More and more businesses are looking to succeed in a digitalized world, and a tastefully designed website is paramount in achieving this. Visitors would rather read content on a beautifully designed site than on a plain platform.
These days, anyone can build their own website thanks to website design software and affordable web hosting. But there are tons of design tools out there, each requiring different skill set and know-how. Finding the best web designer software, therefore, becomes complicated and difficult.
So, in this article, we’ll talk you through the best web building design software for users of all levels.
In a hurry? Here’s a quick summary table:
| Best for Beginners | Wix | Weebly | – |
| Best for Designers | Webflow | Figma | Sketch |
| Best for Coders | Adobe Dreamweaver | Bootstrap | – |
| Best for Prototyping | Adobe XD | Framer | Figma |
There are lots to cover, so let’s dive in!
What Does Web Design Software Look Like in 2023?
In the past, websites had to be manually written and structured using HTML and CSS code and javascript. Then, designs were mocked up using software like Photoshop to be translated into code by a professional designer. But the best website design software has managed to simplify this whole process significantly. Whether you’re using paid or free web design software, the best website design platforms are simple and very easy to use.
As such, for professionals, web design software may refer to a coding platform that marks up code, allowing experts to preview their designs as they script them.
That said, modern web design software often circumvents these steps and provides a wholly visual interface, making web design more accessible than ever. It combines functional and visual design into one by allowing users to edit the appearance of their website via their chosen web browser, with website design tools that make designing fool proof, even for novice designers. Combined with a more in-depth understanding of website development software, the whole process becomes significantly easier.
Some programs even provide everything you need to build a website to your specifications, populate it with content, and host it on the web.
This includes building forms, hosting images, and accessing content delivery networks to benefit from fast loading speeds.
Such software is available open-source or as SaaS with a monthly subscription fee.
For a more holistic take, we’ve included both traditional web design software and modern, easy-to-use website builders in this list. All things considered, the goal is now to find the best software for web design with the best web design tools that fit your needs.
How to Find the Best Web Design Software for Your Project?
The best web building software will depend on your specific needs, so be sure to consider the following factors as you weigh up your decision. We’ve narrowed down some of the top web design app features below:
- Ease of use: Some web design software requires coding knowledge and/or an understanding of web design best practices. Some also have more intuitive interfaces than others, i.e., drag-and-drop editors tend to be easier to navigate than side-bar or section editors.
- Customizability: How many themes are available? How easy are they to customize? Can users access the CSS backend to make more advanced edits? How much flexibility is there over your website’s layout? Etc.
- Budget: Some platforms offer free plans, but most lock their more sophisticated features behind a premium pricing plan(s). Be sure to check these first before signing the dotted line.
- Functionality: Are plugins and extensions available? Does the platform provide a CMS, blog, online store, contact forms, etc.?
With these considerations in mind, let’s delve into our favorite web design software of 2023:
Best Design Software for Website Creation
Are you new to web design but dream of launching a gorgeous-looking website? Let’s take a look at some of the best professional web design software tools out there:
1. Wix
Wix has carved a name out for itself as one of the most intuitive website builders in the industry. With an array of affordable pricing plans, there’s something for everyone.
You can choose from one of over 500 pre-designed, customizable templates and modify the theme to your liking using Wix’s intuitive drag-and-drop editor. You can add and edit images, create video backgrounds and animations, customize forms, add social buttons, and much more.
You can create a simple store and add a basic blogging engine. On top of that, you’ll benefit from Wix’s SEO wizard. This provides helpful advice for optimizing web pages for maximum organic reach.
Wix also has an app market where you can download and use other valuable widgets and third-party integrations.
Lastly, Wix has recently introduced Wix Turbo, which optimizes the performance of Wix sites substantially for an even quick user experience.
Wix is a free website design software if you opt to use the Wix domain, but these will of course have limited features. The more robust tools for software web design once you opt for the higher, paid tiers and offers great integrations, including adobe web design.
