If you’ve ever decided to go with a web development job as your first career you might think that there is no best software for web development. I would like to disagree with you — and to the contrary — we have already covered the best software for web design and above that you will see software and tools and resources for cross-browser compatibility, universal search engine optimization (SEO), and multiple image compression methods. Hopefully, this list will provide you with some of those resources.
Websites need to be functional, beautiful and functional. That’s why it’s important to find the best software for web development. There are so many great web development tools available, but only a few stands out above the rest. Here are the best software for web development…
Wix
The best web design software for beginners
TODAY’S BEST DEALSWix ProUS$23/mthWix Connect DomainUS$3.54/mthWix ComboUS$14/mthVISIT SITEat Wix
REASONS TO BUY
+Very easy to use+No coding required+Huge range of powerful features+Yet still highly user-friendly
Wix is more of a website builder than a coding platform, but it is one of the most popular online website creators, offering a range of plans and products. The free version has Wix branding, limited storage space (500MB) and bandwidth, but move up to the most popular plan (unlimited) and there’s no Wix ads.
An excellent collection of 500 plus templates gets the design process off to a quick start. The drag-and-drop editor gives you all kinds of tools and features to explore – an image editor, video backgrounds, animations, social buttons, an integrated site blog – and just about everything can be tweaked, tuned and restyled. Furthermore, as of recently, Wix introduced Wix Turbo, which increases the speed and performance of websites substantially.
All the core editing functions are really smartly designed, and operate more like a native app than your average website builder. Wix does have some weaknesses, with tech support seeming a little sluggish and limited in some respects. But there’s no denying that the superb editor and range of top-notch templates make it easy for web building novices to create something impressive.
WordPress
The best custom option for beginners
TODAY’S BEST DEALSVISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Easy to install and use+Many available features+Pre-built website templates
REASONS TO AVOID
-Watch out for spamAdvertisement
WordPress is an alternative way to set up and design your website, being rather different to the other offerings we’ve highlighted here because it’s actually a content management system (CMS). The power here is that it is a simple matter to set up a website in minutes. Indeed, many web hosting packages include a one-click install of WordPress from their Control Panel, but even without that, WordPress is relatively easy to install.
Once installed, the backend for administration and management is very user-friendly. You can use the existing WordPress design templates for your website, but more likely you will want to download and install an existing free or premium WordPress template – all of which can be done with just a few clicks.
Even if you would prefer to work with your own design, you can often do so using drag-and-drop functions, usually from a downloaded design with an in-built framework. This can allow you to create a professional-looking website without having to learn programming or coding at all.
Better still, there are so many free add-ons available to download and install, often requiring nothing more than a few clicks. This makes the whole process of customizing your website very simple, and it does not require any professional skills.
Overall, WordPress is a very easy CMS to use, and can provide a very quick way to get any form of website online fast. The huge variety of template designs and additional community supported features mean that getting something which is near the mark of what you want isn’t hard at all. Just ensure that in the settings you select to turn off comments so as to avoid spam.
Mockplus – An all-in-one web prototyping tool
Pricing: Individual – $199/yr, Team (10 users) – $1999/yr, Enterprise (30 users) -$9999/yr
Editorial ratings: ★★★★★
As an all-inclusive design tool for designers and developers, Mockplus can be used to create faster, smarter and easier website prototypes with simple drag-and-drop, supporting mobile and desktop apps prototyping too. With a singular mission to keep users focused on design itself rather than the tool, the software has offered a number of incomparable features to make better design and development.
Main features:
- A set of ready-made components (3000) and icons (200) are included for your rapid prototyping.
- It offers not a few features to improve the design efficiency of making repetitive webpage elements and layouts, such as the Repeater, Auto Data Fill, Format Painter and Paste Style.
- The most comprehensive way to preview and test out your project, including Export to the image, Export to demo package, publish to online and offline HTML, view on a mobile app using QR code, etc.
- The MindMap and UI Flow design mode can help quickly reflect design ideas and layout project structure.
Weebly – The easiest web builder among the newbies and professional designers
Pricing: Basic – Free, Connect – $4/mo, Starter – $8/mo, Pro- $12/mo, Business – $25/mo
Editorial ratings: ★★★★
As one of the most popular website development tools among people who want to start their own sites, Weebly is very easy-to-use and aimed at personal, business and professional websites. Above all, it enables you to make site-building work without any coding experience, meanwhile you can choose to edit the HTML/CSS if you have the coding background.
Main features:
- More than 40 layout designs, including website maps and portfolios to help you spark in web design and development.
- Lots of info buttons, pop-ups, lists and email sequences to take good care of your workflow.
- Easy switch between responsive and trendy templates/themes available on the application.
Webflow
Source: Webflow
Webflow is an all-in-one responsive web design tool that folds a CMS, managed web hosting, and free SSL certificate all in one no-code platform. Build interactions and animations into your website, drag-and-drop unstyled HTML elements. Or make use of pre-built elements like sliders, tabs, and background videos. The tool features a master component library of core layouts, components, and patterns. Plus, Webflow gives you the ability to prototype and export code to hand off to developers if you don’t want to launch a site on its native subdomain.
Webflow starts free, with plans going up from $12/month on an annual basis.
Conclusion
One of the most important decisions you’ll make when creating your current or upcoming website is choosing the Right Tool for the Right Job. However, picking the right tools for web development can be overwhelming. Fortunately it’s not difficult to get started with professional tools that are more affordable than ever. So whether you’re new to web development, looking to upgrade your existing skills, or curious about learning some new technologies, I haven’t left anything out! This blog will provide you some great alternatives so you can start making some great websites even if you have never coded before.