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- Webflow — what it means
- Webflow is a no-code web production tool for building websites without writing code. It takes you from design through to publishing the site, and it also supports exporting the HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
Hello, this is Masato, a Webflow specialist.
Webflow is a no-code web production tool that takes you all the way from design to publishing a site, without writing code. This article focuses on the question “what is Webflow?” and covers what it can do, what it is like to use, how it differs from STUDIO and from building with AI, what it costs per year, how long it takes to learn, and what it costs to outsource — written from my sixth year of specializing in Webflow, from actually using it.
Webflow is free up to a point. If you just want to try it, head to the official site → official site
What is Webflow? Its main features and functions
What is Webflow?
Webflow is a no-code web production tool that lets you build websites without writing code. It has a wide range of features for creative design and efficient development, and an interface that is easy to operate. Without knowing HTML or CSS you can go from design through to publishing the site, and because managing and updating it is straightforward, it saves a great deal of time.
Webflow’s main features and functions
Webflow has the full set of functions a website build needs, from design through to development. Here are the ones I use most, with how they feel after six years.
| Function | What it does | My take |
|---|---|---|
| A simple UI | Build intuitively with the mouse, with no prior knowledge. You can put a site together about ten times faster than with traditional web production | Start with our walkthrough of Webflow University |
| Responsive by default | Layouts for each device, desktop and mobile, are generated for you | This is where a lot of time is saved |
| 100% custom design | No constraints. Anything missing can be covered with Webflow Apps or custom code | PHP is the one thing you cannot use |
| Build from a wireframe | You can develop the prototype straight into the finished thing | It cuts out the “design finished, now code it” handoff |
| External API integrations | Auto-reply email, automatic Instagram feeds, analytics and more | Auto-reply is now handled by Webflow on its own |
| Animation | Built with clicks alone | You can build Apple-like sites. Webflow’s own favorite feature |
| Code export | Export HTML, CSS and JS as a Zip | The quality is said to beat hand-written code. It is also insurance |
| Managing large sites | Up to 10,000 pages in the CMS. URL hierarchies and serving different designs are easy too | It cuts staffing and outsourcing costs |
| Free templates | “Made in Webflow” has copyright-free templates | Some are amateur work, so hiring it out is an option if it gets tedious |
With functions like those, Webflow reads as a useful tool for producing websites faster. It also has a large user base worldwide, and both its results and its support are stable.
What Webflow is like to use | an honest take after six years
Honestly, there are things about it that bother me. The build canvas is heavy and opening it every time is a chore, writing text occasionally glitches, and sometimes work is not saved. Those are real drawbacks, if minor ones.
Even so, you edit the design as you see it, and the site does not fall apart however long you leave it alone. Because of those two, I recommend it as the tool for running a site seriously.
But why is Webflow loved around the world? The functions listed above are arguably covered by other no-code tools and by WordPress too. So in the next section I look at why you would choose Webflow, through its advantages and disadvantages.
Webflow’s advantages and disadvantages
I have migrated a lot of websites to Webflow by now. Clients say the same thing every time: “Webflow does things the other no-code tools cannot.” So what exactly is different? Here are Webflow’s advantages and disadvantages against well-known tools such as WordPress, WIX and STUDIO.
Advantages | where Webflow beats other tools
Webflow gives you far more freedom than other no-code tools. Because it is built on HTML, CSS and JS, almost anything you want to do is possible, and even features that hand-written code does not cover can be implemented. The CMS customization is strong, so you can build an update system of your own for each owned media property. Unlike WordPress there is no regular maintenance driven by plugin compatibility, so no time is wasted on platform-side problems and there is nothing to worry about on security.
Webflow can also export the HTML, CSS and JavaScript. No other no-code tool has that strength. Because you can export the code, you can move to a tool other than Webflow in future, which makes it a hedge as well. Those are, I would say, Webflow’s greatest advantages.
