Did you know over 1.7 billion websites exist on the World Wide Web today? With this massive breadth of sites, understanding how each one is built can provide useful insights. Knowing which website builder or content management system powers a particular website helps reveal its capabilities, limitations, and overall DNA. This knowledge aids web developers debugging sites, analysts conducting competitive research, marketers evaluating vendors, and anyone wanting to peek under the hood of the web. This article will explore the major website platforms and techniques to identify the technology behind any site you encounter.
Understanding Website Builders
Several leading website builders and content management systems (CMSs) power most websites on the internet today. Understanding the key features and strengths of each platform helps identify what technology a website may be built on. Here is an overview of the most widely used website builders:
- WordPress: The most popular open-source CMS, powering over 35% of all websites. WordPress offers extensive customization and supports complex sites powered by a vast library of plugins and themes. Ideal for blogs, magazines, member sites, and advanced websites.
- Wix: A user-friendly drag-and-drop website builder used by over 100 million sites. Wix makes it easy for anyone to create stylish websites through designer-made templates. Especially well-suited for small businesses, portfolios, and simple sites.
- Squarespace: A template-focused website builder used by over 1 million sites. Enables beautiful galleries, portfolios, and blogs through elegantly designed templates. It integrates e-commerce functionality.
- Shopify: The leading e-commerce platform for operating online stores and retail websites. Offers powerful shopping carts, payments, shipping, and inventory management. Used by over 1 million businesses.
- Drupal: An open-source CMS often used for larger enterprise, governmental, and complex sites. Provides advanced customization and scalability beyond WordPress. Has a steep learning curve.
There are other builders like Webflow, BigCommerce, and Duda, but these make up the majority of sites you’ll come across.
Identifying the Website Builder
There are several effective techniques you can use to identify the website builder behind a website. By leveraging visual cues, code analysis, online tools, URLs, and functionality checks, you can accurately detect which platform was used to create the site. Here are 5 key methods for determining the builder:
Visual Inspection and Branding (100 words)
In addition to source code, visual elements of a website can provide clues about the underlying builder:
- Check the website footer: many builders like Wix, Shopify and Squarespace include credits like “Powered by Shopify” pointing to their platform.
- Recognize branded templates: With experience you can spot designer templates unique to Wix, WordPress themes, Shopify’s core styles and more.
- Look for familiar layouts: Builder templates tend to structure pages in predictable ways, like Wix’s header and sidebars.
- Notice patterns in components: Common controls and elements like Squarespace’s galleries, WP comment boxes, or Wix menus give away the builder.
While not definitive, the overall design and footer of a site can lend hints about the tool used to construct it when matched with known builder templates and components.
Analyzing the Source Code
One of the best ways to identify what technology a website is built on is to examine its source code. Here’s how to access and interpret the code:
To view the source code, right click on any webpage and choose “View Source” or “View Page Source”. This will open the raw HTML, CSS, JavaScript and more that constructs that page.
Once in the code, look for unique patterns and snippets that point to specific website builders:
- Meta generator tags like <meta name=”generator” content=”WordPress 5.4.2″> directly indicate the platform.
- Script tags referencing builder files like <script src=”wix.js”> suggests Wix is used.
- Code comments sometimes mention the platform like <!– Built with Shopify –>.
- The code structure itself like Wix’s CSS or Shopify’s Liquid show the templates used.
With practice, you can quickly parse the source to identify traces of the underlying website technology powering any page.
Using Online Tools and Extensions
Several helpful online tools can instantly identify the technology stack behind a website:
- BuiltWith allows you to enter any URL, and will scan the site to detect its builder, frameworks, analytics tools, and more.
- Wappalyzer is a popular browser extension that reveals site tech info right on the webpage itself.
- CMS Detector is another handy Chrome extension specialized for identifying content management systems like WordPress and Drupal.
These tools work by comparing website code against a vast database of fingerprints for different platforms. They provide one of the quickest ways to accurately detect the builder used. Follow their download instructions to install, then simply navigate to any site in your browser to immediately see the results.
Checking URL Structure and Page Extensions
The structure of a site’s URLs and page extensions can hint at its backend builder. For example, sites ending in .html are typically built on static site generators like Jekyll or Hugo. WordPress uses URL patterns like example.com/category/post-name and .php extensions. Wix sites feature messy URLs with autogenerated strings like .html.wixsite.com/mysite/page. Shopify stores contain .myshopify.com in product links. These URL conventions vary by platform, so paying attention to the paths and files can help narrow down the possibilities. However, custom URL settings can obscure these hints.
Observing Website Functionality and Features
Examining the functionality and built-in features of a site can provide clues to its origins. For example, integrated e-commerce capabilities, shopping carts, and online storefronts typically indicate a builder like Shopify or BigCommerce. Unique workflows for accepting appointments or submissions might point to tools like Calendly or Typeform.
Special Consideration for Niche Websites
While the methods and tools discussed are broadly applicable, certain niches may have specific requirements that are best met by specialized website builders. For instance, real estate websites often need unique functionalities like property listings, maps integration, and advanced search filters. If you’re in the real estate industry or looking to create a website in this niche, it’s crucial to choose a builder that caters to these specific needs. For more detailed guidance, check out this comprehensive comparison of the best website builders for real estate. It provides a thorough analysis and useful information on selecting a builder that’s tailored to the unique demands of real estate websites.
Conclusion
Figuring out what website builder someone used gives real strategic value. For web developers, it inspires new ideas. Businesses can scope out competitors’ tech stacks. And for tech geeks, it reveals what’s behind the curtain.
The methods here provide an ethical roadmap to ID site builders. Use them wisely to gain useful perspective on the web landscape that informs your online moves.
Whether analyzing competitors, researching markets, or following a hunch, knowing a website’s foundations provides important context. It provides insights that illuminate the complex array of technologies powering the internet we know today.