What is the Best Website Builder for Google Ranking?

In today’s hyper-digital world, not having a website is the equivalent of setting up shop in a forgotten back alley and completely neglecting to put up any signage.

While some might argue that social media profiles provide enough exposure, in truth, a website is an essential platform for small businesses. It allows curious customers to learn more about their goods and services — and ultimately, decide if they like what they see and want to give them their business.

However, it’s no longer enough to just have a website. You need a high-quality website that ranks well on search engines and provides a good experience for the people browsing it.

Many small business owners face problems with the website builders they use, such as an interface that’s difficult to use, a site that’s sluggish and has a poor loading time, steep monthly costs that don’t align with the site’s performance, and even an inability to rank high in search engines.

The last one, in particular, can be a death knell for some sites, with 28.5% of people choosing to click the first link on their search engine results page and 75% of people never even scrolling past the first page of results.

Whether you already have a website or are looking to start building a new website for your business, avoiding these issues is vital.

In this article, we’ll take a holistic approach to help you find out the best website builder option for Google ranking, but also which ones will suit the needs of a small business owner in terms of usability, technical setup, and more.

If it’s your first time setting up a website and you haven’t chosen builder software yet, we’ll also walk you through startup costs and factors you should consider before making an investment.

WordPress

WordPress is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that allows you to build a website hosted on its servers using the building blocks they provide.

It’s often the first that comes to mind when people think of website builders for SEO, and for good reason. Between its ease of use, customizability, wide range of beautiful templates and dedicated customer support, many use it as their first foray into building a website and using content management systems (CMS).

There are hundreds of templates in WordPress you can view before you get started.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Ease of Use

One of the biggest appeals of WordPress to beginners is the simplicity at its core. WordPress itself can handle around 80 – 90% of basic search engine optimization (SEO) for your website, with its base HTML and themes designed to appeal to search engines.

SEO Plugins

For those with more experience, WordPress also offers access to over 50,000 WordPress plugins, such as Yoast SEO, which you can install on your site to help your search ranking and improve the visitor experience. The pricing plans geared towards businesses also include advanced SEO options and Google Analytics integration so you can easily track and analyze your site’s performance.

Features

Out of the four pricing plans offered by WordPress, the Business plan is best for small businesses. Should you choose to get an annual subscription, the features you get include:

• Best-in-class hosting
• The ability to remove WordPress.com ads
• Premium themes
• The ability to upload videos
• The ability to collect payments
• Earn ad revenue
• Unlimited email support
• Live Chat support
• Google Analytics integration
• The ability to install WordPress plugins
• Advanced SEO tools (including access to your site’s meta descriptions, title formats, and previews for search and social media before posting)
• Automated site backups and one-click restore
• Database access and SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol) (allowing for file access, file transfer, and file management)
• Bonus: A free domain for one year

Who Uses It?

WordPress is the most used website builder across the entirety of the internet, with 43.2% of all websites using it. That’s a promising number by itself, but it’s even more praiseworthy when you consider that there are around 1.9 billion websites today. Some of the biggest names that use WordPress are:

• TIME Magazine, one of the longest-running news magazines and news websites in the U.S.
• Playstation Blog, a website dedicated to insider news, game releases, and gaming tips for Playstation, owned by one of the biggest gaming companies in the world.
• Spotify Newsroom, the press website for updates, news, and music releases for the Spotify app.
• Vogue, one of the most well-known fashion and lifestyle magazines, which provides news on beauty tips, celebrity styles, and more.
• Disney Books, the official site for the Walt Disney Company’s publishing wing, which allows visitors to filter books by best sellers, characters, age, and more.
• Microsoft News, a site for news, features, events, press materials, stories about the company, and more from Microsoft.
• The White House, the official site for the White House, which hosts information about the latest bills, legislation, official statements, and more.

