How to Build a GoDaddy Website in 5 Steps

If you’re looking for an easy and affordable way to build a business website, then you’ve come to the right place. With the GoDaddy website builder, anyone can quickly and easily build a website. We’ll show you how in as little as five simple steps, you can launch your site.

(If it’s your first time building your own business website, we recommend checking out our complete guide where you can learn everything you need to know about building your small business website.)

1. Create an Account

GoDaddy Websites + Marketing page

To start, go to Godaddy.com. From the homepage, click “Websites + Marketing” from the menu options. Then, click the “Start for Free” button and complete the new user registration form.

2. Choose a Template

GoDaddy site editor

Next, you will be prompted to answer two questions. First, “What’s your industry?” and second, “What do we call your site?” After answering those two questions, you will automatically be assigned to a template and brought to the site editor. To choose a new theme, click “Theme” from the right-hand vertical menu, then click the “Try a new look” button and browse themes.

GoDaddy themes

Once you have found a theme you would like to use, hover over it and click the “Select” button that appears in the bottom right-hand corner of the template. After selecting your theme, your new theme will be applied and you will be brought back to the site editor.

3. Build Your Header & Footer

Customize the GoDaddy website header

After choosing your theme, it’s time to customize your header and footer. To do this, click the home icon, click “Pages and Sections” from the vertical menu options, then click “Header” and customize header elements. For example, you can add your logo, edit theme colors, and set your header and navigation background. Repeat this process for your footer. From here, you can also customize your site navigation, such as changing its alignment.

4. Add & Customize Pages

Add pages to a GoDaddy website

Next, add, remove, and customize pages. If your theme came with any pages you don’t want, delete those by clicking the “⋮” to the right of it and select “Delete Page.” To add pages, navigate from the home icon to “Pages & Sections.” Then click “Manage Pages” and click “Add.”

Note: As you add and remove your pages, you are automatically updating your menu. At any point, you can reorder your menu by clicking a page and dragging it a different position.

Customize GoDaddy website pages

To customize a page, select that page from the pages and navigation menu and select the element you wish to change on the page. Use the right-hand menu to change images and update headlines and web copy.

Add sections to GoDaddy website pages

Repeat this process to customize all of your pages on your site. When finished, double-check that all buttons include correct links and check for any spelling errors or design inconsistencies.

5. Publish Your Site

Publish a GoDaddy website

After building out all of your pages and customizing your site, click the “Publish” button in the upper right-hand corner. Your site will automatically publish to a GoDaddy subdomain (e.g., yourbusiness.godaddysites.com). Business sites should use their own custom domain. To get a custom domain, click the “Choose a Domain” button.

Connect a domain name to a GoDaddy website

In the following screen, you can search for an available domain, use a suggested domain, or connect a domain you already own. Either way, you will need to upgrade to a paid plan in order to connect your site to a custom domain, so click the “Select Plan” button in the bottom right.

GoDaddy website plans and pricing

On the following screen, you will be presented with the different GoDaddy website plans. Select the one that suits your needs. Click the corresponding “Add to cart” button and complete the checkout process. After doing so, your site will be live.

GoDaddy Website: Pros & Cons

First, let’s look at the pros and cons of creating a GoDaddy website. Where GoDaddy really shines is in its ease of use. It has a simple site editor that requires no web design experience. It also costs less than its leading competitors and includes robust appointment booking tools. The downside is that customization capabilities and themes are limited and ecommerce plans can get expensive.

GoDaddy Website Pricing

GoDaddy offers affordable and competitively priced website plans starting at $10 per month. For this price, you get full access to its drag-and-drop site builder, where you can easily build a professional site without any coding or web design experience using its prebuilt themes and simple editor, as well as the ability to connect your own domain.

GoDaddy Plans & Pricing

GoDaddy Alternatives

GoDaddy surely isn’t the only easy-to-use site builder and it has some quality competition. Which platform is the best for you will depend on a variety of factors, including your web design expertise level, how much time you have to build a site, what features you need your site to have, and your budget. Let’s look at the top GoDaddy alternatives.

• WordPress: It’s the world’s most popular content management system (CMS), though it does involve a much steeper learning curve than GoDaddy. Get the full breakdown on how to make a WordPress website.
• Squarespace: Those who want an easy way to build a very visually appealing website will find Squarespace to be a good choice. It’s highly regarded for its user-friendly editing interface and modern templates. Learn how to build a website with Squarespace.
• Weebly: Those looking to use a drag-and-drop site builder to create an ecommerce site should consider Weebly. It partnered with Square to offer users an easy way of building and managing an online store at an affordable price.
• Wix: This is an all-around good option for those who want a DIY site that has a high degree of design freedom and capabilities.

Still not sure if GoDaddy is the right site builder for you? See how GoDaddy websites stack up and compare to the best website builders.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How much does a GoDaddy online store cost?

The monthly cost to have a GoDaddy online store is $25 per month with annual billing. This makes it one of the most competitively priced ecommerce site builder plans available, as most start around $30 per month. The GoDaddy ecommerce plan comes loaded with everything a business needs to sell online, including many extra helpful features such as the ability to accept recurring payments and the option to sync with other platforms (such as Amazon and Etsy).

How do you build an ecommerce website with GoDaddy?

GoDaddy makes it incredibly easy to build an ecommerce website. To do so, simply go to GoDaddy, sign up for a website account, and indicate that you’re building an online store. This will automatically assign your site to an ecommerce-ready template, which you can customize to suit your needs and update with all of your own product listings. Get the step-by-step instructions on how to build an ecommerce website with GoDaddy.

Is GoDaddy good for web hosting?

While GoDaddy is most widely recognized for its domain registration services, it also offers a website builder and web hosting. It’s web hosting services are well-regarded and it currently has a 4.1 out of 5-star rating from over 30 reviews. Learn how it stacks up against other top web hosting providers by comparing Bluehost vs GoDaddy.

Bottom Line: How to Create a Website on GoDaddy

Anyone looking for an easy way to build a simple, yet professional website at an affordable price will find GoDaddy to be a good option. It offers one of the easiest ways to build a website using its user-friendly website builder, and its low-cost plans come with many features businesses need to build and maintain a professional web presence. Start building your GoDaddy website today.