1. In-depth Review of 5 Popular Low-Cost Website Services
There are many low-cost website services that you can use to build your website affordably. However, making the
right decision is not always easy. Here is an in-depth review of 5 popular services along with the pros and cons of
each. I hope you will find this useful for choosing the right service for your needs.
Pros and Cons of the Top Low-Cost Website Services
Bespoke website development is arguably the most professional way to build your website. However, high
developments costs coupled with budgetary constraints often make it unsuitable for the needs of many small
businesses and start-up ventures. In such cases, other low cost web design options may be a better option for
building your web presence. There are several low-cost web-based services that offer an alternative to bespoke
development and allow you to build your online presence faster and cost effectively. In this article, we take a look
at five such low cost services for building your website and discuss the pros and cons of each.
1. Wordpress.Com
Although most users think of Wordpress as a blogging platform, you can use it to start a blog or build a full-
fledged website. Wordpress is completely free to use. You can use it to build a great site and spend nothing.
Wordpress is available in two versions, a hosted version where your site is hosted on Wordpress.com, as well as
independent software that you can download, customise and install on your own server and your own domain
name. It may not be as powerful as some of the other open-source CMS software such as Joomla or Drupal,
but the core built-in features are usually sufficient for most small business needs.
Pros:
• Excellent for SEO
• Can be used as a website as well as a blog
• Hosted version on Wordpress.com does not cost anything to use
Cons:

2. In-depth Review of 5 Popular Low-Cost Website Services
• Although it is a great blogging platform, features are somewhat limited when used as a regular website
• You need to create your site and install the plugins yourself which can seem daunting if you have no
design experience
2. Shopify
If you are looking for an out of the box e-commerce website solution, then Shopify is worth considering. Shopify
is like other hosted website builders except that is designed especially for creating e-commerce websites. It is a
hosted shopping cart service which is great if you want to sell products online. It takes care of most aspects of
running a successful e-commerce website which means you do not need to worry about development, web
hosting, payment gateway integration, and other usual aspects involved in selling online via your website.
Pros:
• Shopify is one of the easiest eCommerce applications
• You can get set-up and ready in minutes
• There is no need for software installation
• No need to worry about expensive development costs or dealing with developers
Cons:
• No support for daily offers or loyalty points which is a major drawback on e-commerce sites
• With prices ranging from approximately $30 per month to $185 per month, it can be expensive and out of
reach for many businesses
3. Weebly

3. In-depth Review of 5 Popular Low-Cost Website Services
Weebly is one of the most popular website builder services that is used by over 12 million users worldwide. It
offers one of the easiest, most powerful, and affordable ways to build your website. And best of all, it is free to
use. If you have a small budget or are looking for a free way to create your website presence, then this service is
worth checking out. Weebly offers an impressive set of features that you can use on your website. Key features
include image gallery, slide show, video player, custom forms and blogging.
It offers a collection of drag & drop website building tools that you do not need to be an experienced designer to
use. For those who wish to host the website on their own domain name and benefit from more professional
themes and feature-set, a premium paid option is also available.
Pros:
• No technical skills required to set-up
• Great interface that makes it easy to use
Cons:
• To host your site on your own URL, you need to upgrade to the Pro version for approximately $8 per
month
• Poor Social Media Integration
• You need to set-up the site yourself using tools
4. Template Monster

4. In-depth Review of 5 Popular Low-Cost Website Services
Template Monster is an online website template provider founded in 2002 that provides a vast collection of
website templates, blog themes as well as other graphics and media for use on websites. Template Monster
specialises in creating and selling premium website templates and graphics. It has one of the largest libraries on
the Internet with over 20,000 website template designs.
The website also provides website design tools and resources, as well as custom individual and business website
and blog design.
Pros:
• One of the largest collections of templates
• Caters to the needs of many website CMS platforms including Joomla, Wordpress, Drupal and more
• Good variety of designs
Cons:
• Template modifications can be painful and can take a long time.
• Unless you are a professional designer or have some design experience, you will find it difficult to work
with the templates
5. SmallBusinessEcommerce.Co.Uk

5. In-depth Review of 5 Popular Low-Cost Website Services
This is a relatively new service but offers some great features. It is a ready-made website service designed
specially with the needs of small businesses in mind. It is an inexpensive way to get a professional website at a
low one-off cost of $67. It is different to standard website templates as you get a fully functional website with all
core pages, industry standard text, and many working built-in features including newsletter sign-up, email
marketing tool to send email campaigns, live chat feature on website that you can use to interact with customers
in real-time and social media integration. You essentially receive a website with 6 core pages and a template that
can be used to add more pages as required.
Pros:
• In-expensive way to get a website
• Low one-off cost of $67 with no monthly charges
• Free logo, web-hosting, and professionally prepared industry standard text
Cons:
• Primary focus is on brochure style websites
• May not be suitable for large websites
The Author K.Singh is Web Design Consultant for London based Web Design Company and the Editor-in-Chief of
Internet Marketing & Web design Blog.