Pricing

WordPress offers four pricing plans: Personal, Premium, Business, and eCommerce. Each offers more features than the last, while also being pricier. Their recommended pricing plan for small businesses is the Business plan, which can start at $25 per month.

Final Thoughts

WordPress is a very user-friendly website builder, perfect for those just starting out with their website — you can rely on its built-in SEO tool and best practices while you get your bearings and progress to using plugins and themes to enhance your ranking once you have a better grasp of where you stand.

It’s also the most popular website builder, so if you choose to hire a website designer, you can rest assured that they’ll know how to work with it.

If you've already mastered SEO basics, take note that you’ll need to be hands-on to make WordPress work for you. The freedom and customizability can be a big perk for some.

Wix

For absolute beginners, Wix is another great pick for the best website builder to rank high in Google. It’s a platform that allows you to quickly and easily design, build, and manage a professional website — no custom code required.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Beginner-Friendly

If you’re looking for an SEO website builder that holds your hand through every step, Wix is the one for you.

No coding is required, and you can easily start building a website using one of their 500+ customizable website templates.

Plus, the SEO tools are integrated right into the dashboard. The built-in SEO Wiz can walk you through the basics step-by-step and even suggest improvements and goals for your website.

If you’re interested in upping your SEO game, Wix also offers an in-depth SEO guide to familiarize you with its SEO tools.

Google Integration

Wix features strong integration with Google, making it one of the best ranking website builders for Google. You can easily connect to Google Search Console and Google Analytics by simply entering your tracking ID. If you do this, Wix can notify you when your site isn’t performing as well as you want it to.

SEO Tools

Every Wix site is backed by a solid infrastructure designed around the needs of search engines, allowing you to compete for organic search results from the get-go. More than 53% of traffic comes from organic search (i.e. unpaid search results), so you definitely want to keep up.

Wix SEO tools are designed to make SEO as simple and intuitive as possible, with features like:

• Bulk 301 redirects
• Customized URLs for website pages
• Edit access to meta titles and descriptions for each page
• Automatic alt text input for uploaded images (used by search engines to understand pictures)
• Good loading speeds and uptime
• Built-in XML sitemap
• SSL certificates for basic security on the site (HTTPS instead of HTTP)

Who Uses It?

Wix is one of the fastest-growing content management systems and web hosting providers. Here are some of the big names that use it for their websites:

• SAP, the official website of the world’s leading producer of business applications and technology solutions.

• Lyft, the site for one of the biggest ride-sharing and delivery apps, which allows visitors to sign up as a driver or a rider.

• CBS, the online home of a commercial broadcast television and radio network, where visitors can watch shows and check broadcast schedules.

• Hilton, the official site of one of the world’s biggest hotel chains, where visitors can book hotels, resorts, and other getaways.

• Deloitte, a site for a professional services firm that provides tax, audit, consulting, and advisory services to many of the world’s leading businesses.

Pricing

Wix offers two sets of plans: the Website Plans, meant for showcasing a professional site, and the Business and eCommerce Plans, meant for those who want to accept online payments on their site. The Website Plans range from $4.50 – $24.50 a month, while the Business and eCommerce Plans range from $17 – $35 a month.

Final Thoughts

Wix’s beginner-friendly setup is both its biggest advantage and most significant downside. It’s a godsend if you have no idea what you’re doing, but even though it provides basic SEO features, when you want to progress to more advanced SEO methods, you may find it fairly restrictive and stifling. When using Wix, you sacrifice freedom for convenience. You can also hire an SEO Expert to help you. 

Squarespace

For those confident in their SEO skills, Squarespace offers a sleek website builder for boosting your online presence. Unlike WordPress and Wix, it isn’t geared toward beginners — you won’t find much hand-holding here. What you will find, however, is fine-tuned control over your website’s SEO.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Sophisticated SEO Capabilities

They say that when you want something done right, you do it yourself.

Squarespace allows you to utilize advanced SEO techniques and technical tools to your heart’s content — by implementing your own code.

