25 most popular web design and development platforms

Different platforms are suited to various websites, have different strengths and weaknesses, and involve features, flexibility, ease of use, and cost. Therefore, it is important to consider some high-level considerations for each platform:

• Firstly, consider the target audience and purpose of the website. This will help determine which platform aligns best with your goals.
• Additionally, think about the desired level of customization and complexity. Some platforms offer more flexibility in customization options than others.
• Moreover, it is essential to consider your budget and the resources available for website creation.
• Furthermore, consider the preferred technology stack, such as PHP, Python, or JavaScript, as different platforms support different programming languages.
• Additionally, evaluate the need for eCommerce functionality, as some platforms specialize in providing robust eCommerce solutions.
• Lastly, consider the importance of security, scalability, and maintenance requirements when choosing a platform.

Knowing more about your project goals is necessary to recommend one platform or provide meaningful details about each option. If you have any clarifying questions or could provide more information about the type of website you are trying to build, I would be happy to provide more targeted advice.

However, in general, when evaluating any platform, it is essential to consider factors like pricing models, available themes and customization options, ease of use for content creators versus developers, community support and documentation, integration with other apps and services, as well as security, uptime, and reliability records.

1. WordPress:

WordPress is one of the most popular, widely used content management systems (CMS) that powers a significant portion of websites on the internet. It provides a user-friendly interface, a wide range of themes and plugins, and customizable functionality. With WordPress, developers can create dynamic and responsive websites tailored to specific needs.

Examples of WordPress Websites: Microsoft.com, WordPress.com, Mozilla.com, Apache.org, Vimeo.com, etc

Market Share: 43.1%

2. Shopify:

Shopify is a popular platform for e-commerce websites that enable users to create online stores and sell products or services. It offers comprehensive tools for creating and managing online stores, including themes, secure payment gateways, inventory management, and order tracking. Shopify provides a user-friendly interface, making it easy for beginners to set up and manage their online stores while offering scalability for growing businesses.

Examples of Shopify Websites: Forbes.com, Cnn.com, Foxnews.com, Washingtonpost.com, Nypost.com, etc

Market Share: 3.9%

3. Wix:

Wix is a cloud-based website builder that simplifies creating websites using a drag-and-drop interface. It provides a range of templates, pre-built elements, and customization options suitable for various industries and purposes like a built-in blog, e-commerce functionality, SEO tools, and third-party integrations. Wix is known for its user-friendly approach, making it accessible to users-friendly with limited technical skills and an all-in-one solution. It is an ideal platform for individuals and small businesses.

Examples of Wix Websites: Wix.com, 123rf.com, Moonfruit.com, Intentiq.com, Hometalk.com, Yotpo.com, etc

Market Share: 2.5%

4. Squarespace:

Squarespace is a famous website builder known for its visually appealing templates and intuitive interface. It offers a range of professionally designed templates and a drag-and-drop editor for easy customization. Squarespace is suitable for creating visually stunning websites and portfolios, and it provides features for blogging, e-commerce, and other website needs, making it popular among artists, photographers, and creative professionals. It also offers built-in SEO features and hosting services.

Examples of Squarespace Websites: Ft.com, Squarespace.com, Sagepub.com, Frontiersin.org, Ign.com, Ranker.com, etc

Market Share: 2.1%

5. Joomla:

Joomla is another popular open-source content management system (CMS) that allows the development of complex, dynamic, and feature-rich websites. It offers extensive customization options, a wide range of templates, full extensions user management, multilingual support, and e-commerce capabilities. Joomla is suitable for its flexibility and scalability, creating various websites, including corporate portals, online magazines, small personal blogs, large corporate portals, and community-based platforms.

Examples of Joomla Websites: Joomla.org, Uidai.gov.in, Forebet.com, Jutarnji.hr, Uab.edu, Loteriasdehoy.co, etc

Market Share: 1.8%

6. Drupal:

Drupal is a powerful CMS known for its scalability and flexibility. It provides a robust framework for building complex websites and web applications. Drupal offers advanced features for content management, user management, and customization. People often use it for enterprise-level websites, government portals, and large community-driven platforms.

