Quick answer
- Best design tool: Figma, the industry standard for designing websites and apps. It has a free Starter plan, and Professional costs $16 per full seat a month.
- Best free alternative: Penpot, an open-source design tool whose Professional plan is free and fully featured.
- Best for building WordPress sites visually: WordPress with the Site Editor or Elementor (Elementor Pro from $60/year).
- Adobe XD is in maintenance mode and no longer sold as a single app, so new users should choose another tool.
“Web design software” covers two kinds of tools: design tools, where you plan how a site will look, and website builders, where you actually build the site. Most people need one of each, or one tool that does both well enough.
Here are the best options for 2026, with prices and status from each company’s official pages, checked on November 7, 2026.
Best web design software compared
| Tool | Type | Free option | Paid from | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Figma | Design and prototyping | Starter plan | $16/seat/mo (Professional) | Teams and professionals |
| Penpot | Design and prototyping (open source) | Professional plan is free | $7/editor/mo (Unlimited) | Free, open-source design |
| WordPress + Site Editor | Website builder | Free software | Hosting costs | Building real sites |
| Elementor | WordPress page builder | Free plugin | $60/year (Pro Essential) | Drag-and-drop WordPress design |
| Canva | Graphics and simple sites | Free plan | Paid plans | Graphics and social images |
1. Figma
Figma is the most widely used tool for designing websites and app interfaces, with real-time collaboration in the browser. The free Starter plan includes unlimited drafts, UI kits and templates. Paid plans are priced per seat: Professional costs $16/mo for a full seat, $12 for a developer seat or $3 for a collaborator seat, with Organization and Enterprise plans for larger teams.
2. Penpot
Penpot is an open-source design and prototyping tool. Its Professional plan is free and fully featured, with no file limits and unlimited teams. A paid Unlimited plan costs $7 per editor a month, capped at $175 a month regardless of team size. It’s a strong choice if you want a free alternative to Figma.
3. WordPress with the Site Editor
For building an actual website, WordPress is the most popular choice. With a block theme, you design headers, footers and page layouts visually in the Site Editor. See our guides to designing a website with WordPress and customizing your theme.
4. Elementor
Elementor is a drag-and-drop page builder for WordPress. The core plugin is free, and Elementor Pro plans start at $60/year (Essential, $5/mo billed annually), with a 30-day money-back guarantee. See our best Elementor themes.
5. Canva
Canva is a design tool for graphics, social media images and simple one-page sites. It’s great for creating images for your website, but it isn’t a replacement for a full website builder or a professional design tool like Figma.
What about Adobe XD?
Adobe XD has been in maintenance mode since 2023. Adobe says it continues to support existing users, but XD is no longer sold as a single app and isn’t being actively developed. New users are better off choosing Figma or Penpot.
How to choose web design software
- Planning a design with a team? Figma.
- Want a free design tool? Penpot or Figma’s Starter plan.
- Building a real website? WordPress with the Site Editor or Elementor.
- Making graphics? Canva.
Web design software FAQs
Figma is the standard for designing websites. For building them, WordPress with the Site Editor or Elementor is the most popular choice.
Yes, Figma has a free Starter plan. Paid plans start at $16 per full seat a month on Professional.
Penpot, an open-source design tool whose Professional plan is free and fully featured.
It’s in maintenance mode and no longer sold as a single app. Existing users are still supported.
Not always. You can design directly in WordPress with a theme and the Site Editor or a page builder.
It’s great for graphics and simple pages, but not for full websites.
Prices and status from Figma, Penpot, Elementor and Adobe’s official pages, checked on November 7, 2026.
