In the digital age having an online presence is vital for anyone running a business. Hosting a website can be easy and affordable for bloggers as well as small and large businesses alike. However, if you have no prior experience with coding and web development then you may struggle to build an entire website on your own. Sure, you can hire someone to build one for you, but that can drastically increase your overall costs as well as consuming more valuable time.
But don’t worry, as website builders are designed to help users of any technical level create a fully customized website with little to no hassle. With a website builder, you’re provided with templates that can be easily customized using a drag-and-drop editor to create a completely unique website that is packed full of features. If you’re a smaller blog then you can add contact details, social media buttons, and SEO-optimized content. Alternatively, if you’re interested in an eCommerce store, then you can include features such as payment options, shipping rates, pricing lists, reviews, and discount/coupon code generators. Whatever your website’s function is, you’ll benefit from the many user-friendly features that website builders provide.
If you’re interested in using a website builder anyway, then it’s a good idea to opt for a web host that has a built-in website builder that’s either included in hosting plans or available as an added feature. We’ve put together a list of our top recommended web hosts with the best built-in website builders in 2023 so that you can choose one suitable for your website.
Research has estimated that web designers have approximately 50 milliseconds to make a good first impression. For a good first impression, you need to make sure that your website is eye-catching, readable, and functional.
What is a built-in website builder?
A website builder is an online tool or application that allows anyone to create a website, even those with no prior technical knowledge. Website builders are designed to let you quickly and easily build a website from scratch using a simplified interface and user-friendly features. Many website builders are equipped with templates and intelligent AI that help speed up the process, so you can put together a functional website in just a few minutes.
The best part is that you don’t need to have any coding or website design experience whatsoever. Website builders typically utilize a drag-and-drop editor which allows you to drag and drop elements directly into a page to get a real-time preview. This means that you’ll know exactly how your web page will look to visitors once it’s published. Additionally, many website builders also have a mobile preview option that lets you see how your site would look on a mobile device and lets you make any changes if needed. Since over 92% of users access the internet via mobile devices, it’s imperative that your website is optimized for mobile devices.
Website builders often come packed with additional features that you and your website can benefit from. For example, a website builder may come with SEO tools that help you optimize your site for search engines. Overall, website builders are interactive and intuitive tools that help you save time when creating a website and allows users of all levels of expertise to build a unique and fully customizable website.
Our top recommended web hosts with the best built-in website builders
We’ve researched the top best built-in website builders from reputable web hosts to help you find the most suitable one for your website. This selection of web hosts has been refined based on their pricing, features, and user experience. Alternatively, you can take a look at the cheapest, fastest, and greenest web hosting providers in 2023!
HostGator
HostGator is a highly popular web host that is packed with tons of helpful tools, including a built-in site builder known as the Gator Website Builder. This tool is fast, intuitive, and suitable for all types of users. Whether you’re a beginner who wants to build their website, or if you’re a larger business that is interested in creating an eCommerce store. The Gator Website Builder offers plenty of customization in an easy-to-use format that makes building any sort of website a breeze.
When creating a website with Hostgator’s website builder, you get the choice between the Express and Traditional builder. The traditional option uses the well-known drag-and-drop editor that allows you to quickly switch between various design elements. You start the process by choosing from over 200 customizable templates and then you’re taken to the editor. Here you can easily manage pages, edit sections, and add various elements such as buttons, files, live feeds, maps, shapes, images, videos, and text. This website builder also has a mobile editor that helps you to make your website mobile-friendly.
With the express option, after you input the general category of what your website is about, for example, ‘Technology’, then the intelligent AI will begin crafting the site for you. You can start editing the structure that the AI has created for you by selecting a cover image, uploading a logo (using the included logo maker tool), and choosing a suitable font. You can also pick a theme/colour combination before beginning to add content and additional pages to your website. With just a few simple clicks using Hostgator’s express website builder, you already have a beautiful and functional site.