Examples of Drupal Websites: Pinterest.com, Europa.eu, Nih.gov, Mit.edu, Un.org, Stanford.edu, Ibm.com, Nasa.gov, etc

Market Share: 1.2%

7. Adobe Experience Manager (AEM):

Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) is a comprehensive content management system (CMS) that enables the creating, managing, and delivering personalized digital experiences. It offers powerful content authoring and workflow capabilities, allowing teams to collaborate and manage content efficiently. AEM will enable developers to build custom components, integrate with other Adobe products, and create highly customized websites and applications.

Examples of Adobe Experience Manager Websites: Microsoft.com, Linkedin.com, Adobe.com, Hp.com, Samsung.com, Cisco.com, etc

Market Share: 0.2%

8. PrestaShop:

PrestaShop is an open-source e-commerce platform that allows users to create and manage online stores. It offers various features such as product catalog management, order processing, payment integration, and shipping options.

PrestaShop provides:

• A user-friendly interface.
• Customizable themes.
• A vibrant community that offers various modules and extensions to extend the platform’s functionality.

Examples of PrestaShop Websites: Coe.int, Sklum.com, Autorskesperky.com, Shz.de, Fina.org, Unict.it, Units.it, etc

Market Share: 0.8%

9. Google Sites:

Google Sites is a free website builder and hosting platform provided by Google. It allows users to create and publish websites without coding or technical expertise. Google Sites offers a simple and intuitive drag-and-drop interface, making designing and customizing websites easy.

Overall, Google Sites is a user-friendly and versatile platform that enables individuals and small businesses to create professional-looking websites without technical expertise. Whether for personal projects, team collaboration, or small business websites, Google Sites offers a convenient and accessible solution.

Examples of Google Sites Websites: Blogspot.com, Python.org, Bitnami.com, Chromium.org, Unicode.org, Schema.org, etc

Market Share: 0.8%

10. Webflow:

Webflow is a visual web design and development platform that allows designers to create responsive websites without coding. It offers a drag-and-drop interface and a powerful visual editor, allowing designers to create and customize websites visually. Webflow generates clean and standards-compliant code behind the scenes, making it suitable for designers who want more control over the website’s appearance and functionality.

Examples of Webflow Websites: Researchgate.net, Ted.com, Discord.com, Fiverr.com, Quizizz.com, Classlink.com, etc

Market Share: 0.6%

11. BigCommerce:

BigCommerce is a robust e-commerce platform that provides comprehensive tools for building and managing online stores. It offers customizable storefront templates, secure payment gateways, inventory management, and marketing tools. BigCommerce supports scalability, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes. It provides a user-friendly interface and extensive customization options for creating visually appealing and feature-rich online stores.

Examples of BigCommerce Websites: Sony.com, Casio.com, livelarq.com, bonbonbon.com, razer.com, shoprevelry.com, etc

Market Share: 0.2%

12. Craft CMS:

Craft CMS is a flexible and user-friendly content management system that focuses on providing a great authoring experience. It offers a clean and intuitive control panel for content creation and management. Craft CMS emphasizes content customization and allows developers to build highly tailored websites with its powerful templating engine and plugin architecture.

Examples of Craft CMS Websites: a24films.com, earlygame.com, 8thlight.com, 2c2p.com, bigcommerce.com, etc

Market Share: 0.13%

13. Hugo:

Hugo is a static site generator built with the Go programming language. It generates static HTML pages from content written in Markdown or other markup languages. Hugo is known for its speed and simplicity, making it an ideal choice for creating fast and lightweight websites. It offers features like templates, data files, and content organization, allowing developers to build static sites efficiently.

Examples of Hugo Websites: letsencrypt.org, fireship.io, tomango.co.uk, support.1password.com, digital.gov, etc

Market Share: 0.1%

14. Magento:

Magento is a robust and feature-rich e-commerce platform known for its scalability and customization options. It suits businesses of all sizes, from small online shops to large enterprises. Magento offers extensive features for catalog management, payment integration, order processing, and multi-store management. It allows developers to create customized e-commerce solutions tailored to specific requirements.

