The 5 easiest website builders for small businesses to use in 2025 You can't create a website quickly, and simply, unless the builder is easy to use. Find out our top easy website builder picks here. Written by Emma Ryan Reviewed by Ollie Simpson Updated on 11 November 2025 Our research When reviewing website builders, our expert team of writers and independent researchers focuses in on the most important factors for small business owners. We look at the range of templates and designs available to choose from; how easy it is to get started building your site and customising it; the help and support options available; the range of available plugins, apps and extensions; the ability to customise a mobile design, and above all, the value for money – including any hidden pricing, ongoing fees, and initial setup costs. Written and reviewed by: Emma Ryan Lead Writer Ollie Simpson Senior Research Executive Startups.co.uk is reader supported – we may earn a commission from our recommendations, at no extra cost to you and without impacting our editorial impartiality. 1 of 3 Featured: Hostinger – Best for AI 4.7 Try Hostinger 2 of 3 Squarespace – For a seamless user experience 4.8 Try Squarespace 3 of 3 Shopify – For easy-to-use ecommerce 3.6 Try Shopify In March 2025, we spent over 200 hours testing 12 top website builders to determine the best easy website builders for small businesses.We found that Squarespace is the easiest website builder to use, thanks to its intuitive editor, stylish templates, and user support options. The best easy website builders Squarespace – For a seamless user experienceHostinger – For AI building supportGoDaddy – For total beginnersWix – For flexible customisationShopify – For easy-to-use ecommerce Of course, it’s never one-size-fits-all, so I’ve summarised the top beginner-friendly options for first-time builders to help you find the right fit for your business. 💡Key takeaways Squarespace is the easiest website builder to use thanks to its intuitive drag-and-drop editor. Wix gives beginners a lot of creative control, with an AI chatbot builder and a massive selection of 900+ customisable templates.If you need to get a website built as quickly as possible, GoDaddy has the fastest setup time we tested.Hostinger is the cheapest beginner-friendly website builder, starting from £1.95 per month for a 48-month term.On website builders that don’t have a free plan, you can usually sign up for a free trial, which is the best way to get a feel for the builder.Shopify has the most expensive plans, costing up to £259 per month, and its advanced features are better suited for those with complex or large inventories. The best easy-to-use website builders: a quick comparison 0 out of 0 backward forward Ease of use Price Free trial or plan Number of templates Transaction fees FEATURED PROVIDER Hostinger Squarespace GoDaddy Wix Shopify 4.7 4.8 4.5 4.4 3.6 £1.95-£2.45/month (48-month subscription)Up to 81% discounted with code “STARTUPS” £12-£79/month, billed annuallyUse code “SU10” to receive a 10% discount on all Squarespace plans £8.99-£16.99/month, billed annually (first term discounts available) £9-£119/month£8.10-£107.10 with code “TAKE10” £19-£259/month, billed annuallyCurrently £1/month for the first 3 months 7-day free trial 14-day free trial Free plan Free plan 3-day free trial 150+ templates 150+ templates 200+ templates 900+ templates 200+ templates 0% 0%-7% (depending on what you sell), plus a 1.5%-2% + 25p card processing rate Not shared publicly – you’ll need to contact GoDaddy 2.1% + 20p 1.5%-2% + 25p Try Hostinger Try Squarespace Try GoDaddy Try Wix Try Shopify I last updated this article on 11/11/2025 On this date, I verified all the information and pricing in this article as accurate. However, I would always recommend confirming pricing directly with the website builders before making any buying decisions. This article will cover: #1. Squarespace: For a seamless user experience #2. Hostinger: For AI building support #3. GoDaddy: For total beginners #4. Wix: For flexible customisation #5. Shopify: For easy-to-use ecommerce Easy website builders: Price comparison How did we test the easiest website builders? Which builder is best for ecommerce? When to choose a more advanced website builder Are easy website builders free to use? My verdict: choosing the easiest website builder #1. Squarespace: For a seamless user experienceSquarespace pricing: £12 to £79 per month (billed annually)Ease of use score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.8) Easy Squarespace has over 150 high-quality and stylish templates – these are especially useful for creatives or design-focused businesses Squarespace is the easiest website builder I’ve tested thanks to its drag-and-drop editor and smart grid, which helps keep elements aligned Recent improvements to its AI builder make building a website easier than ever – you can use Blueprint AI to create a custom site based on pre-designed choices Get 24/7 help via email or contact Squarespace using live chat Challenging Squarespace’s editor doesn’t have an autosave feature, so the risk of losing work is higher than with other builders that do have an autosave feature – Hostinger, GoDaddy, and Wix will automatically save your work Squarespace’s editor felt so intuitive to me, and I appreciated the grid lines to help stop my pages from looking messy. Source: Startups.co.ukDo I recommend Squarespace for beginners?Squarespace is the easiest website builder because its 150+ templates, drag-and-drop editor, and smart grid offer users a seamless experience for building a professional-looking business website — no matter your skill level or design capabilities.When testing it myself, I was particularly impressed by its modern and sleek-looking templates – a lot of the heavy-duty design work is