Friday, October 23, 2020

The Single Best WordPress Plugin Across Every Essential Category

WordPress plugins allow you to endlessly customize your website.

But which one is the best? And which one will do the most for your website?

There are more than 54,300 WordPress plugins. It’s an overwhelming number to say the least.

That’s why I took the time to identify the best WordPress plugins for the most popular categories. I’ve already created extensive guides for each one of these 13 categories.

Every guide contains a list of the best WordPress plugins in each segment.

And if you’re after something specific, you should check out that post — many of plugins I recommend are for particular use cases.

In-Depth Reviews of the Best WordPress Plugins in 13 Categories

This my the complete list of my in-depth plugin reviews for…

The Best of the Best WordPress Plugins

Each of those posts reviews multiple plugins in each category. But most people don’t need to go that deep. That’s why I made this best of the best list. This is a resource to identify the top must-have plugin for each category.

The plugins on this list are not the niche options; these are the plugins that will appeal to the masses. They’re the WordPress plugins I’d recommend broadly.

Best SEO Plugin for WordPress — Yoast SEO

There are hundreds of WordPress plugins that will help improve your SEO strategy, but one stands above the rest.

Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO plugin

Yoast SEO is an all-in-one solution for your WordPress SEO needs. With more than five million active installations, it’s one of the most popular WordPress plugins on the market. I’m not saying you should always follow the crowd, but a number that big is a great indication of quality.

Why I like it:

  • Create and manage XML sitemaps without having to code on your own
  • Identify and avoid duplicate content on your website
  • Comes standard with templates for meta-descriptions and titles

Cost: Free; $89 per year for premium

Best Google Analytics Plugin for WordPress — MonsterInsights

MonsterInsights is the best WordPress plugin for Google Analytics.

Google Analytics gives you in-depth knowledge and insights about your website traffic.

By installing a plugin, you can have access to all of your Google Analytics reports without leaving your WordPress dashboard.

MonsterInsights

This plugin lets you add your Google Analytics code to your website without any manual coding required. It’s advanced and versatile enough to handle analytics for all websites, including ecommerce shops. No wonder it has two million active installations.

Why I like it:

  • Detailed reports about your audience and their behavior on your website
  • Helps ecommerce sites track KPIs like conversion rates and average order value
  • Identifies your best content and top performing landing pages

Cost: $99.50 for a basic website, $199.50 for ecommerce sites, and $499.50 for agencies and developers — all plans billed annually

Best Membership Plugin for WordPress — MemberPress

Membership websites drive recurring revenue with a subscription business model.

Think of those blogs or web newspapers you see online that ask you to subscribe for their content. You can offer premium features and content to your paid members.

In order to set this up, you’ll need to install a plugin to manage memberships and payments on your WordPress site.

MemberPress

MemberPress is the best plugin for this category. It makes it easy for you to convert your existing website into a membership site, without having to start from scratch.

All you have to do is add the details of your payment gateway and set up your products and content in a members-only area.

Why I like it:

  • It supports payment gateways like PayPal and Stripe
  • Integrates with your email marketing software
  • Comes with pricing page templates for membership options

Cost: $129 per year for Basic, $249 per year for Plus, and $349 per year for Pro

Best WordPress Backup Plugin — VaultPress

In the event of a crash or malicious attack on your website, a backup plugin will be there to restore your content and minimize downtime. It will also act as a fail-safe against human error on your WordPress dashboard.

VaultPress

We’ve been using VaultPress here on Quick Sprout since 2011. So naturally, I think it’s the best WordPress backup plugin, or else I’d switch to something else. It’s so easy for you to set up and automatically back up your website content. You don’t need to be a tech wizard to use this plugin.

Why I like it:

  • Great for site migrations, restores, and file repairs
  • The calendar view allows you to locate and restore content from old backups
  • Built-in file scanning and spam defense helps reduce chances of malware, viruses, spam, or a malicious attack

Cost: Plans range from $39 to $299 per year

Best WordPress Cache Plugin — WP Rocket

Adding a cache plugin to your website will help you speed up your page loading times. Out of more than 900 cache plugins available, one stands out as the best.

WP Rocket

The WP Rocket WordPress plugin is extremely versatile. It’s simple enough for beginners to figure it out, but has advanced features that can meet the needs of developers with more technical experience.

Why I like it:

  • Quick setup and simple navigation
  • Image on request feature (images are only loaded when the scroll depth is reached)
  • Minifies JavaScript, CSS, and HTML files to speed up loading times

Cost: $49 per year for one website, $99 per year for three websites, and $249 per year for unlimited websites

Best WordPress Security Plugin — WordFence Security

Roughly 90,000 websites get hacked every day — 83% of those websites use WordPress. Clearly, security needs to be at the top of your priority list. You can install a WordPress plugin to help beef up your website security.

WordFence Security

More than two million WordPress websites are currently using the WordFence Security plugin as a security solution. The plugin fights against malware, spam, and other threats in real time. It’s a great option for those of you who don’t have a background in IT or cybersecurity. You’ll still be able to secure your website with WordFence Security.

Why I like it:

  • Block attacks from specific regions that are known for cybercrime
  • See trends and reports about any attempted hacks on your website
  • Firewall blocks and brute force attack protection comes standard

Cost: Free; premium version starts at $99 per year with other add-ons available for purchase

Best Form Plugin for WordPress — Ninja Forms

Website forms are crucial for collecting information. It’s the best way to get your website visitors to sign up for something, like your email subscription list.

Ninja Forms

Ninja Forms is great because of its seamless integration into your WordPress dashboard. Once you have this plugin installed, you can create your first form in just minutes. That’s why it’s no surprise that more than one million websites use Ninja Forms.

Why I like it:

  • Can integrate with your email marketing software
  • Collect payments with Stripe, PayPal Express, and Elavon
  • Export and analyze the data that’s submitted through forms

Cost: Free; $99 per year for Personal, $199 per year for Professional, $499 per year for Agency. Add-ons range from $29 to $129 per year.

Best WordPress Gallery Plugin — NextGEN Gallery

WordPress has a basic image gallery. However, I wouldn’t recommend using it because it’s so limited. For truly improving the visual appeal of your website, you’ll need something extra. A gallery plugin is ideal.

NextGEN Gallery

NextGEN Gallery is one of the best WordPress plugins because you’ll have so many different gallery options to choose from. Other plugins just give you a couple of basic templates for adding images. It’s a great option for photographers and artists.

Why I like it:

  • Customize slideshows with effects, transitions, and timing
  • Add watermarks and hotlink protection to your images
  • Ecommerce integration for selling images on your site

Cost: Free; paid versions available for $79, $99, and $139 per year

Best WordPress Slider Plugin — Smart Slider 3

Do you want to add a slider to your website? You can make sliders, carousels and blocks using a slider plugin. My favorite is Smart Slider 3, because it’s easy to use, reliable and super flexible.

