ARTICLE
Do you remember when web builders first started showing up? People were extremely skeptical. “They won’t last,” “Not worth it,” “Too many limitations.” These were the kinds of comments they received back then. Before that, websites were built entirely with code, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and creating even a simple site was nearly impossible for anyone without technical knowledge. Web builders tried to change that by making it easier and faster for anyone to build a website.
I didn’t know anything about these tools when they were first released. I mean, I wasn’t even in college yet and had no idea what career path I wanted to follow. I never planned to learn web development and was focused on becoming a product designer. But that changed the moment I discovered Awwwards. While browsing for design inspiration, I came across those stunning, animated, immersive websites and they completely blew my mind. That is what led me to learn building those type of websites.
What started this whole journey
Yeah, I know. You might be thinking, “These websites don’t convert,” “They’re not practical,” “Performance must be terrible.” And honestly, those assumptions are fair. I thought the same when I first came across these Awwwards-style sites. One of them even lagged my laptop so badly that I had to restart my browser. Most of these sites scored around 50-70 in PageSpeed performance which is definitely not ideal. But there was something interesting. Despite those low performance numbers, nearly all of them had SEO and Accessibility scores above 95, sometimes even hitting 100.
That’s when I became curious. I wanted to create something in that style too. A site that looked immersive, felt alive and still performed well. However, my goal was a bit different: 100 in SEO, accessibility and best practices, and 90+ in performance.
Designing these ideas in Figma was the easy part. But how would I bring those animations and interactions to life? You can’t build motion-heavy pages in Figma (Although now, with Figma Make and Figma Sites, we are getting close) I wanted to actually see my designs working in the browser, not just as simple prototypes. This is when my search for the right web builder really began - something powerful enough to support animations, yet simple enough that I didn’t have to become a full-time developer. And since I also needed to build my portfolio website at the time, it felt like the perfect opportunity to learn and experiment.
Starting with the well-known platforms
Just like any design or project decision, I started with research - a lot of research. The first platform I tried was WordPress, which is still massively popular. I experimented with Elementor, tried building a basic layout, and honestly… I didn’t even get past the hero section. It felt too complex for me at that stage, and let’s be honest, the interface isn’t great. There’s also a lot of setup involved, and the idea that a plugin update could break the entire site? No thanks.
Next, I moved on to Squarespace. I actually liked its interface - clean, structured and easy to navigate. The block-based system was interesting, and elements fit neatly into predefined areas. One thing I know Squarespace is known for, is their templates. They are beautiful. If I wanted a simple one-page personal site, I might’ve stuck with it. But the lack of deeper customization made it feel limiting. It just wasn’t built for the kind of creative, animation-heavy designs I wanted to explore and also, it was pricier compared to the other web builders.
The web builder that started it all
Wix was the first platform where I actually built and published a real website. Technically, it ended up being in Editor X, but the journey started with classic Wix.
I went through countless tutorials just to understand whether the customization I wanted was even possible. Truthfully, I didn't built an entire website in Wix, it was more like 2-3 sections. The interface worked, but it felt a little cluttered and there were interactions I wanted to create but didn’t know how. While searching for solutions, I kept seeing people mention Editor X. At first, I ignored it. I didn’t want to learn another platform after barely understanding Wix. But Editor X kept showing up everywhere, so I finally looked into it and discovered it was made by Wix themselves, meant to be a more advanced upgrade. So I moved my project there.
That was the right decision. Editor X felt modern, smoother and more flexible. Besides, most of the tutorials about custom interactions were being made in Editor X. I still wasn’t building anything close to an Awwwards-level site, but it was the first time I built a full multi-page website with real interactions, completely from scratch and without templates. Seeing it come alive gave me a huge boost of confidence.
The shift to Wix Studio
Not long after, I heard about Wix Studio - another new platform by Wix. At first I was confused. We already had Editor X… why another one? Turns out, Editor X was more like a stepping stone or beta version of Wix Studio. Thankfully, the interface and logic were nearly identical, so the transition required almost no relearning. Even better, all Editor X sites moved automatically into Wix Studio.
I got early access and immediately noticed the improvements. The UI felt cleaner, smoother and it became much easier to find the options I needed. Maybe it was because I was already familiar with Editor X, but everything just felt natural. The added customizations and integrations also made me think, “Maybe I actually can build something close to an Awwwards site here.”
One feature I absolutely loved and still do is 'Scale Proportionally'. It’s basically WYSIWYG text scaling and makes responsive design feel effortless. And the built-in Wix IDE, with AI help for writing and editing code, was just aa added bonus. Through Wix Studio, I built nearly 10 websites, and this was also where I naturally got into SEO and accessibility.
