As a small business owner, do you often feel that you need a website to start marketing your products to online audiences? Of course, having a website helps increase your reach and expand your business. However, only some have the coding and web development skills to go digital and build a website.
Fortunately, even if you don't belong to this group, you can count on free website builder software to do the job for you. Such solutions are a cost-effective way to build websites for your business and help you expand digitally. This article highlights, in alphabetical order, six top-rated free website builder software products based on verified software reviews. Read more.
Products in this article are divided into two groups: Dedicated website builder solutions and all-in-one marketing platforms with website-building functionality. Both types of products offer core website builder features such as pre-built templates and real-time website editing.
1. EventCreate
EventCreate is a dedicated website builder that helps you create websites for events your business hosts. The software offers various event templates you can choose from and start adding content, such as text, videos, and images to your website.
EventCreate does not require coding knowledge and provides a built-in editor to customize your website layout and create different sections within the website. With its free plan, you can create one website, collect registration information for events with a built-in form, and invite up to 100 event attendees.
Free features of interestSEO optimization: Optimizes your website for search engines through keyword research, so your audience can find your website via SERPs.
Payment collection: Accepts credit card payments online and lets you collect money for your products or services.
Social sharing: Lets you create customized URL links for your website and share them on social media.
Customer support: Chat and email
Who should consider EventCreate?
If your business relies on hosting many online and offline events and wants a dedicated website for event management, ticketing, and attendee registration, you can opt for EventCreate. The software also offers functionality to collect payments from attendees.
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
2. Square Online
Square Online is a free website and eCommerce store builder for businesses. The software helps you create an online store and accept and manage customer orders. Square Online offers integration with multiple third-party payment platforms, allowing you to receive payments through your website.
With Square Online, you can sell products online through your website and notify customers via email and text as their orders get prepared and dispatched.
Free features of interestSquare POS synchronization: Synchronizes your website with Square point-of-sale (POS) system and keeps track of customer orders and deliverables.
Fraud controls: Provides insight into payment fraud patterns, such as using stolen credit cards or phishing links, and sets custom rules and alerts to detect and manage such risks.
Multiple payment types: Accepts various payment types, such as credit/debit card payments and third-party payment platforms.
Customer support: Chat, email, and phone support
Who should consider Square Online?
Businesses wishing to build an eCommerce website to sell their products to customers can take advantage of Square Online. The software provides payment integrations, social selling
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
/ Pro Tip
Evaluate the user access limitations with the free website builder software. If you have multiple team members working on website development, it's crucial to check how many users the website builder solution allows with its free plan.
3. Systeme.io
Systeme.io is a marketing platform that also provides website-building functionality. With Systeme.io, you can speed up building websites from scratch by using their drag-and-drop editor and numerous templates.
You can integrate your email lists into the website, and target repeat visitors from your email marketing campaigns. The software also lets you create and add a blog to your website, upload content, and deliver it to your audience via email campaigns.
Free features of interestUnlimited file storage: Lets you add unlimited files to your web pages and expand your website to showcase your products and services to your audience.
Affiliate dashboard: Helps run affiliate programs through a built-in affiliate dashboard to track affiliates, manage commissions and payouts, and publish affiliate program offers on the Systeme.io marketplace.
Custom domain: Provides a custom website domain for your business with its free plan.
Customer support options: Email and helpdesk
Who should consider Systeme.io?
If creating sales funnels through your website and integrating your email marketing campaigns into your website for simplified retargeting is your priority, you should opt for Systeme.io. The software also offers affiliate program creation and management with its free plan to help increase your product reach and exposure.
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
/ Pro tip
Assess the support and resources provided in the free plan of the website builder software. Look for documentation, tutorials, and customer support channels, such as live chat or email. Having access to such resources can be valuable if you encounter any issues or have questions during the website-building process.
4. Vercel
Vercel is a web development platform that helps you build websites and applications. The software supports a range of options to deploy changes made to your website through source code management platforms, such as Git and Vercel command-line interface (CLI). You can also automate the process of updating your website and adding new web pages without disturbing the source code.
Vercel also offers web analytics to create reports showcasing website traffic, time spent, and page views. The software lets website administrators comment directly on components, layouts, and website copy during production to restructure the website UI and make changes.
Free features of interest- DDoS mitigation: Offers robust distributed-denial-of-service (DDoSA distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack is a cybercrime in which the attacker floods a server with internet traffic to prevent users from accessing connected online services and sites.) mitigation to defend your applications and websites against various DDoS attacks by monitoring incoming website traffic to detect signs of DDoS attacks.