Using Smart Slider 3, you’re able to create a slider on your WordPress website using powerful design tools, and pre-built templates.

There’s a free version and a pro version.

Why I like it:

  • Easy to build a slider with layers
    Several different slider types to choose from
    Prebuilt template and slider library

Cost: Free; aid versions available for $35-$250 depending on how many sites you want to implement the plugin on.

Best Social Media WordPress Plugin — Super Socializer

Your website needs to be integrated with your social media profiles. Otherwise, you’re not maximizing the potential of your social media. WordPress plugins can help you increase the exposure of your website content on social media.

Super Socializer

There are so many social media WordPress plugins designed for specific features. But Super Socializer is more of an all-in-one solution. So if you don’t want to install multiple social media plugins, I’d definitely recommend Super Socializer.

Why I like it:

  • Site visitors can use their social login information to create an account on your website
  • Add social sharing icons to your pages
  • You can get more blog comments by enabling social comments

Cost: Free

Best WordPress Calendar Plugin — EventON

Every business needs to stay organized. Calendar plugins can help you manage events, tasks, and bookings on your website. Some of these plugins are more advanced than others, but overall, there’s one that shines above the rest.

EventON

EventON allows you to create calendars that will “wow” your website visitors. We’ve all seen websites with boring calendars that look like they were designed a decade ago without any updates. That definitely isn’t be the case here. EventON has modern designs that are visually appealing and fully functional.

Why I like it:

  • It can manage events lasting for multiple days, weeks, or months at a time
  • Add images to your event listings and integrate them with Google Maps
  • Sell event tickets with Woocommerce support

Cost: $24; add-ons sold separately

Best WordPress Directory Plugin — Directories Pro

Directories are extremely versatile. Whether you want to add a directory to your site for internal purposes or create a global platform of business directories, the right WordPress plugin can help you meet those needs.

Directories Pro

No matter what type of directory you want to add to your website, the Directories Pro WordPress plugin will make it possible. This plugin is highly responsive and uses caching to boost your website’s performance. Make sure to enable reviews for your directory to enhance the content. You can even integrate listings with Google Maps.

Why I like it:

  • Drag-and-drop editor makes it easy for you to customize the directory without coding
  • Include an option for websites to claim their listing in your directory
  • Add paid listings to your directory

Cost: $39

Best WordPress Popup Plugin — Layered Popups

Do you want to add popups to your website? Popups can be great for getting email subscribers, driving downloads, generating sales, or enticing other actions on your website. Regardless of your intention, you’ll need a WordPress plugin to make it work.

Layered Popups

Layered Popups is great because you can create popups that are visually appealing, so you have a chance to get creative. These popups will clearly stand out to your website visitors. It’s a chance for you to make unique popups compared to what people are used to seeing on other websites.

Why I like it:

  • Integrates with 56 of the most popular email marketing platforms
  • Run A/B tests to fully optimize the performance of each popup
  • Multiple options for triggering popups (such as exit intent or scrolling depth)

Cost: $21

Best WordPress Booking Plugin — Bookly

Booking plugins are necessary for any website that takes appointments or reservations. Online booking systems will optimize your process on the back end while simultaneously improving the customer experience. If you’re not allowing online bookings, you’re ignoring the preferences of the majority of your customers — 70% of people prefer to book appointments online with service providers.

Bookly

Bookly has a sleek and modern design on both the frontend and backend. Booking options are completely customizable and fully responsive. You’ll definitely want to install Bookly if you’d like to take your customers through a quick and easy booking process.

Why I like it:

  • Custom pricing and availability for different employees (such as trainers at a gym)
  • Option to process payments or collect deposits at the time of booking
  • Customers can set up recurring appointments or get added to a waiting list

Cost: $89; add-ons sold separately

Best Website Builder Plugins — ZeGuten

ZeGuten is a website builder plugin. Instead of building your site line-by-line with code, you’ll use “blocks” to put it altogether. It works with everything from an online store to a fitness blog. It’s also responsiveness right out of the box so your website will looks great on mobile.

ZeGuten Plugin Blocks

There are 17 easy-to-customize blocks that you’ll work with to build each page on your site. This is the perfect option if you want to customize your WordPress site beyond a basic theme but don’t want to code the whole thing yourself.

Why I like it:

  • No coding required, make your WordPress site look exactly the way you want
  • A bunch of extra design features like animation
  • SEO-friendly and requires no coding skills

Cost: $15

What exactly is a WordPress plugin?

It’s essentially an app for your website.

I love how WordPress is designed to be lean out of the box. This prevents code bloat — your website isn’t dragged down by bulky code for things you don’t need or use. The core of WordPress is simple. You can customize it with plugins.

The core of WordPress is designed to be lean and lightweight, to maximize flexibility and minimize code bloat. Plugins then offer custom functions and features so that each user can tailor their site to their specific needs.— WordPress Codex

Installing a plugin to your WordPress site provides you with advanced features that aren’t available with the bare bones version of WordPress.

Where can you get a plugin? There are a number of places, but the primary source is the Official WordPress Plugins Repository.

Conclusion: What’s the best WordPress plugin?

These are the best overall options for each of the essential categories. Keep in mind, I identified these as the best because they appeal to the widest possible audience. Some of you may want plugins that have more specific features and functionality within each category.

For example, you might want an SEO plugin that specifically helps you identify relevant keywords while you’re blogging. Or maybe you want a social media plugin that just adds your Instagram feed to your website.

Do you want a Google Analytics WordPress that’s made for tracking specific events on your website? There’s a plugin for that too.

There are caching plugins that are better for things like the cloning and migrating content between servers. The list goes on and on.

So I’d definitely recommend reviewing the individual guides for each category as well. That way you’ll know for sure that you’re installing a plugin that meets your specific needs.

More WordPress Plugin Guides



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Best Business Credit Cards

Want to jump straight to the answer? The best business credit card for most people is definitely the Chase Ink Business Cash.

A good business credit card goes beyond day-to-day purchases.

They can give you high spending limits, fantastic rewards like airline points and cashback, and useful tools to grow your business.

In many instances, you don’t even need a formal business structure to apply for a small business credit card. If you’re a freelancer or entrepreneur without a registered LLC, you can still apply for cards using your social security number as opposed to a tax ID or EIN.

This guide is perfect for anyone interested in a small business credit card. I’ll show you the top options and explain how to find the best business credit card for your situation.

Top 8 Best Business Credit Cards for 2020

There are hundreds of business credit cards on the market today. It seems like they all claim to be “the best” for something.

But really, there are only eight business credit cards that I recommend:

I’ll highlight the top features, benefits, costs, and any other considerations for each one below.

The Best Business Credit Card Reviews

Chase Ink Business Cash

Chase Ink Business Cash

Chase Ink Business Cash is the best overall business credit card. We love their benefits and flexibility for a wide range of business purposes.

Chase offers outstanding rewards for things you’re already spending money on.