Pricing
Wix comes with a freemium version and a range of paid-for website plans, including:
- Combo: $18 a month
- Unlimited: $23 a month
- Pro: $28 a month
- VIP: $47 a month
Their Business and eCommerce plans include:
- Business Basic: $28 a month
- Business Unlimited: $33 a month
- Business VIP: $56 a month
- Enterprise: $500 a month
Pros
- Automated SMS notifications and email reminders to limit no-shows
- Host public events, sell tickets online and scan them from the Wix Owner app
- Wix ADI lets you instantly build a website based on simple questions
- Over 500 templates with extensive editing tools and features
- Offers modern-looking templates
- Easily customizable
- Uses artificial intelligence to design pages
- Lots of great themes with customization options built-in
- AI enhanced functionality to help with building your store
- On-page support to help you make the most of the service
- Lots of apps and plugins for extra functionality
- Various secure payment options and SSL certificate
Cons
- Built-in analytics are only available on the highest tier
- Product subscriptions aren’t available on the lowest plan
- It can get expensive
- You can’t change templates easily
- Not the best at SEO
- Lacking some advanced automation and upselling features
Starting at
$4.50
per month
2. Webflow
Webflow strikes a great compromise between traditional web design practices and modern website builders.
It provides an entirely visual and intuitive interface where you can drag and drop website elements without tinkering with the code. However, Webflow provides web design options and uses vocabulary that pros might be more familiar with. For example, you can adjust padding, borders, shadows, margins, alignment, and positioning to a pixel-perfect degree.
Webflow allows you to add an online store and CMS to your website. The solution translates your web design into clean code that can be exported and edited anytime, making it easier for designers to collaborate with developers. It can even be used as a fully-fledged professional web design tool for freelancers and agencies alike. In contrast, for non-professional web designers, the platform can be used as a generic website builder.
Pricing
Webflow comes with a free plan – where no credit card’s required. From there, Webflow splits its pricing plans into two categories: site plans and account plans.
Webflow’s Site Plans include:
- Basic: $12 a year
- CMS: $16 a year
- Business: $36 a year
- Enterprise: You’ll have to contact Webflow directly for more info
The pricing plans for Webflow’s Individual Account plans include:
- Starter: Free
- Lite: $16 a year
- Pro: $35 a year
Pros
- You can tweak designs using CSS
- Fantastic customization features
- Ideal for working with clients
- You benefit from high levels of customizability with full access to your website’s code.
- Webflow mimics popular design software like Adobe Photoshop and InDesign, which creates a smoother transition for designers familiar with these tools.
- Webflow enables easy collaboration between designers and developers.
- Professionals can use Webflow to develop websites for their clients.
- You’ll get access to an intuitive drag-and-drop editor.
Cons
- Beginners might find it intimidating
- Not a lot of third-party integration options
- Some templates have to be paid for
- Webflow comes with a steep learning curve, especially if you don’t have any coding knowledge or experience with traditional design software.
- You can’t launch a live website with Webflow’s free plan.
- Webflow falls within a middling price range compared to other web design software.
Starting at
$0
per month
3. Adobe Dreamweaver
Dreamweaver is part of the Creative Cloud, which also includes Photoshop and InDesign. Adobe Dreamweaver has one of the longest-standing histories in web design and is one of the most popular Adobe web design software options.
The tool allows you to code your website and offers a mixture of visual and HTML editing. Although this makes the learning curve more manageable for most users, it still doesn’t present the same ease of use as a modern website builder. Unlike the best free web design software however, Adobe Dreamweaver requires a little bit of a learning curve. Still, with it’s extensive web editing tools, and top web design software features, it secure a top spot on our list.
Despite the added complexity of this website design program, software like Dreamweaver enables you to bring your ideal website to life – both in terms of aesthetics and functionality. Features you don’t get with free web page design software.
You can build fully responsive websites and customize their appearance on mobile, tablets, and other devices.
Lastly, for more advanced users, Dreamweaver also provides multi-monitor support for Windows making it one of the best web design editors for Windows.
Pricing
Adobe Dreamweaver is part of the creative suite, but you can also purchase a standalone subscription. This will set you back $20.99 a month.
