Best Website Builders for SEO: My Top Choices To Boost Visibility

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Wix tops our list of the best SEO website builders because of its brilliant built-in tools, including keyword support from Semrush and a beginner-friendly SEO Learning Hub to help improve your knowledge. You’ll need a good website builder like this to rank higher on search engine results pages (SERPs).

I’ve tested each of these builders and their SEO features so you can see if they’re suitable for your business:

I’ve updated this guide to reflect our 2025 research and rankings. Shopify and Squarespace have swapped positions, and I’ve introduced Hostinger and GoDaddy to the list because of their SEO offerings.

1. Wix: Best All-in-One SEO Package

Wix handles the SEO basics with its website builder, such as solid infrastructure to work from, customizable URLs, and automatic creation of a mobile-friendly version of your site. On top of that, I liked that Wix lets you create SEO logic and apply it to multiple pages instead of working through them individually.

Badge awarding Wix as the best web builder in our 2025 research
Wix SEO setup checklist personalized to our test jewelry website
Wix generated a personalized SEO checklist for my test website to help optimize my pages. Source: Website Builder Expert

What I Like

✔️ The Google Business Profile integration allows you to gain valuable insights that improve your visibility, build customer engagement, and manage reviews

✔️ If you’re an SEO beginner, the custom SEO checklist will guide you through all the need-to-knows for your site

✔️ The Semrush integration analyzes keywords and creates reports showcasing the best words and phrases you should target with your content

✔️ Wix’s AI meta tag creator helps you generate optimized title tags and meta descriptions, ensuring your pages adhere to SEO best practices

✔️ Understand and fix technical issues with the Lumar (DeepCrawl) integration to make sure your site’s performance remains up to par

✔️ The Wix SEO Learning Hub is a one-stop destination to help bring you up to speed on the SEO basics – I particularly love the webinars from industry experts

What I Dislike

❌ Wix has continued to decline in our site speed tests, which could impact the user experience – I noticed a lot of lag when using Wix myself, and Wix received an average performance score of 73 (this is lower than last year, and Google classifies anything below 90 as needing improvement)

❌ Wix offers so many features that it can be difficult to navigate its settings and find where to tweak your site’s SEO – this isn’t ideal for beginners or SEO novices

Top Tip 💡

From Wix’s SEO Learning Hub, you can also access 10 courses on all things SEO, such as link building, Google Search Console, third-party tools, and keyword research. It’s ideal for beginners keen to start learning, as well as more experienced users who want to brush up on their skills.
Wix SEO Learning Hub
I loved exploring Wix’s SEO Learning Hub which offers a wide variety of resources, such as podcasts and video tutorials. Source: Website Builder Expert

How Much Does Wix Cost?

Wix’s pricing ranges from $17 to $159 per month (billed annually), and there’s a free plan you can stay on for as long as you’d like, which gives you access to basic SEO features, such as the personalized checklist. But you’ll need to upgrade to a premium plan to remove ads and unlock additional tools, like the ability to sell online.

Should you use Wix?

Wix is our top-rated website builder overall, offering a comprehensive platform to help users get online and manage a business. For this reason, it’s my go-to recommendation for most people seeking a builder, but particularly:

Beginners – Wix offers a helpful suite of SEO features, including its dedicated learning hub and personalized checklist.

Businesses looking to grow online – Wix caters to a range of businesses and industries with its templates and tools.

Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan Lead Writer

2. Squarespace: SEO Support for Creatives

Squarespace is the easiest website builder that I’ve tested, making it simple and accessible to optimize your site for SEO. Its intuitive interface and easy-to-navigate backend gave me no trouble, and I was impressed by the advanced built-in SEO features available, such as automatic schema markup and mobile optimization. Customers can browse, manage their cart, and pay without leaving your store.

Badge showing Squarespace as easiest builder in our 2025 research
Squarespace SEO appearance settings
Squarespace made it easy for me to edit my test website’s SEO settings in the backend, offering handy links to resources too. Source: Website Builder Expert

What I Like

✔️ Squarespace’s SEO features give you plenty of support – the SEO panel (like Wix’s SEO checklist) provides you with the best possible starting foundation if you’re after results in the SERPs

✔️ The search preview tool shows you exactly how your site will appear to users searching online, allowing you to make tweaks if necessary

✔️ Squarespace was the first builder to directly integrate with Google Search Console, helping you see what keywords customers and visitors are using to find your site (this helps you target your audience more effectively with content)

