Some years back, anyone without coding knowledge couldn’t launch a simple landing page or sales page for their business to let people know about a new product or invention. That’s because visual page builders didn’t exist.
Designers and web developers had a busy time creating and developing designs for many different clients, and these came with significant costs.
What’s more, they had to work with HTML and CSS to make even the slightest changes on a website, and the task took a lot longer than it does today. Eventually, the development process got a speed boost with the introduction of shortcodes for people who wanted to skip HTML altogether.
However, the WordPress page builder started the real revolution by turning the design process into a more visual one.
Today, web developers can churn more websites in a fraction of the time, which for them, means more customers and more money. Similarly, newbies and startups don’t have to depend on pricey developers, because constructing a website with drag and drop elements are a click away.
What Are WordPress Page Builders?
WordPress page builders allow you to create, edit, and customize the layout of your website without knowledge of code, or writing it.
Page builders save you time and money, providing pre-built elements that you can organize however you want, insert and move them around your pages, and see the changes in real time.
Elementor is one such popular and powerful WordPress page builder available as a live plugin, that you can download and use to see changes live as you edit pages.
The drag and drop plugin is simple to use and offers a variety of ready-to-use modules or templates you can insert into your pages to build a custom website. It’s as easy as pointing and clicking to edit any item on the web page, replacing the content, and voila!
We’ll talk about page builders, what they do, and how they work, as well as how you can pick one for your website. We’ll then introduce you to our five favorite Elementor WordPress page builder alternatives so you can pick the right one for your needs.
WordPress Page Builder: What It Is and Why You Should Use One?
Page builders are design tools that use a visual environment to let you bring ideas to life without learning complex code or dealing with restrictions that come with using a CMS default editor.
WordPress page builders usually come in the form of plugins, and the pages created in these builders lay on top of the WordPress standard page, or slotted inside your theme’s content boundaries.
Most WordPress page builders are ever-evolving and their purpose is simply to offer control over page elements, without burdening you with the hassles of endless technical limitations.
When you’re starting a website or blog, you might find it difficult especially if you’re a beginner at customizing the page layouts. Many premium WP themes offer different layouts, most of which can be hard to customize if you’re not familiar with coding (CSS/HTML).
There are several good drag and drop WordPress page builder plugins available to create custom designs in WordPress without writing even one line of code.
Our top five favorite WordPress page builders are selected based on their flexibility, ease of use, and design output.
Drag and drop page builders allow anyone – newbie or pro – to build professional, yet stylish article and website designs from a user-friendly interface.
Developers also get to create pages faster, and because WordPress page builders are WordPress plugins, they can be used with any WP theme.
However, while the purpose of these WordPress page builders is the same, they all work differently so you’d have to find the one that’s closest to fitting in with your needs or purpose. To do this, you need to consider two factors: interface and modules.
Modules are unique to each drag and drop WordPress page builder, as they offer different blocks, widgets, and elements. You’ll need to choose a page builder that offers everything your site will need including styling, tables, media support, and more.
The Interface is critical, as many drag and drop builders take time to understand their inner workings. Some have steep learning curves but in the long term, they prove to be the most efficient.
With all this in mind, let’s briefly look at why Elementor is a great WordPress page builder, and then we’ll dive into our top five Elementor alternatives so you can find one that’s suited to your needs.
Elementor WordPress Page Builder
Elementor has a colorful, easy-to-use user interface that loads fast, and its over 20 elements let you make changes to the frontend of your website. It also supports third-party WordPress widgets, which means you get to use thousands of WordPress widgets to add functionality.
You can use it as a free plugin download, but it also offers the Elementor Pro version with added features like custom CSS editing, masonry layout, and WooCommerce support, among others. This starts at $49 for one website and $199 for an unlimited number of sites.
The free plugin download is still a powerful, mobile-friendly page builder with a fast interface and instant live edits and page loads.
It offers standard features like headline effects, animations, shape dividers, and gradient backgrounds. A template library with beautiful WordPress templates is also available for you to pick and select from.
