Squarespace is the best website builder for beginners. The platform is easy-to-use, sleek, highly customizable, and boasts robust functionality.
We spent hours researching and testing 16 different website builders, evaluating features, ease of use, pricing, and advanced functionality, such as ecommerce.
We concluded that Squarespace is a top-tier AI website builder that excels at creating a site in seconds.
Why Trust Us? Our Research Methodology
After conducting an initial exploration to identify the most relevant, popular, and established tools in the market, we put them through their paces with hands-on testing to see their real strengths and weaknesses. In this case, our research consisted of:
- 16 website builder products
- 200 hours
- 398 areas of investigation
- Six core categories of investigation
- 33 subcategories
At Tech.co, we have a number of full-time in-house researchers, who re-run this testing process regularly, to ensure our results remain reflective of the present day.
What Are the Best Website Builders for Beginners?
| Price | Special deal | Free plan | Free trial | Best for | Pros | Cons | Beginner's features | SEO | Design editor | App store Is there an app store available to utilize third-party integrations? | Autosave | Templates How many templates are available? | Full review | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FEATURED PROVIDER  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||
| Hostinger | Squarespace | GoDaddy | Wix | Shopify | |||||||||||
| $11.99/month | $16/month | $9.99/month | $17/month | $5/month | |||||||||||
| $2.99/month + 3 months free | $14.40/month with code TC10 | Save 54% with annual contract | $15.84/month with code TAKE10 | $1/month for first 3 months | |||||||||||
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| 30-day money-back guarantee | 14-day free trial | 7-day free trial | 14-day free trial | 3-day free trial | |||||||||||
| Affordable AI features | Creative businesses | Setting up quickly | All-round website management | Large ecommerce businesses | |||||||||||
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| Average | Great | Basic | Great | Good | |||||||||||
| Drag-and-drop | Smart grid | Section-based | Drag-and-drop | Section-based | |||||||||||
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| 300+ | 180+ | 200+ | 2,000+ | 900+ | |||||||||||
| Hostinger Review | Full Review | GoDaddy Review | Wix Review | Shopify Review |
Key Takeaways
- Best: Squarespace is the best website builder for beginners due to its user-friendly interface, smooth backend, and well-designed templates that you can edit after publishing your site.
- Budget: Hostinger is the best choice for budget-conscious customers, with plans that can start at just $1.99 per month for a four-year contract.
- Overall: Wix is our favorite website builder overall, but its rich feature set can be a little overwhelming for first-time users.
- Ecommerce: Shopify is ideal for users building an online store, but it can be a little bit intimidating because of the sheer breadth of functionality.
- Quick setup: GoDaddy and its Airo platform provide the fastest setup process across all of our website builder research.
Best Website Builder for Beginners Reviews
- Squarespace — Easiest website builder for beginners
- Hostinger — Cheapest website builder for beginners
- GoDaddy — Quickest setup
- Wix — Most advanced website builder for beginners
- Shopify — Best for beginners looking to sell online
1. Squarespace: Easiest Website Builder For Beginners
- Price: $16 per month
Squarespace is the easiest website builder for beginners, because of its simple, easy-to-navigate interface which made it straightforward for us to perform basic website builder functions, such as editing color schemes, adding text, and more.
Why is Squarespace good for beginners?
- Simple, visual drag-and-drop editor
- Built-in marketing and ecommerce features eliminate need for plug-ins
- Blueprint AI, Squarespace’s flagship AI website builder
Squarespace offers some of the most professional, beautiful templates we’ve come across. Source: Tech.co testing
Expert Analysis: Squarespace Is Best for Beginners
As someone that has done hands-on research with a wide range of website builder and a person that has created a website with Squarespace for personal use, I can confidently say that it’s a top choice for beginners.
The stunning templates make designing your site easy, the smart grid provides easy tips for how to get started, and the AI features make generating content easier than other options on the market.
Conor is the lead writer for Tech.co, as well as a Squarespace website builder user for his personal comedy website.
Pros
- Easiest website builder to use across our research
- Plenty of content-focused features for blogging
- Integrates with Acuity for booking and appointments
Cons
- Limited language support for international businesses
- AI site builder creates fairly generic output
- No autosave feature for website editor
- Basic: $16/month
- Core: $23/month
- Plus: $39/month
- Advanced: $99/month
- 10% off with code TC10
- 14-day free trial
2. Hostinger: Cheapest Website Builder for Beginners
- Price: $2.99/month (+3 months for free) with 48-month contract (reverts to $11.99/month after that)
Hostinger is the cheapest website builder on our list. New users can get started for just $2.99 per month, with 3 months for free, when they sign up for a 48-month contract.
Why is Hostinger good for beginners?