Speed insights: Provides website speed insights and data on how real users experience your site after each deployment.
Unlimited deployment previews: Lets you add unlimited previewers who can access and comment on website deployments.
Customer support options: Forums and community support
Who should consider Vercel?
If you want complete control over deployment, website framework, and cloud hosting for your website and applications, you should opt for Vercel. The software uses the Edge Runtime library, which lowers connection latency and reduces response time to make websites run faster.
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
5. WebWave
WebWave is a dedicated drag-and-drop website builder that helps you build product websites and online stores. The web design platform lets you add, reposition, resize, and style elements on a web page. With automatic object snapping, you can align elements with single-pixel accuracy.
The software also helps create a more interactive user experience by letting you add animations and scrollable page elements to your website. You can create unlimited web pages and get 1 GB of cloud storage with WebWave's free plan.
Free features of interestPassword-protected pages: Secures content on your website by allowing only people with a password to view specific pages.
Custom HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (JS): Lets you add custom code snippets and plug-ins to change the look and feel of your website according to your preferences.
Multi-language support: Allows you to launch your website in multiple languages and reach audiences worldwide.
Customer support options: Email and helpdesk
Who should consider WebWave?
Businesses looking for a no-code tool that offers complete control over website customization and appearance can opt for WebWave. The software lets you add custom blocks and layers on any web page and doesn't restrict you to specific templates, allowing you to design your layouts freely.
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
/ Pro tip
Check for integrational support with third-party applications that you already use. If you have a CRM, accounting, or project management platform already in place, it should seamlessly integrate with your website to migrate data and exchange information easily.
6. WordPress
WordPress is a free website builder and content management system that lets you design and create multiple websites with the help of a template library. You can also create custom web pages, which ideally require coding knowledge. WordPress provides various plug-ins and extensions that help maintain your website, optimize it for SEO, and identify bugs and page load errors.
WordPress also helps with DDoS mitigation and provides malware protection with the help of algorithms that catch suspicious requests and block them before they reach your website server. Free features of interestSmart redirects: Automatically send visitors to new page addresses whenever your website updates.
Built-in newsletters and RSS: Sends blog and content updates to subscribers’ mailboxes directly.
Brute-force protection: Prevents brute-force attacks on your website by locking out the website after multiple failed login attempts from any device.
Customer support options: Chat and email support
Who should consider WordPress?
WordPress offers various plug-ins and extensions to customize and create a multipurpose website. The platform is ideal for businesses that need limitless customization and unlimited web pages and user access for their team.
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Cost to upgrade
Device compatibility
Narrow your search for web design companies with our list of companies in the following areas:
What is the cost of upgrading from a free website builder software plan to a paid one?
Upgrading to a paid website builder tool can cost as low as $4 per month or increase to $29+ per month, depending on various factors—number of websites, extensions, payment integrations, and other features. Most website builder software typically includes these subscription plans:
Free trial: No-cost plans, ranging from 14 to 30 days, give users access to all or limited software features.
Free version: Free software plans offer basic features and limited premium feature access, ideal for small businesses or individuals with a limited budget.
Entry-level: Range between $4 to $10 per month and offer limited or unlimited access to web-page building, email integrations, template gallery, custom HTML, CSS, and JS, and other basic features.
Mid-tier: Range between $11 to $25 per month and offer unlimited access to creating and editing web pages, storing data, and no limits on bandwidth.
High-end: Range between $25 to $29+ per month and offer unlimited access to entry and mid-level features with priority customer support.
Hidden costs associated with website builder software
In addition to the software license itself, there may be charges associated with website builder software, including web hosting, transaction fee on payments, integration fees, and website security upgrades, which small businesses should budget for when considering a new tool.
Frequently asked questions when selecting free website builder software
What are the storage and bandwidth limitations of the free plan?
Free plans may restrict storage space, bandwidth, or the number of pages you can create. Understand these limitations and evaluate if they align with your business’s needs and expected traffic.
Can I use a custom domain, or am I limited to a subdomain?
Determine if the website builder allows you to use custom domains. Custom domains help you build your company’s brand and build credibility in the eyes of your audience.
What are the design and customization options available?
Explore the design templates, themes, and customization options offered by the website builder software. Check if they align with your vision and if you can personalize them to reflect your brand and style.