The highly-organized backend allows you to effortlessly keep track of SEO best practices through built-in features, provided that you’re already familiar with them.

It does still offer built-in SEO support, but not to the same level as Wix. If you need help, Squarespace has its own SEO checklist, as well as a guide for improving your site’s visibility to search engines.

Social Media Integration

Another area where Squarespace shines is social media integration — it’s compatible with over 30 different social media platforms.

If you have a strong social media presence you want to capitalize on, Squarespace can make it easier to manage the entirety of your online presence. An active, multi-channel presence can do wonders for your Google ranking, as search engines like sites that are trusted by other sites.

Features

If you want to keep your web development centralized, Squarespace can be a good fit, as it doesn’t rely on plugins or apps for the majority of its SEO features. It offers perks like:

• User-friendly configuration boxes where you can easily define key SEO elements (e.g. meta titles, meta descriptions, alt text, etc.)
• Automatically-generated structured data

• Keyword support that allows you to check what search terms are driving traffic
• Built-in XML sitemap
• SSL certificates
• Support for Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) on Google

Who Uses It?

Squarespace has been used by various blogs, portfolios, online stores, and local businesses. Here are some great examples:

• Blue Dog, the site for an NYC restaurant focused on serving healthy meals, which allows visitors to place orders and make reservations.

• Supernatural, an online store for natural, plant-based food colors.
• Bathhouse, the website for a spa located in Brooklyn, which provides users with information about the amenities and allows them to book a visit.

• Simply Living Well, a blog that revolves around living simply, slowly, and sustainably.

Website builders are also called content management systems (CMS). Here's a definitive guide on the best CMS for beginners.

Pricing

Squarespace offers four pricing plans: Personal, Business, Basic Commerce, and Advanced Commerce. Their Business plan is the most popular pick, beginning at $23 per month when billed annually.

Final Thoughts

Squarespace can be a bit tricky to use, especially when you’re using a complicated template with minimal guidance.

If you’re a beginner looking to create a website on your own, you’ll be better off using a different web builder or hiring a developer to handle it for you. At the end of the day, however, Squarespace offers robust, sophisticated tools for SEO — you just need to know how to use them.

HubSpot

HubSpot is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform that provides businesses with software for operations, marketing, sales, content management, and customer service.

Among its many products is a drag-and-drop website builder that allows you to create a website with no coding or technical knowledge required.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Drag-and-Drop Functionality

While Wix offers great templates to get you started, even total newbies can hit the ground running with HubSpot’s builder because of its intuitive drag-and-drop interface.

If you’re a visual learner, you’ll find it extremely easy to create and customize.

On the flip side, if you’re an experienced web builder, you’ll likely end up frustrated.

The HubSpot builder doesn’t use traditional coding language or templates, instead using its own language called HubL. You have the option of learning it, but this may be a drawback if you’d prefer more familiar territory.

Great for Marketers

HubSpot is perhaps best known for its content marketing. This comes through in its website builder, which comes with built-in analytics and marketing tools, mobile optimization, and integrated lead management.

Another area where it shines is personalization. Through integration with HubSpot’s stellar CRM system, you can easily deliver content to specific segments of your audience based on their activities and demographics.

Agency Jet actually made the switch from WordPress to HubSpot...and then we wrote about it.

Features

Here are some of the features that make HubSpot unique from other website builders:

• A/B testing for the pages on your site
• Built-in ad management
• Integrated tips and coaching for SEO best practices
• Built-in customer service integrations
• Ease of moving an existing site (i.e. the HubSpot internal team can help you transfer your site to their builder)

Who Uses It?

Over 143,000 customers around the world use HubSpot’s suite of tools and integrations. Here are some great websites that use its builder:

• Pressboard, a website that prominently features Pressboard’s content creator tools and media monitoring platform.

• The Room, a site for a marketing platform that targets influencers and brands, split into two distinct sections for each audience.

