Cheapest Website Builders: Get Online for Under $15

Here’s a quick overview of our top cheap website builders:

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BEST AI FEATURES
Hostinger	Shopify	Pixpa	GoDaddy	Squarespace
Best For Best for those on a limited budget	Best For Top sales features	Best For Showcasing creative works online	Best For Quickest setup experience	Best For Easiest website builder
Cheapest plan 85% off in the New Year Sale: $12.99 $1.99/month + 3 months for free	Cheapest plan $5 Shopify Starter plan $1/month for 3 months	Cheapest plan $9 $5.40 on a 12-month contract	Cheapest plan $9.99	Cheapest plan $16 $14.40 with code “WBE10”
Free plan or free trial 7-day free trial	Free plan or free trial 3-day free trial	Free plan or free trial 15-day free trial	Free plan or free trial Free plan	Free plan or free trial 14-day free trial
AI Features AI website builder AI heat map AI logo maker AI hosting assistants + more	AI Features AI website theme creator Shopify Magic Shopify Sidekick AI support + more	AI Features AI text writer	AI Features GoDaddy Airo GoDaddy Studio AI product descriptions AI logo maker AI social calendar + more	AI Features Blueprint AI AI site descriptions AI text generator AI product descriptions AI business name generator + more
Number of templates 150+	Number of templates 1,000+	Number of templates 200+	Number of templates 200+	Number of templates 190+
Storage space Unlimited	Storage space Unlimited	Storage space 3GB	Storage space Unlimited	Storage space Unlimited
AI website builder	AI website builder	AI website builder	AI website builder	AI website builder

How Does Pricing Compare Between the Cheapest Website Builders?

Hostinger is the cheapest website builder on this list, though you can compare its pricing with its competitors below:

• The cost of Hostinger, Pixpa, GoDaddy, and Squarespace increase at renewal. But, Hostinger’s costs increase after a 48-month term, while Pixpa, GoDaddy, and Squarespace’s pricing increases after 12 months. Overall, Hostinger gives you a cheaper deal for longer.

• Hostinger pricing: $1.99-$2.99 per month (48-month term)
• Standout features: Generative AI tools, easy-to use editor, speedy website load times
• Key downside: No app store for adding additional functionality
• Hostinger review

Hostinger is the cheapest website builder for 2026, costing $1.99 per month on a 48-month billing cycle. The price increases to $10.99 at renewal.

Hostinger’s generative AI tools, easy-to-use editor, and speedy website load times make it ideal for beginners and small business owners. However, it lacks the advanced features of builders like Shopify or Squarespace (i.e. there’s no app store for extra functionality).

How Much Does Hostinger Cost?

Hostinger has two website builder plans costing $1.99-$2.99 per month (billed annually). These are introductory prices for users signed up for a 48-month term, which also comes with three months free and a year’s free domain.

• Premium Website Builder plan: $1.99
• Business Website Builder plan: $2.99

At renewal, the cost of Hostinger’s two website builder plans increase:

• Premium Website Builder plan: $10.99
• Business Website Builder plan: $16.99

Though Hostinger’s pricing increases at renewal, its plans are still superb value for money. For example, Hostinger’s $10.99 renewal price is on par with GoDaddy’s cheapest plan, and it also costs less than Squarespace’s cheapest plan at $14.40 per month (when using the code “WBE10″ at checkout).

Are Hostinger’s Plans Affordable Long Term?

Both of Hostinger’s plans are very affordable long term, and with only a $1 price difference between them, it’s risk-free to upgrade or downgrade as you see fit.

You need Hostinger’s Business Website Builder plan to unlock all its AI tools and ecommerce features. However, most core website features, such as a free domain name and access to the AI website builder, come with the cheaper plan.

If you’re unsure which plan to choose, Hostinger offers a seven-day free trial, as well as a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Is Hostinger Good Value for Money?

Though Hostinger is the cheapest website builder, our in-house testing revealed that GoDaddy and Squarespace are better value for money. Despite the higher cost, they offer a greater quality and variety of features than Hostinger does, including Squarespace’s personalized SEO guidance and GoDaddy’s editorial calendar and social post generator.

