
It can be expensive to build a website without hiring a web designer, this guide gives you eight of the best cheap website builder options. With the range of website builders available today, you can create a professional, functional website for a fraction of the price – without writing a single line of code. It’s important to pick a Website Builder with the right tools and functionality that matches your budget, whether you’re an entrepreneur beginning a new business, a portfolio for a freelancer, or someone starting a personal blog, you can find the best cheap website builder for your specific requirements.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Understanding your website’s goals helps you choose a builder that aligns with your needs, avoiding unnecessary features and extra costs.
- While free plans are suitable for personal use, paid plans offer essential features like custom domains, ad removal, and extra storage for professional sites.
- Choose builders with intuitive drag-and-drop interfaces, pre-designed templates, and WYSIWYG editors to save time and effort, especially if you’re a beginner.
- Some builders offer a free domain for the first year, while many include hosting, simplifying website management, and reducing costs.
- Ensure your chosen platform provides mobile-optimized designs to enhance user experience and boost SEO rankings.
- A wide range of templates and customization options help create a unique, branded website that stands out.
- Effective SEO features and marketing integrations are essential for driving traffic to your site, even on budget-friendly platforms.
- Choose a builder that can grow with your website, offering flexibility to add ecommerce features, membership areas, or additional pages as your business expands.
Table of Contents
What To Look For In The Best Cheap Website Builder
Identifying your site’s goal is essential before you compare builders based on what it can do as well as website maintenance costs. after you’ve built your new site. This will affect every aspect of your choice, including the features and functionality you require and the kind of builder you select. The questions you should ask yourself include:
- Are you launching an online store? If so, you’ll need ecommerce functionality like product pages, shopping carts, and payment gateways.
- Are you building a portfolio or personal blog? In this case, aesthetics and easy content management should be top priorities.
- Is this for a small business website? Consider features like contact forms, mobile responsiveness, and integration with services like Google Analytics or Mailchimp.
Understanding your website’s main objective can help avoid paying for unnecessary features. For example, you don’t have to pay for sophisticated ecommerce hosting solutions if you’re a blogger or content creator.

1: Pricing and Features
Costs differ significantly with different website builders. Though it may be tempting to choose the least expensive choice, you should carefully analyze the included features offered to create and host a website. Most platforms provide a range of options, from free versions to premium packages.
Free vs Paid Plans
Many website builders provide free plans. Although these are excellent for personal projects, they frequently have restrictions such as storage space constraints, fewer customization possibilities, and platform branding.
Investing in a paid plan makes sense for professionally run websites. In addition to allowing custom domains and removing platform advertisements, paid alternatives typically offer additional storage, improved customer service, and other necessary features such as:
- Custom Domains: Do you have to use a branded subdomain or is it possible to use a custom domain?
- Storage and Bandwidth: Does the plan provide adequate resources to sustain your website traffic and content?
- Ads Removal: Does the platform add adverts or its watermark to your site?
- Customization and Templates: What is the extent of your design options and are there any paid templates available?
- Support: Are phone, email, or live chat customer services provided?
Pricing Examples
- Wix: Free plan with platform branding; paid plans starting at $14/month.
- Weebly: Free plan available; paid plans start at $6/month.
- Hosted.com Website Builder: Available as a cPanel Web Hosting plan add-on for just $2.99/month.
2: Ease of Use
User-friendliness is important if you’re a beginner, you don’t want to spend days figuring out how to use a website builder. Make sure you have the essential website tools available that allow you to build and customize your website quickly without having any technical knowledge. The features to look for should include:
- Drag-and-Drop Interface: For quick and easy website construction, the ability to drag and drop components (text, images, videos, etc.) to any desired location on the page is important.
- Pre-Designed Templates: Select from a wide range of templates that align with your website’s goal and sector.
- WYSIWYG Editor: The WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor lets you preview how your website will look exactly as you create it.
You can save time and hassle by selecting an intuitive platform, enabling you to launch your website faster by adding Hosted.com’s Website Builder for effortless and affordable site creation.
3: Domain Names and Web Hosting
Numerous website builders provide packages that include hosting and/or a domain name. Because everything is in one location, you can manage your website, domains, and hosting easily while saving money.
A domain name is the web address visitors use to find and access your site. Some platforms offer domain name registration services when you sign up for a premium plan.
Many website builders include hosting in their subscription costs. This means you don’t need to worry about finding separate hosting services, making it easier to manage your website.
Alternatively, purchasing a hosting plan first, allows customers to add on a premium website builder at a fraction of the cost, working out more affordable in the long run. With Hosted.com’s cPanel Web Hosting and Website Builder you get a free domain name registration* and SSL Certificate.
4: Mobile Responsiveness
Since mobile browsing has overtaken desktop browsing, a website’s responsiveness to mobile devices is essential. Additionally, Google prefers mobile-friendly websites in its search results, so pick a builder that provides adaptable designs.
A mobile-responsive website dynamically modifies its layout to match various screen sizes, from smartphones to PCs. This guarantees that, no matter their device, visitors can enjoy a flawless browsing experience.
Making mobile responsiveness a top priority will increase user experience and raise your search engine results.

5: Templates and Customization
Choose website builders with superior templates. Remember: a visitor’s initial impression of your brand is often shaped by your website’s appearance. If you’re willing to pay more, choose premium themes that give your website a more polished appearance. Many inexpensive website builders offer free templates.