Examples of Magento Websites: graze.com, landrover.com, timexindia.com, iima.ac.in, barbour.com, lenskart.com, nykaa.com, khaadi.com, etc

Market Share: 2.58%

15. Laravel:

Laravel is a popular open-source PHP framework known for its elegance and simplicity. It follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern and provides robust tools and features for web application development. Laravel offers a clean and expressive syntax, making writing readable and maintainable code easy. It includes features like routing, database migration, authentication, and caching, making it a preferred choice for building scalable and secure web applications.

Examples of Laravel Websites: invoiceninja.com, alison.com, barchart.com, myrank.com, alphacoders.com, bagisto.com, flarum.com, usetably.com, contentoo.com, etc

Market Share: 0.28%

16. WooCommerce:

WooCommerce is a widely used e-commerce plugin for WordPress websites. It enables converting a WordPress site into a fully functional online store. WooCommerce provides features like product management, secure payment options, shipping integrations, and various extensions and themes. It is known for its ease of use and integration with the WordPress ecosystem, making it a popular choice for individuals and small businesses.

Examples of WooCommerce Websites: sodashi.com, porterandyork.com, printingnewyork.com, flwr.co.nz, rotimatic.com, abaeternowatches.com, etc

Market Share: 8.8%

17. ASP.NET:

ASP.NET is a web development framework created by Microsoft that allows developers to build dynamic websites, web applications, and web services using C# or VB.NET. It is part of the larger .NET framework and provides a robust and versatile platform for web development.

Examples of ASP.net Websites: checkout.iherb.com, iaai.com, vin.com, jooble.org, stattrek.com, etc

Market Share: 11.75%

18. Ruby on Rails:

Ruby on Rails, often referred to as Rails, is a popular open-source web development framework written in the Ruby programming language. It follows the convention-over-configuration principle and emphasizes simplicity and developer productivity.

Rails provide:

• A full-stack framework for building web applications.
• Offering features like routing.
• Database abstraction.
• Built-in testing tools.

It is known for its developer-friendly syntax and the “Rails way” of building web applications.

Examples of Ruby on Rails Websites: GitHub.com, twitch.tv, SlideShare.net, Crunchbase.com, Hulu.com, Airbnb.com, etc

Market Share: 5.3%

19. React and Angular:

React and Angular are front-end development frameworks for building dynamic and interactive web applications. React, developed by Facebook, and Angular, maintained by Google, enable developers to create single-page applications (SPAs) that provide a seamless user experience. These frameworks leverage component-based architecture and offer extensive libraries and tools for building modern web applications.

React: It is a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces. It allows developers to create reusable UI components and efficiently update and render data changes. Developers widely use React in front-end development, and its component-based architecture enables the building of interactive and dynamic web applications. It works well with other frameworks or libraries and offers excellent performance.

Angular: It is a comprehensive JavaScript framework developed by Google for building complex web applications. It follows the MVC architecture and provides robust features, including two-way data binding, dependency injection, routing, and testing tools. Angular offers a structured approach to development and is suitable for large-scale applications requiring high performance and scalability.

Examples of React and Angular Websites: Facebook.com, YouTube.com, Gmail.com, IBM.com, Office.com, etc

Market Share of React: 3.4% and Angular: 0.4%

20. Vue.js:

Vue.js is a progressive JavaScript framework for building user interfaces. It focuses on the view layer and can be easily integrated into existing projects or used to build single-page applications (SPAs). Vue.js offers a gentle learning curve, flexibility, and excellent performance. It provides features like reactive data binding, component-based architecture, and a rich ecosystem of libraries and tools. People highly regard Vue.js for its simplicity and ease of integration with other libraries or existing projects.

Examples of Vue.js Websites: Alibaba.com, mi.com, WizzAir.com, GitLab.com, Grammarly.com, Codesandbox.com, etc

Market Share: 1.0%

21. Salesforce Commerce Cloud:

Salesforce Commerce Cloud, formerly known as Demandware, is a cloud-based e-commerce platform designed for enterprise-level businesses. It provides a scalable and customizable solution for creating and managing complex e-commerce websites. Salesforce Commerce Cloud offers product management, marketing automation, personalization, and integration features.