  • 5% cash back on first $25,000 in combined purchases for Internet, cable, business phone services per year
  • 2% cash back on first $25,000 spent at restaurants and gas stations
  • Unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases

You get up to $1,750 cash back each year if you max out those first two categories.

Chase offers built-in protection for instances using your Ink Business Cash card. You can decline collision insurance offered by rental companies when you’re renting a car. Chase Ink Business Cash has you covered.

The card also provides purchase protection against theft or damage to items for 120 days, up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account. It also extends qualified manufacturer’s warranties on purchases for an additional year.

You can get extra cards for your employees at no cost, and set individual spending limits for each cardholder and  the Ink Business Cash card does not have an annual fee.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

Blue Business Cash Card From American Express

Blue Business Cash Amex

Blue Business Cash Card gives you the benefits of American Express without the annual fees.

You’ll earn 2% cash back on purchases up to $50,000 in a calendar year. After that, you’ll receive 1% cash back on your purchases.

Rewards will automatically be credited to your statement, so you don’t have to worry about manual redemption.

One unique feature of this card is the spending capacity terms. You have the ability to spend above your credit limit with Amex’s expanded buying power.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll have unlimited spending freedom. The amount available above your limit varies based on things like your payment history, usage, and other factors.

American Express offers outstanding travel and transportation benefits with this card. In addition to car rental loss and damage insurance, you’ll also have access to 24/7 services with global hotline assist whenever you’re more than 100 miles from home.

This program gives you access to legal, financial, medical, and other emergency services coordination, such as helping you travel with a lost passport.

Other Blue Business Card highlights include:

  • No charge for employee cards
  • Detailed year-end summary with spending category and expense reports
  • Account alerts and monitoring
  • Integration with Vendor Pay by Bill.com
  • Extend manufacturer’s warranty on purchases
  • Purchase protection

American Express has a long history of providing exceptional service to its cardholders. Their dispute resolution services are second to none.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

Chase Ink Business Preferred

Chase Ink Business Preferred

The Chase Ink Business Preferred card offers better benefits and rewards than the Ink Business Cash card. However, customers need to pay a $95 annual fee.

It’s a better option for business owners who spend more money regularly and prefer rewards points as opposed to cash back.

Earn 3 points for every $1 spent on the first $150,000 in combined purchases on:

  • Airfare
  • Hotels
  • Car rentals, train tickets, and taxis
  • Advertising purchases on social media and search engines
  • Internet, cable, and phone bill

Earn up to 450,000 points per year if you spend money in those categories. You’ll get 1 point for every $1 spent on all other purchases, unlimited.

If you redeem your travel points with Chase Ultimate Rewards, the points are worth up to 25% more. For example, 80,000 points will get you roughly $1,000 toward travel.

You can even transfer qualified points to your favorite frequent travel programs at a 1:1 value.

Chase Ink Business Preferred gives you protection for auto rental collision, cell phone protection, as well as trip cancellation or trip interruption insurance. If you miss a business trip or need to cut it short due to sickness, weather, or other situations, Chase will reimburse you up to $5,000 for prepaid, non-refundable expenses. This includes hotels, airfare, and tours.

If you refer other business owners to an Ink Business Preferred card, you can earn up to 100,000 bonus points per year (20,000 per approved referral).

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum Select World Mastercard

CitiBusiness AAdvantage

The CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum Select World Mastercard is the best business credit card for frequent American Airlines travelers.

If you or your employees frequently fly with American, you definitely need to consider this card. Their benefits offering might make you want to consider flying exclusively with American Airlines after you read it.

Travel Benefits:

  • First checked bag free for you and up to four people on your itinerary
  • Preferred boarding
  • 25% off in-flight food and beverages
  • 25% off in-flight Wi-Fi

Rewards Benefits:

  • 2x miles per $1 spent on cable, telecommunications, gas, and car rentals
  • 2x miles per $1 spent on American Airlines purchases
  • Earn 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases

You’ll also earn an American Airlines Companion Certificate for domestic travel after spending $30,000 per year. That’s easy to do if your business has a lot of routine spending.

The certificate is worth a free round-trip domestic flight for someone else on your itinerary. NOTE: You’ll still be on the hook for taxes and fees.

It’s easy to justify the annual fee is you travel with American Airlines often enough. Assuming you check a bag when flying, two round-trip tickets would normally cost $100 in bag fees. The card pays for itself right there.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

American Express Business Gold

American Express Business Gold

American Express Business Gold is one of the most premier business credit cards on the market today.

The card allows you to earn 4x membership points on the top two categories where your business spends the most money each billing cycle. Those categories are:

  • Airfare
  • Advertising purchases
  • Computer hardware, software, and cloud technology
  • Gas Stations
  • Restaurants
  • Shipping

The 4x points are valid for the first $150,000 spent per year combined on your top two categories. You’ll earn unlimited one point for every $1 spent after that.

American Express has an outstanding membership rewards program for redemption. Your points will transfer to the majority of popular loyalty programs.

If you book a flight using American Express Travel and pay with your points, you’ll get 25% of those points back to your account.

You also get all of the exceptional American Express travel perks like no foreign transaction fees, car rental loss and damage insurance, baggage insurance, and the global assist hotline.

Furthermore, the Amex Business Gold card offers room upgrades and a $100 hotel credit for dining, spa, and other resort activities when you stay at a participating property for at least two consecutive nights.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

Chase Ink Business Unlimited

Chase Ink Business Unlimited

The Chase Ink Business Unlimited credit card is very similar to the Ink Business cash card that we reviewed earlier. The most significant difference between the two cards is the way rewards get earned.

With the Ink Business Cash card, you’ll get a different percentage of cash back based on your spending category with certain limits and restrictions for how much can be earned in a year.

The Ink Business Unlimited card is much more straightforward. You earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases; no limit.

All of the other features and benefits are the same as the Ink Business Cash card.

You’ll get a $500 cash back bonus after spending $3,000 in the first three months using the card. There is no annual fee for the Chase Ink Business Unlimited card.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

Capital One Spark Cash

Capital One Spark Cash

Capital One Spark Cash offers unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases. There is a $95 annual fee for this card, but it’s waived for the first year.

Some of the top features and benefits for Capital One Spark Cash include:

  • Free employee cards
  • Fraud alerts and protection
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • $100 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
  • Rental car collision coverage

I like the fact that you can immediately lock a card from the mobile app if it’s lost or stolen.

You’ll also benefit from a detailed year-end summary report that’s perfect for budgeting and tax preparation. It’s easy to integrate your purchase records with Quickbooks to simplify your accounting tasks.

Capital One provides emergency card replacement, as well as emergency cash 24/7 at locations throughout the world.

Not everyone will be eligible for this card. To apply, you’ll need an excellent credit score and a business registered in the US.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

Capital One Spark Miles For Business

Capital One Spark Miles

If you’re a frequent business traveler, the Capital One Spark Miles cards will reward you with miles instead of cash or points.

