By Sasha Muñoz-Vergara. Published: July 29, 2021.

When you have your journalistic project ready, you need to think about the best way to communicate it. A website may be a good option, but what are the best and easiest tools to use to build your site? The choice can be critical.

Content Management Systems (CMS) are web content creators. Those are tools that allow you to develop web pages. Many of them work without the need to know any programming language or edit the source code.

Their mode of use requires only your creativity and a visual idea of how you want your site to look and how you want your audience to interact. In other words, a website builder is a program or tool that helps you build a website.

Datasketch shares the following options with you. Remember that we also offer tools to support your research, which will help you generate engaging content and data visualizations that you can link to on your website.

1. Wordpress

WordPress is one of the most widely used CMS in the world. It powers about 39% of all websites on the Internet.

The base is free. You get a powerful and easy-to-use platform. Many of the features you need can be added for free. If you need more, it’s easy to find high-quality, affordable products.

WordPress requires no coding knowledge, which saves its users time and money by editing their content without waiting for developers. The team behind WordPress is constantly making improvements. And because it’s open source and used worldwide, the development and features reflect a broad user base.

It does require knowing how to use and edit HTML/CSS/PHP programming languages or having the budget to hire a website developer if you want to customize the templates.

You can sign up here.

2. WIX

You can build a website thanks to Wix’s Artificial Design Intelligence or invest a little more time creating a custom website through their world-class platform. The drag-and-drop interface requires no experience or coding knowledge. You can also start building a site from scratch with Wix’s blank canvas editor if you’re looking to take more control of the creation process.

Wix’s most prominent features are the Wix App Market, a marketplace of more than 250 web apps created by both Wix and third parties. Most of the apps are free, optimized for mobile devices, customizable, and added to your site with a few clicks.

You can watch this YouTube video on the ten must-haves Wix has for you.

To use the Wix free trial, you must register here.

3. Web.com

Web.com is an excellent site builder. It supports WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, and most other popular open-source content management systems or CMS types.

Like Wix, Web.com has a system of modular elements that you can drag and drop into place. The interface also allows you to create blocks, i.e., pre-assembled features, such as a complete navigation bar, that you can insert as needed. Check out the templates.

Although you only have to commit for one month when you sign up (the initial fee is only $1.95, with a free URL).

4. Gator Website Builder

This platform gives you access to an easy-to-use, drag-and-drop interface that allows you to employ design elements such as images, videos, text boxes, columns, maps, and contact forms, with around 200 customizable Gator web templates.

It also has its stock photo library and a series of video tutorials.

Gator is available in three versions. The Starter plan, the cheapest, costs $3.46 per month and comes with free hosting, website analytics, free domain name registration for one year, and unmetered storage.

You can sign up here.

So you see, you don’t need to be an expert to create your website. These are just some of the builders we recommend from Datasketch. Remember that we have more options to help you in your journalistic work.