Examples of Salesforce Commerce Cloud Websites: Wiley.com, Npr.org, Eventbrite.com, Smartadserver.com, Doubleverify.com, Weather.com, Freepik.com, etc

Market Share: 0.1%

22. Xamarin:

Xamarin is a cross-platform development framework that allows developers to create native mobile applications for iOS, Android, and Windows using a single codebase. It leverages the C# programming language and the .NET framework, providing a familiar and powerful development environment. Xamarin enables code sharing and simplifies mobile app development, saving time and effort.

Examples of Xamarin Websites: Alaskaair.com, JustWatch.com, WorldBank.org, Olo.com, Foursquare.com, etc

Market Share: 1.88%

23. Umbraco:

Umbraco is a flexible and scalable open-source content management system built on the Microsoft .NET framework. It offers a user-friendly interface, customizable templates, and a robust API for developers. Umbraco allows the creation of content-driven websites with features like content editing, versioning, and multi-language support. It also provides a vibrant community and marketplace for extending its functionality through plugins and integrations.

Examples of Umbraco Websites: Heinz.com, Wired.com, Peugeot.com, SanDisk.com, Carlsberg.com, Vogue.com, etc

Market Share: 0.1%

24. Bitrix:

Bitrix is an all-in-one customer relationship management and e-commerce platform that allows businesses to manage customer contacts and data, build online stores, create marketing campaigns, and integrate these functions into a single solution. The cloud-based platform provides features like a contact database, lead scoring, order management, email marketing tools, landing pages, social media integration, and analytics to help businesses manage customer relationships, sell products online, and market their brand through a single platform.

Examples of Bitrix Websites: Msu.ru, Hybrid.ai, Doramalive.ru, Kubnews.ru, Ng.ru, Mts.ru, Agro-market.net, etc

Market Share: 0.7%

25. OpenCart:

OpenCart is an open-source e-commerce platform built on PHP and MySQL. It provides a simple yet powerful tool for business owners to develop and manage an online store. OpenCart allows users to build an online store by selecting from thousands of templates and designs, control products and categories, process secure online payments, manage shipping and taxes, create and manage customer accounts, manage orders and stock levels, create marketing campaigns, and integrate with hundreds of extensions for additional functionality. OpenCart’s admin panel provides an easy-to-use interface for store owners to manage all aspects of their store, knowing how to code. Overall, OpenCart provides a flexible, cost-effective, and customizable e-commerce solution for small businesses and online merchants to design, build, and manage their online stores.

Examples of OpenCart Websites: Hola.com, Kitapyurdu.com, Vlebazaar.in, Zoombangla.com, Cricut.com, Technavio.com, etc

Market Share: 0.6%

Again,

The article briefly overviews each platform, highlighting its key features, examples of well-known websites built on it, and market share. However, it is essential to note that while the article mentions some factors to consider when choosing a platform, it does not provide an in-depth comparison or a recommendation for a specific use case.

Note

It’s important to note that the web design and development field constantly evolves, and new platforms and technologies emerge over time. Therefore, staying updated with the latest trends and advancements in the industry is advisable to make informed decisions regarding the choice of platforms for website design and development.

These platforms represent a mix of content management systems, website builders, eCommerce platforms, frameworks, and libraries. WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify are the most popular options for ease of use and functionality. In contrast, developers use platforms like Ruby on Rails, React, and Angular for building more complex, customized websites.

Summary,

In summary, considering the factors mentioned earlier, such as target audience, customization options, budget, technology stack, eCommerce functionality, and security, will help you make an informed decision when choosing a platform for your website. Remember that each platform has its own strengths and weaknesses, so aligning your goals and requirements with the platform that best meets your needs is essential.

Conclusion,

In conclusion, research and test the platforms you are considering thoroughly, and if possible, seek feedback from others who have experience using them. By doing so, you can ensure that you select the platform that aligns with your specific goals and allows you to create a successful website.