Do you want to start your blog but are confused about the best website builder for blogs? I know it’s quite difficult since there are so many blogging platforms to choose between. Now the real question arises, which web builder is best for you?
In this article, I’ll help you find the best blogging platform for your business. I’ll cover the cost, features, ease of use, and pros and cons of the most popular blogging platforms. Based on all comparisons and metrics you can make the decision. Before digging deeper into blogging platforms, first understand how website builders can indirectly affect the SEO of the website.
What is SEO and How Website Builder helps in Ranking?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a process of optimizing the web pages of websites to improve their visibility to the search engine to drive organic traffic to the website. We optimize our website using different techniques so that our content reaches our target audience. Website builders give you options to add various tools to SEO optimize your website. For example, you can add Yoast SEO or All In One SEO tools for website On-page optimization. Tracking tools and SEmrush etc. A good platform is updated and makes all implementations quick and easy.
Top 5 Website Builders for Blogging
Here I am going to list the top 5 blogging platforms that also help to improve the website ranking in 2024.
- WordPress.Org
- Wix
- Squarespace
- WordPress.com
- Webflow
WordPress.org Website Builder for Blogging
WordPress.org is a widely used open-source content management system (CMS) that allows users to create and manage websites or blogs. It was initially launched in 2003, and over the years, it has grown to become one of the most popular platforms for website development.
WordPress.org is different from WordPress.com. While WordPress.org provides open-source software that you can download and install on your hosting server, WordPress.com is a blog hosting service where WordPress takes care of the hosting for you.
Pros of WordPress.Org Platform
Unlimited Design Features: WordPress.org offers unlimited design features and different themes to design your blog the way you want. There are so many free themes available to use.
SEO-friendly Platform: WordPress is search engine friendly. It gives you access to create custom URLs, categories, tags, and posts. You can add SEO plugins like Yoast, and AllinoneSEO for website optimizations.
Add Website Tracking Codes: You can use Google Analytics and Google Search Console in WordPress. This way you can easily check the stats and metrics of your website.
Access to Various WordPress Plugins: You can use several WordPress plugins to customize and optimize your website in the best ways.
Full Control: You have full control over every aspect of your website.
Monetize Your Blog and Earn Money: WordPress blogs can be monetized and you can also run ads and sell courses, memberships, and more through your blog. One of the best blogging platforms to make money online.
Create Multimedia Content: WordPress editor offer various tools to create multimedia content on your website. You can embed videos, social media feeds, graphs, charts, Google Adsense, and more on your website.
Cons of WordPress.Org Platform
Require Some Technical Knowledge: You should have some technical knowledge to manage WordPress.org admin efficiently.
It’s a little costly and the cost shoots over time.
It requires timely website backup and security.
Pricing
You can download and use WordPress software for free but you require a domain name and hosting to start your website. Some of the WordPress premium themes are paid and you have to pay for the theme to use those features.
Bluehost, Dreamhost, and GoDaddy offer free domain names with hosting and discount coupons as well. You can check offers on their websites.
WIX Website Builder for Blogging Site
Additionally, Wix is a highly popular platform for creating both blogging and small business websites. It provides a straightforward drag-and-drop website builder, facilitating easy website construction. Furthermore, you have the option to integrate the WIX Blog App into your business website. Wix is remarkably user-friendly and does not necessitate any coding skills. With Wix builder, you can craft websites that are both user-friendly and design-oriented. Moreover, optimizing your website for SEO is seamless within the WIX dashboard, with each page featuring dedicated SEO settings where you can effortlessly add image alt text and more. Notably, Wix websites are mobile-friendly and fast, which is also a significant SEO metric.
Pros of the WIX Platform
Fast and Easy Setup: You can easily set up a WIX website.
Built-in SEO Tools: Wix has an in-built SEMRush SEO tool. You can easily get SEO insights into your website.
Drag and Drop Editor: It provides a drag-and-drop website builder which makes adding elements easier.
Multiple Templates: You can customize your blogging site using templates and third-party add-ons.
Cons of WIX Website Builder
Slow server response time.