• Synlait Swappa Bottle, a site that highlights a New Zealand milk producer’s new product through interactive graphics.

Pricing

HubSpot offers three pricing plans: Starter, Professional, and Enterprise. There are big jumps in price between each: the Starter plan starts at $23 per month, the Professional at $360 per month, and Enterprise at $1,200 per month. However, if you want to get a good ranking with your website, you’ll at least need a Professional plan.

Final Thoughts

For businesses that focus on their customer relations and need sites that focus heavily on content, HubSpot is a great pick because of its marketing tools and CRM integration.

The drag-and-drop builder is easy to use for those with no experience in web design, and the HubSpot team is always ready to lend their support. However, it’s one of the more expensive builders, and experienced developers might not appreciate its unique coding language.

Shopify

Shopify is one of the best website builders for businesses that want to build a scalable online store. If you’re looking for an eCommerce platform, Shopify’s fully-customizable website builder will make it significantly easier to get started.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Ideal for Large Stores

Whether you’re already managing thousands of products or you want to scale up in the future, Shopify’s builder will provide you with the support you need.

The builder features a clean interface that’s simple to use, with step-by-step video guides to support those who need more guidance.

eCommerce Features

Shopify features an impressive array of features designed to improve your customer’s user experience, including:

• Thousands of free and paid apps to add to your store
• Shipping and dropshipping options
• Abandoned cart recovery as a standard feature
• Product management tools (including inventory management)
• Multi-channel integration that allows you to sell your products on channels like Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, eBay, and more
• Support for various payment options
• Ability to sell digital products
• Automatic tax calculations (using default sales tax rates)
• Point-of-sale for physical transactions (e.g. pop-up stores, fairs, exhibitions, etc.)

SEO Tools

Aside from typical Shopify SEO apps like meta titles and descriptions, headers, alt text, custom URLs, mobile compatibility, 301 redirects, SSL certificates, canonical tags, and Google Search Console, Shopify also offers:

• In-house analytics and Google Analytics integration
• Standard blogging tools
• Email marketing tools
• Multilingual site support

Who Uses It?

Shopify hosts roughly 4 million eCommerce stores across the world. Of them, here are some of the most successful:

• ColourPop Cosmetics, an American cosmetics brand.

• Jeffree Star Cosmetics, a cosmetics brand owned by Jeffree Star, an American celebrity.

• Fashion Nova, an American fashion store for women that primarily operates online.

• Red Dress Boutique, a women’s clothing store based in Georgia.

• Gymshark, a British fitness apparel and accessories brand.

Pricing

Shopify offers three main pricing plans: Basic, Shopify, and Advanced. In order, these cost $29 per month, $75 per month, and $299 per month. Even the Basic plan can serve your ranking needs with the addition of SEO apps, but it doesn’t include the more advanced eCommerce features.

Final Thoughts

Shopify has a great reputation as an all-in-one eCommerce solution because it’s incredibly good at what it does. It understands what its users need to enhance the shopping experience for their own customers.

Shopify support is also available 24/7 for those who find themselves in a tight spot, so you can rest easy knowing that someone has your back.

However, Shopify can be heavily reliant on apps to boost its functionality. In addition, you might find yourself paying more than you expected — the combination of expensive transaction fees and paid apps add on to your monthly costs.

Magento

Magento has two iterations: a free open-source software known as Magento Open Source, and a pricier, fully-featured eCommerce solution called Adobe Commerce, previously known as Magento Enterprise.

In both iterations, it’s a powerful web builder that can support businesses looking to build a standout website.

Features, Benefits, Specifications, and Ranking Potential

Open Source vs Adobe Commerce

Both versions of Magento offer the following:

• Global selling
• Integrated checkout, payment, and shipping
• Mobile-optimized shopping
• Product management
• Instant purchase
• Use of apps to extend site functionality
• Site search for users
• Page builder

The Adobe Commerce version, however, comes with additional features like advanced marketing tools and customer segmentation, as well as optimized cloud architecture from Adobe and 24/7 technical support.