There are actually two options to choose here. One card is free with decent perks, and the other has a $95 annual fee with better rewards. Beyond that, the two cards are basically identical. Here’s an overview of each one:

Capital One Spark Miles

  • $95 annual fee (waived the first year)
  • Unlimited 2x miles per $1 dollar spent on all purchases
  • Unlimited 5x miles per $1 dollar spent on hotel and car rental bookings through Capital One

Capital One Spark Miles Select

  • $0 annual fee
  • Unlimited 1.5x miles per $1 dollar spent on all purchases
  • Unlimited 5x miles per $1 dollar spent on hotel and car rental bookings through Capital One

The Spark Miles Select card will best for those of you who don’t want to pay the annual fee. But if you travel often enough, the $95 is justifiable for Spark Miles card.

*Terms apply – Learn how to apply online

How to Choose The Best Business Credit Card

Now that you’ve had the chance to review the top business credit cards, you’ll need to choose one for yourself. But the best business card for me might not be the best for you. Everyone’s situation is different.

This is the methodology that we used to come up with the cards on this list. You can use the same process to evaluate the best option for your business.

Fees

One of the first things you should look at is how much the card will cost you. The cards we reviewed ranged from $0 to $295 in annual fees.

An annual fee is easy to justify if you’re going to be spending enough to get the most out of the perks and rewards. But if you’re a single-member sole-proprietor working out of your home office, you probably don’t need a card with an annual fee.

Beyond that, look for APR, cash advance fees, foreign transaction fees, transfer fees, and late payment fees. Personally, I always pay my cards in-full each month, so the late fees and APR aren’t really relevant to me. But things like foreign transaction fees can add up quickly during international travel.

Rewards

What type of rewards do you want?

Some cards offer cash back, while others offer points or miles. Cash back will likely be the best option for most of you. If you travel often for business, cards that reward you with miles should definitely be taken into consideration.

Just make sure you understand how rewards get earned and if there are any stipulations. Some cards will limit the number of rewards you can earn in a year.

Qualification Terms

Some cards require you and your business to have excellent credit. You won’t get approved for certain cards if your credit score is below 700.

You’ll also need to have an incorporated business to be eligible for certain cards. Other cards allow you to apply using just your name and social security number.

Loyalty Programs

There are certain business credit cards that are tied to a specific loyalty partner. For example, the CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum Select World Mastercard is an American Airlines card.

In most cases, it’s best to stay away from those airline or hotel-specific cards because you won’t be rewarded as much for purchases with another company. So you’re better off with general miles, cash back, or points that can be used with any airline or hotel.

With that said, if you know that you’ll be flying a specific airline often, these types of loyalty programs will give you the most rewarding benefits.

So if you fly from Chicago to Dallas once a month (both American Airlines hubs), it makes perfect sense to get a card tied to AAdvantage.

Spending Habits

A business spending $10,000 per year shouldn’t have the same credit card as a company charging $100,000 per year.

Your spending categories can also influence your decision when choosing a card. Certain cards offer better rewards for purchases at restaurants or gas stations. Others will give you extra benefits for money spent on advertising or your phone bill.

Perks

There are dozens and dozens of potential perks that could sway you to choose one card over another. Some of these include:

  • Sign up bonus
  • Purchase protection
  • Extended warranties
  • Free cards for employees
  • Insurance protection (travel, car rental, baggage)
  • Priority boarding
  • Free checked bags
  • Hotel credits

The list goes on and on. Find a card with perks that align with your business and spending habits.

For example, the American Express Business Gold card has a 50,000 point sign up bonus if you spend $5,000 in the first three months using the card. But if you don’t normally spend $5,000 in three months, this card isn’t for you. The $295 annual fee won’t be worth it.

Conclusion

Every business owner needs a credit card. Fortunately, the credit card companies have created cards with a wide range of benefits, rewards, and perks to accommodate your needs.

Here’s a quick recap of the best business credit cards on our list:

Whether you want cash back, miles, or points, I made sure to include something for everyone on this list. Some of these cards are best for larger businesses that travel frequently, while others are suitable for small business owners and sole proprietors.



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Best Business Checking Accounts for 2020

Want to jump straight to the answer? My top pick for the best business checking account is Novo Bank. 

Your business needs a checking account.

Whether you’re running a large company or a side hustle, you’ll need to separate your business transactions from your personal finances.

For the most part, a business checking account functions very similarly to a personal checking account. However, business checking accounts typically have extra fees, minimum balance requirements, and monthly transaction limits.

So before you open a new account, it’s important that you find a bank that meets the needs of your business.

Top 11 Best Business Checking Accounts For 2020

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of business checking accounts on the market today.

From small local banks to large national chains and online-only banking, there are really only eleven accounts that I would consider.

The majority of these are free business checking accounts. Some do have a monthly fee, but it’s fairly easy to get those waived by meeting reasonable requirements.

I’ll give you an in-depth review of the top business checking accounts below. We’ll cover the top features, benefits, prices, and any potential drawbacks that should be taken into consideration.

The Best Business Checking Account Reviews

Novo – Best online-only business checking account for freelancers and entrepreneurs

Novo is an alternative to traditional banking. It’s an online-exclusive business checking account intended for freelancers and entrepreneurs.

They’re a straightforward solution with transparent pricing and no hidden fees. You can apply for a Novo account in less than ten minutes online.

These are some of the notable highlights for Novo business checking:

  • No minimum balance requirements
  • No monthly maintenance fees
  • Free ACH transfers
  • Free incoming wires
  • Free mailed checks

Novo lets you open a new business checking account with just $50.

This is a modern banking solution. You can integrate your account with Zapier, Xero, Slack, and other tools that your small business is currently using.

Since it’s online, you can’t walk into a physical branch. So if your business has in-person banking needs, then Novo isn’t for you. However, Novo will reimburse you for ATM fees imposed by other banks. So you’ll still be able to access cash from anywhere without paying an extra fee.

Axos Basic Business Checking – Best online-only business checking account with no monthly fees

Axos is another online-only bank. So if you don’t have any in-person banking needs, you should definitely consider Axos Basic Business Checking.

Here’s an overview of the account:

  • $1,000 minimum opening deposit
  • No monthly fees
  • Up to 200 free transactions per cycle ($0.30 per transaction after)
  • Surcharge-free ATM network
  • Compatible with Quickbooks

The online and mobile banking solutions from Axos are exceptional, as you would expect from an online-exclusive bank. You can deposit a check from anywhere using your mobile device.

Overall, Axos Basic Business Checking is suitable for small business owners with modest banking needs.

Chase Total Business Checking – Best checking account for small businesses

Chase Total Business Checking is perfect for entrepreneurs and small business owners.

You’ll have access to 4,900 branches and 16,000 ATMs throughout the country.

There is a $15 service fee with the account. But the fee waived if you maintain a $1,500 minimum daily balance or link a personal Chase checking account.