Diving deep into Framer
I started noticing a rise in conversations around Framer. People kept calling it the web builder for designers. I saw a few really polished sites made with it, which naturally caught my attention. Wix was great, but it still had limitations, especially when it came to using custom libraries like React or Vue. Many Awwwards-level sites rely on those, so a part of me wondered if Framer could help me bridge that gap.
I actually had tried Framer once before. I built a single section and gave up quickly after realizing it didn’t have a “Scale proportionally” feature like Wix Studio. A few months later, I gave it another shot… and this time, I tried it with a different approach. I ended up building a fully functional site, this portfolio included and the experience was surprisingly smooth.
Right away, I loved that Framer has a dedicated desktop app (Come on, Wix and Webflow, just create an app. I don't want to use a web app as a desktop app). It never lagged, even with multiple CMS pages. And the infinite canvas felt natural for a designer like me. Since my first attempt, the platform had improved a lot, so I spent time watching tutorials and slowly got used to the way Framer works (shoutout to Framer University).
Unlike Wix Studio, Framer relies heavily on components - animation components, page transition components, custom element components, and most layouts are built using stacks and grids. Coming from a WYSIWYG-style builder, it honestly took me some time to adjust. Framer also introduced me to things I didn't know earlier like z-index, custom text-selection colors, tap highlight colors - small details that make a big difference visually. I’m sure these can be done in Wix Studio too, but I didn’t even know they these things existed before using Framer. Framer made discovering and applying these micro-details so much easier. And one more thing that Framer makes it easier than any other web builder - Light and dark mode. Once you set up the color palette, just one click and you can see your design in both the themes and it will automatically switch to that theme depending on the user's system settings!
My overwhelming first encounter with Webflow
Now comes the newest addition to my web-building journey - Webflow. And honestly, my first reaction when I opened the editor was - “Holy shit… I don’t think I want to continue.”
The properties panel was packed with options. Too many options. I almost quit right there, but the motivation to build something close to an Awwwards-level site kept me going. Webflow’s biggest strength, and the reason I pushed myself through the overwhelm, is its customization power. Being able to import third-party libraries was a huge advantage, especially for someone who enjoys adding more advanced interactions.
So I started from the basics. I went through the entire Webflow University curriculum before building my own site from a blank canvas. The built-in design system with separate light and dark themes, made getting started much easier. Framer also has a design system, but Webflow’s level of control is on another level. Even font sizing alone gives you clamp, rem, em, px, %, vh, vw, ch… it is wild.
And that flexibility extends everywhere. For example, clamp units in Webflow feel like Wix’s “Scale proportionally” feature but with far more control. And with GSAP now built directly into Webflow, creating complex animations became way more fun. Using Webflow also pushed me back into GitHub, where I learned how to use JSDelivr properly. I realized Webflow and Wix share some similarities - like class-based styling which made customization much easier. That’s something Framer doesn’t offer, and I genuinely missed it while working there.
Despite the steep learning curve, Webflow slowly turned from intimidating to enjoyable… mostly because it unlocked creative possibilities I couldn’t achieve elsewhere. Oh and one more thing came to my mind, Webflow taught me about a mobile landscape breakpoint. i've seen so many websites whose layouts break when I open them in landscape mode in my phone. I'm now building sites that even look great on these landscape modes and you don't have to worry about anything breaking anymore.
Looking back at all three
Wow, that was a long one - so if you made it this far, thank you. Maybe let ChatGPT summarize it for you at this point Lol. But yeah, all three web builders helped me learn new things, not just about web development but also about SEO.
Overall, Wix was the best starting point for me. It helped me understand the fundamentals of web building and gave me the confidence to explore more. The built-in tools and analytics also made it easy to see how a site performs without needing extra setup. For beginners or anyone building personal or business websites, Wix is a very solid choice.
Framer, on the other hand, offers a lot of flexibility and creative freedom. And surprisingly, AI tools like ChatGPT generate code for Framer with far fewer errors compared to Wix. But I still feel Framer is best suited for personal sites or portfolio-style projects. And finally there's Webflow. It’s expensive, like significantly more than both Wix and Framer. But the level of customization it offers is unmatched. You can tweak practically everything, import third-party libraries, and build advanced interactions that aren’t possible on other builders. For the people who need total control and want to push technical boundaries, I genuinely think the price makes sense.
If there’s one thing I’ve gained from this whole process, it’s clarity - clarity in how things work, how to design smarter and how to build with intention. And hey, that’s one more skill set under my name.