done for you, giving you time to focus on other business priorities.Squarespace also ranks highly in our list of the top AI website builders. Its step-by-step AI builder, Blueprint AI, guides you through the process of generating a design. It asks a few simple questions about your brand and goals, and then instantly creates a personalised site with ready-made layouts and content.For these reasons, Squarespace is a solid option for complete beginners, and starting from just £12 per month (billed annually), it’s affordable too.However, I also highly recommend picking Squarespace if you’re a creative professional. The builder’s focus on visuals and design makes it the ideal home for portfolios, artist sites, and photography sites.Read our complete Squarespace review for a breakdown of the builder’s key features and drawbacks. #2. Hostinger: For AI building supportHostinger pricing: £2.49 to £3.29 per month (for a 48-month term)Ease of use score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.7) Easy Hostinger offers an ever-growing suite of AI tools to support users as they build a site – for example, its AI website builder can generate a template based on your prompt, and you can use the AI Product Information Generator to fill out your product pages The drag-and-drop editor offers more creative freedom than Squarespace since its grid lines provide guidance but don’t limit your placement of elements – I had a similar level of control as I did when using Wix’s editor The AI chatbot assistant, Kodee, can provide helpful guidance on all things website-related, such as design and SEO Challenging Hostinger’s simple plans lack some basic functionality – for example, there’s no built-in email marketing tool, which can make it difficult to connect with your target audience There’s no app market, meaning you can’t add extra functionality to your plan – you’re stuck with what you’ve got, whereas the other builders in this list have app markets Hostinger’s AI builder can generate templates in seconds, but the end result can look pretty uninspiring and unoriginal I used Hostinger’s AI assistant to answer the questions I had when using the editor. Source: Startups.co.ukDo I recommend Hostinger for beginners?Hostinger comes with the best AI support thanks to its AI assistant, Kodee, which is readily available to guide users through the creation and design process.Kodee can be located at the bottom-right of the editor. When testing this for myself, I found it useful in answering questions and queries I had about using the editor tool, such as adding alt text to images.Hostinger also offers its own “AI Writer” tool, which generates different types of content, including headlines, website copy, product descriptions, and blog posts. It also assists with search engine optimisation (SEO) through incorporating relevant keywords, as well as generating meta titles and descriptions.Hostinger is also the most affordable option on this list — starting from just £2.49 per month — making it ideal for new businesses on a budget.However, Hostinger’s features aren’t as sophisticated as rival website builders’, so I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re looking to scale your business. #3. GoDaddy: For total beginnersGoDaddy pricing: £8.99 to £16.99 per month (billed annually). Free plan availableEase of use score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.5) Easy GoDaddy has one of the speediest setup times, helping you get stuck into your website in seconds so you can get online as quickly as possible GoDaddy’s editor is incredibly beginner-friendly, offering a tour when you first get started and clear signposting for different tools GoDaddy uses a section-based editor that’s very straightforward to understand – you simply place sections on top of one another to build your pages Its plans are very affordable, targeting smaller businesses and personal sites Get 24/7 customer support via phone and live chat – GoDaddy is quick to solve any issues you might have, but you can also boost your website knowledge using its knowledge centre The GoDaddy Airo tool is AI-powered and free to use, offering detailed support as you build your website Challenging While GoDaddy’s editor is easy to use, it can feel too simple and lacks any real charm – creatives will struggle with its basic-looking designs GoDaddy offers weaker ecommerce features than other builders, such as Wix and Shopify I followed GoDaddy’s guide to help me set up my website. Source: Startups.co.ukDo I recommend GoDaddy for beginners?GoDaddy’s speedy setup process and beginner-friendly editor make it the number one choice for small business owners who want to create a site with minimal fuss and little cost.Its templates might lack the stylish quality of Squarespace’s, but this is because GoDaddy focuses on simplicity. Its user-friendliness has improved over the last year – compared to the results of our 2024 tests, our users now find it easier to use, bumping the platform up to third place.GoDaddy’s AI tool, Airo, is also extremely accessible, making it easy to set up a ready-made website. All you have to do is describe your business in a couple of words, and it’ll automatically create a complete website for you. If the first design isn’t quite right, you can pick from other available options.This is why I highly recommend GoDaddy for complete beginners, as you won’t need all of the bells and whistles provided by more complex website builders. It’s also the second-cheapest builder on this list, as even its most expensive plan is under £20, making it a great budget-friendly option.See our full GoDaddy review to read more about this builder’s pros and cons. #4. Wix: For flexible customisationWix pricing: £9 to £119 per month (billed annually). Free plan availableEase of use