• Home
  • Posts

10 Best AI Website Builders in 2026 [Tried & Tested]

I Tested the Most Talked-About AI Website Builders. Here’s What Actually Works

Remember making playlists or burning CDs in the 2000s? You’d spend hours arranging songs in the perfect order, fine-tuning the transitions until it felt like a reflection of you or someone special.

That’s what building a website used to be—manual, slow, and personal.

Now, AI does the mixing for you. It builds, designs, and writes in minutes.

The challenge isn’t the effort anymore, but finding an AI website builder that still leaves room for your voice.

I went down the rabbit hole to find the best AI builders to help you find the one that makes the most sense to you.

Table of Contents

Why trust me?

Nupur has 4+ years of hands-on experience working as a content marketer and writer for SaaS brands. During her career, she has built websites (including her portfolio) using various tools and brings first-hand knowledge of evaluating the best website builder in this piece.

The Best AI Website Builders in 2026

Here are our top AI website builders at a glance:

Comparison table listing popular website and AI site-builder platforms—such as beehiiv, Wix AI, Webflow, Framer AI, Squarespace, and Duda—showing who each is best for, starting prices, and whether they offer a free plan.

beehiiv

Best for: Creators, writers, and media brands (like TIME, LA Mag, Techcrunch) who want their newsletter and website to live under one roof.

beehiiv’s website builder shows a creator editing a landing page with a newsletter growth headline, revenue calculator, and signup form, alongside AI-assisted design suggestions.

beehiiv’s new AI Website Builder marks a big shift for creators who previously spent countless hours juggling a newsletter platform and a separate website tool.

You can now build and manage your entire online presence from one place—with AI guiding the process. Just tell the chatbot what you want to design, edit, or update, and it quickly assembles the layout, copy, and structure you need.

When I asked it to create a landing page for newsletter growth, it generated a clean, functional design and clear, usable web copy in under a minute.

beehiiv’s website builder interface shows a creator customizing a landing page with a newsletter growth headline, revenue calculator, and signup form while using AI-assisted design tools.

The real advantage is how smoothly it ties into your existing beehiiv setup. The builder learns from your past content and automatically creates page layouts, headlines, and navigation that match your brand’s tone and aesthetic. It’s fast, accurate, and a genuine time-saver.

What makes it stand out even more is workflow efficiency. You’re no longer bouncing between a CMS, email platform, and analytics dashboard. You can design a website, publish posts, and send newsletters, all within one ecosystem.

beehiiv pricing: Free plan available for up to 2,500 subscribers; paid plans from $43/mo for 1,000 subscribers.

beehiiv Pros and Cons

A comparison table lists pros and cons of a platform, highlighting unified publishing, an easy editor, and built-in SEO tools versus limited motion design and advanced layout customization.

Best for: Small business owners who want fast setup and visual variety.

Wix’s AI site generator displays a completed site brief on the left and a preview of a fitness-themed website on the right, showing the suggested design, layout, and content. The interface highlights options to regenerate or tweak the design before continuing.

Wix’s AI asks you a bunch of questions upfront to generate an initial website design. It can create a full site from a few prompts, including color palette and tone.

But such flexibility comes with clutter. The dashboard can feel heavy, and Wix’s code-free promise falls short once you want precise control.

Wix AI pricing: Free plan available with a Wix-branded domain. Paid plans start at $17/mo with a free domain for 1 year.

Wix AI Pros and Cons

A pros-and-cons table compares a website builder’s strengths—such as a large design library, built-in ecommerce, easy onboarding, and mobile-responsive templates—with its drawbacks, including slow design generation and more basic layouts than competing builders.

Best for: Freelancers and small businesses on a tight budget.

A website builder preview shows a travel-themed homepage with the headline “Find your tribe, wander far,” while the right panel lets the user continue editing the site’s layout, content, and color palette.

Hostinger’s AI-powered builder focuses on affordability and simplicity. Add your business name, describe it in a few short sentences, and the builder will create a simple website with AI copy and stock images ready to be published.

It’s great for quick portfolios and basic business sites, but less ideal if you want dynamic pages or deep SEO control.

