Best Website Builder for Small Business in 2025

In this digital age, all businesses need to have a website. It helps them make their products and services discoverable. And the majority of companies understand this, even small businesses. Hence, many have adopted website builders for small business to help extend the reach of their offerings and provide useful information to current and prospective customers. However, not all solutions are created equal. Some offer more features while some are easier to use than others. Thus, looking for the right balance and fit could be a difficult task, especially if you’re not familiar with such platforms.

Worry not. This article offers a guide for choosing the best small business website builder for your company. With this, you will be able to learn the most important features that you need to have and the key factors that you need to consider. A brief outline of the common benefits that the best website builders for small business solutions is also included. Hopefully, you will be armed with useful information when you test the products yourself by signing up for a free trial.

The best way to find the best website creator for small business that fits your needs is to try multiple solutions out firsthand. In this way, you will be able to get to better know its features and gauge its usability. It is also recommended to have other end-users try out your shortlist of what you think are the best website builders for small business tools. Doing so will get more opinions, especially from end users.

If you haven’t made a shortlist yet, we would recommend that you try these products first: GoDaddy Website Builder, Strikingly, Wix, BigCommerce, and Shopify. These products have scored very high in reviews conducted by our experts and users. Many small businesses and even big brands use these tools. So, if you should choose one of them, it is assured that you will be in good company.

Website builders today are very flexible. You can deploy them for almost any use case. Small businesses use them for their main touch points, content marketing, landing pages for campaigns, and knowledge base for customers. The best tools also cater to other specialized needs such as for ecommerce and membership management.

• Small local businesses can use website builder tools to increase their discoverability and compete with other local companies and bigger chains.
• Professional services such as field service and repair outfits can use website creators not only to extend their reach but also to accept jobs and make appointments.
• Practices such as those in the legal and medical fields can use website builders to provide information and book appointments.

Just remember that whatever your objectives are, there is a website builder out there that would fit your needs. Again, they are highly flexible and easy to use. So, creativity and resourcefulness are the limits.

There are plenty of website building solutions on the web. One search alone can come up with hundreds of examples. But these are the top choices for professionals and businesses:

GoDaddy Website Builder. This widely popular solution offers a website builder with a good range of other tools. These include those for marketing, ecommerce, blogging, and analytics. As such, it is not only used by small businesses but also by large enterprises.

Strikingly. One of the easiest-to-use solutions available, this product provides people with no coding skills to create stunning websites. It is prized for its intuitive drag-and-drop controls and ready-to-launch themes. Moreover, it has an integrated online store module as well.

Wix. One of the most popular website builders out there, this website builder offers great customization tools and options for any business of any size. It has easy-to-use controls and a good range of available modules for social media and ecommerce.

BigCommerce. This is a specialized website builder solution that is popular among small ecommerce businesses. The product offers an intuitive website builder together with ecommerce-centric features, including those for shipping, payments management, inventory management, and returns management. It has a wide range of users from freelancers to large enterprises.

Shopify. This is also a specialized website building solution for selling across different touch points. It integrates both online and offline channels to provide users with a centralized digital hub. It also includes features such as automatic taxes, refunds management, blogging, dropshipping, marketing, and SEO, among many others.

There are different types of website builder solutions that small businesses can use for whatever purposes. Today, thanks to the advent of the internet and SaaS, tools are very easy to use even for those that don’t have any coding skills. Here are the most popular types available today.

Desktop WYSIWYG software

These on-premise platforms provide you with a website builder that’s equipped with interfaces like word processing solutions such as Microsoft Word. And just like word processing tools, what you see is what you get (WYSIWYG). This means that whatever it looks like on your editing interface is what it will look like when it is online. These platforms usually let you add different types of elements such as images, buttons, figures, graphics, and tables among many others. Moreover, they usually offer ready-made templates that you can customize, on your own.