Disadvantages | where Webflow falls behind other tools
STUDIO, which is made in Japan, costs less and comes with documentation in Japanese. On that score Webflow is losing in the Japanese market (the differences between the two are covered in detail in Webflow vs STUDIO). Webflow is also said to be one of the harder no-code tools to learn. It is true that you can build a site like Apple’s, but that difficulty is the price, and it takes Webflow-specific knowledge. The server is the one Webflow provides, so there is no freedom there.
Add the absence of Japanese-language support, and very few people in Japan can use Webflow. But I turned that disadvantage around and decided to commit to Webflow.
Why I use Webflow as a Webflow specialist
2024 was my fourth year specializing in Webflow (added in 2026: I am now in my sixth year). I have tried other tools at times, but I always came back to “Webflow is better.” Here are the reasons for choosing Webflow that only come from actually using it.
The design is not constrained by the tool
One reason I chose Webflow is the quality of its templates. By the time I started using it, someone had already built a site imitating Apple’s in Webflow.
That is a level other no-code tools cannot express, and when I saw it I thought: if I can use Webflow, I can reach the output of a coding web developer by the shortest route.
Webflow is also alert to where things are heading, updating constantly and making its features more capable all the time. Recently it shipped a feature for pasting designs from Figma, and a multilingual feature. That strength of support convinces me Webflow is safe for a good while yet.
The real reason I committed to Webflow, though, is that there were no rivals in Japan. News was also going around about a ¥20 billion funding round, and the company’s seriousness sealed it. The details are on the profile page.
From here I answer the two questions I get most in consultations: how it differs from STUDIO, and how it differs from building with AI.
Webflow vs STUDIO | choosing between Webflow and a Japan-made no-code tool
With no-code, the first thing to think about is not what the tool can do but what happens if the service disappears. If the operating company folds or gets absorbed and the service shuts down, you either abandon the whole site and rebuild it, or migrate to another tool and relearn its UI and its ways (I wrote up real cases in three disadvantages of no-code websites).
Webflow has survived at the top tier of US no-code, and its funding is not on the same scale as Japan’s STUDIO. As a way of avoiding that risk, it is the soundest choice available right now, in my view.
| Point | STUDIO | Webflow |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Cheap and priced in yen (from about ¥590/month on an annual plan) | Priced in USD. On an annual plan, Basic $15 and Premium $25/month |
| Feel | Light, simple, Japan-made with a Japanese UI | Feature-rich and powerful. English UI, one to two months to learn |
| What it covers | Enough for small and mid-sized sites | CMS, multiple languages, animation, code export |
| Speed of new features | — | New features such as AI ship quickly |
| Risk of the service ending | The scale of a domestic startup | One of the largest in US no-code, with funding to match |
| Code export | Not available | Available on paid plans. You can take the asset elsewhere |
In short, STUDIO is light, cheap, Japan-made and easy to use. Webflow is feature-rich and powerful, costs more but does more, and moves fast and stays stable. How to choose between them is written up in Webflow vs STUDIO | which one should you pick?.
Webflow vs AI | how building with vibe coding differs
From July 2026 a new choice appeared: build in Webflow, or have AI write the code (vibe coding). We use AI to the full in our production work, and for people with no particular attachment to building in Webflow who want to grow a site the newer way, we sometimes propose this instead.
| Point | Building in Webflow | Building with AI (full-scratch) |
|---|---|---|
| Who it suits | You want to update in-house with visual editing | You have no attachment to Webflow and want everything included so you can grow |
| How it is built | You assemble the design in the Webflow canvas | AI writes the code (the code itself is the asset) |
| Running cost after launch | Site plan, $15–25/month | Close to zero (my own site costs ¥1,500 a year) |
| How you update | Visual editing in the Webflow canvas | A CMS plus an AI update handbook. You instruct AI to make the change |
| Extending it | Webflow Apps and custom code | Add languages and landing pages freely. Members, bookings and payments extend into full-stack |
What building with AI makes possible is written up in What is a full-scratch website? Seven things an AI build makes possible. The whole build process is in the corporate AI adoption manual (Japanese) (official release scheduled for 10 September 2026, with early access limited to the newsletter). Which one suits you depends on your business and your team. If you are unsure, tell us about the business and who will update the site, and we will assess it.
