If you’ve spent any time researching how to build a WordPress website, you’ve almost certainly come across the name Elementor. It shows up on tutorial lists, YouTube videos, and “best WordPress plugins” roundups constantly, but what it actually does, and whether you actually need it, doesn’t always get explained clearly. This guide covers everything a beginner needs to know.
What Is Elementor?
Elementor is a page builder plugin for WordPress. That means it’s a tool you install on top of WordPress that changes the way you design and edit your web pages.
Without a page builder, building a WordPress page means working inside the default block editor (called Gutenberg), typing your content into individual blocks and adjusting settings in a side panel, without seeing exactly how the page will look until you click Preview or Publish.
Elementor replaces that experience with a live, drag-and-drop visual editor. You see your page exactly as visitors will see it, in real time, as you build it. Click on any element, drag it to a new position, change the font, color, size, or spacing and the result appears on screen instantly, no previewing required.
What Does Elementor Do?
At its core, Elementor gives you the ability to design any page layout you can imagine, without writing a single line of code. Here’s what that looks like in practice:
Drag-and-drop editing. Every element on your page, including headings, images, buttons, columns, forms, video players, maps, testimonials, pricing tables, is a widget you can drag from a panel on the left and drop anywhere on the page.
Real-time visual editing. Every change you make appears instantly on screen. Click on a heading to edit the text, change the font size with a slider, or swap the button color using a color picker, all without leaving the editor.
Complete layout control. You control the structure of every page, not just the content inside it. Want a full-width hero image at the top, a three-column service section in the middle, and a contact form at the bottom? You build that layout visually, no code required.
Templates and blocks. Elementor comes with a large library of pre-designed page templates and section blocks you can import with a single click and customize to match your brand.
Responsive design controls. You can view and adjust your design for desktop, tablet, and mobile separately, making sure your site looks good on every screen size.
Do I Need Elementor?
The honest answer is: not necessarily, but it makes things a lot easier for most beginners.
WordPress can build a website without any page builder at all. The built-in Gutenberg editor handles basic layouts and is improving with every WordPress update. If you’re comfortable working with blocks and don’t need complex custom layouts, Gutenberg alone can get you there.
But Elementor earns its place for a few specific situations:
- You want to build something that looks custom and professionally designed without hiring a developer
- You want full control over the layout of every page, not just the content within a predefined template
- You want to see your design as you build it, rather than switching back and forth between edit and preview
- You’re building a business website, landing page, or portfolio where visual presentation matters a lot
For most people building their first serious WordPress website, Elementor significantly shortens the learning curve and expands what’s possible without requiring any technical skills.
What’s the Difference Between Elementor and Gutenberg?
Gutenberg is the default editor that comes built into WordPress itself. Elementor is a third-party plugin that replaces or works alongside it. Both let you build pages, but they take very different approaches.
| Gutenberg | Elementor | |
|---|---|---|
| Built into WordPress | Yes | No, installed as a plugin |
| Design approach | Block-based content editor | Full visual drag-and-drop designer |
| Layout control | Moderate | Extensive |
| Real-time preview | Partial | Full |
| Learning curve | Lower | Low to moderate |
| Custom design flexibility | Limited | High |
Think of it this way: Gutenberg is great for writing and formatting content. Elementor is great for designing the page that content lives on. Many WordPress users actually use both: Gutenberg for blog posts and simple pages, Elementor for the homepage, landing pages, and anything where the visual design matters most.
What’s the Difference Between Elementor and Astra?
This is one of the most common points of confusion for WordPress beginners, and understandably so, as both are involved in how your site looks.
Astra is a theme. Elementor is a plugin. They are two completely different types of tools that work at different levels of your website.
Your theme controls the global framework of your site, such as the default fonts, colors, header, footer, and the overall visual style that applies everywhere. Astra sets the foundation that your whole site is built on.
Elementor is what you use to design individual pages within that foundation. It controls the specific layout, content, and styling of each page you build with it.
A useful analogy: if your website were a house, Astra is the architecture, as in the walls, roof, and structure. Elementor is the interior designer who decides exactly where the furniture goes, what color the walls are painted, and how each room is arranged.
The reason Astra and Elementor are so often mentioned together is that they are specifically designed to work well with each other. Astra keeps its own code lightweight and steps back to let Elementor control page design without conflicts, and Elementor includes dedicated support for Astra’s header and footer builder. Together, they give you a fast, flexible, and beginner-friendly website-building setup.
Can I Build a Website Using the Free Version of Elementor?
Yes, and for most beginners, the free version is enough to get started.
Elementor Free includes:
- The core drag-and-drop visual editor
- Over 40 essential widgets (headings, images, buttons, videos, forms, icons, dividers, and more)
- Access to basic page templates
- Full mobile responsive editing
- The Elementor Container layout system (the current, modern way to build layouts)
What Elementor Pro adds is an expanded widget library (over 60 additional widgets, including theme builder elements, WooCommerce integration, advanced forms, popups, and more), a theme builder that lets you design your header, footer, and other global site elements with Elementor, plus access to hundreds of premium templates and a Pro support team.
For a straightforward business website or personal blog, the free version covers the essentials. You can launch a complete, professional-looking website without spending a cent on Elementor specifically. If you later find yourself needing features like a custom header/footer design, popup forms, or an online store, upgrading to Pro becomes worth considering, but it’s not where most beginners need to start.
How Do I Get Started with Elementor?
Elementor is installed the same way as any WordPress plugin. From your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New, search for “Elementor,” click Install, and then Activate. From there, you can open any page and click Edit with Elementor to launch the visual editor and start building.
Our full beginner’s guide walks you through the entire setup process, including installing Elementor alongside Astra and importing a starter template to give yourself a head start on the design.
Final Thoughts
Elementor has earned its reputation as one of the most beginner-friendly tools in the WordPress ecosystem. It won’t make every decision for you, but it puts full creative control directly in your hands, with no coding required. If you’re building a WordPress website and want it to look genuinely good, Elementor is one of the most worthwhile tools you can add to your setup.