Top benefits and highlights of Chase Total Business Checking include:

  • Unlimited electronic deposits
  • 100 free monthly transactions
  • Access up to seven years of statements online
  • Account alerts
  • Online and mobile banking

You can earn $200 by opening the account. Simply deposit $1,000 within the first 20 days, and make five qualifying transactions while maintaining that balance for 60 days.

Chase also offers 24/7 customer service for customers. This is fantastic for those any issues, big or small, that might come up.

They offer the tools you need to manage your growing business, including some of the best business credit cards on the market today.

Citizens Bank Clearly Better Business Checking – Best free business checking account with no minimum balance

For those of you seeking a free business checking account, look no further than Citizens Clearly Better Business Checking.

You won’t have to worry about meeting any minimum balance requirements because there are no maintenance fees. This makes Clearly Better Business Checking a top choice for business owners who maintain a lower bank balance.

Other top features include:

  • 200 free monthly transactions
  • Overdraft coverage
  • Dedicated business customer support
  • Online and mobile banking
  • Grant read-only controlled access to your account (for bookkeepers and accountants)

One potential drawback of Citizens Bank is its size. While the company has more than 1,000 branches and 3,100+ ATMs nationwide, most of them are located on the east coast. So if you’ll need to visit a branch, for anything, verify that there is a Citizens Bank near your business before opening an account.

Unlike other business checking accounts, Citizens does not offer a sign-up incentive for Clearly Better Business Checking.

TD Business Convenience Checking Plus – Best checking account with up to 500 free transactions a month

You can open a TD Business Convenience Checking Plus account with just $100. However, you’ll need to maintain a $1,500 daily balance to waive the $25 monthly maintenance fee.

If you link a personal checking account to your Business Checking Plus account, TD Bank counts your combined balance between the two accounts toward the daily minimum. So this is a great choice for business owners who already have an account at TD Bank.

Let’s review some of the account benefits:

  • 500 free transactions per month
  • Up to $5,000 in cash deposits per cycle
  • Overdraft protection
  • Online statements and mobile deposit
  • Up to four signers

While TD Business Convenience Checking Plus does have a high maintenance fee, you’ll benefit from more free monthly transactions. For comparison purposes, Chase Total Business Checking has a $15 fee for just 100 free transactions each month.

Plus, it’s easy to waive TD’s $25 fee by maintaining a low combined balance between two accounts.

Even though you’re limited to $5,000 free cash deposits each month, you’re only charged $0.25 per $100 thereafter. So an additional $5,000 cash deposited in a cycle ($10,000 total) would cost you $12.50. That’s just 0.13% of your deposits, which is next to nothing.

TD Bank gives you access to other services, like merchant solutions, business loans, and business lines of credit.

US Bank Silver Business Checking – Best free checking account for low transaction volumes

US Bank Silver Business Checking is 100% free. They do impose a $5 monthly fee for paper statements, but you can waive that charge by going paperless.

Here’s an overview of the account benefits:

  • 125 free transactions per month
  • Remote deposits
  • Overdraft protection
  • Mobile and online account access
  • 50% off first order of checks
  • Digital bill pay

One thing that needs to be taken into consideration is the strange wording US Bank uses to limit cash deposits. The account allows 25 “units” of free cash deposits each billing cycle.

After reading the fine print, you’ll learn that a unit is calculated by dividing each deposit by 100 and rounding the value to the closest whole number.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you deposit $920.

920 100 =9.2

Round 9.2 down to 9, and you just used 9 of your 25 credits for the month.

This credit system is a complex way of saying you’ll get up to $2,500 in free cash deposits each billing cycle. So if you’re making cash deposits on a regular basis, this account might not be the best option for you.

Huntington Unlimited Business Checking – Best business checking for large businesses with high cash flow

Huntington Unlimited Business Checking is a top option for larger organizations. If you have a higher monthly transaction volume, some of the other accounts on our list won’t fit your needs.

The top features and benefits of Unlimited Business Checking from Huntington include:

  • Unlimited transactions
  • Overdraft protection
  • Online and mobile banking
  • Free text and email alerts
  • Up to $10,000 free cash deposits each month

Huntington does charge a $20 monthly maintenance fee for this account. But it’s waived with a $10,000 combined balance between all of your eligible Huntington Bank accounts.

With an Unlimited Business Checking account, Huntington Bank allows you to choose one of the following bonus services as well:

  • Fraud tool
  • Huntington deposit scan (up to 50 per month)
  • 10% off payroll services
  • Two free incoming domestic wires per month
  • Returned deposited items (up to 25 per month)

This bank also has a tool called “The Hub” for business checking accounts. It comes with several digital tools for things like cash positioning and cash flow forecasting. The Hub is a great resource for managing your revenue and expenses.

Navy Federal Business Checking – Best business checking account for veterans

Navy Federal Business Checking is a top choice to consider if you or someone in your family is a member of the armed forces, National Guard, or DoD.

It’s a straightforward and basic account, best for startups with a low transaction volume.

The best part about this account is that it’s 100% free. You’ll never be charged a monthly maintenance or service fee.

Your first 30 non-electronic transactions are free. After that, it’s $0.25 for any in-branch deposits, withdrawals, or transfers. But you can deposit up to 12 checks at the same time, and it will count as a single transaction.

Another reason why I like Navy Federal Business Checking is because they have other banking solutions to meet your needs as the business grows. Once your banking activity increases, consider upgrading to:

  • Navy Federal Business Plus Checking
  • Navy Federal Business Premium Checking

Those accounts cost $8 and $20 per month, respectively. The Premium Checking maintenance fee is waived if you maintain a $5,000 daily balance.

BBVA Business Connect Checking – Best business banking for sole proprietors

BBVA has free banking solutions for small businesses. Sole proprietors can apply online for a BBVA Business Connect Checking account. Other business types need must apply at a branch.

Here’s an overview of the account advantages and highlights:

  • No monthly service charge
  • No minimum balance requirements
  • Free digital bill pay
  • Free online and mobile banking
  • $100 minimum opening deposit
  • $5,000 cash deposits per month at no charge

BBVA gives you free unlimited transactions every month, sort of. You’ll get two in-branch deposits, and five in-branch withdrawals or processed checks free each month. All other transactions are unlimited at no charge.

You’ll only find BBVA branches in the following states:

  • Alabama
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Florida
  • New Mexico
  • Texas

However, you’ll have access to a network of 55,000+ ATMs nationwide. That’s because BBVA is an Allpoint partner. There are no ATM fees at Allpoint ATMs and participating 7-Eleven locations.

Azlo Business Checking – Best online bank for freelancers accepting digital payments

Azlo Business Checking is a bit unique compared to the other options on our list. This online-only banking solution is made for freelancers and entrepreneurs.

The company is very straightforward in saying that they are not right for all businesses. Azlo doesn’t accept cash deposits or offer checkbooks. So it’s only suitable for businesses that send and receive digital payments.

