When it comes to website development, the choice of the right tool becomes a priority. That’s no wonder as you have to be sure you are using the platform, which is not only simple, convenient, or affordable but also complies with your baseline requirements, skills, and budget. 

The choice of web design platforms is quite extensive out there yet there is one type of system, which works equally great for beginners and professionals. The software we are talking about is website builders. These systems can be used by individuals, businesses, and web agencies. However, they do not imply web design awareness or preliminary coding background to launch quality projects.

Most website builders are intuitive, easy, and functional at a time, which eliminates the need to hire a web developer. What’s more, they can be applied for a broad range of tasks, starting from simple personal websites and up to feature-rich business projects, including digital stores. 

That being said, website builders prove to be the most suitable tools to launch quality web projects. Nonetheless, finding the best system to work with can be quite a tricky task for newbies. What are the major aspects to consider, when making the choice? What are the parameters that are a must for a quality system? Are there any special features you need to pay attention to when making the final solution? Let’s find that out below. 

Choosing the Right Website Builder: Must-Have Criteria

To help you with the choice, we have singled out a number of essential criteria you need to take into account when browsing the web. They tackle the major web design aspects along with functionality, user convenience, and pricing options. Take your time to review them now.

• Ease of Use. When you are going to start your first website, you definitely need a simple yet feature-rich website builder. Look for the one, which will be convenient and intuitive at a time, providing you with a set of guidelines on how to simplify the web design process. A system should preferably come with a drag-and-drop or WYSIWYG editor to help you watch and control the procedure on your own. 
• Niche Focus. The website builder you will go for should correspond to your goals and business specialization. This is especially true when it concerns the development of your first project. Website builders can be either all-in-one or specialized. Pick the one that complies with your web design needs and objectives. 
• All-In-One System. Apart from design editing options, your first website builder should provide hosting and domain name connection opportunities. This is very convenient when it comes to DIY website development as this eliminates the need to look for a third-party provider elsewhere. 
• Design Options. Another aspect to take into account is template selection. It is desirable that the platform you will use should come with a proper selection of professional website templates. The choice of design customization tool should be versatile as well to let you start any type of project. 
• Functionality. A full-featured website builder should provide extensive integration options, marketing tools, blogging and eCommerce engines, quality SEO parameters, and other features that contribute to the quick and effective creation of your first project. 
• Customer Support. Availability of quality and reliable customer support is one of the major criteria for any beginner. You can encounter multiple challenges, when working on your project and, thus, you have to be sure you can turn for qualified assistance any time.
• Moderate Pricing. Website builders can charge different fees for their services. It is reasonable to look for a system that will offer the best value for the cost offered. Generally, prices differ with regard to the terms included in each subscription. Take your time to analyze the available options and make the solution that works best for you. 

With such an impressive variety of website builders available in the modern web design market, it may not be easy to pick the right tool. If you are also in search of a suitable web design platform, pay attention to two popular DIY website builders that have gained worldwide recognition. These are Wix and Squarespace. Let’s review both platforms with regard to the most important parameters now. 

Wix and Squarespace: What Makes Them Niche Leaders

Wix and Squarespace are two cloud website builders that have built a strong reputation in the global web design market. The systems have much in common, unveiling an opportunity to start different types of quality web projects. It’s high time to compare their features to help you make the best choice. 

Flexibility and Functionality

Wix is the all-in-one website builder, which now occupies the position of the best SaaS website builder. It is used to start and customize personal and business websites, namely blogs, landing pages, small business projects, forums, digital stores, portfolios, etc. The system comes with powerful blogging and eCommerce engines, extensive marketing options, a built-in SEO Wiz tool, multilingual support, etc.

There is also the opportunity to pick and integrate multiple widgets/extensions from the Wix App Market. They are free and paid, which provides freedom of choice. A high-end Ascend platform lets you choose from over 20 modern tools that are geared towards effective development and promotion of business projects.

Squarespace also excels at functionality. The website builder was created with the needs of creatives and entrepreneurs in mind. Thus, it can be successfully applied to launch business projects, portfolios, blogs, online stores, etc. In addition to modern eCommerce and blogging engines, the platform grants access to the Logo Maker, multilingual tool, advanced Image Editor, Cover Page Builder, and other features. Users can also work with the system’s Acuity Scheduling platform and Unfold Storytelling tool. They work best for business projects contributing to their effective creation and further promotion on the web. Squarespace grants access to Google Maps embedding feature, online calendar, social media integrations to let you easily promote your newly-created project online. 

Design Customization

Wix website builder boasts one of the most amazing template collections. It currently encounters over 550 modern designs, which are free, mobile-optimized, niche-specific, and absolutely customizable. To simplify users’ choice, the system developers have divided all themes into niche categories with regard to the topics they belong to. In terms of editing, Wix offers two options. The first one – the Wix ADI tool – is mainly created for beginners, providing an automated web design approach with regard to user requirements and data/content provided. The second option – Standard Editor – is geared towards the needs and skills of more proficient users. It allows for deeper design customization, which eventually results in the development of a truly personalized project. 

Squarespace somewhat lags behind Wix in terms of design customization.  This, however, does not mean that its templates lack quality. A more detailed review will provide you with special design-related nuances. The only thing you should know by now is that the amount of Squarespace designs is not that impressive as that offered by Wix, but all the designs are free and responsive as well. What’s more, the website builder unveils extensive and profound code editing options. If required, users get access to HTML/CSS codes to independently create personalized and unique website designs.

SEO and Analytics

Wix is an SEO-friendly website builder that lets you independently adjust website parameters for quality website optimization. Due to the integrated SEO Wiz tool, the process becomes simple and understandable for everyone. Along with baseline SEO settings (descriptions, titles, keywords), there is an opportunity to follow an individual plan of your website promotion. Connection of Google Analytics allows tracking your website statistics and making edits when required. 

Squarespace SEO features are not that powerful as compared to Wix. The system allows adjusting SEO settings for separate website pages and for the entire website in general.  There is also an opportunity to hide a website from indexing by the search engines until it is ready for publication. Squarespace automatically selects your product/page headings to use as SEO titles for corresponding web pages. It is impossible to edit them in manual mode. 

Bottom Line

When choosing a suitable website builder for your first project, Wix and Squarespace are definitely the systems to try. They provide extensive design customization options, flexibility, and powerful integrated functionality. Many users initially give preference to Squarespace to further discover that Wix prevails over it in multiple aspects. The good news is that you can switch from Squarespace to Wix anytime – just follow the guidelines to complete the task with maximum efficacy and minimum time/effort investment.  

The transition should not be a challenge for you. So, if you have any doubts regarding the success of this endeavor or you’re just pressed for time, there is a perfect way out. Go ahead to hire specialized Squarespace to Wix transfer services that will do the job for you, ensuring high-end results. Experts working for the service are aware of the special characteristics of the platforms, which guarantees quick and effective task completion. This is definitely an advantage in itself.