Webflow pricing | what it costs per year
The short answer: a site plan at $15–25/month billed annually, which is $180–300 a year, is the base (revised May 2026, priced in USD). On top of that come add-ons such as localization, and the build cost if you outsource.
The May 2026 revision reorganized the plans into three: Starter (free, for trying it out), Basic ($15/month billed annually, no CMS, 300 static pages) and Premium ($25/month billed annually, CMS included). For a site that publishes a blog, Premium is effectively the only choice. Monthly billing is a lot more — Basic $25 and Premium $39 — so if you are staying, annual billing is the default. My own site cost $576 a year (about ¥83,000), including localization and a workspace.
>Webflow’s pricing plans explained (the new May 2026 structure)
>The total cost of Webflow | new plan fees, build cost and running cost
How to use Webflow, and how long it takes to learn
Webflow builds sites on the basis of HTML and CSS. So if you are already working as a web designer, or you know HTML and CSS, you will pick Webflow up more smoothly. If you are starting with no experience, you can learn from “Webflow University”, Webflow’s own free course. Detailed instructions for each part are in “How to use Webflow, collected”.
The steps from building a site in Webflow to publishing it
Here are the steps, assuming you are building your own company’s website. Work through the following four. Our own detailed production process is set out on the Webflow production service page.
- Create the design Build the frame of the web design in Figma or Adobe XD, and settle the colors and fonts at this stage too. If you design in Figma, you can paste the design into Webflow.
- Create the project Log in to Webflow, create a new project, and build the website in the design editor.
- Configure the pages Work through the page settings in detail: the metadata and OGP that SEO needs, the auto-reply settings, and so on.
- Publish the site Publish from within Webflow. A paid site plan is needed to set a custom domain (a workspace plan is not needed unless you are a team or a freelancer).
>Webflow’s pricing plans explained
>How to set a custom domain in Webflow
SEO in Webflow
The basics of SEO in Webflow are five: improving the quality of the content, setting the metadata, optimizing images, improving link quality, and improving page load speed. Do those, and the search engine crawler reads your site correctly, which puts you in a position to rank for the keywords people search. There is a full explanation in the complete guide to SEO in Webflow.
Q&A | Is Webflow strong for SEO?
A | Webflow is said to be strong for SEO. But my opinion, as a specialist who has used it for more than three years, is “much the same as anything else.” The reason is that SEO comes down to the strength and quality of the content. Domain strength and various minor techniques matter too, of course, but I do not think a single no-code tool swings them much.
Every website is based on HTML and CSS, so without that knowledge you will not win at SEO whatever tool you use. I once looked at a site built with the Japan-made STUDIO in an SEO tool, and it reported zero H tags. That is not STUDIO’s fault; the person who built it did not know SEO. Sites are easy to build now, and that same lack of knowledge is spreading, which is the main reason no-code gets a reputation for being weak at SEO.
On that score, every item in Webflow is code-based, so mistakes and errors are less likely. Almost every term you meet in Webflow is HTML as it is. The price of that is that Webflow is harder than other no-code tools, which is its sticking point.
Learning it takes one to two months
Roughly one to two months: commit the study time and you will have it. The order to learn in is in the shortest route to learning Webflow in Japanese, and the operations item by item are in how to use Webflow, collected.
I am also planning to produce Webflow learning material. Our newsletter is built around talking with readers, so when you sign up, reply to the first email with your reason for signing up — “I would be interested in Webflow material”, for instance. One line is plenty.
Build it yourself or hire a professional | what outsourcing costs
There are two broad ways to get a site built in Webflow: build it yourself, or hire a production company.
If you build it yourself, the only cost is the Webflow plan fee. Get the basic operations in this article down and, for a template-based site, you can be live within a few days. On the other hand, how faithfully the design is reproduced, and the build quality of things like CMS structure, SEO settings and multilingual support, are where experience shows.