With that said, the account definitely has its advantages:

  • No monthly fees
  • No minimum deposit
  • Unlimited transactions
  • Create and manage custom digital invoices
  • Pay vendors, freelancers, and yourself
  • Exceptional mobile banking app
  • Apply online in minutes

Azlo integrates with platforms like Stripe, PayPal, Square, QuickBooks, and Xero.

Overall, Azlo is a modern way for freelancers to access their banking needs online. But it’s definitely not suitable for everyone.

BlueVine – Best business checking for small businesses and startups

BlueVine Business Checking offers an excellent business checking account that’s optimal for small businesses.

That’s because they include the benefits that help small business owners such as:

  • No monthly fees
  • No minimum deposits
  • No “non-sufficient funds” fees
  • Unlimited transactions
  • 1% interest rates

Easily set up one-time or recurring payments through their dashboard. Also, you’ll be able to easily pay vendors via ACH, wire, or check.

As for downsides, there aren’t many. They have a 38,000 ATM network—though it might be difficult to find an ATM within network depending on your location.

BlueVine also gives you live support, though advisors are only available during office hours. That’s Monday through Friday 8am – 8pm ET.

How to Find the Best Business Checking Account For You

All business checking accounts are not created equally. The best choice for one business might not be ideal for yours.

This is the methodology that you should use when you’re evaluating business checking accounts. I’ll explain each feature in greater detail below.

Fees

Service fees and monthly maintenance fees are common for business checking accounts. In most cases, these fees fall somewhere in the $10 to $50 range.

But there are still plenty of free business banking solutions. In fact, seven of the eleven accounts on our list don’t have monthly fees. While the remaining four contain fees, you can easily waive them by maintaining a minimum account balance.

There’s no reason to pay these fees if you can avoid them.

Balance Requirements

Some banks require a minimum opening deposit. So choose a bank with a reasonable opening deposit minimum based on your situation.

If you’re launching a startup and don’t have a ton of cash on hand, you can open some accounts with as little as $50 or $100. Some banks don’t require a minimum opening deposit at all.

In addition to the opening deposit requirement, some accounts will charge for you falling below a certain minimum daily balance. Make sure that your cash flow is enough to maintain your minimum requirements without getting penalized.

Transaction Limits

Personal checking accounts will rarely if ever, cap the number of transactions you can make in a billing cycle. But that’s not the case for most business checking accounts.

Depending on the bank, activities like deposits, withdrawals, and transfers count toward a monthly limit. Some banks will restrict the number of in-person transactions you can make while offering free unlimited electronic transactions.

For the most part, free monthly transaction limits start at 100. TD Business Convenience Checking allows for 500 free transactions per month. Other banks give you unlimited transactions, with a few contingencies.

You’ll pay a small fee for each transaction over your monthly limit. This is usually somewhere in the $0.25 to $0.50 range.

Mobile Banking and Online Accessibility

Every bank offers some way to access your account online or through a mobile app. But with that said, some of these digital solutions are definitely better than others.

Choose a business checking account that lets you deposit checks remotely, set up account alerts, and pay invoices automatically.

I do nearly all of my business banking from a mobile app, and I’m sure you’ll want that convenience as well.

Branch Locations

Some banks are region-specific, while others are large national chains. It’s important to choose a bank near your business location if you need to access a branch for anything.

However, there are several business checking accounts that are online-exclusive. These banks don’t have any physical locations. But those solutions aren’t for everyone. For example, if your business accepts cash, you’ll definitely need access to a physical branch for in-person deposits.

Online-only banking is very popular for freelancers and entrepreneurs working remotely and accepting digital payments.

Additional Banking Services

This may not be important to you immediately, but it’s nice to have a bank that will provide you with additional services as your business grows.

Whether it’s merchant services for credit card processing, additional accounts, or a business loan or line of credit, it’s easier to get these from a bank where you have an existing relationship.

Always look at what else a bank has to offer beyond your immediate checking account needs today.

Conclusion

Every business owner needs a business checking account. But everyone has different banking needs, which is why finding the best business checking solution can be difficult.

These are the top eleven best business checking accounts on the market today:

There’s an account for every type of business on this list. From freelancers and startups to small businesses and larger organizations with high transaction volumes, I’m confident that you can find a checking account from one of the options above.



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How to Create a Website With WordPress

Creating a website used to be a massive project. Expensive, too.

Everything had to be built by hand and businesses needed to work with an online marketing agency that would charge them tens of thousands of dollars to build the site. If you wanted a professional-looking site, that was your only option.

Things have gotten a lot cheaper and easier over the years.

Note that there’s a number of approaches you can take to creating a website. More on that later—let’s dive right in.

A Step-by-step Guide to Creating a Website With WordPress

I’ve broken down the 9 simple steps to create your website from scratch.

They are:

  • Step 1: Pick a name and find a domain for your website
  • Step 2: Register your domain name
  • Step 3: Decide what kind of site you are creating
  • Step 4: Get a host for your website
  • Step 5: Install WordPress
  • Step 6: Point your domain to your host
  • Step 7: Install a WordPress theme
  • Step 8: Add content to your website
  • Step 9: Continue evolving your website

You’ll easily be able to run through these steps over the next 120 minutes.

Step 1: Pick a name and find a domain for your website

Time for a tough truth: A lot of the good domain names have been taken.

Here’s how a naming session might go for you:

  1. In a moment of inspiration, we think of an amazing name.
  2. We hold on to this name for months, maybe even years.
  3. It’s time to start the business, so we go to purchase the domain.
  4. The domain is taken.
  5. We try a dozen small variations of our original idea, all taken.
  6. No biggie, we thought of one brilliant name, we’ll think of another one.
  7. Backup idea #2 = taken.
  8. Backup idea #3 = taken.
  9. Backup idea #4 = taken.
  10. Despair sets in.
  11. We start considering names that we don’t actually like, hoping that anything is available.
  12. We come up with 2 or 3 options that we don’t like at all.
  13. Then we spend a week trying to come up with a name that’s both available and a name that we can live with.
  14. Finally, we find one.

Websites have also become so embedded in our day-to-day lives that it’s better to change the name of the business to match an available domain than it is to pick a poor quality domain. Through this process, I almost always end up with a completely different name than I originally intended.

This is why I consider the “naming my business” and “buying the domain” steps for creating a business to be the same step. I try to only lock myself into a name once I have the domain.

We put together an in-depth guide on buying domains here.

The good news is that the rest of these steps are a breeze once you have your domain purchased. It’s the first and hardest step to create your website.

Step 2: Register your domain name

First you need to know the difference between a domain registrar and a web host.

A domain registrar is a company that specializes in buying and registering domains.

A web host, on the other hand, specializes in running servers that host websites. This is where your website “lives.”

Every web host will desperately try to get you to also register a domain through them. After all, it’s more money for them. They’ve spent most of their resources building out a hosting service, then they offer domain registration as a convenience, increase the price a bit, and collect a nice chunk of extra profit from you.

