The Gator Website Builder is discontinued: HostGator no longer sells it to new customers, and existing Gator sites were migrated to Bluehost on February 6, 2026. For new sites, the closest successor is the Bluehost AI Website Builder from the same parent company, with paid plans listed from $8.49/month and a 14-day free trial. Our verdict: existing Gator users can stay put on Bluehost, but anyone starting fresh should compare Bluehost’s AI builder with Wix, Squarespace and Hostinger before choosing.
Updated October 2026.
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Gator Website Builder status at a glance
| October 2026 | |
|---|---|
| Gator Website Builder status | Closed to new signups; existing sites migrated to Bluehost on Feb 6, 2026 |
| Successor for new sites | Bluehost AI Website Builder |
| Starting price (successor) | Get Online $8.49/mo as listed on bluehost.com (term shown at checkout); 14-day free trial |
| Renewal price | Not stated on the AI Website Builder page; check your Renewal Center or checkout |
| Best for | Former Gator users, and WordPress-curious beginners who want AI to draft the site |
| Free domain? | Yes, free for the first year on all paid plans, with free domain privacy |
| Money-back guarantee | Not stated for the AI Website Builder; the free trial is the main way to test |
| Rating (successor) | 3.3/5 (our assessment) |
Pros:
- Gator sites moved to Bluehost without customer action, keeping builder access
- Bluehost AI Website Builder has a 14-day free trial with no credit card required
- Free domain and domain privacy for the first year on paid plans
- Hosting, SSL, CDN, weekly backups and malware removal included
- Store plans (Sell Online) add cart, payments via Stripe, orders and coupons
Cons:
- The original Gator builder can no longer be bought
- AI edits are rationed by monthly credits (20 on the entry plan)
- Renewal prices and billing terms are not clearly listed on the plan page
- Third-party reviewers report a fragmented experience across several dashboards
- No money-back guarantee stated for the AI builder
What happened to the Gator Website Builder?
Gator was HostGator’s drag-and-drop website builder, sold separately from its hosting plans. HostGator’s help center now states: “Website Builder is no longer offered by HostGator for new signups,” adding that existing customers would see no change to their product at that time. The old gator.com address now forwards to HostGator’s website-builder URL, which redirects to a Gator login page rather than a sales page.
In late 2025, the next step was announced. A Bluehost help article dated December 30, 2025 told Gator customers that “your website will migrate from HostGator Website Builder to Bluehost on February 6, 2026.” HostGator and Bluehost are sister brands under the same parent company, Newfold Digital, so the move consolidated the builder into Bluehost’s platform.
Bluehost said no customer action was required, that sites and accounts would transfer, and that users would keep full access to the builder tools. After the migration, Gator customers sign in through Bluehost’s account login page.
What should existing Gator users do now?
- Log in at Bluehost. Since February 6, 2026, Gator sites are managed through Bluehost’s my-account login.
- Check your renewal date and price in your Bluehost account so the first renewal under the new brand isn’t a surprise.
- Confirm your domain and email. Make sure DNS, the domain registration and any mailboxes moved correctly and are set to auto-renew if you want to keep them.
- Back up your content. Keep copies of your text, images and product data, whatever platform you use.
- Decide whether to stay. If you were planning a redesign, this is a natural moment to compare Bluehost’s AI builder with other builders.
Bluehost lists 24/7 chat support and phone support seven days a week, 7 am to midnight Eastern, for migrated Gator customers.
Gator Website Builder review: what the successor offers
For anyone searching for the Gator Website Builder today, the product you can actually buy from the same company is the Bluehost AI Website Builder. Instead of Gator’s template-first editor, Bluehost’s builder generates a site with AI from your inputs and then lets you edit it, using monthly AI credits for changes.
Bluehost’s plan page and FAQ say every paid plan includes Yoast SEO Premium, a WordPress SEO plugin, and third-party reviews describe the builder as an AI layer on top of WordPress. That gives you WordPress’s flexibility and plugin ecosystem underneath, at the cost of a less self-contained experience than Gator offered.
AI site creation and editing
The builder creates an initial site from your answers, then lets you make changes by prompt. Each change uses AI credits: the Get Online plan includes 20 AI credits a month, Grow 40 and Scale 80, plus 10 bonus credits in the first month, according to Bluehost’s plan comparison guide (updated October 22, 2026).
Hosting, security and backups
All paid plans include hosting, a free SSL certificate and CDN, weekly backups, and malware detection and removal. Storage is 20 GB on Get Online, 50 GB on Grow and 100 GB on Scale.
Online store option
Bluehost’s Sell Online plans add e-commerce tools: cart, payments, orders, customers and coupons, with Stripe payments (Stripe’s own fees apply). Bluehost also lists AI “agents” for catalog, orders, inventory and customers, plus a store performance dashboard.
How much does the Bluehost AI Website Builder cost in 2026?
Bluehost’s AI Website Builder page listed the following prices in October 2026. The page does not print the billing term beside each price; its buy links point to a 1-year term for Get Online and 2-year terms for Grow and Scale.
| Plan | Listed price | Storage | AI credits/month | E-commerce |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free trial | $0 for 14 days | Temporary domain only | 10 AI edits | No |
| Get Online | $8.49/mo | 20 GB | 20 (+10 first month) | No |
| Grow | $14.99/mo | 50 GB | 40 (+10 first month) | No |
| Scale | $19.99/mo | 100 GB | 80 (+10 first month) | No |
| Sell Online tiers | See bluehost.com/ai-store | 20 to 100 GB | 30 to 100 | Yes |
Bluehost’s separate website-builder page described Get Online as $9.99/month on a 12- or 24-month term, or $15.99/month billed monthly, after the trial, so expect the final figure to depend on term length and current promotions. Bluehost’s own help center says introductory pricing is for new customers and that renewal rates appear in your Renewal Center.
