Every business at some point would need a website to improve its online presence. Most of the time, this is an investment that many businesses cannot afford at the initial stage since they don’t have the kind of budget. Besides, building a website using Content Management Systems (CMS) like WordPress requires employing the services of top hosting services where there is no free service. Here is where free website builders come in.
Free website builders offer some of their best services at no charge to users who are low on budget. This will help them get their website up and running, risk-free. So when they want more advanced features, they can upgrade to a plan that has them.
In this article, we will look at the best free website builders in the industry in 2024, who are generous enough to offer great services at no charge. This list will include the top options in terms of ease of use, features, design flexibility, etc.
Top 5 best Free Website Builders:
5 Best Free Website Builders in 2024 – Detailed Overview
During our search for the best site creators with free plans, we discovered so many tools. However, after our tests of the free version of these tools, only these 5 met our expectations to some extent.
1. Wix
Wix is the best free website builder to use in 2024. It is a drag-and-drop creator that makes building a site as easy as pie for beginners and experts.
Wix gives you total control over the design of your website and there are so many features for you to enjoy even on the free plan. Some of the notable features of the free plan are 500 MB each for storage and bandwidth, free website templates, and access to the App Market.
Why We Picked Wix
Wix passed our tests of the best website builders for 2024 with flying colors. This website builder really surpasses all other options due to the superiority of the features you can enjoy on its free plan forever. So, let us discuss some of the reasons it is our favorite free site creator.
Customizable Site URL
Like other top free website builders, Wix does not allow the use of custom domain names on the free plan. Instead, you will be given a URL that will serve as a subdomain of the “.wixsite.com” domain.
Generally, you will get a main subdomain URL that will serve as the base domain for every website you build. e.g. “01net.wixsite.com”. This could be your brand’s name. Every other website you build on your Wix account will then have the URL format “01net.wixsite.com/firstsite/” with only the last part changing.
Unlike other best free website builders, Wix allows you to customize and change the last part of the URL of your site. Hence, you will be able to personalize and totally control your site’s URL at any time.
Free Access to Most Features at No Hidden Cost
Another reason why Wix is our favorite free website builder for 2024 is that despite the fact that no money is involved, you will have access to many features for free.
Wix has a very elaborate blogging tool with a lot of advanced features. Some of these features are blog post templates, rich text editor, blog import tool, comments, tags, etc. Our findings have revealed that Wix does not limit what you can do with this tool. In fact, you can run a blog with unlimited posts for years on the Wix free plan without issues.
Further, Wix has a powerful SEO tool that you can access even on the free plan. So, no matter the kind of website you want to build, you will be able to optimize it for search engines without any restrictions or hidden charges.
Similarly, Wix’s multilingual feature which allows you to create different language versions of your website is available on the free plan with no restriction. Hence, in spite of not paying any money, you can create a big site that serves multiple countries in their local languages.
Ease of Use & Design Flexibility
Wix has one of the best website builders today. This editor is a drag and drop tool and it is well-equipped so that almost everything you need in a website builder is available. It has premade sections and elements, AI tools, and an interface that makes both building and managing your site quite straightforward.
On the free plan, Wix does not limit what you can access on the editor. Instead, you will be able to use all the features and controls to build any kind of website you want.
Create Unlimited Websites
Many of the top builders in 2024 limit the number of websites you can create or publish on the free plan but that is not the case with Wix. Wix lets you create unlimited websites on the free plan and even publish them for the public to see.
Some Drawbacks of Wix
Having discussed a few reasons that make Wix the best free website builder, let us see what we don’t like about it.
Low Storage Space and Bandwidth
As mentioned earlier, Wix gives only 500 MB each for storage space and bandwidth on a free plan. This means that without a premium plan, your site will have to manage the 500 MB storage space for life.
Hence, it won’t be possible to host a lot of media content on your Wix website. Similarly, you cannot use more than 500 MB monthly bandwidth on your site. So, if your traffic increases due to SEO success or any other marketing strategy, you will have to upgrade your website to continue to receive visitors.
Cannot Sell Online
Another restriction to note about the Wix free plan is that you won’t be able to sell your products online on it. Truly, Wix allows you to access all the eCommerce features when customizing your website. You will even be able to set up the payment methods you want. However, you won’t be able to accept payments on the front end of your site.
Visible Ads
On the free plan, just like other website builders, Wix puts ads on your website that visitors can see clearly when they navigate your pages. Wix has this type of ad on the top of your page, floating, and also a footer credit for the same purpose.
2. Site123
Site123 is one of the simplest website builders you can use in 2024.
It is not a typical drag-and-drop builder but it works on a What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) model.
