Owain Williams

TechRadar compares more than 80 website builders through hands-on testing. Wix is ranked best overall for its templates, ease of use, AI tools, marketing features, and e-commerce capabilities. Hostinger offers the best value, Squarespace leads on visual design, Shopify is recommended for dedicated online stores, GoDaddy for small businesses, HubSpot for marketing and CRM integration, Duda for agencies and freelancers, BigCommerce for large stores, and Weebly for users seeking a free e-commerce plan. The guide also explains pricing, free-plan limitations, scalability, security, AI features, customization, switching platforms, and hidden costs such as domains, add-ons, and transaction fees.

Escrow.com research indicates that .ai domains have surpassed .com domains in average value, reaching an all-time high of $535,000 after a 260% quarterly surge, compared with $529,000 for .com. However, .com remains dominant in total transaction volume at $86 million versus $37.7 million for .ai. Demand is being driven by AI-focused startups seeking an instantly recognizable identity, but .ai domains can limit future business pivots and are ultimately tied to Anguilla, whose regulatory, geopolitical and political changes could affect users.

Name.com has expanded its API partnerships with Lovable, Hercules, Railway, Sellfy, and Anything.com, allowing users to search for, purchase, and manage domains directly within the tools used to build websites, apps, and online businesses. Name.com says AI has lowered the barrier to creating digital products and that domains remain important markers of trust and digital identity; a company survey found that 77% of respondents expect domain importance to increase because of AI. The company also reports that thousands of domains were registered through Lovable during the first week of integration.

Google has rolled out a Search Console feature that lets website owners and creators connect Instagram, TikTok, X, and YouTube accounts and monitor how their social and video content performs across Google Search, Google News, and Discover. The feature is available globally, though access is being introduced gradually, and data may take up to 48 hours to appear. Users can add an account through Search Console’s property menu by selecting the platform and signing in.