It offers very limited E-commerce features to paid plans.
Once you choose a template you can not change it.
You have to add structure data separately.
Pricing
The basic WIX website builder is free with a Wix account and you can also use the Wix subdomain for free. For example https://username.wixsite.com/example.
You can buy a custom domain and buy their premium plans for hosting your website on the WIX platform. You can check the WIX plans here (Wix Plans and Pricing)
Squarespace Website Builder for Blogs
Squarespace is another website builder that’s very easy to use and provides drag-and-drop tools to create stunning websites. It also provides SEO prompts to optimize the website. One of the SEO-friendly website builders and you do not require any coding skills to use this platform. It is good for blogging and small business websites.
Pros of Squarespace Website Builder
Ease of use: Squarespace websites are easy to use and you do not require any technical knowledge to use this platform.
You can use professionally designed templates to build your site.
Structured data can be added automatically.
Good social media integration.
It separately offers domain names with SSL/HTTPs and eCommerce stores.
Cons of Squarespace Website Builder
Does not allow editing of Robots.txt file.
Limited features and tools.
The Autosave feature is not available.
Pricing
Squarespace offers different prices for websites and online stores. It offers various plans for websites which can be billed monthly or annually. I find Squarespace costly in terms of features. I have noticed many businesses shift from Squarespace to WordPress due to this very own reason. You can check its prices and plans here (Squarespace plans and Prices)
WordPress.com Website Builder for Blogging
WordPress.com is one of the best free blogging platforms. Don’t get confused with WordPress.org, here we are talking about wordpress.com which provides a basic blog hosting service for free and is a blogging pro tool that acts as a website builder. WordPress.org is an open-source platform whereas WordPress.com is a hosted version of it. WordPress.com is a commercial project that offers a free trial plan with upgrades for a premium plan and a custom domain.
If you don’t have any technical knowledge then this is one of the best platforms for you. You can easily manage the website and the support system of WordPress is also pretty good.
Pros of WordPress.com Platform
Easy of Use: As we mentioned earlier, wordpress.com is very easy to use and manage. You do not require any particular skill sets to manage a WordPress website.
Free Subdomain: WordPress.com offers free website domains with limited features. You can create a free website on WordPress and publish it online. The free website name looks like: https://domainname.wordpress.com.
SEO-optimized theme designs: It offers SEO-friendly themes that use the best semantic practices to keep search engines happy.
Meta Title and Descriptions Customization: You can easily customize the meta title, descriptions, and focus keywords in WordPress.com.
No Setup Required: You do not need to set up the blog from scratch. It offers various built-in features to use.
Cons of WordPress.com Platform
Limited options for website Edit and difficult editing.
Tools are only available in advanced plans.
Limited control over your blog. If you do not comply with their terms and policies then they can easily disable or suspend your account.
You cannot use custom themes and plugins in the free version.
WordPress will show their ads on your website. You cannot run ads on a free website.
Pricing
The basic WordPress.com website is free of cost. WordPress offers different pricing plans, and the amount of SEO features you’ll get depends on the plan you choose. You can check the WordPress.com plans here: (WordPress.com Plans and Pricing)
WebFlow Website Builder for Blogging
Webflow is a responsive website builder and is good for building SEO-friendly websites. It offers a premade design to incorporate into your website. It’s not very flexible to add custom designs. If you don’t possess any technical knowledge of website building then it a not easy to use.
Pros of Webflow Website Builder
Very stunning design templates and great for web designers
You can build mobile-friendly websites using Webflow.
You can customize 301 redirects in Webflow.
Cons of Webflow Blogging Platform
Very complex for beginners.
Limited SEO features in free plans.
Pricing
You can create a basic website for free with Webflow. This way you can learn to use the Webflow platform. To use all SEO features and advanced features like sitemaps, 301 redirects, Open graph meta tags, structured data, and more, you need to switch to paid plans.
Final Thoughts: WordPress and Wix are best for blogging websites. These two platforms offer various features and design templates and themes to build a good website. Both platform offers mobile and SEO-friendly websites.
