Novi Builder Review

Launched in 2016, Novi Builder promised to revolutionize the website builder scene. Its HTML templates and beautiful design, as well as the ability to access the full source code, make it a great choice for an experienced website developer.

Novi Builder’s drag-and-drop system and its templates should be seen as a way to jumpstart a developer’s process rather than as a way for beginners to use the software.

Combine that high price of admission with lacking support and it may seem like Novi Builder isn’t up there with our best website builders, but the benefits outweigh the drawbacks for the right person.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Alternatives for Novi Builder

Features

Because they’re based in coding, Novi Builder’s features are just as hard to access for a beginner as the platform. For example, integrating with MailChimp requires uploading a .js file into the online editor and modifying it to display certain form questions.

On the other hand, such a high barrier of entry means Novi Builder’s features are highly customizable. You get much more control over them compared to a rigid drag-and-drop editor.

Code Editor

Novi Builder is focused on coding to customize your website, so HTML knowledge is a must to make the most of it. An interesting take on coding for website builders is that Novi Builder lets you choose an HTML template before getting started.

That type of template is great because its code is a lot cleaner, which means it’s much easier to edit them and rank high on Google. They’re beautiful and responsive on mobile, too.

Besides the template, you can edit your website in CSS or JavaScript, which adds a lot of customization opportunities.

All in all, coding is treated well in Novi Builder. If you don’t know how to do it, you can collaborate with someone and make it work, but if you know CSS and HTML, the sky’s the limit.

Though it’s helpful that you can customize as deep as your coding skills can take you, a drawback, even for developers, is that coding takes time. For example, the lengthy process of localization could be done much faster with Voog. If you’re keen on serving a worldwide audience, read our Voog review.

Integrating Third-Party Apps with Novi Builder

Third-party integration is complex with Novi Builder. For stats, you can easily integrate with Google Analytics and Google Search Console. For email marketing and form collection, you can work with MailChimp and place social media buttons wherever you want on the website.

Those are easy to import into Novi Builder’s online editor, and they’ll make a difference in how well you market your online presence.

Plus, you can create plugins — which basically means any compiled module — to further customize your website. For example, you can create events that are triggered by a panel opening. After that, simply import them into the online builder and publish everything through an FTP.

That process is used to create any classic website builder feature, such as a blog, testimonial carousel or form editor. When you also factor in plugins, Novi Builder makes your job much easier by providing a lot of premade ones.

That makes it easier to import commonly needed options, but it’s also a great example of what you can create with the tool.

Such advanced editing options aren’t available in classic drag-and-drop editors. If you want a similar platform, try WebStarts. Read our WebStarts review before you do, though.

Lastly, a cool thing about Novi Builder’s features is that they evolve with its users. You can suggest changes, and every month the developers plow through them and implement things if they’re feasible.

Novi Builder Feature Overview

Pricing

Startup Novi visual HTML editorNovi pluginsUnlimited projectsFree updatesDeveloper support30-day money-back guaranteeMulti-purpose HTML template Details Domain Name	1-year plan $ 2.42/ month $29.00 billed every year
Advanced Everything in Startup plus:20 HTML templates Details Domain Name	1-year plan $ 4.08/ month $49.00 billed every year
Developer Everything in Advanced plus:Lifetime access to all features,Lifetime access to all templates Details Domain Name	Lifetime plan $ 4.14/ month $149.00 one time payment, Monthly price for 3 years of use

Novi Builder’s pricing is unorthodox but cheap. For the price of an HTML template, you also get access to plugins, support, a well-rounded visual editor and updates.

The Startup plan is great for any small project. If you know HTML or CSS or you need a playground to learn how to apply what you’ve learned, it’s the perfect choice. The only limitation is that you’re restricted to one template, but as long as you don’t have big plans that require multiple layouts on multiple websites, it’ll suffice.

The Advanced plan features everything in Startup plus 19 additional templates. It’s perfect for those who would use Startup but want to do testing or rebranding in the future because you can choose a different layout by switching templates. It’s also a good choice for anyone who needs more than one website developed because you can pick the structure for each one.

The Developer plan is probably the best of the three. For what you’d pay for two years of access to Wix or Squarespace, you get lifetime access to all Novi Builder features and templates. If you know how to code, it’s a good choice.

If you don’t, Squarespace might be right for you, especially because it features stellar design. If that piques your interest, read our Squarespace review.

One last thing to consider is that Novi Builder is just a website builder. It doesn’t offer hosting, and it doesn’t come with a domain name or SSL certificate, so that’s another cost you’ll have to factor in before purchasing it.

Design & Tools

Designing a website with Novi Builder is different from any other website builder we’ve reviewed. Once you have an account you don’t just choose a template and get plunged into the action. It’s a process of downloading back-end files and constantly working on them while also working on the online interface of the website builder.

It’s hard. It may take time to figure things out, but for the right person, it’s the perfect combination of quick visual mods and coding.

On the flip side, creating plugins and editing stuff offline is a hassle for any non-techie. It’d also take years to explain, so you’re better off reading Novi Builder’s documentation if you’re curious about that.