The main draw of Open Source is that it’s free to download and you can customize it to your heart’s content. However, Adobe Commerce definitely has a more powerful selection of features.

Better for Bigger Businesses

On paper, Open Source seems like a great idea for small businesses with its low start-up cost. However, it’s not easy for beginners to install — there’s no one-minute signup or drag-and-drop template. You have to set it up yourself.

To ensure you’re doing it right, it’s best to hire someone who knows their way around development work. Once it’s installed, however, Magento is fairly straightforward and user-friendly.

SEO Tools

By itself, Open Source doesn’t offer a robust suite of SEO tools. You have access to basic tools, like custom URLs, customizable meta information, and an auto-generated sitemap, but if you want more advanced tools, you have to turn to apps or upgrade to Adobe Commerce.

Who Uses It?

Magento powers over 20% of the top online stores in the U.S. and Canada. Here are some of the biggest brands using it:

• Coca-Cola Store, the online shopping platform for the world’s beloved soda brand.

• Moschino, the online boutique for luxury Italian fashion house Moschino.

• Jaguar, a website centered around the Jaguar, a renowned athletic sports car and luxury sedan.

• Helly Hansen, an online store for Helly Hansen, which sells skiing, sailing, and other outdoor apparel.

• Christian Louboutin, an online store for the luxury footwear and accessories brand.

Pricing

Magento Open Source may be free to download, but you’ll be seeing additional costs for hosting your website, security certificates, apps/extensions, and more.

This can easily add up to over $10,000 per year (roughly $833 per month). Adobe Commerce is even pricier, starting at $22,000 per year (roughly $1,833 per month).

Final Thoughts

Magento is one powerful website builder. If your business is ready to go above and beyond and needs a website builder to support its growth, Magento’s capabilities will ensure that you’re never left wanting.

However, if you’re just starting out and don’t have the budget or technical expertise to handle Magento, you’d be better off with the other website builders on this list.

Buying Guide

Now that you’ve read about six of the best ranking website builders currently on the market and seen how we rank them by their SEO value, it's time to look at a few other factors you should consider if you're going to choose one for your small business.

Here are four buying factors to consider, as well as our personal rankings for each of the sites in their respective categories:

Ease of Use

How easy is this builder to use for improving your Google ranking?

• WordPress: 4.5/5
• Wix: 4.5/5
• Squarespace: 3/5
• HubSpot: 3.5/5
• Shopify: 4/5
• Magento: 2.5/5

Nobody can beat Wix when it comes to user-friendliness, with its built-in SEO guide and step-by-step instructions. HubSpot is great for content-heavy sites, as HubSpot’s content marketing expertise can help guide your ranking climb.

A similar story goes for Shopify, but for eCommerce sites instead. WordPress does have great potential, but it’ll require fiddling around with the plugins. Squarespace offers good SEO tools, but it won’t hold your hand through the process. Lastly, Magento requires a technical background to get it up and running.

Reliability

Do you have someone to turn to when things go pear-shaped?

• WordPress: 5/5
• Wix: 5/5
• Squarespace: 5/5
• HubSpot: 5/5
• Shopify: 5/5
• Magento: 1/5 (Open Source) and 5/5 (Adobe Commerce)

This list may seem a bit strange, but one of the easiest ways to determine reliability is whether or not they have dedicated 24/7 customer service. All of these providers do, with the notable exception of Magento Open Source.

As it’s an open source software that gives free rein to its users, you won’t find a hotline for helping you with problems. However, you can seek out advice from experienced web developers online, as Magento is a very popular builder and many know their way around it.