The 14-day trial requires no credit card, and Bluehost keeps a trial site for a 4-day grace period after the trial ends so you can upgrade. Prices exclude VAT or GST where applicable.
Gator vs Bluehost AI Website Builder: what’s different?
| Gator Website Builder (legacy) | Bluehost AI Website Builder | |
|---|---|---|
| How you build | Pick a template, then drag and drop | AI generates a draft, then you edit by prompt or directly |
| Platform | Proprietary hosted builder | AI layer on a WordPress install (per third-party reviews) |
| Editing limits | No AI credits | Monthly AI credits (20, 40 or 80) |
| E-commerce | eCommerce plan tier | Sell Online plans with Stripe payments |
| Free trial | None (no free plan) | 14 days, no credit card |
| Available to new customers | No | Yes |
The biggest practical change is the editing model. Gator users were used to unlimited manual edits inside a closed builder. On Bluehost’s AI builder, manual edits remain possible, but AI-assisted changes draw down a monthly credit balance. The WordPress base also means more settings and more places to manage the site, which suits users who expect to grow into plugins and custom themes.
Is the Bluehost AI Website Builder a good Gator replacement?
For migrated Gator customers, staying on Bluehost is the path of least resistance: your site moved automatically and support is available around the clock by chat. For new sites, the picture is mixed. Bluehost’s builder bundles useful extras (domain, privacy, SSL, CDN, backups, Yoast SEO Premium), and the WordPress foundation means you won’t hit a ceiling later.
However, credit-metered AI edits and a split between builder, WordPress and account dashboards make it less simple than Gator was. Independent reviewer AllAboutCookies, for example, criticized the fragmented experience and flat credit cost per edit. We rate the successor 3.3 out of 5 (our assessment).
Best alternatives to the Gator Website Builder
| Builder | Why consider it |
|---|---|
| Bluehost AI Website Builder | Direct successor from the same parent company; WordPress underneath; 14-day free trial |
| Wix | Most templates and apps, full drag-and-drop control |
| Squarespace | Polished, design-led templates and built-in commerce |
| Hostinger Website Builder | Low-cost AI builder bundled with hosting |
| GoDaddy Website Builder | Fast setup with built-in marketing tools |
See our Wix review, GoDaddy Website Builder review and the full best website builders roundup. If you’d rather keep a hosting-plus-WordPress setup with HostGator itself, read our HostGator review. You can also try Wix, Squarespace or Hostinger directly.
How we evaluated the Gator Website Builder and its successor
We checked the status of the Gator Website Builder using HostGator’s and Bluehost’s official help articles and the current behavior of gator.com and HostGator’s builder URLs (October 2026). Successor pricing and features come from Bluehost’s AI Website Builder page and its plan comparison guide. We did not run speed or uptime tests and do not report figures Bluehost does not publish.
FAQs
Is the Gator Website Builder still available?
No. HostGator’s help center states that its Website Builder is no longer offered for new signups. Existing Gator sites were migrated to Bluehost on February 6, 2026, according to a Bluehost help article, and customers now log in through Bluehost. New users can choose the Bluehost AI Website Builder instead.
What happened to my Gator website?
Bluehost said Gator websites would migrate from HostGator Website Builder to Bluehost on February 6, 2026, with no action required from customers. Your website and account transfer, and you keep access to the builder tools. After the move, you sign in through Bluehost’s my-account login page.
What replaced the Gator Website Builder?
For new customers, the closest replacement from the same company is the Bluehost AI Website Builder. It generates a site with AI, runs on a WordPress foundation according to third-party reviews and its included Yoast SEO Premium plugin, and offers Get Online, Grow and Scale plans plus Sell Online store plans.
How much does the Bluehost AI Website Builder cost?
In October 2026 Bluehost listed Get Online at $8.49 per month, Grow at $14.99 and Scale at $19.99, with a 14-day free trial that needs no credit card. Another Bluehost page cites $9.99 per month on a 12- or 24-month term or $15.99 monthly, so check the term at checkout.
Do I get a free domain with Bluehost’s AI Website Builder?
Yes. Bluehost’s plan comparison guide says all paid AI Website Builder plans, including Get Online and Sell Online tiers, include a free domain for the first year and free domain privacy for one year. The free trial uses a temporary domain only.
Can I sell products with the Gator successor?
Yes, on Bluehost’s Sell Online plans. They add a cart, payments through Stripe, order and customer management, coupons and a store performance dashboard. The Get Online, Grow and Scale plans do not include e-commerce tools, so choose a Sell Online tier if you plan to take orders.
Is HostGator shutting down?
No. Only HostGator’s standalone Website Builder product was discontinued. HostGator continues to sell web hosting, WordPress hosting and domains. The builder was consolidated into Bluehost, a sister brand under the same parent company, Newfold Digital. HostGator customers who want a builder can use WordPress on HostGator hosting or switch to another builder.
Bottom line
The Gator Website Builder is gone for new buyers, and existing sites now live at Bluehost. If you are one of those users, check your renewal terms and keep going. If you are starting fresh, try the Bluehost AI Website Builder free trial and compare it with Wix or Squarespace before you commit to a multi-year term.
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