score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4.4) Easy Wix’s drag-and-drop editor is incredibly easy to get to grips with – the builder lets you move elements, such as text boxes and contact forms, to wherever you want on your site’s page The AI chatbot makes the onboarding process a breeze – I had a very human-like conversation about my business needs and it generated a personalised template for me Wix has an AI Theme Assistant to help beginners design a site – it offers suggestions on areas like font types and colour schemes There are over 900 customisable templates to choose from, and these cater to a wide range of industries Wix offers 24/7 help and support, as well as in-editor help if you get stuck during the design process You can stay on Wix’s free plan forever, which is great for beginners as you can spend this time getting familiar with the platform Challenging Despite offering so much creative control, Wix doesn’t let you swap templates once your site is published – this isn’t ideal if you’re new to web building and aren’t sure what final look you want for your site Wix offers an overwhelming number of features and tools, which is great long-term, but can be intense to navigate during the early days – GoDaddy is a better option for beginners I could use Wix’s AI tools to help build and design my website, including the new AI Theme Assistant. Source: Startups.co.ukDo I recommend Wix for beginners?Wix offers the most customisation to users thanks to its editor, which lets you place elements wherever you want, and its vast array of over 900 customisable templates. There’s no greater option if you’re looking for creative control.You can also use the AI chatbot builder to create a website in just a few clicks, and then fine-tune your site’s design layout and content so it perfectly aligns with your brand and goals.Wix is a great all-around option for small businesses, securing the top position in our list of the best website builders because of its comprehensive features and support options. Plus, if you use Wix’s free plan, it’s entirely risk-free.That said, even Wix’s cheapest plan offers a generous amount of tools, making it a great value for money. However, if you’re looking to sell online, you’ll have to upgrade to its Core plan, which is £16 per month (billed annually), whereas Squarespace lets you access ecommerce features from its cheapest plan.In our 2025 tests, we found Wix easier to use than Shopify, meaning the two have swapped spots in our latest ranking.Learn more about Wix’s features, pricing, and support options in our Wix review. #5. Shopify: For easy-to-use ecommerceShopify pricing: £19 to £259 per month (billed annually)Ease of use score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (3.6) Easy Shopify has the best sales features out of all the builders we’ve tested – this makes running an online store simple, from product management to customising your checkout page You can use Shopify Magic, Shopify’s suite of AI tools, to help build your business site – for example, I used Shopify Magic to generate product descriptions for my test site Shopify has a great Help Center full of guides and video tutorials to support beginners, and its AI-powered chatbot can provide detailed answers quickly to save you from browsing through hundreds of articles I could seamlessly jump between the editor and backend to manage my products, store settings, and site appearance There’s a huge app store with thousands of third-party integrations so you can pick and choose additional functionality to add to your site Challenging The section-based editor is restrictive to use – I couldn’t drag elements or sections wherever I wanted, so Shopify felt less beginner-friendly than builders with drag-and-drop editors, like Squarespace Shopify’s very short three-day free trial doesn’t feel like enough time to test out the platform and its features Shopify’s paid plans are expensive and target growing online stores, so it’s not the most accessible option for new business owners There are only 13 free templates to use, limiting the creative options available to beginners Like Squarespace, Shopify’s editor has no autosave feature Shopify has thousands of free and premium apps, so I could add extra functionality to my site if needed. Source: Startups.co.ukDo I recommend Shopify for beginners?One of the best ecommerce platforms for small businesses, we recommend Shopify to online sellers for its unparalleled sales features, business support, and access to countless apps to give you complete control over your store.I particularly like its Shopify Magic suite, which includes an AI-powered product description tool that helps ecommerce businesses generate engaging, SEO-friendly copy that highlights a product’s features and benefits.While its section-based editor and lack of free templates can limit you creatively, Shopify does make it simple to get your online store up and running.However, because of Shopify’s expensive plans and advanced features, the builder is better suited to businesses with complex or large inventories.Learn more about this powerful ecommerce builder in our detailed Shopify review. Easy website builders: price comparison 0 out of 0 backward forward Best for Price Squarespace Hostinger GoDaddy Wix Shopify Easiest to use, with a seamless user experience AI building support Total beginners Flexible customisation Easy-to-use ecommerce £12-£79 per month (billed annually) £2.49-£3.29 per month (for a 48-month subscription) £8.99-£16.99 per month (billed annually) £9-£119 per month (billed annually) £19-£259 per month (billed annually) How did we test the easiest website builders?In our latest round of research for 2025, we tested 12 of the top website builders to determine our rankings.Our research process focused on six key areas of investigation, including