Having a dedicated website is an important step for any author. Finding the best builder to do so is daunting. With so many website builders to choose from, finding the ideal one that suits all your needs can be a tedious task.
This is a compiled list of the best five website builders, what they’re good for, and what they could improve on. These website builders range from zero computer skills, to intermediate amount of experience, and all the way to coding experts. Finding the best one for you is all about figuring out what you need.
The 5 Best Website Builders For Authors
| Brand | Starting price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Zyro | $2.90 – $15.90/month | Affordable plan options |
| 2. Squarespace | $19 – $23/month | Blogging |
| 3. SITE123 | $5.8/month | First-time users |
| 4. Wix | $16 – $22/month | Besign options |
| 5. WordPress | $15/month | Hands on control |
1. Zyro – The Best Website Builder With Really Affordable Plan Options
If you want a simple website, Zyro may be best for you. They offer quite a few plan options, all well within the starving artist budget. All plans come with significant benefits, including the ability to sync your store site to Amazon or eBay. While affordable, Zyro still comes with some great features.
So you don’t have to worry about losing out on a good website. Zyro is perfect for anyone who is new to building websites. They offer several AI help options; Creating the website, getting help to come up with blog titles, heat mapping, background removal, and even a tool to help come up with a business name.
Pros:
- User friendly and great for those who aren’t very tech savvy
- Offers AI help with multiple items
- Great for streamlined, straightforward websites
- Free, 1 year domain with any plan
- Low-cost plans
- Store option available
Cons:
- Not customizable
- Best prices are only available for long-term plans
- No free plans
- Not designed for authors
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2. Squarespace – The Guaranteed Best Website Builder For Blogging Right Now
If blogging is the key feature of your website, look no further than Squarespace. They offer plenty of other site features and options, but they shine with their blogging features. Squarespace hosts many features that put it on top for bloggers; Like the ability to control comments, push blog posts to your social platforms, or using their tagging feature to keep things organized.
Squarespace has the tools to run multiple different websites, but it shines when in the blogging space. Its email campaign tool pushes engagement towards the posts that you need to be seen. Another fun feature is their scheduling tool. If you need clients to schedule sessions with you, this tool gives you complete control. It gives you the power to set your availability and leave it in the hands of your clients to book themselves. We could all use a little less time balancing our calendars.
Pros:
- Great for Blogging, you can take more control of your blog by limiting comments
- Analytics tools are great for monitoring for things you’ve pushed to your social media channels
- Store option available
- SEO help tool
- Email Campaign tool
- Scheduling tool
Cons:
- No free plan
- Not specifically designed for authors
3. SITE123 – The Best Quality Website Builder For First-Time Users
Building a website can be overwhelming. Site123 streamlines the process, offering an easy-to-understand walkthrough. They are there from start to finish to make building your site as simple as possible. It only takes three steps. You read that correctly, three steps. Their aptly named site guides you through by asking key questions to ensure the site matches your needs.
Once you go through the three steps, they sit you in front of a completely built website. Add in your information and make any changes you want. SITE123 creates sleek and professional websites despite the simple creation process.
Pros:
- Easy to use for absolute tech beginners
- Additional Language options (with premium plans)
- Free plan option
- Custom domain options (for a monthly fee, or free for a year with premium plans)
- Store option available
- SEO help tool
- You can have multiple different websites using one Site123 account
Cons:
- Not designed for authors
- There aren’t many design features or options
- The store can not accept payments if you are on the free plan
4. Wix – The Website Builder With the Best Design Options
Everything Wix offers is to ensure the overall design of your website is perfect. From the style of the buttons to the color of the text. Wix allows you to pick your favorite theme or design from scratch. Either way, Wix will provide the most aesthetically pleasing site. With all this great power, comes a lot of complicated features.
Wix truly lets you change absolutely any and everything on your site. You can make just about any modification to have your site looking perfect. The initial onslaught of all the information can be intimidating. But don’t worry, with some time and practice, you can become a master. Having the control to design as you see fit is a power that not all website builders provide.
Pros:
- SEO help tool
- Great for blogging
- Free plan option
- Countdown clock for big announcements
- Third-party application options
- Building options based on whether you are very tech savvy or have no technical experience
- Writer specific templates
Cons:
- Store options only available for paid plans
- The premium plans are a bit more expensive than competitors
- There’s a lot to learn, making it overwhelming at first
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5. WordPress – The Best Website Builder For Really Hands-On Control
WordPress has been around for a while, and for good reason. It is the ideal tool for anyone who knows what they want out of a website and how they plan to do it. It offers impressive control of every aspect to build the website of your dreams. The ability to control who your host is can be daunting to some. But it opens up a lot of possibilities if you know what you’re doing. Putting the host in your hands allows you to make your website as powerful as you want it. Because hosting will need to be found elsewhere, WordPress has tons of great features that keep it on top for controlling your website. There are plenty of free options if you’re trying to keep costs down, since you’ll most likely be paying for a good hosting service. WordPress even offers to teach its users how to build a successful website.
Pros:
- Free plan option
- Free widget options
- You can display your books on Goodreads directly on your website
- Free Training options to learn how to build a successful website
- Writer specific templates
- Ability to import previous blog posts
Cons:
- Requires a hosting services
- Store option only available on premium plans
References and Links
- https://cybernews.com/best-website-builders/for-authors/
- https://www.websiteplanet.com/blog/best-website-builders-for-authors/
- https://onehourprofessor.com/best-website-builders-for-authors/
- https://zyro.com/
- https://www.squarespace.com/
- https://www.site123.com/
- https://www.wix.com/
- https://wordpress.com/