My philosophy is to buy things from businesses that specialize in that exact thing. Prices will be better and so will quality. That’s why I also use a domain registrar for buying domains and a web host for hosting. I never mix up the two.

The best domain registrar is Domain.com. That’s where I have all of my domain names.

We put together a detailed review of domain registrars here.

Step 3: Decide what kind of site you are creating

Most guides on creating a website will push you into using WordPress. It’s the most popular and flexible website builder. And that’s usually a good recommendation.

But there are a few situations where I recommend different options.

Simple Portfolio or “Business Card” Sites

Many businesses need a simple website that tells people a few things:

  • Who the business is for
  • What the business does
  • Sometimes a portfolio that shows off some work
  • Contact info

You need to communicate basic info—and that’s all. If this is what you need, Wix is your best option for creating your website. It’s incredibly simple to use and will give you a professional site at a very low price. It’s perfect for small businesses.

They’ve created the simplest and easiest website builder out there. Truly, it’s a joy to use, and makes the most sense when you just need a clean, professional-looking site that gives some basic info on your business. It’s perfect for small businesses, freelancers, and artists.

Ecommerce Sites

If you’re planning on building an ecommerce store for your site, don’t use WordPress. We have an entire post here on when to use WordPress for ecommerce and when not to. The short story: it rarely makes sense to use WordPress for ecommerce.

You can if you really want to but it’s not really the most optimal way to do so.

The best option, by far, is Wix again. There used to be more competition in the ecommerce tool space, but Wix got too far ahead of even Shopify.

If you’re going this route, we have a 9-step guide on how to create an ecommerce website. We also have a guide on how to start a store that drives real sales. Both of those guides will get you pointed in the right direction.

Blog Sites

If you know you want a blog or are planning on doing lots of content, start on WordPress. The majority of this guide is around building a WordPress website. (We also have a detailed guide on starting blogs here.)

Most websites are really just blogs. Some of the biggest, and most well-known websites on the Internet are blogs. WordPress powers over 30% of the entire internet. So it’s the only real option for starting a blog these days.

What about Joomla or Drupal? Or Typepad?

WordPress left all those other platforms in the dust about a decade ago. They’re not even legitimate options at this point. Pick WordPress — there isn’t a single situation where you’ll regret it.

When I originally started with this online thing, Drupal sites were still pretty common. I partnered up with an engineer friend of mine and we did a lot of freelance work migrating sites from Drupal to WordPress. Even back then, WordPress was a clear winner.

Now when I come across a site on any of these other tools, it’s kind of exciting. It’s like finding an ancient artifact. “This still exists!? How fascinating!”

Don’t use any of these other tools, stick to WordPress.

Everything Else

If you’re not sure or have another vision for your site outside the categories above, use WordPress. It’s the most flexible platform out there. It will do ecommerce, it’ll do simple portfolios, it’ll do massive content sites, it’ll do Fortune 500 marketing sites, it’ll do it all.

You might have to customize it more than other platforms in some situations but you can make WordPress do whatever you want it to. And just about anyone in online marketing knows their way around WordPress so you’ll be able to find plenty of people to help you when the time comes.

Whether you want to build your site by hand or you have an online marketing agency to do it for you, you should still build on top of WordPress. It’ll shortcut a lot of the programming work and give you the ability to edit basic items on your site without having to edit any code. I’ve managed marketing sites of venture-backed tech startups that employed dozens of engineers — we still had our marketing site built on top of WordPress. It’s the standard choice.

Step 4: Get a host for your website

Now it’s time to get into the weeds a bit. The next steps really depends on your actual goals.

If you want an ecommerce site, skip the rest of this guide and follow our guide on creating an ecommerce site.

For everything else, keep following this guide!

So WordPress is the tool that you’ll use to build your website. But you also need a web host. That’s the actual server that will store your site and make it available to anyone who visits.

Every website on the Internet is on web host. And the best place to go for most people is Bluehost.

We have an entire guide here that goes through all the best web hosts.

Hosting plans usually start around $5/month.

Step 5: Install WordPress

Just about every website host has a 1-click install of WordPress. Bluehost, the hosting provider I recommend the most has this feature. But if you have trouble finding it, contact support and they’ll be able to walk you through it.

Step 6: Point your domain to your host

Let’s do a quick recap.

  • You bought your domain using a domain registrar.
  • You signed up for a hosting plan.
  • You installed WordPress on your host.

Now you’re going to connect all that stuff together by pointing your domain to your host. Then when people go to your domain, they’ll end up on your website.

There are a few technical settings you need to apply. This involves configuring a few nameserver settings on your domain registrar for your domain. Your host will give you the correct settings; you’re looking for their nameserver settings.

If you get stuck, contact your host and they’ll give you all the info you need.

Once you have the nameserver info from your host, go into your domain registrar and configure those settings for the domain that you want to point at your site. Once you’re done, it’ll look something like this:

 

Create a Website Name Servers

Step 7: Install a WordPress theme

Think of WordPress as the guts of your site, it’s all the pumping that makes your site work.

WordPress uses themes to determine how your website looks. This makes it really easy to change how your site looks without having to rebuild your site from scratch. Swap out your old theme for a new one and ta-da! Your design will look completely different.

These days, I purchase all my themes from StudioPress.

Heads up, WP Engine bought StudioPress and now includes all the StudioPress themes in its hosting plans. WP Engine is more expensive but it’s perfect for serious bloggers. It’s a great way to save money on your theme if you are planning on building a large site to begin with. WP Engine is another one of our recommended hosts if you’re looking for the best. The downside is that WP Engine tends to be more expensive than other hosts. It’s probably overkill if you are just starting out, or creating your first website.

Back to themes, are there other options?

You betcha. ThemeForest and Pixelgrade has a marketplace of WordPress themes. There are literally tens of thousands of themes to pick from. They’re usually in the $30–60 price range. When looking for theme, I rank them by the most popular or the highest rating. Then I pick one I personally like.

After you’ve purchased a theme, go to the WordPress Theme settings and upload your theme. The Theme settings are under Appearance in the WordPress sidebar menu. You’ll have to click through “Add new” and “Upload Theme” in order to see this option to upload:

Upload WordPress Theme

Go ahead and upload the .zip file you received when you purchased your theme.

After it’s uploaded, you’ll also have to click “activate” on the theme in WordPress to make it go live.

Step 8: Add content to your website

Now the fun part — it’s time to create the individual pages of your site.

You’ll do this within WordPress.

WordPress has two types of content: pages and posts.

Think of posts as blog posts that are published under a “blog” section of a site. If you’re not planning on having a blog, then you can skip posts entirely.

Pages are the more permanent pages on your website. Like your About or Contact Us pages. When you’re first creating your website, you want to get a batch of pages live so your site feels real.