Content management systems

A lot of businesses use content management systems (CMS) to create and maintain content-heavy digital touch points. These are typically used for short blogs, long-form content, and knowledge bases. They are relatively easy to use and can be further customized using plug-ins and add-ons. Millions of websites are run on these platforms and there are many open-source ones available as well.

Online website building software

These website building software solutions are housed on the net. This means you can simply access them through your browser and they’ll function like desktop WYSIWYG systems. Today, these are the most popular tools available. They are easy to use and usually come with other modules for ecommerce, marketing, SEO, and many more.

HTML editors

If some people in your company have a basic knowledge of HTML, this type of platform can be handy as they are affordable. With this, you can access a wide variety of free or inexpensive HTML templates, specifically for special features such as shopping cart functionalities. Also, knowing a bit of HTML can help you save resources as you can make quick backend changes yourself without the help of others.

• Customizable templates: The best small business website builder offers a good range of customizable templates for different use cases. Usually, they are made by professional designers. And, as they are customizable, you can make them your own.
• Useful business tools: These add-on features allow you to run website-related functions useful in engaging your customers. These include autoresponders, chatbots, message boards, and newsletter makers, among others.
• Point & click editing: This feature allows you to edit your website as easily as you would create a word-processing document or write an email. You can simply create, type, edit, and publish your web page.
• Shopping cart: Many popular website builders for small business solutions offer online store modules useful for ecommerce operations. One main feature is a shopping cart that allows customers to easily make purchases. They usually come with other useful features such as price calculators, shipping and tax calculators, promotions management, product bundling, inventory management, and payment management.
• Search Engine Optimization: Most, if not all, provide SEO tools to help your website stand out on search engine results. This helps you increase discoverability and, hopefully, engagement and conversions.
• Blogging tools: It is also common for website solutions to offer some content management features for blogging. This allows you to better run content marketing campaigns and may boost your SEO performance.
• Visitor tracking and stats: Website builders usually come with performance tracking tools that provide data on the number of visitors you have and their behavior on your site. This allows you to make data-driven decisions to optimize your design and functionalities.
• Image gallery: Visuals are vital when it comes to digital touch points. This is especially so when you are showcasing your products, facilities, and services. As such, website creators allow you to store and place images such as photos and graphics anywhere you need.
• Social media tools: Today, almost all website building platforms integrate with social media sites. They allow you and your visitors to share content on them, thus providing a way to increase your reach and engagement.
• Form builder: This is a very important flexible tool that allows companies to extract information from visitors. These can be used for landing pages, customer service, or for a simple contact us page.

Create eye-catching websites

You don’t need to be a graphic design expert to create a visually appealing website with site creator tools. First off, these platforms provide customizable professionally-created templates that you can brand and make your own. In this way, you can save on costs from hiring a professional, especially if you don’t need a site with very complex functions. In fact, this is something that online website builders can do as well.

Ensure user-friendly, intuitive website design

The best small business website builder is tested and proven to help create end user-friendly experiences. Surely, you can create your own design as your creativity is the limit. Also, the platform provides you with tools such as templates and modules that can help you make your site statistically user-friendly relative to others. This includes aspects such as interface design and functionality.

Coding knowledge isn’t required

The primary benefit of having a website builder for small business is that you don’t have to have any coding knowledge to create, maintain, and update your website. The app contains all the HTML and other scripts so you don’t have to write them. You access them via a drag-and-drop and point-and-click interface. So, it is as easy to use as creating a PowerPoint presentation.

The software is easy to use

These platforms are very easy to use. Thanks to their WYSIWYG editors, you can create and design your website the same way you would create and edit a word processing document or a PowerPoint presentation. They allow you to add and edit elements with just a few clicks. You can easily arrange these using drag-and-drop controls and edit them any time you want.

Easy content updates

Another benefit of using website builder software solutions for your small business is that you can quickly update content. This is useful for updating your product catalog, prices, schedules, and even blog entries. Of course, you can quickly update visual elements as well such as your brand colors and logos.