Hostinger pricing: Hostinger doesn’t offer a free plan. Its pricing starts from $12.19/mo and includes a free trial.

Hostinger Pros and Cons

Comparison table listing pros such as affordable, clean templates and beginner-friendly design, and cons including limited customization, weak CMS features, and plain default designs that require more manual edits.

Best for: Designers, agencies, and technical creators who want fine-tuned design.

Webflow’s AI site builder showing theme options, colors, typography, and images on the left while a generated website preview with bold headline and visual layout appears on the right, demonstrating customizable design choices.

Webflow is the designer’s AI builder. Its AI Site Designer helps generate layouts and sections, but it’s the manual control that sets it apart. You can build pixel-perfect landing pages, connect dynamic CMS collections, and scale complex sites, all without code. But you have to be patient.

Webflow isn't among the fastest builders, but the payoff is creative freedom. If you want on-brand design and agency-grade projects, this might be your best bet.

Webflow pricing: Free plan with a webflow.io domain. The paid plan starts at $14/mo.

Webflow Pros and Cons

Table comparing Webflow’s pros—full creative control, advanced CMS, and animations—with its cons, including a steeper learning curve, higher pricing, and slow initial draft generation.

Best for: Freelancers or consultants who need a one-page site fast.

Website builder page showing a nutrition-focused landing page titled ‘Optimize Your Diet Plan Today’ with a call-to-action button and meal-prep images, demonstrating how a creator can customize and publish a health and wellness site.

Durable’s AI builder is sleek and fast. Based on your business name type, it generates a one-page website and packs it with AI-generated copy, a contact form, and stock images. And, for starters, it’s a pretty low lift as you don’t have to give a detailed prompt to get a first draft.

It’s magic for non-technical solopreneurs.

The tradeoff is customization. You can’t fine-tune much beyond swapping colors, fonts, and text. But if you need a quick digital presence for your side hustle, Durable delivers.

Durable pricing: Starts at $12/mo with a custom domain. No free plan or trial offered.

Durable Pros and Cons

A two-column table compares pros and cons of a website builder for creators on beehiiv, highlighting fast setup and polished layouts versus limited customization, shallow page depth, and comparatively high cost.

Best for: Startups and visual creators who care about aesthetic polish.

A website builder workspace shows responsive wireframes for desktop, tablet, and phone layouts, with side panels displaying AI-generated project sections and customization settings. The interface demonstrates how creators can visually design and adjust portfolio pages before publishing

Framer’s AI, Wireframer, is a chat-based website builder that only creates the wireframes of the website, making it a great option for web design or prototyping.

You type what you want (e.g., “Portfolio site for a startup designer”) and it produces something strikingly modern, with smooth transitions and beautiful defaults.

The downside is that it can get technical fast, making it difficult to build a fully functional, polished site without bringing in extra help.

Framer AI pricing: Free plan available; paid from $10/mo

Framer AI Pros And Cons

A two-column pros and cons table outlines a creator website tool that offers quick, responsive layouts but lacks strong content and SEO features, with limited integrations and a steeper learning curve for non-designers

Best for: Small to mid-sized ecommerce brands, artists, photographers, and small brands wanting a premium look.

A website builder interface displays a homepage preview with service cards and a social section, while a sidebar lets creators choose which sections to include, such as intro, services, products, and footer. The layout options help users customize their site step-by-step before publishing.

Squarespace’s AI builder stands out because it actually involves you in the design process. Like most AI tools, it starts by asking about your business type and brand style, then generates a personalized intro section.

What makes it different is the level of creative choice Squarespace gives you. For every section of your site,  you can pick from multiple pre-designed layouts and lock them in.

The tradeoff is that Squarespace still demands a bit of manual polish. You get control over how the final site looks, but refining layouts or making it fully functional can feel repetitive.

Squarespace pricing: From $16/mo, 14-day free trial

Squarespace AI Pros And Cons

A pros and cons table highlights a website builder that offers a large template library and strong e-commerce tools but limits creative control, has higher pricing tiers, and uses a guided design process that can be time-consuming

Best for: Agencies and teams handling multiple client sites.

