Portfolio website examples for 2026 and what makes them work

Portfolio website examples worth copying put the work where you can see it, give each project enough context, and make contact details easy to find. Start by comparing a project gallery, a longer case-study layout and a compact single-page portfolio. Pick the structure that fits what you have to show, rather than copying someone else's whole site.

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Heya is made by the team that wrote this guide, so read its row with that in mind. Prices come from each company's own pages, checked between October 29 and November 9, 2026.

The short answer

Template choice Wix suits creatives who want a large template selection they can customize manually or with AI.
Drag-and-drop design Squarespace suits freelancers who want to build from a designer template or an AI-generated starting point without writing code.
Creative Cloud users Adobe Portfolio suits creatives who already have a Creative Cloud subscription and want a full portfolio or a single-page site.
Several small sites Carrd suits freelancers who want to publish multiple sites from one account, with custom domains available on Pro Standard and Pro Plus.
Phone-friendly building Heya suits creatives making a one-page or small site who want to build and edit entirely on a phone.

Builders for a portfolio website

Compare Wix, Squarespace, Adobe Portfolio, Carrd, Heya and Format side by side for their starting options, domain support and site limits.

Builder	Free plan	Paid from	Custom domain	Best for
Wix	$0 Free plan, no credit card	$17/mo (Light), yearly price	Connect one on Premium plans; 1 year free domain voucher on most	Big template library and business tools
Squarespace	14-day free trial, no credit card	$19/mo (Basic)	Free custom domain on Basic and Core (terms apply)	Polished designer templates
Adobe Portfolio	Included with Creative Cloud	Creative Cloud from US$9.99/mo	Use your own domain	Creatives already on Creative Cloud
Carrd	Free Basic plan	$9/year (Pro Lite, 3 sites)	Pro Standard ($19/year) and Pro Plus	One-page sites and landing pages
Heya	Free: 3 sites, 5 pages each, yourname.heya.bio	$3/mo (Pro Lite)	Pro Standard (1) or Pro Plus (up to 10)	Small sites built and edited on a phone
Format	14-day free trial, no credit card	$10/mo billed annually (Basic)	Free custom domain for the first year	Photographers and visual artists

Swipe the table sideways to see every column.

Each option up close

Wix

Free; Light $17, Core $29, Business $39 a month (yearly)

Wix offers over 2000 business-ready templates that can be customized manually or with AI, plus a Free plan for $0 with no credit card required. Its cheapest paid plan, Light, costs $17 per month and includes 2 GB of storage and 2 site collaborators; Premium plans allow a custom domain and removal of Wix branding. The displayed USD prices are for yearly subscriptions paid in full at purchase.

Better at: Big template library and business tools.
Watch out: Listed prices are for yearly plans paid up front.

Squarespace

Basic $19, Core $29, Plus $49, Advanced $99 a month

Squarespace lets you start with Blueprint AI or a designer template, then design, edit and publish using Fluid Engine drag-and-drop tools without HTML, CSS or JavaScript. The free trial lasts 14 days, requires no credit card and lets you design the full site before choosing a plan to connect a custom domain and go live. Basic costs $19 per month, and Squarespace offers savings of up to 36% for annual payment.

Better at: Polished designer templates.
Watch out: You pick a paid plan to connect a custom domain and go live.

Adobe Portfolio

With Creative Cloud, from US$9.99 a month

Adobe Portfolio can make a single-page site or a responsive, multi-page portfolio with a collection and contact page, and it can import projects from Behance. It supports your own domain and password protection for selected pages or the whole site. It's included with a Creative Cloud subscription, with Adobe Portfolio and other Creative Cloud services available for as low as US$9.99 a month.

Better at: Creatives already on Creative Cloud.
Watch out: It comes with a Creative Cloud subscription.

Carrd

Free; Pro Lite $9, Pro Standard $19, Pro Plus $49 a year

Carrd has a free Basic experience, while its Pro plans add premium starting templates, custom user-built templates and removal of the "Made with Carrd" branding. Pro Lite costs $9 / year and supports up to 3 sites, but custom domains start with Pro Standard at $19 / year, which supports up to 10 sites. There's a free 7-day Pro trial with no payment or credit card required.

Better at: One-page sites and landing pages.
Watch out: Pro Lite does not include custom domains.

Heya

Free; Pro Lite $3, Pro Standard $6, Pro Plus $15 a month

Heya is a no-code builder for one-page and small sites, with 68 templates, a blank-page option and full building and editing on a phone. Building can start without an account, with drafts saved in the browser until publishing; publishing requires Google sign-in, the only sign-in option. Free supports up to 3 sites with up to 5 pages each and a small badge, while Pro Standard costs $6 a month and includes up to 5 sites, up to 20 pages per site, no badge and 1 custom domain per account, using a domain the owner already owns.

Better at: Small sites built and edited on a phone.
Watch out: Free sites show a small "Made with Heya" badge.