Pros
- Adobe Dreamweaver ties in seamlessly with other tools in the Creative Cloud
- It’s ideal for developers with coding knowledge.
- You’ll benefit from complete customizability and control over your web design and responsiveness.
- Adobe Dreamweaver supports HTML5.
Cons
- If you don’t know how to code, Adobe Dreamweaver presents a steep learning curve.
- Adobe Dreamweaver isn’t very affordable. In addition to the software, you’ll still need to secure your own web hosting and domain name before your website can go live.
Starting at
$20.99
Per Month
4. WordPress.org (hosted on Bluehost)
WordPress.org is an open-source CMS powering over 40% of the web. One of the best things about WordPress is its extreme flexibility. You can build almost any website imaginable – from blogs and marketplaces to small business websites and membership sites. You have complete control over the complexity of your website.
Wordpress.org is suitable for users of all levels, from beginners to advanced designers and coders. You’ll benefit from WordPress’s vast array of themes, plugins, and customization options.
You’ll need to register a domain name and secure web hosting for a modest annual fee before you can go live. WordPress actually recommends Bluehost, one of the largest hosting companies in the world, to get started.
Pricing
WordPress.org itself is free! Hosting plans start at less than $5 per month.
Pros
- WordPress.org is free!
- There are thousands of themes, plugins, and widgets to choose from
- You have complete control over the functionality and aesthetic of your website.
- There’s an active community with plenty of self-help guides and documentation available online.
- WordPress.org boasts powerful blogging features and SEO functionality.
Cons
- At least with older versions of WordPress, the design editor comes with a steeper learning curve.
- With any open-source software, you need to find your own hosting, which can seem daunting at first if you’re new to website creation.
Starting at
Free
5. Squarespace
Squarespace is another intuitive website builder with affordable pricing plans and tons of professionally designed themes to choose from.
It’s a fully hosted solution with many features built-in, including a powerful image editor.
Squarespace is best suited to entrepreneurs and freelancers working in creative fields looking to publish beautiful portfolios, galleries, and/or other visual content.
That said, it isn’t as intuitive as Wix. For example, you can only edit web page sections- it isn’t a full drag-and-drop editor. However, the customization options for individual elements are more extensive – so it’s swings and roundabouts!
You can easily add an online store and blog to your website. On top of that, there are plenty of third-party apps you can download and use to extend your website’s functionality.
Pricing
Squarespace offers several pricing plans, including:
- Personal: $12 a month
- Business: $18 a month
- Basic: $26 a month
- Advanced: $40 a month
| Not provided by vendor
6. Weebly
Alongside Wix, Weebly is arguably one of the easiest-to-use website builders on the market. Its simple drag-and-drop interface enables beginners to launch a website within minutes without writing a single line of code.
You can create an online store using existing responsive templates or start from scratch – the choice is yours.
You can also install widgets for extra functionality. On top of that, Weebly comes with built-in SEO and analytics.
Weebly is incredibly intuitive, but that comes at a cost – it isn’t as feature-rich or powerful as other website builders.
Pricing
Weebly offers a free plan for basic use as well as three paid-for plans.
These are:
- Personal: $6.00 a month
- Professional: $12.00 a month
- Performance: $26.00 a month
Best Software for Interface Design & Prototyping
Professional web designers need to bring their vision to life and test their website functionality before going live. Not sure where to start? Let’s check out some ideas below.
1. Figma
Figma is a feature-loaded design tool that accomplishes similar things to Sketch or Adobe XD. You can use Figma to quickly mockup, edit, and design website ideas.
In addition, Figma takes a collaborative cloud-based approach so that multiple team members can design simultaneously and provide each other with constant feedback. Needless to say, this makes effective collaboration much more manageable.
Pricing
Figma has a ‘free forever’ plan available. They also have two paid-for plans:
- Professional: $12 per editor, per month
- Organization: $45 per editor, per month
2. Adobe XD
Adobe is a slightly more complex UI and UX design tool. You can use Adobe XD to craft anything from apps to complete websites. Web developers and designers commonly use it to create and collaborate on different prototypes, wireframes, and mockups. It’s not user-friendly for beginners.