That said, Hostinger’s value for money is improving by expanding its AI tool selection, which features:

• Kodee: a built-in AI assistant to help you set up and manage your website
• Hostinger Reach: create AI-powered email campaigns
• AI text editor: generate or refine website copy
• AI Product Information Generator: create ecommerce copy for your products

My verdict: Is Hostinger worth the money?

I really enjoyed setting up a website with Hostinger because of its AI-powered builder and tools. This made the whole experience easy and quick – in my opinion, it rivals Squarespace for ease of use. However, because of its more limited suite of features and lack of key functionality (such as no app store), Hostinger is best for very small businesses and personal, informational sites. At such an affordable price point, it’s definitely worth the money.

Emma Ryan Lead Writer

• Shopify pricing: from $5 per month (billed annually)
• Standout features: Best sales features, such as inventory management, sales analytics, and a custom Linkpop page
• Key downside: Can’t build your own ecommerce website on the Starter plan
• Shopify review

Shopify is our top-rated ecommerce website builder, offering an affordable $5 per month Starter plan – though its actual website builder plans are much more expensive. The Starter plan enables you to sell via social media platforms but you can’t build a custom ecommerce site while on it.

How Much Does Shopify Cost?

Shopify’s standard pricing is more expensive than the other builders on this list, particularly Hostinger. Besides the limited $5 Starter plan, Shopify has three key plans costing $29-$299 per month (billed annually).

• Basic plan: $29
• Grow plan: $79
• Advanced plan: $299

Shopify doesn’t have a long term discount for new starters like other options on this list, but it has a three-day free trial and you can get your first three months for just $1.

Ecommerce sellers will be charged a 2% transaction fee on Shopify’s Basic plan, which will lower to 0.6% as you upgrade. Alternatively, using Shopify’s native gateway, Shopify Payments, will remove this fee all together and save you money.

Are Shopify’s Plans Affordable Long Term?

If you ever need to upgrade from the Starter plan for advanced sales features, Shopify’s more expensive plans aren’t affordable long term due to a significant price increase, jumping from $5 to $29 and above per month.

Also, Shopify’s introductory offer only offers three months of savings, whereas other builders like Hostinger give you a discount for a 48-month term.

Is Shopify Good Value for Money?

Shopify ranks lowest for value among these five builders due to its higher price point relative to standard website building features. However, if your business requires ecommerce functionality and has the budget, Shopify’s powerful sales features are worth the cost.

Given the high costs, Shopify does give you access to powerful ecommerce features from its cheapest plan. The same can’t be said for other website builders, like GoDaddy or Squarespace.

My verdict: Is Shopify's Starter plan worth the money?

If you’re simply selling on the side and want to focus on socials, then the Shopify Starter plan is a great deal. However, I really recommend upgrading to one of Shopify’s core premium plans to build a polished website for your online store. Yes, these are more expensive than other builders on this list, but you unlock a lot of impressive sales features to support your ecommerce journey. If you have the budget to spare and want to sell online, a dedicated ecommerce builder like Shopify is well worth it.

Emma Ryan Lead Writer

Read our Q&A with a real Shopify business:

Peter Martinzez

Co-Founder & Fashion Stylist

Leather Skin Shop is a thriving online leather fashion brand with a vast variety of apparel and accessories – for men and women – made from the highest quality real leather. Besides their ready-to-wear collections, they offer impeccable customization services for leatherwear.

Choosing the right Shopify plan was crucial […] we carefully evaluated features and pricing to find a plan that perfectly fit our needs and growth projections.

Q&A

1. What did you initially think about Shopify's pricing, and how did you decide that it was a good fit for your business?

Initially, Shopify’s pricing structure felt very reasonable, especially considering the features offered. We started with the Basic Shopify plan, which was perfect for launching our online leatherwear store. We could showcase as many products as we wanted, track our inventory across multiple locations, and still have good checkout capacity on big sales events. 

As our sales grew, upgrading to the Advanced plan provided the additional features we needed to manage inventory and discounts more effectively. The feature of localized selling with custom markets with the advanced plan was a huge plus, allowing us to scale our business growth.

2. Which Shopify features do you think are great value for money?

Several Shopify features have been immensely helpful for us. The built-in abandoned cart recovery has been fantastic for capturing missed sales, and the discount code functionality allows us to run targeted promotions that resonate with our customer base. We also find the ease of adding high-quality product photos and descriptions to be invaluable. It allows us to showcase the rich textures and craftsmanship of our leather goods beautifully.