Site123 uses a point-and-click editor which means it has a button at certain parts of a page and any section you choose drops there.
From our experience, it chooses a website template for you using Artificial Design Intelligence (ADI) and personalizes it based on the information you provide. It also has several premade sections that you can just add to your pages and customize.
Conclusively, Site123 is one of the best free creators to use to build a site extremely fast but it lacks design flexibility and advanced customization options. Find out more in our Site123 review for 2024.
Why We Picked Site123
There are a few reasons why Site123 made it to our list of the favorite free site builders for 2024.
It is Very Cheap to Upgrade
Site123 is one of the most affordable website builders in the industry.
Depending on what you need the website builder for, you can get a premium plan with some added features like storage space, bandwidth, the use of a custom domain name, and a free domain name for one year for as low as $1 per month. Hence, if you ever exhaust any of the free features, it is very affordable to increase their limits.
Can Sell on the Free Plan
One of the main features that make Site123 a top website builder is its approach to eCommerce functionalities for free users.
Site123 allows you to build a functional eCommerce website for free. You will have access to most of its features including inventory management, sales statistics, product listing, sales tax, customer management, shipping, branding, catalog, etc. However, features like coupons, multi-currency, back-in-store, etc., are not available.
Yet, unlike top free website builders like Wix and Jimdo, Site123 does not prevent you from selling on your online store.
The site creator does not let you connect online payment methods like PayPal, Stripe, etc., but offline methods are acceptable. Hence, you can sell your products and get paid offline without any subscription fee to Site123. It won’t charge a transaction fee or any hidden fee either even though its eCommerce app is totally available for your use.
The Blogging Tool is Fully Functional
Another feature that makes Site123 one of the best free site creators is that you can blog without any restrictions.
Site123 lets you create a blog with access to features like comments, AI texts, categories, tags, related articles (posts), a rich text editor, and social share buttons. You can even give custom labels to several parts of your blogs to create a brand language.
Customer Support is Excellent
Even though you are on the free plan, our research has revealed that Site123 will still provide customer support whenever you have issues. It is a live chat channel and you can access it via the “Need Help ?” button floating at the bottom right corner any time. The creator provides support in several languages as well.
Some Drawbacks of Site123
Here are some of the reasons the free version of Site123 may not be a good choice;
Terrible Space Offering
Site123 offers only 250 MB each for bandwidth and storage space. This is a lot worse than Wix or Jimdo provides and it is not enough for a website in the long run. Hence, you cannot have a lot of media hosted on your Site123 website and it is not ideal if you have a lot of visitors either. You may be pressured to get a paid plan as a result.
The Free Site URL is Immemorable
One of the reasons why Site123 may not be the ideal favorite website creator to use for free in 2024 is that it gives a ridiculous URL.
When you create a website on Site123, the URL is generated automatically and you can not edit it. Unlike other top free site creators like Wix, Site123 does not use the name of your site to create the URL for you.
Instead, it uses random numbers.
Cannot Use Third-Party Apps
When designing your pages, you cannot add any third-party tool from Site123’s App Market on the free plan. Using any of these tools requires at least the Professional plan which costs about $9 per month on a yearly subscription.
3. Weebly
Weebly is also a top free site creator for beginners and experts in 2024.
The builder is suitable for creating any type of website and it excels building in online stores. This is mostly because, like Wix, it has built-in eCommerce features so there is no need for any third-party tool.
Weebly offers an easy way for individuals, especially novices with no coding knowledge to build sites using a drag-and-drop editor. You can learn more in our analysis of Weebly services for 2024.
Why We Picked Weebly
We chose Weebly as one of our favorite free site builders in 2024 for so many reasons. Here are some of the reasons that stand out.
Sell Online
Unlike many best free website builders, Weebly allows you to sell on your online store on its free plan.
While this may sound too good to be true, you will have access to the majority of the eCommerce features that the website builder has. In fact, the restricted ones are not so important for you to run a standard website.
Weebly lets you list and sell unlimited products for as long as you want. However, you cannot sell digital goods. At the same time, you will be able to connect Square and Stripe as payment methods for your site but not PayPal. Ridiculously, using PayPal requires at least the Performance plan of about $26 per month.
Customizable Site URL
Another reason to consider Weebly as your favorite free website builder is that it provides a good and memorable URL.
Since it won’t let you use a custom domain name unless you have a paid plan, it gives a free subdomain instead. This subdomain is created on the “.weebly.com” base and it is quite memorable.
Besides, if you later discover that you don’t like the name, Weebly allows you to change it without a fuss.