- Rock-bottom entry price
- 24/7 support
- Generate a site in 60 seconds in 3 steps
Hostinger’s AI website generator created this online store in a few minutes. Source: Tech.co testing
Pros
- AI generated site in three steps (60 seconds)
- Built-in heatmap for advanced site analytics
- Language translations capabilities
Cons
- No app market for third-party integrations
- No email marketing in any paid plans
- No free trial or free plan for users
- Premium: $2.99/month
- Business: $3.99/month
3. GoDaddy: Quickest Setup
- Price: $9.99/month
GoDaddy is the best website builder for beginners who want to get set up quickly, because of its simple setup process and AI website builder that will generate a site for you in 30 seconds.
Why is GoDaddy good for beginners?
- Streamlined backend editor
- Easily switch between desktop and mobile view
- Regenerate page an unlimited number of times
GoDaddy displays an in-situ preview next to an editing column. Source: Tech.co testing
My experience with GoDaddy
To research this article, I tested GoDaddy out for myself. I was amazed with how quickly the platform was able to generate a site — it took just 30 seconds.
I was also really impressed by how simple the backend was. Unlike Wix, which can be daunting for first-time users, GoDaddy adopts a minimalist approach.
There’s an navigation column on the right-hand side of the screen and an in-situ preview of your site on the left. Editing options are divided into “website,” “theme,” “store,” and “settings,” and you can customize it with your own shortcuts.
While the results are pretty basic — especially when compared with Squarespace — GoDaddy is a great tool for getting a site online quickly.
Gus is the senior writer and website builder expert here at Tech.co.
Pros
- AI generated websites in two steps (30 seconds)
- 24/7 phone support available for all plans
- Free forever plan can publish site
Cons
- No mobile website editor to modify pages on the go
- Overly generic website design with fewer templates than other builders
- No app market to branch out functionality across your site
- Basic: $9.99/month
- Premium: $14.99/month
- Commerce: $20.99/month
4. Wix: Most Advanced Website Builder for Beginners
- Price: $17 per month
Wix is the most advanced website builder on this list, mostly because of comprehensive set of features and top-of-the-line AI tools.
Why is Wix good for beginners?
- Generous free plan
- Over 900 available website templates
- Comprehensive feature catalog, so you can gain exposure to different parts of website building
A sample of Wix’s 900+ available website templates. Source: Tech.co testing
Pros
- Unrivaled selection of website features across design, sales, and support
- AI features can create a site in 60 seconds
- Quality free forever plan available
Cons
- No template switching once published
- Number of features can be overwhelming for some beginners
- Steep price increase for scaling businesses
- Light: $17/month
- Core: $29/month
- Business: $39/month
- Business Elite: $159/month
- 10% off any plan with code TAKE10
- 14-day free trial available
5. Shopify: Best for Beginners Looking to Sell Online
- Price: $5/month
Shopify is the best website builder for beginners looking to sell online, due to its robust features for building an online store. Standout examples include built-in inventory management and the ability to list unlimited products.
Why is Shopify good for beginners?
- Integrated checkout and payment processing, so you don’t need to install third-party apps
- Sell on social media for just $5 per month with the Starter plan
- Shopify Academy courses included on Basic plan ($29/month) and above
The Shopify AI store builder takes a natural language prompt and creates an online store for you in seconds. Source: Tech.co testing
Pros
- Add unlimited products with your own CSV
- Customizable member areas
- Intuitive product-adding experience for beginners
- AI site builder can have you live in seconds
Cons
- Monthly fees for POS system integration
- Scheduling and booking requires add-on
- No tutorials for setup, so tough for beginners
- Limited SEO settings available
- Starter plan: $5/month
- Basic plan: $29/month
- Grow plan: $79/month
- Advanced plan: $299/month
- Plus plan: $2,300/month
Methodology: How We Tested Website Builders
We take our impartial research and analysis seriously, so you can have complete confidence that we’re giving you the clearest, most useful product recommendations. Our main testing categories for website builders are:
- Website features: The capabilities and functionalities offered by a website builder, e.g. blog functionality, SEO capability, and marketing capacity.
- Design functionality: The aesthetic appeal and visual layout of a website created using a website builder. It encompasses aspects such as page templates and customizable themes.
- Customer satisfaction: External customer opinion. This is the feedback and ratings given by customers who have used a particular website builder — the market position and reputation a website builder holds.
- User experience: How user-friendly and intuitive a website builder is for people with varying levels of technical expertise.
- Value for money: The balance between the cost of a website builder and the benefits it provides. It considers factors such as pricing plans, subscription models, and available features.
- Help and support: The assistance and resources available to users when they encounter issues or need guidance while using a website builder.
When it comes to calculating a product’s final score, not all testing areas are weighted evenly, as we know some aspects matter more to our readers than others, which are simply “nice to have”. After hundreds of hours, our process is complete, and the results should ensure you can find the best solution for your needs.
Verdict: What's the Best Website Builder for Beginners?
If you’re building a site for the first time, we’d recommend using Squarespace. Not only does it boast the best user experience out of any platform on this list, but it also offers the best templates and design features, making it a perfect match for users building creative sites for the first time.
It also offers an AI builder that can get your site live quickly and easily, while still maintaining a lot of control over your design.
If you want more control over your site, WordPress might be a better option. But this does involve a steeper learning curve and more time managing your website in general.
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