Founder Journey

Best website builder for a startup, and when you actually need one

June 27, 2026 ·

A lot of new founders treat building a website as one of the very first steps, when for plenty of businesses it’s genuinely not the most urgent thing on the list.

Do you actually need one yet

If you’re getting clients through referrals, direct outreach, or a marketplace (Etsy, Amazon, a freelance platform), a website may not be doing much work for you yet. If people are searching for what you do, or you need somewhere to send potential clients for credibility, then yes, it matters sooner.

Simple builders that cover most startups well

Squarespace and Wix both let you get a clean, professional looking site live in a day or two without needing a developer, which covers the vast majority of small business needs, a clear description of what you do, some way to get in touch, maybe a portfolio or pricing.

When you need something more custom

If you’re building an online store with real product complexity, a platform built specifically for ecommerce tends to serve you better than a general website builder stretched to do a job it wasn’t designed for.

The honest recommendation

Don’t let building a perfect website become a way of delaying the harder work of finding customers. Get something simple and clear live quickly, and improve it once you know what your actual clients respond to.

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