SEO and Blogging
According to our findings, while reviewing Weebly’s services, the website builder has great tools for blogging and SEO. The blogging tool, for instance, is equipped with features like post sidebars, a drag and drop post editor, custom code injection, post-sharing buttons, a commenting system, and spam protection.
In fact, you can make money from your blog by connecting Google Adsense on the free plan at no extra or hidden cost. Similarly, all the SEO tools available on Weebly are included in the free plan. Some of them include Google site verification, sitemap.xml, robots.txt, 301 redirection, SEO title tags, meta descriptions, and keywords.
Customer Support and Seller Community
Unlike some of the best website builders that do not provide customer support on their free plan, Weebly offers 24/7 assistance to everyone.
You can connect with the Weebly support team via emails, live chats, and phone calls but only the first two channels are available to free users. While the customer support at Weebly is not very encouraging, at least it provides assistance without charging anything.
Moreover, you can also access the seller community where you will meet with fellow Weebly users. Here, you can ask questions on issues you may be facing on your website and the community will try to assist you from experience. Most times, their replies can be very fast since it is very active.
Some Drawbacks of Weebly
The main setback with choosing Weebly as your favorite free website builder in 2024 is the unavailability of certain features without a paid plan.
Yet, in our opinion, the only noteworthy feature that the website builder restricts on its free plan is the ability to use a custom domain. So, let us look at some general features that need improvement on Weebly.
Cannot Customize the Footer Section
Weebly’s advertising on the free plan is not exactly intrusive and annoying. It is just a ribbon at the left bottom corner of the page that says “Powered by Weebly” and only pops out when the cursor is on it.
However, because this represents your footer which is in a sticky position, Weebly does not allow you to customize the section in order to prevent removal. Hence, you will not have a personalized footer at all.
Not Mobile Responsive
One major reason to consider a Weebly alternative for your website is that the builder is not mobile-friendly even though it claims to be.
Weebly’s pages are always distorted on mobile devices according to our experience and this affects your SEO performance. Despite not being mobile responsive naturally, Weebly does not allow the customization of the mobile version of your website. This affects every user and not only those using the free version.
It is Filled with Old Themes
Another Weebly shortcoming that affects both free and paid users is the poor approach of the site creator in terms of themes. Weebly has less than 100 themes, while competitors like Wix have over 800 templates. These themes have unappealing designs that will make your website look very outdated.
As a result, Weebly won’t be a good choice if you need a website that looks stylish even on a paid plan. See our latest Wix vs Weebly comparison.
4. GoDaddy Website Builder
The GoDaddy website builder is also one of the best free tools you can use to create a site quickly in 2024. It provides a straightforward to get your website online in minutes.
In spite of being an easy-to-use site builder, GoDaddy has a great focus on marketing and creatives. This can be noticed in its many available tools for improvement in these areas. Aside from that, GoDaddy is a great option for any individual who needs to create a fully functional eCommerce website.
Learn more in our full review of the GoDaddy website builder in 2024.
Why We Picked GoDaddy
The GoDaddy website builder is generally a terrific tool for site creation. Now, let us see what makes it stand out as a top free website builder.
Memorable URL Allocation
The GoDaddy builder allows you to use a customizable URL for your website in order to showcase your brand name even on the free plan. Like other free site creators, you won’t be able to connect a custom domain name but GoDaddy provides a subdomain with “.godaddysites.com” as the base.
The URL is determined by the name of your site during the creation and you cannot change it. Any URL you get under this main domain will be yours forever unless you delete it.
Ease-to-Use Builder
Even on the free plan, GoDaddy allows you to use its beginner-friendly site editor without any restrictions.
The editor works in a very simple manner that allows you to create a website quite fast. It has premade sections for everything you may need to add to your website and all you have to do is choose your preferred layouts and place them where you want without any stress.
Managing some of the other settings from the editor and switching pages to design is also quite straightforward.
GoDaddy Studio
Another reason to use GoDaddy as your favorite free site builder is the availability of the Studio.
Despite being on the free plan, the builder allows you to access the GoDaddy Studio. This is the hub for content creation on GoDaddy and it lets you create logos, flyers, posters, cards, videos, etc. It is also perfect for creating social posts and ads mainly because it has several templates with the correct sizes already.
Moreover, the GoDaddy Studio has a background remover and libraries for fonts and several graphics. Besides, if you prefer to use the GoDaddy Studio on your mobile devices, you can download the app from the Play Store for Android and the App Store for iOS (iPhone & iPad).
Booking and Appointments
The GoDaddy website builder also has a booking and appointment feature which is great for businesses that only sell services like courses, classes, consultations, etc.