Hostgator’s website builder has Google analytics integration built-in, meaning that you can track your site’s statistics directly through the editor after it has been published. Additionally, if you opt for the Business plan then you can benefit from the many eCommerce features included in this website builder. You’re able to easily manage and sell products by setting up a payment method, adding products, selecting a shipping rate, configuring shipment costs through weight, enabling coupons, toggling tax calculations, and tracking stock.
All available plans come with free hosting, SEO tools, unmetered bandwidth, free domain name registration, an SSL certificate, PayPal integration, and 24/7 customer support. Alternatively, you can check out Hostgator’s blog for any tips and tutorials or head to their YouTube channel for detailed video tutorials. If you’re completely new to website building, then you can follow along with the ‘How to Use the Gator Website Builder’ video walkthrough.
Bluehost
Bluehost is a renowned web host that has hosted over 2 million websites ranging from small blogs to large businesses and eCommerce stores. It offers a huge selection of competitively priced hosting plans, however, this web host’s WordPress hosting plans are the most notable. In fact, Bluehost has been recommended by WordPress since 2005, meaning that you can expect a fully optimized WordPress website.
Bluehost also has a built-in and accessible website builder that suits both pro and beginner users alike. Bluehost’s site builder has been designed around the WordPress software which means that you can swap between the detailed WordPress Admin interface and Bluehost’s simplified version at any time. This is a terrific way for novice users to gently ease themselves into the world of website design. Even experienced users will appreciate this website builder as it makes the overall process much faster and more streamlined.
You’ll have over 300 customizable templates to choose from which can be edited in real-time using the practical drag-and-drop interface. Alternatively, you can type keywords into the tool’s generator and it will do all the work for you by crafting a unique template based on the words that you entered. After this, you can easily alter, switch, or add any design elements including fonts, colour schemes, images, videos, and text.
With the Online Store plan, you can benefit from several eCommerce features including a shipping plugin, an appointment booking plugin, payment acceptance, PayPal integration, a discount code generator, and tax calculations. To help you create your eCommerce website even faster you can choose from various templates for your homepage as well as for additions such as a pricing table, pricing list, form fills, timers, social reviews, and product pages.
All plans include free hosting, live editing, blog post management, blog post templates, unlimited storage, an image library, custom fonts, an SSL certificate, email marketing management, and 24/7 customer support. You’ll also have access to a selection of how-to guides, FAQs, and blogs that are found in Bluehost’s knowledge base.
iPage
iPage is a fantastic web host that is well-known for its affordable and feature-rich plans. When hosting a website with iPage, you can opt to choose either Weebly, a popular free website builder, or iPage’s built-in website builder, Web Builder, to help you craft a beautifully customized website.
iPage’s Web Builder tool is easy to use and has a friendly drag-and-drop interface that helps you easily navigate between settings. Web Builder also gives you the option to edit your website from the desktop version into a mobile version. This shows you a preview of your website’s layout on any mobile device so you can make any needed changes or adjustments.
The process is quick and simple, with you just needing to answer a selection of questions before the intelligent AI builder creates a fully personalized website based on your answers. Or, if you’d prefer, you can choose from one of iPage’s hundreds of templates. From there, you can play around with fonts, images, videos, colour schemes, and sizes until your site looks exactly how you want. In just a few minutes you can have a fully functional and professional-looking website.
The Starter plan lets you create up to six web pages whereas the Business and eCommerce plans allow you unlimited pages. The eCommerce plan also provides you with additional features such as integrated analytics, page revision history, inventory management, and PayPal integration.
All plans are budget-friendly and include free hosting, an image library, SEO tools, unlimited storage, free domain name registration, and 24/7 customer support. You also have access to iPage’s knowledge base where you can find FAQs, articles, and video tutorials.
A final note
If you’re still not sure which web host to opt for, then read our other article to explore the questions you should ask before choosing a web hosting plan!