Every website has a few standard pages you should create:

  • Homepage – Your WordPress theme usually has settings for this page.
  • Contact Page – Create a new page and install a WordPress form plugin so you can add a form to the page.
  • About page – Tell your story and why you’ve started your business.
  • Product or services pages – For the main services or products that you’re offering, it’s a good idea to create a dedicated page for each.
  • Blog – If you’re building a blog, make sure all your posts get listed here.

This list will get you started. You can always add more later.

Step 9: Continue evolving your website

At this point, you have a fully functioning site that looks great.

I’m not going to lie, there’s a lot of extra configuration you can do to your site: you can add WordPress plugins that upgrade your site, build out a blog, add an email list, grow traffic, the list is endless.

You don’t have to do any of this extra stuff — it’s all optional. It depends on your priorities and goals.

A website is an ever evolving thing. The way it looks after you first create it, won’t be how it looks a couple months later. At least that is the case if you are actively working and growing your website.

When you’re ready, these guides will walk you through the extra stuff that’s worth considering:

Our General Take On Building a Website

Don’t get confused by all of the different options for creating a website. For a more in-depth look at how we think about this, check out our preliminary guide on how to create a website.

WordPress is King

In most cases, we highly recommend to build your website with WordPress. It’s an open source platform that allows you to run your website with very little technical expertise.

Some of the biggest websites on the Internet are built on WordPress. TechCrunch, The New Yorker, Variety and MTV News, just to name a few.

It’s also the most popular blogging platform, so there are hundreds of thousands of smaller websites that use WordPress.

WordPress is used by 33.4% of all the websites, and has a content management system market share of 60.3%.

Much of our content is centered around WordPress because we use it for all of our websites outside of Ecommerce.

Here’s the guide on how to create your website on WordPress.

Wix for Ecommerce

For Ecommerce, we like Wix — which is an Ecommerce website builder that allows you to get an online store up and running quickly.

The reality is that creating and running an online store can be a huge pain. Wix takes that pain away. That’s probably why they are growing so quickly.

Here’s the guide on how to create your website on Wix.

The Dozens of Other Options

If you’re reading this right now, then you most definitely fall into the category of someone that should be using WordPress or Wix.

In rare cases, it might make sense to create a website using Squarespace or a similar website builder.

In other (very) rare cases, it might make sense to have a custom-built website.

More Guides On Creating and Managing a Website

Below, a master list of all our best resources on creating a website.

For general information:

How to Plan Out Your New Website

How to Buy The RIGHT Domain Name – A Detailed Guide

How to Develop Your First Brand Identity on a Budget

The 5 Best Website Builders

The 5 Best Domain Registrars

10 Trending 2019 Website Color Schemes

9 Places To Get Website Images (Paid and Free)

The Best Website Fonts That Go Together in 2019

13 Website Design Best Practices

7 Reasons Why You Do NOT Need to Hire a Website Designer

The 22 Key Elements of a High Quality Website

How Much Copy Should You Write on Your Homepage?

10 Contact Page Techniques That Make People Contact You

How To Create an About Page That Matters

How to Make a Wix Website in 6 Easy Steps

For useful information on optimization as your site gets up and running:

Website Speed

Website Usability

Website Security

Website Mobile Friendliness

5 Easy Steps to Creating a Sitemap For a Website

Should You Switch Your Site to HTTPS? Pros and Cons

The Top 10 Principles That Boost Your Website Loading Time

More about web hosting:

You need a web hosting provider in order to have a website.

We recommend Bluehost for most people. For advanced WordPress users, with high traffic websites, it could make sense to move to WP Engine at some point.

More about The Best Web Hosting Companies here.

Here are some additional guides to help you learn more about web hosting:

The Best Web Hosting for WordPress

The Best Free Web Hosting

The Best Cheap Web Hosting

The Hidden Costs of Website Hosting

More about analytics and reporting:

An analytics tool is important if you want to know what’s happening on your website. It tells you how much traffic you’re getting, where it’s coming from, and what people do on your site. Google Analytics is the standard. That’s what we use for Quick Sprout.

Read more about why Google Analytics is the best.

Installing Google Analytics is easy. Consuming the reports is a bit more complicated.

Here are some guides to help:

The 2 Website Analytics Tools Pros Actually Use in 2019

Setup Google Analytics in 3 Steps – The Beginner’s Guide

10 Vital Customizations to Make in Google Analytics

A Guide to Google Analytics Add-on for Google Sheets

How to Track Your Leads with UTM Parameters

More about building and optimizing with WordPress:

A WordPress website is basically made from what’s called a WordPress Theme and WordPress Plugins. All of the features of your website will come either from the theme or the plugins you install.

To help you get started, we reviewed all of the best WordPress Plugins across the most popular categories.

Here’s an in-depth review for each category:

Best SEO Plugins for WordPress

Best WordPress Gallery Plugin

Best WordPress Backup Plugin

Best Form Plugin WordPress

Best WordPress Cache Plugin

Best WordPress Security Plugin

Best WordPress Calendar Plugin

Best Google Analytics Plugins for WordPress

Best WordPress Popup Plugin

Best WordPress Directory Plugin

Best WordPress Booking Plugin

Best Membership Plugins for WordPress

Best Social Media WordPress Plugin

Useful information for ecommerce websites:

If the primary purpose of your website is to sell products, you’ll need an ecommerce website. We recommend keeping it simple and going with Wix.

Check out our review of the Best Ecommerce Platforms, to get a comparison to the other options out there.

Get the step-by-step on how to start an online store.

Our guide on how to create an Ecommerce website.

More useful guides on building an Ecommerce website:

WordPress Ecommerce

How to Transfer Your Website to Shopify

Best Ecommerce WordPress Themes

Best Ecommerce Website Builder

Checkout Process Design

Ecommerce Color Schemes

How to Create a Trust Seal On Checkout Page

Tips on starting a blog:

When you really break it down — most websites are blogs, and blogs are websites. They have become one and the same. The most popular blogging platform is WordPress, and that is also the same platform we use for any other website, blog or otherwise.

If you’re thinking about starting a blog specifically, and that is why you’re trying to figure out how to create a website…we have over 40 guides on blogging.

Here are the blogging guides specific to getting started, and building your blog:

How to Start a Blog

Best Blogging Platforms / Blog Sites

Best WordPress Themes for Blogs

Blog Design

11 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started My First Blog

The Top 12 Tips for Running a Successful Video Blog

10 Lessons Seth Godin Can Teach You About Blogging

100 Lessons Learned from 10 Years of Blogging

Creating Your Own Website: In Summary

Creating your website might seem overwhelming at first. It really comes down to starting with these simple steps:

  1. Is your primary purpose to sell things on your website? If yes, then focus on Wix, if no, then focus on WordPress.
  2. Use the guides on Quick Sprout to help you through the process. It’s a learning curve for sure. Taking the time to set up everything correctly will help you grow your business and your traffic much faster later on.
  3. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us directly via email with questions. We’ll help however we can.


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