Framer, founded in 2014, began as a code-based interactive prototyping tool built for designers who wanted to test real interactions rather than static mockups, and that design-tool DNA still shows in its current AI website builder: the editing experience feels closer to a professional design tool than a typical drag-and-drop website builder.
AI generation now creates a starting site from a prompt, but the underlying editor retains the fine-grained visual control, real typography, spacing, and animation tools, that Framer's original prototyping-tool audience expected, a meaningfully different editing depth than website builders built primarily for non-designers from the start.
A free tier covers a basic published site, and paid plans start around $10 a month for custom domains and more features. For a designer specifically who wants AI-assisted generation without giving up the fine visual control a proper design tool allows, Framer's prototyping-tool heritage carries directly into a more design-capable website builder than most competitors provide.
