aside from its poor value, it's particularly lacking internal marketing features, which can help you reach out to new users. On top of that, its support options are limited to its more expensive plans, but that might not be a problem given how easy it is to use the platform.

Jimdo – Best for ease of use

Jimdo is another website builder that makes actually getting your website live incredibly easy.

Thanks to the ADI, you can input a few simple criteria, and the platform will build the website for you, getting you live in just matter of minutes with professional caliber web design. You don't even have to be an expert! With reasonable monthly prices, we've given the provider a decent value for money score of 4.5, too.

Again though, these low tier website builders have some pitfalls and Jimdo is no different. Since 2020 Jimdo's overall score has dropped from 3.7 to 3.5/5, largely because of its lack of blog functionality, marketing tools, and limited SEO features. The website builder scored a 2/5 for overall website features as well, placing it behind other budget solutions like Weebly and Duda.

Simply put, the software will not be adequate for larger companies that need a wide range of functionality. Therefore, stores with more complex requirements are better off choosing more robust solutions like Wix or Squarespace, or Shopify. Still, if you need a website live fast, Jimdo could provide you with the platform you need.

WordPress – Best for blogging and publishing sites

WordPress powers over 500 million websites, so it must be doing something right. It's an ideal platform for running a blog, and while some users complain about its clunky Windows presence, its Mac application seems to run a lot smoother. 

As a website builder for creating professional looking business focused sites, it doesn't quite compete with our favorites, Wix and Squarespace, if only because it cannot offer the same ease of adding extra features that those platforms can.

In fact, we really wouldn't recommend WordPress for anyone that isn't starting a blog. It has almost no scalability for growing businesses, or any kind of marketing features to improve your audience.

The editor itself, however, is fairly intuitive, and has a great “what you see is what you get” approach, so that as you're writing your page, you can see how it will look to your readers. Also, thanks to the huge, active user base, any issues you might come across are usually just a Google away, so if you do come unstuck, it likely won't be for long. And with a help and support score of 2.7/5, you won't be getting much customer support elsewhere.

If you're more of an expert when it comes to website building and you still want to stick with WordPress, WordPress.org provides users with open-source access for free. However, it's worth noting that you're going to need a pretty serious knowledge base to design a website with WordPress.org, as the process can be quite complicated, particularly without any prior experience.

Website Builder vs Mac Website Software

While a web-based website builder is the most popular option, there is also dedicated software available that can do the same job. Software has fewer benefits compared to online services like Wix and Weebly – quite often you'll have to pay more upfront, with potentially expensive licenses, you can only use them on the machine they are installed on, and some may have high requirements that won't pose a problem to newer Macs, but which older models might struggle with. On the other hand, a website service is accessible from any machine, costs a few bucks a month, and guaranteed to run on your device.

The one appeal of dedicated software, is that you are fully in control – as they are not online, you are not relying on another person's service, and you can also use them offline, so they don't require an internet connection. If you're the sort of person who likes total control, then dedicated site building software may appeal.

We take a brief look at some of the most popular options.

Sandvox

Sandbox makes big claims about its accessibility, stating that users will be able to create a website in under an hour. With a drag and drop interface that's not too hard to believe, and those with coding experience can inject their own CSS or HTML to really make their website their own. It also offers in depth guides and on hand customer support should you need it.

RapidWeaver

RapidWeaver doesn't require any prior experience, and it's a decent starting point for newcomers who simply want to create a functioning website. Integrated SEO tools make sure that your site will be spotted by Google and rank well, and there are dozens of themes to choose from. The automatic navigation system means that your site won't suffer broken links.

Verdict: What is the best website builder for Mac?

If you're looking for the best of the best, you cannot go wrong with Wix. Across all operating systems and devices, this easy-to-use, feature-rich website builder is designed for professionals and newbies alike, so you can get a good-looking website launched without a whole lot of hassle. Plus, with a sterling customer score of 4.8/5 and competitive prices, you can't beat the value Wix provides for its users.

Website builders come in all shapes and sizes, particularly when you're an avid Mac user. While all these options can initially sound daunting, hopefully, you now understand that finding the right website builder for you is simply about knowing what you need before making the decision.

Frequently Asked Questions