A website builder workspace shows an AI-assisted chat panel describing content and design updates for a restaurant site, alongside a live preview of the Savoria homepage with hero text, menu buttons, and reservation options. The interface illustrates how creators can refine layout and copy in real time before publishing.

Unlike other builders on our list, Chariot is a fully AI-based website builder. You chat with a chatbot to generate the first draft and iterate through the chatbot only. You don’t need to make any edits; the chatbot does that for you based on your prompts.

But the chatbot-based editing can quickly overwhelm you. Change the title? Ask the chatbot. Upload an image? Upload it to the chatbot and ask it to do it. Rearrange some content? Chatbot. It’s a good choice only if you want to build a simple, functional website, not a full-blown business one.

Chariot pricing: No free plan or paid trial. Paid plans start at $17/mo for 1,000 credits. You can also opt to pay $5 per 250 credits to explore the product.

Chariot Pros and Cons

A pros and cons table summarizes a simple website builder that makes it easy to create basic sites but offers only paid plans, lacks a visual editor, and requires all changes to be made through a chatbot.

Best for: Tech-savvy creators and builders who want to vibe-code a website

A web-building interface shows an AI agent completing tasks and updating a live preview of a portfolio site for ‘Nupur Mittal,’ including name changes and content edits. The screen highlights how users can generate and refine a professional portfolio layout through conversational commands.

Emergent is a lesser-known but fast AI-based website builder that works in a similar way to Chariot. You share a prompt with the chatbot, and it generates a beautiful first draft. Any change you need? Ask the chatbot to do it.

Emergent pricing: Free plan with only 10 credits per month. Paid plan starts from $17/mo.

Emergent Pros and Cons

A pros and cons table explains that an AI website generator is easy to use and produces quick results but creates very simple designs, requires extensive iteration, and can become expensive because of credit-based pricing.

Best for: Agencies, freelancers, and web professionals who want to build a multi-page website.

A Duda website editor shows a creator customizing a homepage, with theme controls on the left for colors, fonts, and buttons, and a highlighted text block being edited on the right. The interface demonstrates how users can visually adjust layout and branding for a content strategy portfolio.

Duda is a drag-and-drop website editor that also offers an AI website builder. It asks you a bunch of info upfront to generate the site, which can be a bit tedious, but essential to generate a close, likeable design. You can edit all the aspects of the website in the editor, which is super handy.

I found Duda to be a strong alternative, but I found a learning curve, especially if you’re building a website using AI for the first time.

Duda pricing: Free plan available; paid starts from $19/mo

Duda Pros and Cons

A pros and cons table highlights that the tool offers many pre-designed templates and fast output generation, but comes with a steep learning curve for beginners.

What I’m Looking for in an AI Website Builder

When using AI for website design, I’m not just thinking about speed. I’m also looking for a tool that generates publish-ready designs, gives me full control over the final output, and reduces the legwork for me.

Here are my four non-negotiables:

Ease of Use & Design Automation

My goal to use an AI builder is simple: let it handle the tedious work so I can focus on the story and brand. I want to give a few thoughtful prompts and end up with something structured—clean hierarchy, readable fonts, and consistent spacing.

beehiiv’s AI website builder stands out as the best among since it auto-generates layouts that match my brand style and gives me control over the visuals and copy. It’s super easy to use, even if you’ve never designed a site before.

Content Generation & SEO Tools

The copy generator is a make-or-break feature for me. Too many AI builders fill your site with placeholders or generic text that sounds like it was written by a template.

beehiiv handles this differently. If you have a website with beehiiv or run a newsletter on it, the builder will use your existing posts, styles and tone to create a copy that sounds (and looks) like you. It’s fast, cohesive, and lets you launch a website in minutes. 

Integrations & Customization Options

I look for tools that go beyond launch day. A good website builder should grow with your business. The cherry on top is if the tool connects all your tools in one place—analytics, email, payments, and whatever else you rely on.

Squarespace and Wix are solid options, but costs stack up quickly. beehiiv’s AI Website Builder keeps things simpler and economical: your site performance, subscriber growth, and newsletter analytics live in one single dashboard. This gives you real-time visibility that many tools lack.