✔️ I love Squarespace’s social media integration, which allows you to display content from your social profiles on your site and automatically share content when published – this boosts the visibility of your website and its content

What I Dislike

❌ When testing, I noticed a few of Squarespace’s stylish elements went against SEO best practices – for example, Squarespace set a testimonial element as an H2, creating a strange structure on my page when an H2 should be reserved for subheadings

❌ There’s less variety when it comes to SEO plugins – Shopify claims to offer over 300 SEO-related apps, whereas I could only see one integration in the Squarespace Extensions library

❌ Like Wix, Squarespace performed poorly during our site speed tests (in fact, it had one of the slowest average times) – a slow website could severely harm the performance of your site and potentially push visitors away to competitors

Adding alt text to an image on Squarespace
I could add alt text to my images in seconds with Squarespace, making the site more accessible and scannable. Source: Website Builder Expert

How Much Does Squarespace Cost?

Squarespace’s pricing ranges from $16 to $52 per month (billed annually). With only four plans on offer, Squarespace is a little limited in terms of growth, but it’s a very budget-friendly option. Unfortunately, like Shopify, Squarespace doesn’t offer a free plan. However, you can test things out with Squarespace’s 14-day free trial.

Should you use Squarespace?

Squarespace is one of my personal favorite website builders, but it performs excellently across our research categories. That’s why I highly recommend the builder for:

Creative businesses – If you’re an artist, designer, or an individual looking to build a portfolio online, Squarespace puts design and content first with its editor and helps you showcase your work across search engines.

Individuals looking for an easy building experience – Squarespace is the most user-friendly builder I’ve tested, making it a great option for SEO beginners and anyone less tech-savvy.

Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan Lead Writer

3. Shopify: Best SEO for Online Stores

Shopify is unbeatable when it comes to sales features, topping our list of the best ecommerce website builders for three years in a row. Shopify handles essential SEO tasks automatically, such as auto-generating canonical tags to prevent duplicate content from appearing in the SERPs, saving you time and effort to focus on other business priorities. So, how can Shopify help your store follow ecommerce SEO best practices?

Badge showing Shopify as best for ecommerce in our 2025 research
Shopify Magic generating a product description for a vanilla candle
I loved that Shopify Magic would generate keyword-optimized product descriptions for me. Source: Website Builder Expert

What I Like

✔️ Shopify Magic helps generate readable and SEO-friendly product copy, email subject lines, headings, and more – the AI-powered tool can help your online store convert more customers

✔️ Shopify Sidekick has started rolling out to merchants, working as an AI assistant to support your business needs – you can ask the AI chatbot for SEO advice

✔️ Shopify automatically creates canonical tags, your website’s sitemap.xml and robots.txt files, as well as title tags personalized to your store to help search engines understand your site’s content and relevance

✔️ Shopify teamed up with SEO giant Semrush to bring you the add-on “Ecommerce Booster,” providing Shopify stores with a clear optimization plan (this includes an AI description editor and an image tool that can audit images and generate alt text for you)

What I Dislike

❌ Shopify relies heavily on third-party app integrations, whereas most of Wix’s features (and SEO tools) are built-in – you’ll need to browse Shopify’s app market for advanced SEO features, meaning you’ll also have to navigate between apps to oversee your SEO settings

❌ You can’t edit your sitemaps manually – Shopify automatically generates these, so it’s not ideal if you want greater control over this area

❌ Like Wix’s convoluted backend, I found it tricky to find Shopify’s SEO settings – they’re tucked away in your account settings

❌ Shopify performed poorly in our site speed tests, sitting just ahead of Squarespace

Shopify's app market showing recommended SEO apps
While Shopify relies heavily on third-party apps, it gave me many SEO app recommendations. Source: Website Builder Expert

How Much Does Shopify Cost?

Shopify’s pricing ranges from $29 to $299 per month (billed annually). These are on the pricier side compared to more affordable options, such as Hostinger, but Shopify will give you the best chance of ecommerce success due to its range of features. That said, you can take advantage of Shopify’s $1 per month deal for the first three months to get started.

Should you use Shopify?

Of the four builders in this list, Shopify is the perfect option for online stores. I highly recommend it for:

Small businesses that want to scale – Though Shopify’s prices are steep, the platform’s powerful sales tools make it ideal for stores that are ready to expand their inventories and grow.

Stores ready to take the next step – If your online store needs more advanced sales tools and integrations, it might be time to switch to Shopify for dedicated business support.

Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan Lead Writer

4. Hostinger: AI-Powered SEO Support

Hostinger caters to beginners and budget-conscious businesses with its easy-to-use and cheap website builder. But cheaper plans don’t mean you miss out on any key SEO features, and Hostinger performed the best in our site speed tests, so you can rest assured that your website is fully optimized for both search engines and visitors.

Badge showing Hostinger as best for site speed in our 2025 research
Hostinger's website builder SEO settings sidebar
Hostinger flagged pages to me that needed further optimization. Source: Website Builder Expert

What I Like

✔️ Hostinger has the best site speed out of every website builder we’ve tested in 2025 – this is crucial if you want your website to run smoothly and reliably and have search engines look favorably upon it

✔️ Hostinger handles certain SEO factors automatically, such as sitemaps and performance, giving you one less thing to worry about

✔️ You can use Hostinger’s AI SEO assistant to help create new title tags, meta descriptions, and suggest keywords

✔️ I could tweak the SEO settings for individual product pages, making sure my products can be seen by the right customers

What I Dislike

❌ Hostinger’s AI SEO assistant is only available on the Business Website Builder plan – this means you have to pay for advanced SEO features and support

❌ Hostinger’s SEO features are quite limited and basic in comparison to other builders, such as Wix – for example, there’s no option to add schema markup

❌ I struggled to find the SEO settings when navigating my Hostinger account – for a builder that does well at catering for beginners, this was disappointing to see

Hostinger pop up in its website builder editor showing keyword suggestions
Hostinger provided keyword suggestions based on my original prompt when using its AI builder. Source: Website Builder Expert

How Much Does Hostinger Cost?

Hostinger has two premium plans, ranging from $2.99 to $3.99 per month (billed annually). Hostinger’s pricing is cheaper the longer you subscribe, and you can get up to three months for free if you opt for a 48-month term. Like Shopify and Squarespace, Hostinger also lacks a free plan, but you can try out its SEO features with its seven-day free trial.

Should you use Hostinger?

Using Hostinger is a breeze, and I highly recommend it for:

Beginners – Hostinger offers an intuitive interface and easy-to-use editor, which is great for anyone new to website building (plus, Hostinger’s SEO tips can help you understand the importance of optimizing your site!).

Side hustles – With Hostinger’s suite of AI tools, you can get your store up and running in a day, but its limited ecommerce features aren’t ideal for larger small businesses.

Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan Lead Writer

5. GoDaddy: Quality SEO for Socials

  • SEO score:
  • Starting from: $9.99 per month
  • Read our GoDaddy review for more information

GoDaddy didn’t perform as well in our SEO testing, which is why it takes fifth position. That said, the simple builder prioritizes ease and speed with its features, and it certainly provides the basics you need to boost your traffic and visibility in the SERPs. But is it worth using over other SEO website builders?

Badge showing GoDaddy as fastest builder to setup in our 2025 research
Keywords suggested by GoDaddy by its SEO wizard
Like Hostinger, GoDaddy suggested a range of related keywords when setting up my site's SEO. Source: Website Builder Expert

What I Like

✔️ GoDaddy’s simplified, straightforward SEO wizard – the feature asks you questions to optimize your site, such as where your customers are located, and even suggests industry-relevant keywords to target

✔️ There’s expert SEO support available – you can pay for experienced SEO professionals to optimize your site for you, offering onsite recommendations and advice on things like content creation and traffic

✔️ GoDaddy’s built-in SEO features are included with its cheapest Basic plan – in comparison, Hostinger’s AI SEO support is only on its most expensive plan

✔️ GoDaddy provides amazing social media tools, helping you manage and grow your social media SEO with features such as its content calendar and AI social post creator

What I Dislike

❌ After testing GoDaddy, clearer SEO guidance is needed – the SEO wizard is useful but quite basic, and GoDaddy doesn’t offer any tooltips or information when tweaking your SEO settings (it’s quite top-level and doesn’t dig into advanced SEO)

❌ There’s a risk of keyword stuffing (overusing keywords in your content) – after setting my keywords, I couldn’t mark one as my primary keyword, and GoDaddy requested I add all three of my target keywords throughout my copy, which felt a bit unnatural at points and not very helpful to readers

❌ It was difficult to find all of the SEO settings – broad site tools are located under GoDaddy’s “Marketing” heading, but if you want to list your business on Google, you’ll have to navigate to the “Social” tab instead

GoDaddy social post creator
I could easily optimize my social post captions with GoDaddy's social post creator. Source: Website Builder Expert

How Much Does GoDaddy Cost?