Elementor Pros
- Intuitive frontend editor
- Supports WordPress widgets
- Free version has most major features
- Revision history allows undo/redo changes
- Speedy design area
- Live design experience
- No need to install other plugins for site pages
- Multilingual support to translate website to other languages
Elementor Cons
- No white label version for developers
- Template system needs refinement
5 Best Elementor WordPress Page Builder Alternatives
We’ve looked at what a page builder is and how it can help you create and design a beautiful website in a very short time, while saving on costs. We’ve also briefly discussed the Elementor page builder and what makes it a great page builder.
However, there are several other WordPress page builders on the market that you can choose from if Elementor doesn’t suit your needs.
If you want to jazz up your content and make more impact, here’s our roundup of the 5 best Elementor WordPress page builder alternatives.
- Divi
- Beaver Builder
- Visual Composer
- Themify Builder
- Page Builder by Site Origin
We’ll discuss each of these page builder alternatives to Elementor and touch on their features, pros, and cons, so you can make a more informed choice.
1. Divi
This is an easy-to-use, drag and drop WordPress page builder plugin that comes with more than 20 templates/layouts for different types of sites. The design possibilities are limitless, and you can create literally any type of website you want.
It offers a true WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor, and allows you to click on your page directly and start editing, with live previews of the changes you make – no need to save and click the preview to see your design.
Divi’s 46 content modules let you drag and drop on any spot in the layout, and you can arrange them into 20 row types, 3 section types, while customizing elements using the advanced design settings.
The content modules include post sliders, pricing tables, audio player, comments, portfolio, testimonials, and email optin forms. You can also find useful options like undo, copy, paste, and redo, and you get full control over padding and margins.
One of Divi’s best features is the Divi library, with many premade layouts that let you save sections, layouts, modules, and rows that can be used on your site.
You can also create any custom page layout in just minutes, and save them for use in the future, or export a layout between Divi installations.
The plugin works well with any WordPress theme even though it’s the backbone of Divi theme, which you can get for a single price together with other Elegant Themes products. This means you can install the Divi Builder plugin on other themes or use the Divi theme.
Divi offers an excellent drag and drop builder, along with true visual editing, custom CSS control, responsive editing, global elements, styles & more. Explore Divi today to experience the best of WordPress page building.
Pricing starts from $89 per year for the developer license, but you can also get a lifetime plan for a one-off fee of $249. This is one of the best deals you can get on the market for a WordPress page builder, and both licenses let you access six WordPress plugins and all Divi layout packs.
Divi Pros
- Full responsive design
- Frontend and backend editor
- Value for money
- Supports pages, posts, and custom post types
- Professional interface, templates, and content modules
- Import/export functionality
- Supports 32 languages
- 100+ premade layouts
Divi Cons
- No option to buy page builder alone
- Limited content modules available
- When plugin is deactivated, you can’t remove data from WordPress database
Is Divi Better Than Elementor?
Divi and Elementor are two of the best page builder plugins available. Which one is better depends on the features you’re looking for.
For example, do you plan to use the popup builder? Elementor is better. Do you need to perform A/B testing? Divi is better.
Price is another important factor. You can use Elementor for free but you need the Pro version to enjoy all features. Divi is cheaper than Elementor Pro.
However, Elementor is relatively easier to learn. You can download Elementor for free from WordPress.org and try the public sample on Divi site to see which best suits your needs.
2. Beaver Builder
This is a fast, premium drag and drop page builder plugin for WordPress that comes with a built-in onboarding tour that helps you get familiar with the interface quickly.
It features a live drag and drop interface so you can see your changes in real time as you add them by dragging elements and dropping them on your page. You can also edit any element’s properties by clicking on it.
Like Divi, this page builder alternative to Elementor also offers modules that allow you to add anything from carousel, sliders, buttons, backgrounds, content blocks, and much more.
There are more than 30 beautifully designed templates for landing pages, so it’s easier and faster to create stunning layouts for your website.
This plugin is user- and beginner-friendly, and compatible with the new WordPress version. It also works well with the new Gutenberg editor.
You can save and reuse modules and rows for use later and also utilize the widgets and shortcodes when third-party plugins don’t integrate with this page builder. An open API and export/import tool are also available, which are not always easy to find with WordPress page builders.
Pricing for its premium version is a bit higher than most other WordPress page builders, but there’s a free lite version you can start with. From $99, you can use Beaver Builder on an unlimited number of sites, or the Pro version that includes a complimentary WordPress theme and multisite support.