Startup Costs

How much will you have to shell out to get your website up and running? Take the higher numbers as the most affordable options:

• WordPress: 4/5
• Wix: 5/5
• Squarespace: 5/5
• HubSpot: 2/5
• Shopify: 3/5
• Magento: 1/5

Squarespace and Wix have the lowest monthly prices among all of these, but another important aspect is their centralized SEO tools. Both Wix and Squarespace offer SEO tools built into the builder, so you won’t have to spring for that many additional costs.

Magento is ranked the lowest, due to its high upfront cost — even if Open Source is free, you’ll be looking at fees for a website developer, domain name, hosting, and more before the site even goes live.

Overall Cost

How much will your website cost you in the long run? Take the higher numbers as the most affordable options:

• WordPress: 3/5
• Wix: 5/5
• Squarespace: 5/5
• HubSpot: 4/5
• Shopify: 1/5
• Magento: 3/5

In the long run, there are two important differences: WordPress and Shopify’s ratings went down, while HubSpot and Magento’s went up. If you can afford the steep startup costs and your business requires the power and infrastructure provided by Magento, it’s a valuable long-term investment.

The same goes for HubSpot — while it has an expensive monthly cost, your site can benefit greatly from its unique tools. Meanwhile, WordPress and Shopify are bogged down by their reliance on additional apps, some of which are paid. Shopify is also further disadvantaged by its expensive transaction fees.

FAQs

What is the best website builder for SEO?

The best website builder for SEO depends on your needs as a business.

Are you just starting out and need a simple and inexpensive website builder? Choices like WordPress and Wix will serve you well.

Want a fully-customizable eCommerce platform? Shopify and Magento excel at that.

Looking to dive deep into the nitty-gritty of SEO and want total control over your site’s SEO? Squarespace can offer you that experience.

Take a long, hard look at your objectives and match them up to what the site does best.

How do I get my website to rank on page one of Google?

There’s no magic formula or instant trick that will get you on the first page of Google overnight — if you ever encounter an SEO agency that promises you that, they’re definitely not telling the whole story.

Getting your website to rank is a long, committed process of ensuring that you’re following current SEO best practices.

Does Google offer a website builder?

Yes, Google does offer a website builder named Google Sites. Their builder is geared more toward display pages for collaborations (e.g. teams, projects, and events) than businesses. If you have a Google My Business profile, however, you can use it to create a simple website that represents your business.

How do you make a good website for SEO?

To create a good website for SEO, you need to publish relevant, useful content, update your site regularly, and follow best practices for technical elements (e.g. metadata, alt tags for images, robust link profile, responsive site, etc.).

It’s a long and committed practice.

What to look for in a website builder for SEO?

When looking for the best website builder to rank high in Google, you need to look at the features offered. Basic SEO tools like metadata, alt tags, custom URLs, etc. should be a given. If they offer app integration to boost site functionality, it can be a great help for your SEO efforts. Advanced SEO tools are also valuable — as long as you read up on how to use them properly.

Conclusion: The Best Website Builder for Google Ranking

For absolute beginners, there’s no beating Wix when it comes to building a website. While it previously had a reputation for being a good website builder that lacked in the SEO department, it has greatly improved its SEO capabilities.

The builder itself walks you through the process, prodding you with helpful suggestions and goals to help improve your site’s SEO and ultimately improve its ranking. Wix’s pricing plans are also on the more affordable side, so you don’t have to worry about draining your coffers while you establish your online presence.

Just take note that you may eventually find yourself wanting to move on to bigger and better things, as Wix may become too restrictive.

And for that, we recommend WordPress.

What's most important is what your business needs are. There's a reason there are so many brands on so many different web builders.

Use this evaluation as a guide, ask yourself what your business needs most, and go from there.

Dive Deeper Into SEO With Agency Jet

Interested in learning more about ranking on Google and using SEO services? Head on over to our blog.

If you’re the proud owner of a website but are now curious about whether you’re on the right track to hitting that top spot, get a free, educational website assessment from our experts at Agency Jet today!