The advent of WordPress has pretty much ended all the hassles of creating beautiful websites, and page builders made the entire process easy for those without the gift of code.
WordPress page builders are plugins that allow users to make edits in the page via a simple drag and drop method. Those, who don’t want to learn extensive single lines of code for creating websites, can use page builders that generate that code all by themselves.
While page builders are a silver bullet to mitigating coding complexities, they can also be responsible for slowing down a website’s loading time and impeding performance. A slow website can really hurt your business. So how can you make sure you’re choosing the right one?
There are over 35 WordPress page builders in the market with different specifications. We took time out to review the best three, Elementor, Thrive, and Gutenberg to find the best one for you.
Let’s start!
Elementor
Elementor is taking page building to a completely different level. Not only is Elementor one of the fastest growing and free page builders, it won this year’s Plugin Madness. The paid version is Elementor Pro, costing $49/year.
Though it’s mandatory for those using Elementor to download 13 extra files (JavaScript and CSS), Elementor won’t impact your website speed and performance.
Elementor also supports responsive mobile-friendly designs that enable the page to operate in an omnichannel manner.
Thrive Architect
An upgrade to Thrive Content Builder, Thrive Architect is a huge improvement over its predecessor. It isn’t in the intention to downsize on the former’s capabilities but aims to rectify the flaws that previously existed.
Thrive Architect is a page builder with advanced marketing features, specifically designed for conversion-focused websites. It can be used to create email landing pages, video pages, resource pages, and many more. With over 250+ page templates and a bevy of impressive features, including mobile adaptability and provision for popup engine, Thrive Architect has empowered marketers to create entire sales funnel using a range of focused elements, which are also customizable.
However, it comes with its
own set of drawbacks, one of them being the existing bugs in the system that
lead to the page lags and slow reloads.
Gutenberg
Named after Johannes Gutenberg, the inventor of the printing press, Gutenberg is redefining visual editing in WordPress. Perfect for those just starting out with WordPress, it’s at the brink on advanced layout options. At the moment, it’s progressing with baby steps, one block of the layout at a time.
It overrides the current
editor ‘blocks’, which are able to create content, but are rigid and lack the
agility that can make it better. By bringing in more emphasis to the block
editor, Gutenberg makes the page streamlined and easy to use.
In a nutshell, this editor lets users create and add content in the form of blocks, something which is more achievable and scalable.
Gutenberg was designed to simplify and streamline generating and publishing via WordPress. Tech Sites like TechiesPad, TechRadar have rated it very highly.
Gutenberg is available in modules like section, multi buttons, advanced heading, post grid, post carousel, post masonry, info box, Google maps, team, content timeline, social share, testimonial, icon list, post timeline, call to action and more.
As per the latest testing,
WordPress with Gutenberg is more than 400
milliseconds slower to load than the
previous version.
The Comparison
All of these are great options.
Elementor is known for its high-speed response and streamlined functionality, making it a go-to choice for many developers. The extensive template further tilts the favor in its decision as the designers working on new landing pages, websites can find versatile options at one place, which adds to the Elementor’s agility.
Thrive Architect with its powerful tools and clean layout of drag and drop methodology does bring in a sigh of relief for the users. However, one cannot help, but notice the source of inspiration for the integrated elements. It’s a hard choice between Elementor and Thrive Architect, say for the fact that the latter majorly caters to the marketing community. With still some bugs left to be plucked out, the responsiveness and agility of Thrive Architect is a bit disappointing for WordPress enthusiasts. However, the page builder’s UI offers an aesthetically appealing layout with an interactive and engaging interface.
Gutenberg is still at the initial steps of the Page Builder league and is currently under the radar due to mixed opinions and learnings. The editor is an excellent tool for adding content seamlessly to the WordPress page, but takes a beating when it comes to speed testing. However, there is a scope for improvement and since, there are new ways to improve content and build pages, Gutenberg can lead the way in providing a new, innovative twist to page building.
Shaira Williams
S Williams is a tech enthusiast and fitness enthusiast. She writes about technology, apps, WordPress and a variety of other topics. In her free time, she likes to play golf and read books. She loves to learn and try new things.
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