Customizing our selected Shopify theme, Turbo!, to align with our store’s unique style and objectives proved to be an invaluable investment. The ability to tailor every aspect to our brand’s vision not only justified the cost but also enhanced the overall shopping journey for our customers, ensuring a seamless and delightful experience from start to finish.

3. Do you have any budgeting tips when using Shopify?

Here are a couple of budgeting tips we’ve learned along the way:

We embraced a “start small, grow big” mentality. We began with a modest budget, focusing on core functionalities rather than fancy extras. This allowed us to test the waters and refine our approach before scaling up our spending alongside our business growth.

Choosing the right Shopify plan was crucial. We didn’t get swept up in the most expensive option.  Instead, we carefully evaluated features and pricing to find a plan that perfectly fit our needs and growth projections. This ensured we maximized the value we received from Shopify’s platform.

Shopify offers a treasure trove of free apps and tools. We took full advantage of them to enhance our store’s functionality without breaking the bank. We only invested in premium apps when they addressed a specific need that couldn’t be met with a free alternative.

Keeping a watchful eye on inventory costs has been essential. We’ve implemented strategies to avoid both overstocking and understocking. This helps us minimize carrying costs and ensure we always have the right products in stock to meet customer demand.

Visit Leather Skin Shop here

• Pixpa pricing: $5.40-$15 per month (billed annually)
• Standout features: 200+ responsive templates for portfolios or highly visual websites
• Key downside: Basic sales features, such as limited analytics and accounting tools

Starting at $5.40 per month, Pixpa is an ideal cheap website builder for visual and creative businesses, particularly if you’re looking to build a portfolio or artist website. It comes with 200+ responsive templates that are ideal for showcasing visual work.

Pixpa’s cheapest plan gives you access to basic features, including SEO and social media integration, but its primary selling point is that it includes online selling capabilities. For context, GoDaddy’s equivalent ecommerce plan will set you back $20.99 per month.

How Much Does Pixpa Cost?

Pixpa’s four plans cost between $5.40-$15 per month (billed annually) for your first year.

• Basic plan: $5.40
• Creator plan: $9
• Professional plan: $12
• Advanced plan: $15

After the first year, Pixpa’s plans will return to their regular price:

• Basic plan: $9
• Creator plan: $15
• Professional plan: $20
• Advanced plan: $25

Before you decide what plan to pick, you can test out Pixpa’s editor and tools with its 15-day free trial.

Are Pixpa’s Plans Affordable Long Term?

Pixpa’s plans are affordable long term, offering very competitive pricing. It’s fairly similar in price to GoDaddy, but Pixpa’s focus is on creative and portfolio sites especially. This creative focus also makes Pixpa a great alternative to Squarespace, since it offers templates for small businesses to professionally display and monetize their work.

The cheapest Basic plan is pretty limited (it only allows up to 10 pages and 200 gallery images), so I recommend starting with at least the Creator plan to unlock extra features, including unlimited pages/images and blogging functionality. There’s around a $5 difference between each plan, which lightens the strain of upgrading as your portfolio begins to expand.

Is Pixpa Good Value for Money?

Based on our analysis, Pixpa provides the best value for creative portfolios due to its 200+ responsive templates and ecommerce features. If you need more powerful sales features, sophisticated website tools, or more generative AI options, I’d look into a competitor like Hostinger or Shopify instead.

To access Pixpa’s best features – such as unlimited website pages and images, blogging functionality, and advanced SEO  – you’ll need to upgrade to at least the Creator plan ($9/mo).

My Verdict: Is Pixpa worth the money?

With pretty cheap premium plans, Pixpa won’t break the bank. However, I’d argue it’s only worth spending your money on Pixpa’s website builder if you want to launch a specialist, creative website. Its features and designs target portfolios in particular, so you won’t have the flexibility provided by other builders which cater to a wider range of industry types

Emma Ryan Lead Writer

• GoDaddy Pricing: $9.99-$20.99 per month (billed annually)
• Standout features: Quick and easy setup under 30 seconds
• Key downside: Lacks stylish designs or creative capabilities
• GoDaddy review

GoDaddy’s cheapest paid plan is $9.99 per month (billed annually), though it also offers a free-forever plan with ads. GoDaddy’s fast and intuitive onboarding process makes it the best option for beginners looking to get online quickly – our first-hand testing found it could generate a website in less than 30 seconds.

