Introduction

I was stuck in analysis paralysis when I created my first portfolio. Here are some places I would start if I had to do it again!

When listening to a crowd of fresh designers, there is always a common thread: portfolios. What do you do and where? Getting stuck and never making a move will not work, folks!

Suppose you're a career changer, fresh from boot camp, or a self-taught designer. What you need to do is get something up. It doesn't matter what you have completed so far in your journey. In this list, we will cover options that require minimal effort so you can launch something quickly while you build your masterpiece. We will also cover great places you may want to end up when you have more time, depending on your direction.

Let's start with a low bar and work up to the more complex sites on which to build a portfolio.

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Bento

The great news about this website is that it's free! Bento is where you can show your work, who you are, and any extra tibbits you prefer. Their selling point is that "Nothing is hidden behind links," which is true. A key tactic to any portfolio is that you want to reduce the amount of clicks it takes for a user to view your work. Bento is a perfect place to get something quick up by creating previews of your work, and then you can make your entire case study to host somewhere else. Here is a link to my free resource if you need help creating your case study.

If you want to check out my bento page to see what I created in 30 minutes, here is the link. The website also lets you explore what others have made to show how far you can push your page.

Cost: Free

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Uxfolio

I started my portfolio journey at Uxfolio when I left CareerFoundry. This site offers templates and the building blocks you need to go from zero to hero. It's relatively effortless to get your project up and running. With Uxfolio, you can create a complete narrative for your case study, unlike Bento, which is more visual. 

Uxfolio has enough features to get one project up on its platform on its free version. Still, I recommend that you pay to utilize this platform's features. Get used to paying something for your portfolio if you want to go down the route of having your website. At the time of this article, Uxfolio is $9 a month if you pay for the entire year. Remember, if you want a spiffy URL, you must purchase a domain from Squarespace (they purchased Google's domain service) or GoDaddy.

Cost: Free or $15 a month ($9 a month if you pay for an entire year)

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Squarespace and Wix

Why are they lumped together? I'm so glad you asked! Squarespace and Wix are on reasonably equal playing fields. They offer numerous templates to get you started with your portfolio and a free domain name for a year. So, if you ever wanted your name on a website, now is your chance!

I'm just going to cover the most affordable plans for each site. After all, this is for new designers and career changers. There is a better time to invest fat stacks of cash in your website.

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Squarespace

Squarespace's "Personal" plan offers many templates for your needs, a mobile-optimized site, and a free domain for a year. The truth is that most of these website templates should be fully responsive. The free domain for a year is only valid for their cheapest tier of domain names. I hope you are okay with it! When I started, I wanted my domain to be danadarr.design (go ahead, visit my site, and grill me), but that was not the cheapest domain. My domain costs me $40 a year, which is okay, but most domains are much more affordable if you decide you want one.

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Wix

Wix's "Light" plan boasts slightly different selling points but is similar. They offer two collaborators (it's doubtful you will need someone else to share your portfolio with), 2 GB storage, a light marketing suite, and a free domain for a year. With that storage limit, you must watch how large your images or videos are on the site. This storage limit should be acceptable for your portfolio, and you want to avoid uploading large files in the first place. Long load times scare away people reading your portfolio. The marketing suite offers lead-capturing forms and minor automation. These features may be helpful if you want readers to sign up for a newsletter or send you emails. Remember that sometimes scammers or bots may use your messaging or contact form. It's happened to me, and that's why I removed it and embedded my Calendly site. Here is an example of what my Calendly site looks like directly on their website, and here is another example of what Calendly looks like when embedded on my actual website.

Cost: Squarespace is $23 a month ($16 a month if you pay for an entire year), Wix is $17 a month

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Final Thoughts

This list is not all-encompassing and is a great place to start if you feel lost. Remember, the first suggestion is the least effort and affordable (free). As we progress down the list, the cost and effort to create your portfolio increase. It's up to you to decide how much of an endeavor you choose to put into this. Start small and make it impactful. You will spend countless hours on your portfolio over the years, so start simple but effective.

Your case study's story is essential, especially if you're a UX, UI, or product designer. To help you communicate effectively, I'm sharing my free resources, including a guide on writing a case study for your portfolio.