Website makers are good products. So are professionally built websites. The right choice depends on what the site has to do for you — so here's a quick way to decide.
Answer these six questions
1. Does the website need to bring in customers? If it's a personal page, an event or a side project — a builder is fine. If the site is how customers find and choose you, keep reading.
2. Will people find you through Google? If search matters, speed, clean markup and structured data matter too. Builders handle the basics; a custom site gives you full control.
3. How much is your time worth? Designing, writing and maintaining a site takes many hours a year. If those hours are better spent on paying work, outsource it.
4. Do you need to look different from competitors? Builder templates are popular — which means many businesses in your industry use the same ones.
5. Do you want to own the site? Builder sites can't leave the platform. A custom site lives in accounts with your name on them.
6. What's your budget over three years, not three months? Add up the subscription, paid apps and your time, then compare with a one-off build.
How to read your answers
- Mostly "no" or "not really": use a website builder. Seriously — it's the efficient choice.
- Yes to 1 and 2: you need a site built to rank and convert. Our Basic package (from $499) is designed for exactly this.
- Yes to 4 and 5 as well: you'll get the most from a custom-designed site with motion and a CMS — see a Premium build live.
Still not sure?
Read the full website builder vs web designer comparison, or put your requirements into the cost calculator for an instant estimate.