GoDaddy’s appointment tool is very elaborate in the sense that it has a lot of features that make it a complete solution. It integrates perfectly with other third-party tools as well.
This tool allows you to accept bookings and make appointments in three ways. It can be as a regular appointment like consultation, one-time events like webinars, and repeating events like training or classes.
The one you choose determines the features you can customize and only the first one is available on the free plan. Further, you will not be able to access the supporting apps and the online payment settings. However, the GoDaddy website creator still lets you accept bookings and get paid offline.
Some Drawbacks of GoDaddy
Here are some of the issues you may face on the free plan of GoDaddy website builder;
Cannot Sell Online
The GoDaddy website builder is very restrictive when it comes to creating online stores.
While the website builder allows access to some parts of the eCommerce app, you will not be able to customize the store correctly. There is always this annoying pop-up that lets you know you need to upgrade your account before you can access some settings.
You cannot set up online payments either on the free plan. Morosely, unlike the Appointment feature that allows offline payments, this is not possible for online selling.
Restricted SEO and Terrible Blogging Platform
Whether on a paid or a free plan, GoDaddy’s SEO and blogging are nothing to write home about. They are quite terrible and the site creator needs to improve them in order to compete with competitors like Wix and the Hostinger Website Builder.
The main issue with the blogging tool is the lack of necessary features. For instance, it lacks a rich editor and a commenting system. Similarly, the SEO tool seems great at first because it has some good features but the setup is a chore.
From our understanding after trying it, you need to redo the setup for your existing pages and posts every time you create new ones. This is because individual posts and pages do not have their own SEO settings. So, you have to go through the setup process again. On the free plan, the SEO tool is not even available at all.
See how Wix compares with GoDaddy in 2024.
5. Jimdo
Jimdo is one of the best free website creators in 2024. The website builder is an easy-to-use tool that allows users to design pages in different ways.
Jimdo has two website editors and it offers both of them to users on the free plan as well.
One of them is for total beginners who want an easy way to get a website up and running fast while the other one gives more flexibility and optimization options. Hence, it is an all-around builder that makes creating any type of website possible and of course straightforward.
Why We Picked Jimdo
During our review of Jimdo, we tested the free plan and the included flexibilities. After this, we decided that it is one of the best website builders one can use free of charge. Now, let us see why.
Access to the Builder with No Restrictions
Our findings revealed that irrespective of the editor (Jimdo Creator or Dolphin) that you choose, the website builder does not restrict your access to any of the design elements.
The Jimdo Dolphin editor is a perfect choice for beginners who want to get a website created for them via the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) quickly. It does not require any effort. All you have to do is choose your preferred design from what the AI delivers and arrange the blocks however you want.
Jimdo Creator, on the other hand, is mostly a point-and-click tool with a touch of drag and drop. This lets you create any kind of site you want. Although, while it is possible to create any type of website, some elements may not work in the live version of your site if they aren’t available on the free plan.
Customizable and Readable Link
Another reason to choose Jimdo as your favorite free builder is that your website will have a readable URL.
Jimdo generally provides two types of site URLs. It will be a subdomain of the domain “.jimdosite.com” if you choose the Jimdo Dolphin (AI) option. Similarly, it will be a subdomain of “.jimdofree.com” when you pick the Jimdo Creator. Either way, it allows you to pick your preferred subdomain.
Mobile Optimized
Jimdo, according to our observations, is a mobile-friendly site builder.
Even on the free plan, your web pages will display correctly on smaller screens without issues like distortion. Although, it is not possible to edit the mobile version of your website.
Some Drawbacks of Jimdo
Now, let us discuss some of the setbacks with the Jimdo free plan.
Limited Website Pages
One of the major restrictions of the free plan at Jimdo is the number of pages you can have on your website. Jimdo puts a limit of five on the number of pages you can create and this includes the home page.
It, however, does not include other automated and dynamic pages like Checkout, Terms and Conditions, etc.
No SEO Tools and Statistics
Jimdo has an SEO tool called rankingCoach and it guides you in optimizing your website for search engines. Similarly, it has an elaborate analytics app.
This app provides insights into your site through consolidated traffic information and graphs for comprehensiveness. However, they are not available on the free plan.
No Selling
Unlike Wix, you won’t even get the chance to finish setting up your eCommerce website on Jimdo before it restricts your access.
You can add products and set up payment processors. Yet, your product listings will automatically be out of stock and you cannot manage your inventory.
Limited Bandwidth and Storage
With Jimdo, you will get 2 GB of bandwidth per website every month. While this is very small as your website grows, it is better than Wix’s offer, at least. Yet, your storage space is only 500 MB. The upside, however, is that with only about $9 per month, you can get a premium plan with 10 GB monthly bandwidth and 5 GB of storage space.