Now, let’s get to the nitty-gritty of it. The place you’ll spend most of your time in is the online editor, which has three views.

Preview with Novi Builder

The first one is a classic preview. Clicking the icon will result in a seamless transition between any sort of editing and previewing your results.

You can also switch between seven screen resolutions, which is helpful. That large variety of supported devices makes it easy to optimize your platform for all types of visitors.

Unfortunately, you can’t prevent elements from showing on certain platforms in the vanilla version by simply clicking a button, as is the case with many website builders. Granted, you can technically do it by coding, but that’s a lot more time-consuming than the way Novi Builder’s competitors do it.

Editing Visually in Novi Builder

The most user-friendly mode, “edit mode,” lets you modify your website by dragging and dropping elements and playing with the blocks that are already on the page.

It works with layers of elements, such as headers or content sections. When hovering on one, you’ll be able to click on a top bar that has the following editing options:

• “Move,” to quickly rearrange a page and stick elements that fit together.
• “Replace,” which is great if you have placeholder sections while you work on something better. On top of that, Novi Builder has a library of premade layouts, so it’s easy to just insert one of those if you’re pressed by time.
• “Duplicate,” which makes it easier to create layers without having to start from scratch.
• “Delete,” which will let you kill whatever you’ve been working on and start over.

In addition to those, you can edit elements individually if you hover over them. For example, you can quickly add a hyperlink to a button.

All in all, the edit mode is great for making quick changes and not having to access the source code for every small issue. Unfortunately, it’s still not good enough for beginners because Novi Builder’s powerful features are hidden behind a “code wall.”

That’s not to mention that editing visually is usually done by dragging elements from a block library, which isn’t the default action you’ll take in Novi Builder. Coding is involved at every step and if that’s problematic to you, you should read our Duda review. Though not perfect, that website builder has a large library of premade elements for you to drop into a webpage.

Novi Builder Code

“Design mode” lets you code in the editor. It features a tab that lets you access the source code of your website in HTML, CSS and JavaScript.

The outstanding aspect of the code editor is that you can tackle the different programming languages separately, which makes the process more organized and better streamlined.

Besides enabling you to work on the source code, the tab lets you insert preset code sections and the plugins mentioned earlier. On top of that, coding a section or element in particular is easy. Click it and it’ll be highlighted in the lower coding menu.

For people who know a thing or two about these programming languages, Novi makes the whole process seem like a walk in the park. It’s easy to use, intuitive and well-designed for bonus points.

Plus, you can import content from the top right corner. Files, modules and APIs are easy to prepare separately and add when ready, which makes it easy to come up with a minimally viable product in a day and then build on that.

Templates in Novi Builder

Novi Builder’s templates are beautiful and optimized. Most are paid unless you upgrade to the Developer plan, but they’re worth the money because you can quickly use and modify them.

Applying them on a website is a complicated matter, though. Novi Builder’s official guidelines on using templates say the import process consists of a lot of stages: builder setup, template import preparation, scripts, styles and HTML markup preparation, project setup and system setup.

It’s a lengthy and complicated process, but as long as you have experience working in the website building industry, Novi Builder should make your job easier.

Ease of Use

We can’t compare Novi to Weebly or SiteBuilder. Drag-and-drop options are a million times easier to use for a general audience. If that’s important to you, read our Weebly review and our SiteBuilder review.

That said, if you know your way around a developer tool, Novi Builder will be a walk in the park. It has a simple edit mode, where you can drag and drop certain elements, but it’s not as powerful as the design mode or other drag-and-drop website builders. The quality of Novi Builder in general relies on the user being able to code a section or two.

When you open the website builder for the first time, you’ll be played a tutorial with the most important parts of the tool.

Support

Because Novi Builder is new to the market, support isn’t stellar, but it’s not terrible, either. It features a small knowledgebase that’s geared toward developers, but that’s it. There’s no forum, chat or phone number.

Novi Builder has a community around it, but we’re only talking about a Facebook group. Granted, it has active members, but it doesn’t come close to a full-fledged forum.

You can contact the developers if you’re out of luck, but Novi Builder features a classic ticketing system. That means you’ll be receiving customer support via email, which may not be the best system, but that’s as good as it gets right now. Users are requesting a chat feature, which may be implemented in the future.

In all fairness, the problem isn’t the quality of support because Novi Builder agents and developers are helpful. Rather, for higher marks, it should improve the quantity of support by providing more ways to get in contact and more tutorials, with some of the latter perhaps geared toward beginners.

The Verdict

Novi Builder is different. It’s hard to get into if you don’t have the right background but powerful for someone who speaks CSS libraries and .js plugins.

For an all-inclusive drag-and-drop experience, with a blog that’s already set up and an SEO wizard, try Wix. It’s our top choice because it has everything you need to get started online. Read our Wix review to learn more.

If you want a dedicated blogging platform, read our best web hosting roundup. We recommend WordPress, but another one might work just as well. Before you choose WordPress, though, read our best web hosting for WordPress.

Do you agree with our review of Novi? Slide into the comments section for any issue, discussion or word of appraisal. Thanks for reading.