Format

From $10 a month, billed annually (Basic)

Format offers a 14 day free trial with no credit card required, and Basic costs $10 per month billed annually, normally $14 per month. Basic allows 10 pages and 70 high-resolution images; Pro allows Unlimited pages and 1500 high-resolution images, while Pro Plus allows Unlimited pages and Unlimited high-resolution images. Its pricing comparison table lists a Free Custom Domain for the First Year.

Better at: Photographers and visual artists.
Watch out: Basic allows 10 pages and 70 high-resolution images.

Templates to start from

These are Heya templates. Each one is live: open the demo, or start your own from it.

Heya artist website template — **Artist website** A free artist website template with paintings for sale, your current show, commissions and a CV. Open the live demo Start from it

Heya photography website template — **Photography website** A free photography website template with a gallery, session prices, client reviews and a booking button. Open the live demo Start from it

Heya architect website template — **Architect website** A free architect website template with a project portfolio, services, fees and a studio page, ready to edit in your browser and publish free. Open the live demo Start from it

Heya interior design website template — **Interior design website** A free interior design website template with services and prices, your process, a recent project and a consultation link, edited in your browser. Open the live demo Start from it

Heya actor website template — **Actor website** A free actor website template with headshots, your reel, recent credits, a full resume and agent contacts. Open the live demo Start from it

Heya author website template — **Author website** A free author website template with your new book, buy links for every book, reviews, events and a newsletter link. Open the live demo Start from it

What the best portfolio sites have in common

Use the work as your starting point. When you look at an example, notice what's visible before you open a project, what happens when you select it, and where the contact details sit. Copy those choices only when they fit your work.

Keep the introduction short. A visitor should be able to tell what you do without having to interpret a slogan. Put your name and the kind of work you want to be hired for near the work itself.

What deserves the most space? Choose the projects you want someone to ask about, rather than giving every piece you've made equal room. Give each project a clear title and enough context to understand your part in it.

And check the small stuff: readable captions, working links, images that aren't awkwardly cropped. Open the site on your phone (including the contact page). Read it without filling in the gaps from memory.

Picking a layout for your kind of work

Start with what someone needs to see. For photography or illustration, try a gallery and check how the images sit together. Look at the crops before you commit to a template. Keep a way to see the full image.

For work that needs an explanation, try a project page with room for the brief, your role and the finished work. Don't force a detailed project into a thumbnail and a title, but don't turn every project into a long case study either.

A small body of work can fit on a single page. Put the introduction, selected projects and contact details in an order you'd want someone to read. If a project needs more room, give it a separate page.

Not sure which direction fits? Try the same project in the layouts you're considering, using your own images and words rather than the template's sample content. Then check the page on your phone before changing the whole site around it.

Writing the words around your work

Write down what you do in the words you'd use when someone asks about your work. Start there. You don't need a headline that sounds like an agency if you're introducing yourself as a freelance photographer.

For each project, say what it was, what you were asked to do and what you did. Name your role when other people were involved. If you have a result you can support, include it; if you don't, leave it out rather than reaching for a claim about impact.

What would you want to ask the person who made this? Use that question to check the caption. A title alone might leave too much unsaid, while a paragraph about your creative philosophy might leave the actual work unexplained.

Keep the contact wording direct, too. Say what kind of enquiries you want and how to get in touch. Read it aloud (yes, the button labels as well). Cut anything you wouldn't say to a potential client.

How we checked

We took every price, limit and feature from each company's own pages, collected on October 29, 2026. We checked the Wix and Carrd pages again on November 9, 2026. Heya's details come from its pricing page and docs, checked on October 30, 2026. The facts come from wix.com/plans, wix.com, squarespace.com/pricing, squarespace.com/websites, portfolio.adobe.com, carrd.com/docs/pro/plans, carrd.com/pro, format.com/pricing-portfolio, heya.page/pricing and heya.page/docs.

Plans change often. If a number here is out of date, email hello@heya.page and we'll fix it.

FAQ

What makes a good portfolio website?

A good portfolio website shows the work clearly, explains your role and gives someone a direct way to contact you. Choose projects that match the work you want to do next. Check the full project pages, not just the homepage, and make sure the images, captions and links work on your phone.

What pages should a portfolio website have?

Start with somewhere to see your work, a short introduction and contact details. Those can sit on a single page or be split across a larger site. Give individual projects their own pages when they need more images or explanation. Add an about page if there's more you want a potential client to know.

Which website builder is best for a portfolio?

Choose around the setup you need. Wix offers over 2000 templates; Squarespace provides Fluid Engine drag-and-drop tools. Adobe Portfolio is included with Creative Cloud. Carrd Pro Standard supports up to 10 sites, while Heya supports full editing on a phone. Format is worth comparing when its page and high-resolution image limits fit your work.

Can I make a portfolio website for free?

Yes. Wix offers a Free plan for $0 with no credit card required, and Carrd has a free Basic experience. Heya Free has no time limit or credit card requirement and supports up to 3 sites, with up to 5 pages each and a small badge. Adobe Portfolio is included with a Creative Cloud subscription, rather than being a standalone free option.

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