Cost-efficient software

One of the main benefits of using a website builder for small business tools is that you can save on costly professional services. These platforms are usually plug-and-play. Even 12-year-olds can easily create webpages. So, surely, any digital marketing professional or business owner can do it, too. Plus, website building software providers offer hosting services. With this, you won’t have to hire a webmaster or go through the trouble of signing up for another hosting service yourself.

Semi-flat design

One popular trend today is that website designers use a semi-flat design that is still 2D but is accented by shadows, gradients, and other elements to suggest depth. It can be difficult to achieve when it comes to logos and visual elements, but it seems that it provides better clarity for views, hence more intuitive navigation. Again, this should not be a worry as website builder software tools have incorporated this design concept into their templates and other elements.

Responsive websites

Websites today are more responsive than they were a decade ago. They provide a seamless experience across different browsers and even mobile devices. This is why should you choose a website builder, make sure it provides such functionality. Worry not, however, because most platforms, even those designed for small businesses, are able to do so.

Minimalist aesthetics

Today’s top websites achieve the right balance of required interaction and minimalist aesthetics. These allow users to both engage views and declutter the interface. This results in website designs that are easy on the eyes and intuitive to use. Many brands have adopted such a design strategy to deal with viewers with short attention spans and a preference for fast-paced interactions.

One-page layouts

Many top brands now prefer a continuous single-page design. This is because it simplifies content for scrolling, which lends well the use of other devices and platforms such as mobile phones. Plus, this design generally makes the website lighter, making it load faster.

Design and functionality restrictions

While some website builders offer a website-building experience that makes your creativity the only ceiling, there are others that are more template-based. While the latter is professionally designed, it offers website owners few degrees of freedom in design and functionality. There are even tools that you need to start anew if you want to change the template. These, however, are far too few in between, given today’s level of competition among software providers.

Basic knowledge of aesthetics and style

Surely, website building tools offer professionally designed templates that are tested and proven, which are available to all subscribers. Hence, even if you tweak them to fit your brand, some design aspects—especially the functionalities and effects—are retained. As such, you still need a good understanding of basic style and aesthetics that you can marry with the functionalities that you require. These include a basic understanding of design concepts such as the color palette and layout conventions.

External ads

There are website building software platforms that permit external ads to be placed on websites, especially those on free or basic plans. This is a branding problem and also a budget problem as you would need to upgrade to get rid of pesky ads.

Domain ownership

If you are on a free plan, then you may be using your software provider’s free subdomain service. So, your website is not fully yours even if it has your branding, design, and content. You will notice some watermark or a text element such as “powered by so-and-so.” This does not look professional and visitors may not take you seriously. Hence, you may need to upgrade to a paid plan and get it hosted.

Here are the most common pricing schemes for website builders for small business.

Free plans: Many website builder software tools offer free plans. These, however, are hosted on subdomains and will have some sort of branding element from your provider. Hence, they do not look professional at all. They may be perfect for those starting out, freelancers, and for personal websites but if you want people to take your small business seriously, then this is not for you.

Feature-based: Other software providers offer a per module or per feature pricing scheme. With this, you only get what you pay for, which can be great for those starting out and looking to scale later. Many users find this scheme to be the fairest offering available. Usually, however, there is a base fee for the basic website editing tool and hosting.

Tiered pricing: There are software providers that offer their plans based on the scale of use. Hence, they offer them in tiers. Each tier offers more features and capabilities. Also, usually, the higher tiers offer more advanced tools such as those for ecommerce and analytics. Moreover, they are also usually fitted with built-in integrations with other business solutions such as POS systems and accounting tools.

When choosing the right website builder for small business, always focus on the benefits rather than on the features. The main point of a website building platform is to assist you in creating a website quickly. Remember, too, that it should be easy. If you find a solution to be difficult to get around, then maybe it is not the right choice for you.

Thus, when deciding which software to utilize, assess them based on their intuitiveness, customization, compatibility with different platforms, integrations, and hosting support.