No Customer Support
Of all the best free website builders we tested in 2024, Jimdo has the worst customer support even on the premium plans.
From our experience, there is no way to contact the Jimdo team for support if there is ever any issue with your site.
Use Jimdo to Create a Website Risk-Free
How to Choose the Right Free Website Builder for You
Choosing website builders does not follow the one-size-fits-all approach simply because of different business needs. What is good for business A, is not always good for business B here. So, let us see some of the factors that can help you determine the right one for your business.
Ease Of Use
Well, every individual wants to use a builder that makes it very easy to create a website even without any coding or design skills.
While most builders follow the What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) model, they don’t have the same level of simplicity. Hence, our expert advice is that you should try out these services before making the decision of which one to choose.
Since most of these website builders have credit-card-free trials and unlimited free plans, there is nothing to worry about. Besides, some that take your money first have favorable money-back guarantees in case you are not satisfied.
Customization Power or Options
When choosing the right website builder for your business, thinking of the features and the design you want is crucial.
Many website builders have simplified site creation so much that there is no design flexibility at all. All you have to do is arrange the limited options they provide for you on the pages the way you like. While this may good, it makes achieving your dream website design impossible.
Nonetheless, many other site creators give you total control over how your designs look despite providing templates. The availability of custom code and third-party tools is something you should look out for as well.
Help and Support
No matter how much of an expert you are, there are many times that you will need the assistance of a support agent to help you navigate a product.
Besides, if you are a complete beginner and your chosen product has a bit of a learning curve, the availability of good support is paramount. The support can be in human form or in other ways like tutorial videos, helpful courses, and how-to articles. Hence, always ensure that you check out the ones provided by the site builder and know if you can cope with them or not.
Purpose of Your Business
One of the most important factors that you need to consider when choosing a free website builder in 2024 is the purpose of your business.
Many website builders provide almost all the features that businesses need but not at the same quality. A website builder that provides great blogging tools may be bad for online stores and vice versa. Some can even be substandard in both areas.
Since the focus of this article is on choosing a free website builder and most of them limit these features, it is always best to ensure that the functionalities you need are not restricted. But more importantly, ensuring the creator has them at all is the first thing.
Pricing (Cost of Upgrade)
Even though we are discussing the best site builders you can use for free in 2024, choosing an affordable one is still very important. While it is possible to use a website builder for free for a long time, it is not always ideal for a business that aims to grow since the features are mostly limited. So when it is time to upgrade, you don’t want to be in a situation where the subscription fee is too high to pay.
Bottom Line: Which is the Best Free Website Builder?
Wix is our overall favorite site creator for many users looking for a free option for their business or blog.
It is a drag-and-drop builder with designer-made templates, terrific blogging and SEO tools, ADI, powerful eCommerce functionalities, etc. It is easily customizable and can be used to build any type of website.
FAQs on the Top Free Website Builders
Which Free Website Builder is the Easiest?
Wix is the easiest free website builder you can use despite its high design flexibility and customization options. The website builder has a lot of templates that can speed up your creation process.
Besides, the editor is so intuitive that you don’t have to go through so many links to see the features or controls you need during site creation. It also has helpful guides built into your editor with detailed information regarding every element or section. Weebly and GoDaddy are quite easy to use as well.
Do Free Website Builders Give Free Domain Names?
Yes, most if not every website builder gives a free domain name on their free plan. However, you should note that the free domain names are always subdomains of the website builders’ designated domain.
For instance, the designated domain name for free websites on Wix is “wixsite.com”. It is “godaddysites.com” for GoDaddy and “weebly.com” for Weebly. You need to purchase a paid plan in order to get a free custom domain name like “example.com” rather than a subdomain of another site.
Which is the Best Free Website Builder for eCommerce?
Weebly is the best website builder you can use to build an eCommerce website free of charge. Despite not charging a dime, it allows you to sell unlimited products and connect payment gateways like Square and Stripe for online payments.
While you have to pay processing fees for these payment gateways, there is no extra charge imposed on free users. Another creator that supports online selling is Site123 but only offline payment methods are allowed.
Which is the Best Free Website Builder for Blogging?
Wix is our favorite free site creator when it comes to blogging. This website builder has one of the best and most complete blogging tools in the industry. Besides, it has a powerful SEO tool integrated into the blogging app.
This lets you optimize your posts and pages with both basic and advanced SEO settings. Yet, it does not limit access to any of them on the free plan. Hence, it is our number one recommendation for bloggers looking for a free and complete blogging tool.
Wix
