# Website builder teardown: coding notes, codebook v2.0 (collected September 26, 2026)

Published from coded_v2/: reader codes under gold2/READER_PROTOCOL_v2.md. The earlier rules-based coding (coded/, codebook v1.5) is retired for this teardown and is kept only as the first pass the readers were checked against.

## Coding method and agreement

- Every one of the 100 answers was coded by two independent AI readers (Claude agents), working blind from the written protocol and without seeing any machine coding. Each brand in each answer gets one of six codes: picked, recommended, listed, passing, anchor, not_a_mention. Broad "recommended" on the page = picked + recommended.
- Reader vs reader: 99.5% on the six codes, 100.0% at the broad level (gold2/CODED_V2_SUMMARY.md, row 15).
- Codes decided by a third AI reader: 2 (gold2/out/J03.jsonl).
- Rules-based first pass (coded/, v1.5) vs final reader codes, broad level: 76.8%.
- Result: 409 coded mentions; 376 recommended (309 of them picked), 3 listed, 10 passing, 20 anchor.

## Adjudicated codes (third reader)

- q005 "best enterprise website builder", Webflow: reader 1 recommended (table row "Marketing teams that need speed"), reader 2 picked. Decided picked from the "My practical take" section: "For easier website production: Webflow Enterprise can make more sense than a heavyweight DXP".
- q065 "godaddy website builder alternatives", Elementor: reader 1 picked, reader 2 recommended. Decided picked: "Quick recommendations" pairs WordPress with Elementor for ownership.

## Judgment calls that matter for this category

- Almost every builder named is given a fit, so the broad level barely separates brands here (376 of 389 non-anchor mentions are recommended). The picked level is the informative one, and the page leads with it.
- Tables with a "Best for" column are recommended, not picked, unless the answer's own verdict section names the brand. This is why Wix is recommended but not picked in five industry answers (q014 "Maximum customization", q016 "Very small churches wanting maximum DIY simplicity", q020, q021 "Budget DIY website", q099), where the verdict goes to Squarespace or a specialist.
- Quick-pick lines are picks. q062 "squarespace alternatives": "Closest overall replacement: [wix.com]" and "Best for blogging/content: [wordpress.com] or [ghost.org]" are picks for Wix and Ghost, even though the brand is written only as a link label. (The v1.5 rules missed this form.)
- "Closest substitutes" is a description, not a verdict. q064 "webflow alternatives" ends "Closest Webflow substitutes: Framer, Wix Studio, and Webstudio"; both readers coded Framer and Wix recommended, so q064 is one of the two answers with no pick.
- A hedged second option is not a pick. q057 "wix or godaddy for a contractor": "Bottom line: ... I'd choose Wix. If you just need a basic online presence ... GoDaddy is reasonable." Both readers coded GoDaddy recommended ("hedged fit"), which makes q057 the only head-to-head of 30 that does not pick every brand named.
- Law firms: q017 has no dictionary pick because its pick is LawLytics, which is not in the dictionary ("For most law firms, I'd look at LawLytics first"). WordPress and Webflow are "best for" lines there, recommended.
- Numbered "best" rankings: items after #1 that carry a best-for label are recommended (q026 Carrd "best cheap/simple option", Unbounce "best for conversion optimization").
- WordPress as a platform, not an option: q059 "elementor or webflow for a freelancer" names WordPress only as what Elementor runs on; both readers coded passing. q100 ("replace my wordpress site") WordPress passing, the site being replaced.
- Named but not offered: q007 "best open source website builder" names Wix, Webflow and Squarespace only as the closed platforms the open-source options are contrasted with (passing). q067 "cheaper alternative to wix" lists WordPress and Squarespace with prices and no case, and says Squarespace "isn't necessarily cheaper" (listed). q074 Hostinger appears only as a citation label (passing).
- Spanish answer: q043 "duda vs wix" is in Spanish; "Elige Duda si ..." and "Elige Wix si ..." are decision rules, so both are picked.
- Hostinger: picked in 10 answers (q008, q024, q041, q061, q065, q067, q068, q076, q080, q086); in 9 the stated reason is price, and q008 answers "cheapest website builder" with Hostinger for "a business website with several pages".

## Reader-added mentions

- 2 between the two readers, the same one: Adobe Portfolio in q019 "best website builder for artists", named only by its address in a table row ("portfolio.adobe.com", fit: Creative Cloud users). Coded recommended.

## Dictionary notes that still apply

- Two aliases were added after collection: "framer.com" for Framer and "ghost.org" for Ghost (both brand names are case-sensitive aliases, so the capitalized-only match missed link labels). Details in DICTIONARY_CHANGES.md; the dictionary as fixed before collection is brands_original.csv. The readers code from the full dictionary, so these aliases matter only for which lines the candidate list pointed them to.
- WordPress via Elementor or Divi: Divi is never named; Elementor is named in 4 answers. Where WordPress appears only as Elementor's platform (q059) the readers coded it passing, so the INPUT_NOTES.md inflation risk does not reach the published numbers.
- HubSpot Content Hub: "hubspot" appears in no answer; zero mentions.
- 20 of the 52 dictionary brands are never named: Jimdo, Strikingly, SITE123, Webnode, IONOS, HubSpot Content Hub, Zoho Sites, Durable, 10Web, Umso, Divi, Jekyll, Mobirise, Leadpages, Tilda, Readymag, Cargo, Popmenu, Clover Sites, Justia.
- Not in the dictionary and undercounted: Webstudio (6 answers; "My pick: Webstudio" in q072), Format (5), Pixieset (3), LawLytics (both law firm answers, q017 and q092), Clio Grow (law firms), real estate platforms in q021 (Real Geeks, Sierra Interactive, Agent Image, Luxury Presence), church platforms Nucleus and Subsplash, and the five enterprise platforms that form the main shortlist in q005 (Adobe Experience Manager, Sitecore, Optimizely, Contentful, Contentstack). q005's platforms are not flagged in coded_v2/out_of_dictionary.csv.
- Shared domains: all 3 google.com citations count as Google Sites' own site, but only q070 (sites.google.com) is a Google Sites page; q088 cites Google Workspace admin help and q095 Google Search developer documentation. The one adobe.com citation (q005) is an Adobe Digital Publishing Suite page, counted as Adobe Portfolio's own site.
- Case-sensitive aliases (capitalized only): framer, durable, lovable, ghost, hugo, tilda, cargo, square.

## Collection

All 100 ChatGPT tasks and 100 Google tasks were posted and fetched through the DataForSEO standard queue between about 8:15 and 8:30 PM US Mountain time on September 26, 2026 (the raw files carry UTC timestamps, early September 27). Zero failed tasks, no retries. Raw responses are saved exactly as returned. q043 came back in Spanish despite US/English settings and is coded as returned.