Adobe XD is a vector-based tool that can turn flat images into 3D pictures and create augmented virtual reality experiences. You also get access to features like repeat grids, support for plugins and extensions, prototyping design tools, animations, transition design, and more.
Pricing
Adobe XD has a free seven-day trial and four different pricing plans, including:
- XD Single App: $9.99 a month
- Creative Cloud All Apps: $52.99 a month
- XD for Teams: $22.99 a month
- Creative Cloud All Apps for Teams: $79.99 a month
Pros
- Adobe XD boasts a functional, well-presented interface
- Prototyping is straightforward (for those with experience)- it doesn’t require additional plugins or services.
- Collaboration/co-editing is available so you can share files for review and work together in real-time.
- You can view prototypes on your phone and open files from other Adobe products.
Cons
- Although XD comes with illustration tools; you can’t draw custom shapes
- Although XD is constantly updating itself – although these provide users with great features, things are constantly changing, which can be annoying. Also, these updates sometimes come with bugs.
- If you don’t already have a ‘Creative Cloud’ plan, you’ll have to pay a monthly cost to get full use of the features.
Starting at
$54.99
per month
3. Sketch
With Sketch, web designers can create beautiful, functional mockups from an easy-to-use interface. As a result, it’s one of the most popular design tools on the market. In the 2010’s it won a design award from Apple, and since then, the software has really taken off.
Sketch comes with a wide variety of plugins, integrations, and tools suitable for prototyping and collaboration. However, these aren’t as advanced as UI and UX features.
Sketch includes features like:
- Vector graphics
- Font rendering that’s close to how it would be on mobile/web
- iOS design testing
- Artboards and pages
- Smart guides
…to name a few!
Sketch is relatively straightforward and can be used by beginners. Thanks to its clean interface, everything’s easy to navigate. If you do run into trouble, there are plenty of helpful user guides and a solid community you can turn to.
Pricing
Sketch comes with a 30-day free trial and two main pricing plans:
- Standard: $9.99 a month (for individuals and teams)
- Business: Price available on request (For organizations with advanced needs)
4. Framer
Framer is a diverse tool that web designers and developers can use to design almost anything and create production-ready code.
Although Framer expects some coding knowledge, it does have several tools that allow you to create animated effects without coding. However, to use Framer to its full capacity, you’ll require some coding skills. As such, Framer may not be suitable for complete beginners.
You can also use Framer to build UI components that function exactly how you want them to. You can use existing code libraries, UI kits, or packages to do this.
On top of all that, Framer supports ‘typescript’ (an evolved version of Javascript) that’s also approved by Google, making Framer future-proof.
Lastly, you’ll also benefit from some great features. For instance: cursor chat, a rapid code editor, components for gradients, Spotify components (so you can embed songs and playlists in projects) – to name a few!
Pricing
Framer offers three pricing plans:
- Free
- Pro: $22 per editor, per month
- Enterprise: custom pricing
Pros
- You get a lot of creative freedom
- Framer is available on multiple platforms, and any device running a web browser
- There are a range of different integrations available, including Sketch, Figma, iOS, macOS, Photoshop, and more
- It’s great for prototyping
Cons
- Some users have complained about buggy updates
- To take full advantage of Framer, you’ll need some coding know-how
- It lacks some sought after features like text style, which comes with competitors like Sketch
Starting at
$0
per month
Are You Ready to Start Using The Best Web Design Software for Your Project?
Whether you’re a novice, or a professional web designer, or a coder, there’s a beautifully diverse range of web design software out there to choose from.
Lacking skills and experience? No problem. Want to build a prototype rather than a fully-fledged website? We hear you. There’s an option to meet every budget, project, and skill level.
In summary: here are some recommendations for specific user scenarios:
- Easiest Web Design Software for complete beginners: Wix or Weebly
- Best Web Design Software for designers: Webflow, Figma or Sketch
- Best Web Design Software for coders: Adobe Dreamweaver or Bootstrap
- Best resources and community: WordPress.org (hosted on Bluehost)
