Building a free website: which option is enough, and when?

The limits of a free plan: address, advertising and capacity

The most visible limit of a free plan is the address: the website launches at an address carrying the platform’s name rather than the business’s own domain. The second limit is the platform’s own branding being shown to visitors.

According to the comparison of free and upgraded websites on Wix’s upgrade page, Wix ads appear on every page of a free website and in the website icon in the address bar; removing ads and connecting a custom domain come with an upgrade. In the same comparison, storage and bandwidth for free websites are more restricted than in paid packages. Other platforms may structure these limits differently; read the selected platform’s current plan page before deciding.

From a customer’s perspective, a long address carrying the platform’s name is hard to remember on a business card, sign or vehicle wrap. Business email is a separate matter too: the same Wix page states that business email is not included in upgrade packages and that a domain must be present in the account for a professional email address.

Ownership and portability: whose account holds the website?

Building a free website also brings the question of whose account will hold it. With a website builder, the website runs on the platform’s infrastructure under its rules; the content belongs to the business, but the platform’s available options determine how the website can be moved elsewhere. With WordPress, the files and database are stored in the business’s own hosting account.

Subscription continuity is also part of ownership. Wix’s upgrade page states that when a Premium plan expires, the website reverts to its free Wix address, the connected domain is disabled, ads reappear and features such as accepting payments are turned off. Even after switching to a paid plan, keeping the address working properly depends on tracking the renewal date.

Before choosing a platform, clarify the answers to these four questions in writing:

• Whose email address was used to open the platform account, and who holds the login details?
• When a domain is purchased, will it be registered in the business’s name?
• Are texts and photos also stored separately outside the platform?
• When switching platforms, which content can be exported and which parts have to be rebuilt?

For a website starting with a free subdomain, the address will change later, so updating links on business cards, social media profiles and the Business Profile to the new address should also be included in the plan.

How much control is available over SEO and speed on a free website?

On a free website, SEO and speed can be managed only to the extent of the settings the platform makes available in its panel; the server, caching and code are controlled by the platform. Which search settings are available on the free plan varies by platform and should be checked on the plan page.

Analytics is also part of this topic. In Wix’s comparison table, Google Analytics is not included in the free column and appears as included in the upgraded column. On a website where the channel visitors come from cannot be tracked, understanding which page brings customers becomes more difficult.

When a website published on a subdomain later moves to its own domain, the address changes, and search visibility may take time to settle again at the new address. For a business expecting regular customers from search, starting with its own domain rather than building a free website avoids this transition cost altogether.

How do you build a free e-commerce website? Payments and legal documents

The honest answer to how to build a free e-commerce website is this: a product showcase can be prepared for free, but accepting online payments and conducting sales within the legal framework require additional steps. The platform’s plan determines the payment side, while legislation determines the legal side.

In Wix’s comparison, online payments are not included in the free column; it states that they are included in most upgrades and that the upgrade page shows which package accepts payments. Payment acceptance conditions on other platforms should be read separately. The order of preparations such as payment-institution or virtual POS agreements, shipping and invoicing is covered step by step in the article on requirements for building an e-commerce website .

Whether the platform is free or paid does not change legal obligations. Article 5 of the Regulation on Distance Contracts requires that, before the contract is concluded, consumers be informed about the seller’s name or business name, MERSİS (Turkey’s central business registration system) or tax identification number, contact details such as full address and telephone number, total price including taxes and delivery information. A website opening for sales is expected to have at least the following documents ready:

• A distance sales contract and precontractual information form
• Withdrawal rights, returns and delivery terms
• A contact page containing complete seller information
• A privacy notice for personal data and cookie preferences

The full list of pages, ETBİS (Turkey’s electronic commerce information system) registration and invoicing obligations are detailed in the legal requirements for e-commerce websites guide. This section provides general information and is not a legal opinion.

A free website or a professional website? Decision table

Building a free website is sufficient for testing an idea, announcing a short-term event or starting out when regular customers are not yet expected. Moving to a professional website makes sense when your own domain, payment acceptance, analytics and a brand-specific appearance are needed.

Two extremes are commonly seen in practice: either no website is created at all, or an extensive project exceeding the need is commissioned from day one. A balanced route is to choose a free start deliberately and define the switching threshold from the beginning; the first regular online sale or allocating an advertising budget could be that threshold.

How much does moving to a professional website cost?

At Onur Freelance, package starting prices are 12,000 TL for a one-page website, 15,000 TL for a corporate website and 24,000 TL for an e-commerce website. Annually renewed domain and hosting expenses are added to these.

A .com or .com.tr domain costs 1,000 TL per year, and hosting costs 2,000 TL per year; the combined annual cost is 3,000 TL. The domain and hosting are registered in the business’s own name; the website is delivered mobile-compatible, with an SSL certificate and SEO infrastructure, and use of the administration panel is explained. The process begins with communicating the need by WhatsApp or telephone, and a written quotation is shared the same day.

Google Business Profile is free; moving to a professional website does not involve paying Google for the profile either, and only the new website address is added to the profile. The complete list of annually renewed items can be found in the annual website cost guide, and differences in package scope on the web design prices page. An estimated budget based on scope can also be calculated with the tool on the website price calculator page.

Common mistakes when building a free website

The most common mistake is opening a free website as a trial and sharing it everywhere as though it were a permanent address. Other mistakes mostly involve account ownership, information consistency and legal documents.

• Opening the account with someone else’s email: When the person who built the website leaves, access goes with them. The correct approach is to open the account with an address belonging to the business.
• Printing a subdomain on physical materials: When switching to your own domain, business cards and brochures need reprinting. Do not go to print until the permanent address is clear.
• Different information on the profile and website: Write the telephone number, address and business hours in the same format on every channel.
• Taking text and images from other websites: This causes copyright problems and loss of trust; use the business’s own photos and its own words.
• Starting sales without legal pages: Precontractual information, contract and return documents must be live before the first order.
• Failing to track subscription renewal: If you have switched to a paid plan, expiration may disconnect the address; set a reminder for renewal.

The source of these mistakes is often using the free plan without reading its conditions, rather than the free plan itself. For someone wishing to build a free website, the right starting point is to document account ownership, the address and the switching threshold from day one.

For someone who simply wants to become familiar with the options, a small free trial is a good way to learn. Those who are undecided can use the thresholds in the decision table; for someone ready to begin with their own domain, the next step is to communicate the need in a short message.