Free Website Builder Software: What's Actually Free (And What's Not)

Let's cut through the marketing. Every website builder claims to be "free," but what you actually get for $0 varies wildly. Some free plans are genuinely useful for launching a basic site. Others are glorified demos designed to frustrate you into upgrading.

I've tested the major free website builders to help you figure out which one—if any—actually fits your needs without pulling out your credit card.

The Reality of "Free" Website Builders

Here's what you need to understand upfront: every free website builder makes money somehow. Usually that means:

None of this is necessarily bad—you get what you pay for. But you should know what you're getting into before you invest hours building a site.

Best Free Website Builders Compared

Weebly/Square Online - Best Free E-commerce Features

Weebly (now owned by Square) has one of the most generous free plans if you want to sell stuff online. Their free plan includes a shopping cart, unlimited product listings, inventory management, and an automatic tax calculator. That's impressive when competitors like Shopify start at $29/month.

The free plan also includes free SSL security, basic SEO tools, lead capture forms, and an Instagram feed integration. You get 500MB of storage, which is enough for a small site with a handful of product photos.

The catch: Your site displays Square ads, and you're stuck with a weebly.com subdomain. The templates feel dated compared to Wix or Squarespace. And while you can sell physical products for free, digital downloads require a paid plan.

Paid plans start at $10/month (Personal) to connect a custom domain, but you'll need the $12/month Professional plan to remove ads and get a free domain for the first year.

Best for: Small local businesses testing online sales, like a bakery taking pre-orders for pickup.

Wix - Most Templates, Most Limitations

Wix markets itself aggressively as a free website builder, and technically it is. But their free plan is more of a sandbox than a real solution.

You get access to their drag-and-drop editor and hundreds of templates. The editor is genuinely powerful—more flexible than Weebly. But the free plan caps your storage and bandwidth, displays Wix ads prominently on your site, and forces you to use a wix.com subdomain.

Wix's paid plans start around $17/month for their basic tier, which is pricier than Weebly but includes more modern templates and design flexibility.

Best for: Testing Wix's editor before committing to a paid plan. Not recommended for actually launching a site you want people to take seriously.

WordPress.com - Best for Blogging

WordPress.com (not to be confused with self-hosted WordPress.org) offers a free plan that's solid for simple blogs. You get WordPress's powerful content editor, basic themes, and reliable hosting.

The downside: WordPress.com's free plan displays ads, limits customization, and uses a wordpress.com subdomain. You also can't install plugins, which kills much of what makes WordPress powerful.

If you're serious about WordPress, you'll want their Personal plan at minimum ($4/month) or consider self-hosted WordPress for full control.

Best for: Personal blogs, writers testing the WordPress ecosystem.

Google Sites - Simplest Option

Google Sites is completely free with a Google account—no ads, no upgrade prompts, unlimited pages. It integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Calendar, etc.).

The catch? It's extremely basic. Limited templates, minimal customization, and it looks like... well, like a free Google product. Fine for internal team sites or quick landing pages, but not for anything customer-facing.

Best for: Internal documentation, school projects, simple landing pages where aesthetics don't matter.

Carrd - Best for Single-Page Sites

Carrd isn't a full website builder—it makes single-page sites. The free plan gives you 3 sites with basic features. It's clean, fast, and perfect for simple landing pages, personal profiles, or link-in-bio pages.

Paid plans start at just $19/year (not per month), making it the cheapest upgrade path if you need custom domains or forms.

Best for: Creators, freelancers, anyone who needs a simple one-page web presence.

When Free Actually Works

A free website builder can genuinely work for:

When You Should Pay

Upgrade to a paid plan when:

For businesses serious about their web presence, check out our guides to best website builder software and website builder for small business.

The Squarespace Alternative

Squarespace doesn't have a true free plan, but it does offer a 14-day free trial. If you care about design and professionalism, Squarespace templates are significantly better than what you'll get from free builders.

Their pricing starts at $16/month for the Personal plan—not cheap, but you get a custom domain, no ads, and templates that actually look modern. If you're comparing Squarespace vs Wix, Squarespace wins on design quality; Wix wins on price if you stick with free.

Try Squarespace free for 14 days

My Recommendation

If you truly need free and plan to sell products, start with Weebly. Their free e-commerce features are unmatched. Just accept the subdomain and ads until you're making enough revenue to justify upgrading.

If you need free for a simple presence with no commerce, try Carrd for single pages or Google Sites for basic multi-page sites.

If you're building for a business you care about, skip free entirely. The $16-20/month you spend on a real website builder pays for itself in credibility.

Hidden Costs to Watch

Even "free" plans can cost you:

Be realistic about what free actually costs in frustration and missed opportunities.

Bottom Line

Free website builders work for hobby projects and testing ideas. For anything business-related, budget for a paid plan from the start. The professional appearance and features are worth the $10-20/month investment.

If you're ready to invest in your web presence, compare options in our Squarespace pricing breakdown or explore top website builder software to find the right fit.