If you hire a production company, you can hand over everything from design through the build to the operational design after launch. Webflow is a tool where display speed, SEO and ease of running the site change a great deal when someone who understands code does the build. When choosing who to hire, use two criteria and you will not go wrong: whether they specialize in Webflow, and whether they design for the operation after the build (how to read a quote, from a competitor’s point of view, is written up in how to choose a Webflow production company).
Outsourcing to a production company costs roughly between ¥500,000 and ¥1,500,000 for most projects, depending on scale. Webharu Inc., which runs this site, is a Webflow specialist production company, and what we build are sites that are found in search and updatable in-house after launch. A Webflow full-scratch build is from ¥1,000,000 (excl. tax, as of 2026), taking about 1.5 to 2 months. The cost of building with AI is set by what is being built, so we tell you after hearing the requirements. The details of what is included and what it costs are on the Webflow production service page. We also give individual advice to people who want to try building it themselves first.
Webflow sites Webharu has built
Webflow is used by a great many companies. Here are some of the ones we (Webharu) built or migrated in Webflow. Details for each are on the work pages.
- JTB Americas - A full renewal of the corporate site for the North American arm of the JTB group, one of the world’s largest travel companies
- MLJ Inc. (Musco Lighting Japan) - Migrated more than 100 articles from WordPress to Webflow
- A Web3.0 event hosted by Nippon TV - Converted the Figma design into Webflow with high fidelity to build the landing page
- Snug Inc. - Planning, Figma design and the Webflow build, handled end to end
- Spider AF - Design improvements, SEO optimization and responsive work on an existing Webflow site
- GeoDreams Inc. - A brand site for a geothermal power startup
- Ibuki Clinic (medical corporation) - Redesigned in Figma and rebuilt in Webflow
- Genpin (fugu restaurant chain) recruiting site - Built a long-term hiring system around the LINE official account
- NIPPONIA HOTEL Hakodate Minatomachi - Built the cuisine page
- UPBOND - A full renewal of the corporate site for a Web3.0 company
The rest of the projects are collected on our work. For examples of large companies in Japan and abroad, see Webflow case studies, collected.
To tell whether a site is built in Webflow, use a Chrome extension called Webflow Checker. Point it at Discord’s site and you will see it was built in Webflow.
Webflow adoption is moving fast around the world like this. Behind it, I think, is the combination of being easy to use yet powerful for a no-code tool, enough funding, and enthusiastic users. AI had already grown considerably by 2024, but it does not negate Webflow’s place, and for managing and running websites in future I expect Webflow to keep posting steady results. (added in 2026: now that AI-built sites have spread, Webflow is alive and well as a no-code tool in 2026, and we continue to build in Webflow)
Webflow lets you use almost everything you need to build a site for free. I recommend trying it first and paying as the need arises. I ran my own site for free for the first three months. If you run into trouble, the Webflow community is there, and we also take build enquiries, so do get in touch.
FAQ
Can Webflow be used for free?
It is free up to a point. If you want to try it first, start on the free plan and consider a paid plan when you publish; that is enough.
Is there anything Webflow cannot do?
PHP cannot be used. That said, most of the features people need are provided as Webflow Apps, and the range that custom code can cover is wide.
Can I get the code for the site I built?
You can export the HTML, CSS and JavaScript as a Zip file. That lets you switch tools or manage the site yourself, and it means you can hold the code in-house if anything happens.
How much does it cost to have a Webflow site built for me?
At Webharu, a Webflow site build (full-scratch, no templates) is from ¥1,000,000 (excl. tax) and takes about 1.5 to 2 months as a guide (as of 2026). We never change the amount after work starts. We give you a rough figure on the spot in a 30-minute free consultation.
How long does it take to learn Webflow?
Roughly one to two months if you commit the study time. You can start without knowing HTML or CSS, and the best place to begin is Webflow’s own “Webflow University” (this blog has a walkthrough in Japanese).
How much does Webflow cost per year?
Under the May 2026 revision, site plans are Basic at $15/month and Premium at $25/month billed annually, so $180 to $300 a year as a guide (priced in USD). Add-ons such as localization increase it; my own cost including add-ons was $576 a year (about ¥83,000).
