Moonfruit Review 2020

Item: Moonfruit
Rating: 4.4
Author: Jonathan Kerns

The rise of the internet can be clearly seen in the dotcom bubble of 1997-2000 where the global markets saw significant and rapid rise in the value of equities associated with the Internet sector. In this time many companies took advantage of this new technology and took their businesses online. To do this however you would require the skill and expertise of a web designer or programmer which can be very costly.

Though, unless you had knowledge or skills in that field, it was your only option. Until web builders allowed people to make their own websites without the need for programming. One of them is Moonfruit, established in January 2000, it is one of the earlier web builders and the few who survived the dotcom bubble and is eventual bust. In this review we will see what Moonfruit has to offer and if it can still compete 15 years after it was established.

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Jonathan KernsMarch 15, 2019

Pros

Free Version – One of the good things about Moonfruit is that they offer a good free version. Given that most companies (even Moonfruit) only offer free versions to get you started on their service only to be given next to no workable features as a sales tool to frustrate you into getting a paid subscription to enjoy even smidge of the service they offer. Moonfruit gives us a rather comprehensive taste of what they have to offer. The free version, though limited, offers more than what most other similar web builders have and is really great if you want to see exactly what you are getting before you pay for a subscription or even if you are contented with 15 pages on one website.
Features are Great - If you want to run and maintain multiple websites for your business then $35/month isn’t too bad since it comes loaded with so many features compared to its lower priced counterparts. But if you are just a start-up or a small business and one website is all you need then the $6 Lite Version should be enough. Whatever your website need may be, Moonfruit has the subscription plan for you at an affordable rate.

Cons

Poor Support – This is one of the major cons with Moonfruit as they only offer email support and a forum. Ironically enough, one of the first topics you will see in that forum is “How long does it take to get a reply from Moonfruit Support”, which just gives you an idea of how lackluster their support is.
Outdated – Being one of the first players in the field of web building has its ups and downs; on the upside it shows that the company has what it takes to survive where others have not. On the down side however, if the company takes too long to adjust or to change as the times change then they will ultimately be left behind. (Take Nokia for example, but that’s another story.) Moonfruit gives you a rather outdated look and feel with the software you use itself though they have updated it, I guess they are trying to play it close to the heart and keep with what they started with. Their last update being October of 2014 shows how slow they are to adapt with the rapidly growing and evolving times.
No Social Media Integration – Sadly Moonfruit does not offer Social Media integration as of yet. This again sings to the tune of them being outdated with some of the features they have. Hopefully they add this feature soon to give their users a more complete experience as other web builders have integration with Social Media, but with how long it took Moonfruit to change from running on Flash, I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Templates

Moonfruit allows you to build your own website without any prior experience or knowledge in the field whatsoever. Through its user friendly interface, you just simply point and click or drag and drop elements onto where you would like them on your webpage. Aside from that they also offer preset templates which are designed for specific types of websites. This is a big pro because they don’t just offer some poorly made templates like other sites but quality made ones. In fact you would have to have a paid subscription to other similar web builders to have access to templates of the same quality that Moonfruit offers for free. Having those templates are especially helpful to those who want to save time from building a website from scratch or don’t have a clear idea of how they want their site to be.

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Free E-Commerce

Unlike other web builders, Moonfruit offers the e-Commerce feature with its free version as you can open a shop on your website, though very limited. This feature does get better with the paid subscriptions allowing you to add more items to your shop and even have a Facebook shop with the higher versions. This is a very important feature to have especially if you would be using your website to transact business or as an online store.

What's the Verdict on Moonfruit?

Avoid At All Costs!

Moonfruit Review 2020 – Conclusion

Moonfruit may not be one of the best Web Builders available in the Market but it comes in a free version that is very functional for those looking to cut on cost, just don’t mind the prompt to upgrade to a paid version every 5mins or so. The paid subscriptions too are very affordable and are not that bad an option for budget conscious businesses or start-ups, if you can live with the bugs on the program. Moonfruit is easy enough to use for the average person, and with the help of the detailed guides available on their website, you should be able to get the hang of it pretty quickly. We don’t recommend it for companies or businesses who have a bigger budget or who are willing to pay more money for a Web Builder subscription. There are other more expensive Web builders that can offer you better service and features. Moonfruit is more suited for people or businesses who are looking for an inexpensive way to get their website up and running.