Pricing & Scalability

Pricing is where a lot of AI tools get tricky. Some limit usage with “AI credits” or cap features behind expensive tiers. Others don’t even offer a free trial, which makes testing the platform a gamble.

My non-negotiable is to go with a tool that either offers a free plan or a trial to test the AI before I pay for it. Then I compare the cost based on the features I need…and actually use.

For example, beehiiv offers one of the best pricing models. It charges based on the audience size rather than features. You can start building and publishing for free, then upgrade as your subscriber base expands. It’s one of the few builders where your web and email presence grow together.

What I Avoid When Choosing an AI Website Builder

AI builders definitely save time and help you launch fast, but they can easily corner you if you’re not paying attention. 

Here’s what I watch for before committing to any AI website design generator.

A side-by-side list of website builder do’s and don’ts advises creators to check pricing, confirm export access, and choose flexible tools, while warning against cookie-cutter templates, ignoring export limits, relying on free tiers, choosing platforms with no integrations, or overlooking site ownership rights

Do

  • Check pricing upfront. Avoid tools that hide fees or bump up costs mid-plan.

  • Confirm export access. You should always be able to move or download your site.

  • Keep ownership. Your domain and content should stay yours, always.

  • Pick flexible tools. Open integrations and editable designs save headaches later.

  • Read the fine print. Look for limits on storage, traffic, or renewal pricing.

Don’t

  • Settle for cookie-cutter templates. Most AI tools recycle the same one-pager designs. Skip those.

  • Ignore export limits. Some builders quietly trap your data inside their system.

  • Fall for “free” tiers. Watch for domain or traffic fees hidden later.

  • Lock into closed platforms. If the tool won’t connect with other tools, skip it.

  • Overlook your site ownership rights. Make sure you actually own your site content and analytics.

Go with a tool that’s upfront about the cost and transparent about any limitations. And, consider the tool with the most active customer support so that you can resolve any issue quickly.

Why beehiiv Is the Best AI Website Builder for Me

“Best” depends on what you need. If you’re running an agency or a design studio, you might want full creative control and developer tools. But as a solo creator who publishes regularly, what I need most is speed, consistency, and everything living in one place. That’s why beehiiv makes the most sense for me.

With the new AI Website Builder, beehiiv finally connects the dots between my newsletter and website. I can design a clean, branded site in minutes, then use that same workspace to publish posts, send emails, and track analytics.

The tradeoff is that it’s not trying to compete with design-heavy tools like Webflow or Framer—and that’s actually a strength. It’s purpose-built for writers, creators, and media businesses who care more about publishing than tweaking pixels.

For me, that’s the right kind of simplicity:

  • One platform for creation, distribution, and analytics.

  • Design that looks professional without endless setup.

  • AI that speeds up the process instead of overcomplicating it.

If your website exists to publish, grow, and connect with an audience, beehiiv gives you everything you need in one workflow. Try its new AI website generator today!

FAQs

What Is the Best AI for Website Design?

beehiiv’s newly launched AI website builder is free and the fastest, most affordable, and inclusive. It helps you create a complete website, edit existing elements, and generate fool-proof copy that aligns with your business’s tone and voice.

Can ChatGPT Build a Webpage?

Not directly, but it can help. ChatGPT can generate the HTML, CSS, or even React code needed to build a webpage, but you’ll still need to host it and manage design tweaks yourself.

How Much Do AI Website Builders Cost?

The paid plans for AI website builders start around $12 per month and can go up to $100+ per month, depending on their pricing model (credit-based are most expensive). Some also offer free plans or trials (like beehiiv), but watch for domain restrictions or “AI credit” limits that can add costs later.

What Is the 30% Rule in AI?

The 30% rule in AI is a shorthand used in design and marketing circles. It suggests that AI should handle around 30% of the creative or technical workload, leaving the remaining 70% to human judgment, refinement, and originality.

Can AI Design a Full Website?

While some tools can help you create a full website, they demand intensive upfront investment in terms of money and your time, and often require developer input.

the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build
the one place to build