Free website builders are great for testing an idea, building a simple personal page, or launching a basic online presence fast. But for trades and service businesses that need leads, local SEO, and professional branding, free plans often fall short because of limitations like forced branding, slow pages, poor SEO controls and restricted custom domains.
If you want a site that attracts local customers, converts visitors into calls, and can be updated instantly without technical hassle, a managed option like Congero (AI-built, mobile-first, local SEO included, unlimited updates for $49/month) is frequently the better long-term choice.
Below are the most popular free builders and what to expect from their no-cost plans.
Powerful editor with many templates but free plan includes Wix ads and subdomain.
Great for blogs; free plan uses a WordPress subdomain and restricts plugins.
Fast and free, but extremely limited design and SEO controls — good for internal pages or simple brochures.
Perfect for simple one-page sites — very affordable paid upgrades but free is basic.
Good drag-and-drop, but free plan includes branding and limited ecommerce support.
Design-first tool with a learning curve — free plan good for prototypes but not production shops.
Want a comparison tailored to your trade? Try Congero's demo and get a fully built site preview in under 60 seconds.
START FREE DEMOFree plans hide costs that matter: missed leads, reduced credibility, and time spent fixing things you can't control. Below are the most damaging limitations.
A site with platform ads or a long subdomain (yourname.wixsite.com) looks less professional to customers searching for local trades.
Free plans often lack advanced SEO controls, local schema, or easy Google Business Profile integrations — all essential for "near me" searches.
No phone-call tracking, limited forms, or poor mobile UX can cost you real enquiries and jobs.
Free hosting tiers usually throttle speed and bandwidth — slow pages mean fewer visitors and lower rankings.
When your business grows you’ll likely need premium tools (booking, payments, advanced forms) that free plans don’t support.
Exporting or moving your site can be difficult — leaving you stuck or forced into expensive migrations later.
For $49/month Congero provides AI-built, mobile-first sites with local SEO, domain support, hosting, unlimited updates via text, and analytics — everything a busy tradie needs to get more local leads without the hassle of DIY free plans.
SEE A DEMOUse this checklist to decide based on your goals, budget, and time.
Follow these steps to avoid lock-in and protect your business as you grow.
Keep copy and images stored externally so you can reuse them later.
Owning your domain early prevents messy migrations down the track.
Save keyword research, descriptions and target locations so future migrations keep rankings.
When ready, choose a managed option that handles SEO, hosting and updates so you can focus on jobs.
Yes — but "free" plans often lack business-essential features (custom domain, analytics, SEO tools, or removal of platform branding). Many businesses upgrade to paid plans within months.
Google ranks content quality and relevance, but technical limitations of free plans (slow speed, poor mobile UX, limited schema) can make ranking harder. Local SEO tools and structured data matter a lot for trades.
Often yes, but exporting can be limited (especially with visual editors). Plan for migration: own your domain, keep your content, and document SEO metadata for a smoother move.
If your website needs to generate reliable leads, be updated quickly, and rank locally — consider a managed site. Congero builds mobile-first sites in under a minute, includes local SEO, unlimited updates via text, hosting, domain support, and monthly analytics for $49/month.
Free builders are a fine starting point. But if you want steady local enquiries, reliable analytics, and a website that can be updated instantly via text — a managed, AI-powered approach often delivers better ROI.
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