How Much Does GoDaddy Cost?

As part of its introductory pricing, GoDaddy’s three plans cost between $9.99-$20.99 per month (billed annually). Its plans also come with a 12-month free trial for a Microsoft professional email, which would typically set you back $95.

• Basic plan: $9.99
• Premium plan: $14.99
• Commerce plan $20.99

After your first year is up, the plans increase to their original pricing:

• Basic plan: $ 16.99
• Premium plan: $29.99
• Commerce plan $34.99

You can also get started with GoDaddy’s free-forever plan, but it comes with ads and limited storage.

Are GoDaddy’s Plans Affordable Long Term?

GoDaddy’s pricing is very affordable long term, but you’ll need the Commerce plan ($20.99 per month) if you plan to sell online. If you’re just after a basic site and don’t need to sell products, you’ll be fine with the Basic or Premium plan in the long run.

Is GoDaddy Good Value For Money?

GoDaddy is the best value for money builder on this list, providing essential website features, including a free professional email for 12 months, within its $9.99 Basic plan. Its ecommerce plan is also a cheaper alternative to competitors like Wix or Shopify.

Plus, GoDaddy offers a free plan which you can stay on for as long as you’d like. However, I’d recommend upgrading to remove ads and unlock additional features, such as ecommerce.

My verdict: Is GoDaddy worth the money?

GoDaddy tops our research when it comes to value for money, so it’s absolutely worth the money. Its plans are incredibly cheap, but you can find your feet with its editor and tools through the free plan first. And, even if you want to sell online on the Commerce plan, the $20.99 per month price tag is still cheaper than other ecommerce builders, like Shopify.

Emma Ryan Lead Writer

• Squarespace Pricing: $14.40-$89.10 per month (billed annually) with code “WBE10” at checkout
• Standout features: Easiest website builder to use with professional templates
• Key downside: Most expensive option on this list
• Squarespace review

Squarespace is the most expensive website builder on this list, with prices starting from $14.40 per month with our code “WBE10.” However, Squarespace was scored as the easiest platform to use in our testing due to its highly intuitive editor. It’s the best choice if you’re a creative in need of affordable website design, thanks to its stunning templates and elements.

How Much Does Squarespace Cost?

When the code “WBE10” is applied at checkout, Squarespace’s four plans cost between $14.40-$89.10 per month (billed annually).

• Basic plan: $14.40
• Core plan: $20.70
• Plus plan: $35.10
• Advanced plan: $89.10

After your first year with Squarespace, your plan will renew at the standard annual price:

• Basic plan: $16
• Core plan: $23
• Plus plan: $39
• Advanced plan: $99

You can get started with Squarespace’s 14-day free trial to see whether it’s right for you.

Are Squarespace’s Plans Affordable Long Term?

If you want to scale your website over time, Squarespace’s pricing plans aren’t the most affordable long-term options. There’s a significant jump between Squarespace’s more expensive plans, with the Advanced plan way over double the price of the Plus plan. This makes it much harder to scale your business over time.

Still, once you upgrade to the Core plan, Squarespace softens the blow by removing transaction fees entirely and providing additional sales features, such as unique discounts.

Is Squarespace Good Value for Money?

Squarespace is great value for money, sitting just behind GoDaddy in our research. This might seem surprising considering that its cheapest plan is more expensive than Hostinger or Pixpa. But, you get a lot for your money with Squarespace, which includes:

• Drag-and-drop editor
• Sophisticated templates for different creative industries
• A free custom domain for one year
• Unlimited bandwidth
• Taking payments from your website

Read the Q&A below to discover an insightful first-hand experience with Squarespace:

Lauren Galvez

SEO Consultant

Lauren Galvez is an SEO marketing consultant for small businesses and she runs her business from her website built on Squarespace. She’s been a Squarespace fan for the last 5 years having tried many popular content management systems (CMS), such as Wix, Weebly, Duda, WordPress, and Shopify.

Take advantage of Squarespace’s 14-day free trial and see how you like using their platform.

Q&A

1. What appealed to you the most about Squarespace’s pricing?

I found Squarespace’s pricing to be competitive with other popular hosted CMSs and it was easy to get started with the 14-day free trial. It’s also not hard to find Certified Squarespace users who advertise their 20% discount offer for your first year.