website functionality, pricing, and design features. Over 1,200 individual tasks were completed in these tests.For the easiest website builders, we’ve focused on one research category: user experience.We carried out hands-on testing with each builder to assess its accessibility and usability for people of varying skill levels. And, based on this data, we can calculate our ranking and share up-to-date recommendations with small business owners. Which easy website builder is best for ecommerce?The best builder for ecommerce ultimately depends on how sophisticated you want your selling tools to be.Basic ecommerce tools on platforms like Wix and Squarespace are perfect for small businesses or beginners who want to start selling online without much setup. Both let you add products, accept payments, manage orders, and set up your shopfront with the same drag-and-drop editor you use to design the rest of your website.On the other hand, a dedicated ecommerce platform like Shopify is built specifically for selling at scale. It comes with advanced features like automated emails, abandoned cart recovery, and multichannel selling, plus hundreds of third-party integrations.In short, platforms like Wix and Squarespace are great for stylish and straightforward online stores, but Shopify is the better choice if you’re serious about growth. When should I choose a more advanced website builder?You should consider a more advanced website builder if you want more control over design, better customisation options, or access to advanced tools like ecommerce analytics, integrations, and marketing automation.A beginner-friendly website builder is a great starting point, as it lets you get your website online quickly, and you’re less likely to have problems navigating the tools or figuring out complicated features or design settings.Ultimately, choosing the right builder comes down to your goals, and how much control you need versus how much simplicity you want.Remember – as your business grows, you’ll also want a platform that can scale with you, offering different pricing tiers that you can pay more for when you’re ready for more sophisticated features and tools. Are easy website builders free to use?Luckily, a handful of our top-rated easy website builders offer free plans. Wix and GoDaddy let you build and manage a website without spending a penny, whereas Squarespace, Shopify, and Hostinger offer free trials.What are the limitations of the free plans?While free plans are a great way to get a feel for a platform before purchasing a paid plan, even the best free website builders have limitations.For example, Wix and GoDaddy won’t let you sell products on their free plans, and both builders place ads on your free website.Additionally, you won’t be able to set up a custom domain, and you’ll have significantly limited storage compared to paid plans. Most free plans also don’t offer ecommerce functionality, so you won’t be able to sell products until you upgrade.You can see GoDaddy’s free plan ad at the top of my free site. Source: Startups.co.uk My verdict: choosing the easiest website builderOf the five website builders mentioned, all of them are easy to use and suitable for beginners.However, Squarespace is the best easy website builder to use. Not only does it offer a stunning catalogue of professional-looking templates, but its drag-and-drop editor and user-friendly interface make it easy to build a site from scratch.If you’re interested in Squarespace, I recommend using its 14-day free trial first to see whether the builder is a good fit for you and your business. And if you decide to go with a paid plan, its affordability means you won’t have to spend a fortune on a professional-looking website.You can only gain true insight into a website builder by using it for yourself – so, no matter which easy website builder you pick, make the most of free trials and plans, and do your research to compare a platform’s offering to others before you start paying for a service. Startups.co.uk is reader-supported. If you make a purchase through the links on our site, we may earn a commission from the retailers of the products we have reviewed. This helps Startups.co.uk to provide free reviews for our readers. It has no additional cost to you, and never affects the editorial independence of our reviews. Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags News and Features Written by: Emma Ryan Lead Writer Emma works on Startups’ reviews and recommendations for building a website for your business. She is the Lead Writer at Website Builder Expert, having first joined the team in 2022. She manages Website Builder Expert’s topical content strategy to help website owners navigate the highs and lows of being online. Emma specialises in hands-on testing and research of all the leading website builder platforms, including Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify. Her work and expertise have been featured in Digiday, TechRound, Industry Today, and Digital Information World. Reviewed by: Ollie Simpson Senior Research Executive After three years of refining my skills in data analysis, I transitioned to a role as a researcher to help understand our readers' preferences and needs. My professional journey started as a researcher in law enforcement, where I developed strong analytical abilities. Later, I moved into operations, strengthening my understanding of quantitative data. Now, I blend my quantitative analysis skills with qualitative research to explore both audience preferences and product nuances. Armed with a UX design diploma, I translate research findings into actionable insights that facilitate informed decision-making. Whether enhancing Startups offerings or delivering research presentations, I am driven by a relentless pursuit of improvement and results.