White labeling for $399 is available in the Agency plan, which is good for development houses with clients.
Beaver Builder Pros
- Live frontend editing
- Interface loads fast and is easy to use
- Supports WordPress widgets
- Professionally designed pre-made templates
- WooCommerce support
- Free Beaver Builder theme with premium plan
- Powerful design and presets to create different styles
- Dozens of drag and drop modules
- White labeling available with Agency plan
- Save and reuse layouts
Beaver Builder Cons
- Modules look plain
- Pricier than other alternatives
- No undo/redo buttons
Beaver Builder helps you create beautiful pages in Wordpress, that too in quick time. It's SEO friendly, compatible with most plugins and easy to use. Try it today!
Is Beaver Builder Better Than Elementor?
Elementor has a huge library of templates and elements which is its main advantage over any other page builder. On the other hand, Beaver Builder aims to keep things simple while yet meeting the needs of any site designer.
Beaver Builder is a very friendly page builder for developers as it’s open source. It allows for white labeling and has no restrictions on how developers can resell services or websites created with it.
However, not all WordPress website builders are core developers. So, while Elementor is not open-source like Beaver Builder, it is more friendly and easier to use for WordPress developers.
3. Visual Composer Website Builder
This is a simple, user-friendly drag and drop WordPress page builder and website editor that lets you quickly create custom website layouts.
It provides professional templates and out-of-the-box content elements, plus a host of other powerful features to create your website.
Like Divi and Beaver Builder, this builder offers frontend editing, but it does more than that as it lets you edit your menus, logo, footers and headers, sidebars, and much more. This is why it is referred to as a website builder, not just a page builder.
It features powerful options for designing and customizing the appearance of page elements, with easy options to add stylish backgrounds, plus gradient, carousel, parallax, slideshow, video, zoom in/out, and more.
There are flexible columns and rows to create grid layouts on your website, and you can switch themes without losing custom layouts because Visual Composer works with WordPress themes. You can also use the same color palette to create design consistency across your site as the plugin remembers your color choices.
Also included is support for Yoast SEO, the new Gutenberg editor, and Google Fonts.
Visual Composer offers a one site license for just $49, and is a great plugin if you’re starting a website whether as a beginner, without having to know coding language, or a professional.
Visual Composer Pros
- Simple and user-friendly
- Affordable
- Effective for basic layouts
- Clean, modern interface
- More than 200 premium third-party add-ons
- Save element presets, rows/sections
Visual Composer Cons
- Not good with complex designs
- Almost non-existent presales support
- No real-time editing
- Rigid layout
- Expensive for multiple sites
- Lacks customization options
Is Visual Composer Better Than Elementor?
In the WordPress community, Elementor and Visual Composer are two well-known page builders.
When compared to Visual Composer, Elementor surpasses in majority of features. Elementor has a lot more to offer including a better editor, more customization options, templates, and cost.
Notably, Elementor exceeds Visual Composer when it comes to styling options. You don’t need any coding knowledge to style widgets with Elementor and there are so many styling options available.
With Visual Composer, you’re limited to only basic options such as alignment, color, margin/padding, and animation. Advanced styling requires coding knowledge.
4. Themify Builder
Themify is a built-in page builder found in all Themify WordPress themes. It is highly intuitive, yet simple, and features several premade modules you can add to posts and pages. However, most modules require you to install separate plugins for WordPress.
This builder includes more than 40 premade layouts for different industries like music, restaurant, gym, photography, portfolio, and online shops, among others.
With one click, you can import a layout, change its content, and build beautiful landing pages in minutes. You can also edit pages from your live site or from the admin area, and see how your changes will appear in real time.
The responsive elements are available across all resolutions, with the default drag and drop module offering more features like text, gallery, audio, widget, post, accordion, and more. Other features include the import/export tool, undo/redo, copy and paste, and draggable column widths.
With the free version, you can enjoy all the above features, but there’s more for advanced developers with the premium version, like an area to type in your custom CSS. This opens up possibilities for customization and combines reusable parts to make custom CSS modules you can reuse elsewhere.
The premium Themify builder costs $69 and comes with 25 add-ons so you can further extend the plugin’s functionality, plus enjoy more than 60 predesigned builder layouts, animation effects, and responsive styling.
You can also pay the full $59 and receive all add-ons alongside the Themify builder.