For personal sites or users wanting to test out GoDaddy, you can use its free plan, though it’ll include ads and limit your access to features. When you’re ready to upgrade, GoDaddy’s pricing ranges from $9.99 to $20.99 per month (billed annually) – you’ll need the $20.99 Commerce plan to sell online.

Should you use GoDaddy?

GoDaddy keeps things simple with its website builder. It doesn’t have the functionality or editing power of a builder like Wix, but GoDaddy is a great option for:

Businesses looking to get online quickly – GoDaddy has the fastest setup experience of any builder, relying on its simplicity to get your website up and running fast.

Brands looking to expand reach – GoDaddy’s SEO settings will optimize your website for search engines, but GoDaddy’s impressive range of social media tools and scheduling capabilities can help get your content and products in front of your target audience.

Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan Lead Writer

How To Choose an SEO Website Builder

When you set out to build a website, SEO might not be at the front of your mind – but it should be. If you don’t tick those boxes, search engines like Google won’t know how to find your pages, meaning visitors won’t be directed to your website.

To get your website ranking on search engines, a website builder should simplify SEO for you and include built-in features that give you a head start. Each platform in our list of recommendations does the following:

  • Enables you to tweak aspects of your site’s SEO – With each website builder, you can edit important SEO elements like meta titles, meta descriptions, and URLs
  • Website analytics – Once your SEO strategy is underway, you’ll need to track your page’s analytics to see how well it’s doing
  • Mobile-friendly designs – Website builders will automatically optimize your website for mobile devices. However, not all platforms allow you to edit your mobile design directly, so take that into consideration too
  • Optimized website speeds – Website speeds can negatively impact SEO, so most builders cut down load times by optimizing images for you and running your website on an efficient server
  • SEO integrations – For additional ways to track your SEO, good builders also let you connect your website with tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console. Some even allow you to connect with popular SEO tools like Semrush

It’s also important to choose an SEO website builder that supports your learning as well. We know that not every website owner will have a base knowledge or understanding of search engine optimization, but builders like Wix provide useful resources to help you feel more confident.

Learn More About SEO 💡

Our Testing Methodology

We carry out in-depth research into the top website builders on the market so we can bring you the freshest rankings and insights. All of our recommendations and insights are backed with data – we aim to help you find the right website builder for you, so we’re not happy unless you’re happy.

To find the best of the best, myself and the team of writers at Website Builder Expert test each website builder ourselves to experiences its pros and cons and deliver first-hand insights. Our research team also reviews each builder against six core categories, including website functionality, design features, pricing, user experience, help and support, and reputation.

When determining the best SEO website builders, our ranking focuses on the SEO tests within the website functionality category. For this, we review the SEO features on offer and check to see if the website builder follows SEO best practices.

Final Verdict: Which Is the Best SEO Website Builder?

If you’re after the best SEO website builder to optimize your site and boost your rankings, Wix is my top choice. Its impressive SEO tools, such as Semrush keyword support and the AI meta tag creator, are all built into the platform, making it easy for you to manage your SEO.

Of course, Wix won’t be the perfect fit for everyone. Want the best SEO support for your ecommerce business? Consider Shopify! Looking for a beginner-friendly editor with lots of design options? Squarespace is the easiest website builder to use. Or, maybe you want AI to handle the bulk of the SEO work? Check out Hostinger. And, if building an audience is your primary goal, GoDaddy can help improve your website and brand visibility across search engines and social media.

Whichever builder you pick, remember you can test out their SEO features with a free plan or free trial to see if it’s the right fit for your business.

Written by:
Headshot of Emma Ryan
Emma is Lead Writer at Website Builder Expert, having first joined the team in 2022. She manages the website's topical content strategy to help website owners navigate the highs and lows of being online. Emma also specializes in following the development of leading website builders Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify, through hands-on testing and research. Her work and expertise have been featured in Startups.co.uk, Digiday, TechRound, Industry Today, and Digital Information World.
Researched by:
Headshot of Ollie Simpson
Oliver Simpson is a Senior Research Executive at Website Builder Expert, providing objective, in-depth research and ratings on website builders and ecommerce platforms that underpins the recommendations we make across the website. Every website builder review and recommendation you read on Website Builder Expert has been informed using Oliver’s unique research methodology. Whether running first-hand testing with writers or conducting in-depth research into audience needs, industry trends, and product features, Oliver is driven by a relentless pursuit of improvement and results.

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