Even if a builder does provide great templates, you should be able to change them to match your brand’s unique look and feel. Look for settings that let you alter the layouts, colors, fonts, and graphics so you can completely customize your site. With more customization options you can represent your brand identity and keep your visitors engaged and staying longer on your pages.
6: SEO And Marketing Tools
Marketing tools and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) are necessary if you want people to find your website online. To help you optimize your website for better search engine rankings, even those inexpensive website builders frequently come with basic optimization capabilities. However, compare which platforms offer the most essential website SEO tools such as:
- Meta Titles and Descriptions: For SEO purposes ensure you can modify the meta titles and descriptions.
- Customizable URLs: Some URL builders produce complicated, lengthy URLs that aren’t great for search engines. Choose services that let you create tidy, concise URLs.
- Image Optimization: Ensure your photos have alt text available; this tells search engines what the image is about.
Similarly, many of the best cheap website builders can work with marketing tools such as social media widgets, Google Analytics for tracking, and third-party email marketing providers like Mailchimp.
7: Scalability
Even if your current requirements may not be too complex, you should choose a platform that can develop as your website or business grows. In addition to fulfilling your present needs, the best cheap website builder must have capabilities and adaptability to facilitate future growth. Here are a few examples of ways to expand your site:
- Ecommerce Integration: Select a platform that provides ecommerce functionality if you anticipate the need to develop an online store later.
- Membership Areas: With certain website builders, you can include areas where users can pay to access exclusive material on your site.
- Extra Pages: As your website expands, ensure the builder makes adding new pages and features easily without affecting your site and user experience.
Top 5 Best Cheap Website Builder Options
Finding the best cheap website builder doesn’t have to be difficult. You can find a platform that suits your needs financially and has the features and resources required to build a stunning, fully functional website if you listen to what we say in this article.
Your website’s goal, scalability, and usability should always come first. Also, don’t hesitate to spend a little more money on a platform that will help your website grow over time. These builders provide outstanding flexibility, scalability, and value for the money:
1: Hosted.com’s Website Builder
- Best for: All types of websites from blogs to small businesses and ecommerce platforms.
- Price: Sign up for our Website Builder, available as an add-on to the cPanel Web Hosting plan, for $2.99/month.
- Key Features: Affordable and functional, professional templates with intuitive design, mobile responsive, SEO-Friendly, ecommerce ready, superior support and security, and easy to use.
2: WordPress
- Best for: Powerful Content Management System (CMS) and scalability.
- Price: The core software is free with WordPress Hosting from Hosted.com starting from $6.99/month.
- Key Features: Huge library of free WordPress templates, themes, and plugins for almost any type of website, and community support.
3: Wix
- Best for: Affordability and beginners.
- Price: Free plan available; premium plans start at $14/month.
- Key Features: Intuitive drag-and-drop builder, extensive app market, hundreds of templates.
4: Weebly
- Best for: Beginners and small businesses.
- Price: Free plan available; premium plans start at $6/month.
- Key Features: Easy-to-use interface, mobile-responsive designs, built-in SEO and marketing tools.
5: Squarespace
- Best for: Creative professionals and portfolio sites.
- Price: No free plan; premium plans start at $16/month.
- Key Features: Stunning templates, excellent mobile responsiveness, and strong marketing tools.
![Buy a Hosting plan from Hosted.com and add a Website Builder at an affordable price. Strip Banner Text - Buy a Hosting plan from Hosted.com and add a Website Builder at an affordable price. [Get started]](https://www.hosted.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/best-cheap-website-builder-4.png)
Ts & Cs Apply
Free Domain Registration applies to the following domain name extensions: .com, .online, and is only applicable at time of purchase.
Free Domain Registration depends on the selected hosting plan and only applies on 12, 24, and 36 month billing cycles. All listed prices exclude Premium domain names.
DISCLAIMER: Any pricing reflected on images is for demonstration/reference purposes only and does not constitute actual pricing. E&OE.
FAQs
What is the cheapest website builder?
Several website builders offer affordable plans. Prices start from $4/month, but the best option depends on your requirements, such as features, customization, and scalability. Also, take domain registration and hosting fees into account when budgeting.
Can I create a website for free?
Yes, platforms like Wix, Weebly, and WordPress offer free plans. However, free plans often include limitations like platform-branded domains, ads, and limited storage.
What should I look for in the best cheap website builder?
Look for essential features like ease of use, a custom domain option, mobile responsiveness, SEO tools, template variety, and scalability. Ensure the builder aligns with your website’s purpose, whether for blogging, ecommerce, or a portfolio.
Which marketing tools are essential to look for in a website builder?
Check that the website builder has social media integration, Google Analytics, and email newsletters. Some have built-in marketing and SEO tools along with being able to work with third-party software providers such as Mailchimp.
What features are essential for driving traffic to a website?
Choose a website builder that offers mobile-optimized layouts with high performance and valuable, relevant content. This all helps boost visibility and user experience while driving traffic to your site.
Other Blogs of Interest
– How to Launch a WordPress Site: A Comprehensive Guide
– Best Cheap Website Builder For Small Businesses
– Wix Vs Squarespace Vs WordPress: Which Is Best For You?
– How To Create A Personal Website: A Beginner’s Guide
– 5 Best Types of Web Hosting For Business Websites
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Wayne Diamond, the founder and CEO of Hosted.com, has over 20 years of expertise in the domain name and website hosting industry.
Under his leadership, Hosted.com will work towards transforming the way SMEs, entrepreneurs, freelancers, and established enterprises of all sizes manage their domain names, website and WordPress hosting, and online presence.