Themify Pros
- Edit pages wherever you want
- More than 60 animations
- Custom styling system
- Pre-made layouts
- Responsive design
- Supports custom post types, pages, and posts
- Built-in cache system reduces server load and improves performance
- Supports major plugins like Yoast, WooCommerce, WMPL, and more
- Support for localized languages and WordPress multisite
Themify Cons
- Learning curve can frustrate new users
- Not everyone may like the content module display at the bottom of the page
Is Themify Builder Better Than Elementor?
Elementor and Themify have many similarities that selecting one of the two can be difficult. However, Elementor is the better WordPress page builder.
The main reason is that Elementor is simpler to use and works with any WordPress theme. You can install the Elementor WordPress plugin directly, unlike Themify which you have to upload.
Furthermore, Elementor is free to use, and there are more integrations and add-ons available. In terms of eCommerce (WooCommerce), Elementor is far better than Themify.
5. Page Builder by Site Origin
Page Builder by Site Origin is another popular Elementor WordPress page builder alternative with more than one million active installs.
It is available for free and is a fully functional plugin, but it’s not as easy to use because some new users struggle to learn and get familiar with it.
The builder lets you use WordPress widgets, though it has its own fully Gutenberg-compatible widgets that you can download and install. The widgets include modules for headlines, Google Maps, image grids, post carousels, price tables, and much more.
It also has a history tool that lets you switch back and forth to undo/redo any changes you make. This saves you time and gives you peace knowing that you can undo and revert changes.
Although it’s a free plugin, you can get the premium version at an affordable price of $29, unlike other page builders on this list, and download it without having to pay extra or give out your email address.
It uses grid-based technology and integration with Site Origin and third-party widgets so you can create your site using familiar widgets with your WordPress theme.
You also have the complete freedom to choose any WordPress theme as Page Builder isn’t committed to a single theme or theme developer. The good thing about this is you can change your themes as often as you want and the content will always move with you.
Beginners with no knowledge of coding need not worry because this page builder’s simple drag and drop interface means you’ll never have to write a single line of code. The highly efficient code is generated for you by the Page Builder plugin.
Site Origin Pros
- Undo/redo feature available
- Supports WordPress widgets
- Smooth drag and drop interface
- Responsive design
- Support for 17 languages
- You can enter custom CSS and CSS classes for more control
- Free download
- Free support on Site Origin support forums
- Premade layouts included
- Actively developed with new and exciting enhancements and features
Site Origin Cons
- Basic compared to other page builders
- Not as many styling options available
- Small content module selection with core version of the builder
Is Page Builder by SiteOrigin Better Than Elementor?
These are the two most popular page builders on WordPress.org by active installation counts. SiteOrigin is more of a backend builder, with a lightweight front-end builder. There are less front-end building options.
Elementor, on the other hand, is a visual builder and focuses a lot on front-end building. These are the two significant differences between both page builders.
Hence, if you want a front-end builder, use Elementor, and if you want a backend builder, use SiteOrigin. In addition, Elementor also provides a larger number of templates to choose from.
Final Thoughts
While there are so many WordPress page builders you can find during your search for one, and better yet many other great alternatives for Elementor, we hope our guide will help you narrow your options.
You can find the right solution for your project by doing the necessary research and spending time building pages using demos of the plugins so you can see what they can do firsthand.
Demos help you see if you understand and like how the visual interface works and whether the plugin has the content modules you need for your site design.
Testing each plugin may take up some of your time, but you’re better off testing it beforehand than getting one, struggling with it, then having to request a refund later on.
Most of our top picks are affordable and can be used by anyone, whether a beginner or professional. They’re also easy to use, mobile-friendly, responsive plugins that integrate with WordPress widgets and other add-ons to help you create beautiful website designs.
If you want the most bang for your buck, consider Divi or Beaver Builder, but if you’re interested in a quick and simple page builder, try Page Builder by Site Origin, which is also free to use. If, however, you want a more powerful page builder that supports advanced coding, Divi, Visual Composer, or Themify are excellent options.
Elsie started off as a freelance business and tech journalist. Having written for publications like Lifewire, and WindowsReport, she has garnered immense exposure over the years. She is a certified social media expert with deep interest in internet marketing, ecommerce and information technology.