2. Which Squarespace features do you think are great value for money?

My favorite things about Squarespace are its ease of use and aesthetic design elements. Squarespace offers just enough customizability without overcomplicating the web design process. As someone who has analysis paralysis, this was just what I needed to get up a beautiful and professional website quickly. I enjoy being on the Squarespace platform because of its user-friendliness and this is one less potential headache for all that comes with managing a business.

3. Do you have any budgeting tips for other businesses who are considering using Squarespace?

Take advantage of Squarespace’s 14-day free trial and see how you like using their platform. Experience what it will be like designing or making edits to your website by trying the different design blocks. Explore Squarespace’s settings and business integrations to ensure it’ll have everything you need to manage your unique business. Compare your experience to the free trials with other website builders. If you commit to using Squarespace, find a discount for your first year and consider paying annually for more savings.

Check out Lauren’s website here

My verdict: Is Squarespace worth the money?

Second to GoDaddy, Squarespace is one of the best value for money builders we’ve tested. So, while its plans are slightly more money than GoDaddy, you unlock a lot of advanced features and access to Squarespace’s easy-to-use editor and designs. If you’re looking to build a visually stunning website, I’d recommend choosing Squarespace.

Emma Ryan Lead Writer

You can build a website for free via platforms like Wix and GoDaddy. Their free forever plans are a great choice for businesses that don’t want to commit to a paid plan on a long-term basis. That said, these plans often come with undesirable features for businesses, such as branded ads on your website.

💰 Discover your options with our guide to the best free website builders

The biggest hidden costs when choosing a website builder stem from domain renewal rates, plan renewal rates, and transaction fees.

• Domain renewal rates: While the first year is often free, a custom domain will then cost between $20 and $30 per year.
• Plan renewal rates: After your first term is up, you’ll be charged the full price for your website builder plan. This can make your costs increase by 40% – 50%.
• Transaction fees: Transaction fees vary between platforms. Some platforms lower or waive these charges with plan upgrades or when using their native payment solutions, such as Shopify Payments.

Committing to longer terms (e.g 24 or 48-months) typically extends the discount period, providing the best deal. However, this method will require you to pay the full amount upfront.

When choosing a cheap platform to build your website with, evaluate three primary factors: the entire overall cost (including renewal increases), your non-negotiable features (like ecommerce or blogging), and your technical skill level.

• Review the website builder’s pricing and plans – Is there an affordable option that suits your needs? Is there a free trial or plan to test things out first? Is there a steep price increase between plans or can you scale your website steadily?
• Assess your website’s “must-haves” – Do you need ecommerce functionality to sell online? Are there tools to help you promote your business, like social media or blogging? Can you pinpoint specific plans that have the features you need?
• See which builder suits your style of learning and skill level – Is the website builder easy to use? Are there templates that you like? Can you design the website you want to create with the builder’s editor? Is there support available if you need a helping hand?

For additional guidance on how to choose a website builder, view our video:

Play

We put every website builder through our rigorous testing process to create our data-backed recommendations. We want you, our readers, to have all of the information you need to make an informed decision when it comes to deciding which website builder to pick. To do that, our team has carried out over 300 hours of research in the areas you care about most. 

Our research methodology is broken down into six categories:

1. Pricing
2. Website functionality
3. Design features
4. Help and support
5. Reputation
6. User experience

To determine our list of the cheapest website builders, we primarily look at the pricing section of our research. In particular, we’ve assessed the average pricing plans for each builder, the jump between plans, the quality of features versus price, and reviewed the cheapest introductory deals on the market.

I personally built a website with each of these builders to test its features and limits, meaning I can share my unique experiences throughout the article.

*The image above depicts our general website builder rankings for 2025. Our order of recommendation in this article is slightly different, since this article focuses on pricing.

Hostinger is the cheapest website builder out there, with its plans starting from $1.99 per month. And for just $2.99 per month, you’ll gain access to its suite of AI features and ecommerce functionality. So, because of its easy-to-use platform, I highly recommend Hostinger for beginners.

Just remember to keep an eye out for renewal prices and upgrade costs. The cheapest plan might only offer some of your website or business needs, but it can be a great place to start!