Personal website examples worth studying in 2026
A personal website has one job: when someone searches your name, it tells them who you are and what to do next. The best ones do it in very different ways. Here are 11 real examples, what each gets right, and a checklist for building your own.
11 personal website examples
1. Brittany Chiang: a portfolio built for hiring managers
brittanychiang.com is a frontend engineer’s one-page site: a short about section, her experience, and her projects, in the order a recruiter reads them. Copy this: put the facts a hiring manager needs before anything clever.
2. Josh W. Comeau: the writing is the portfolio
joshwcomeau.com is a blog of friendly, in-depth tutorials for front-end developers. The articles prove his skill better than a list of projects could. Copy this: if you can teach what you do, publish it.
3. Lynn Fisher: a new design every year
lynnandtonic.com gets a full redesign every year, and the archive lists every version back to 2007, many with a case study. Copy this: your own site is the one project where you can try anything.
4. Bruno Simon: the site is the demo
bruno-simon.com is a creative developer’s portfolio built as an interactive 3D scene in the browser, so the site itself shows what he can build. Copy this: if you sell a skill, let the site demonstrate it. Keep in mind that heavy pages load slowly on older phones.
5. Jessica Hische: the work up front
jessicahische.is belongs to a lettering artist, illustrator, type designer, and author, and the domain reads like the start of a sentence. Copy this: for visual work, let the work fill the page, and make the domain memorable.
6. Dan Abramov: just the writing
overreacted.io is a blog with almost no design: each post is a title, a date, and a one-line summary. Copy this: if you write well, plain text is enough.
7. Paul Graham: decades of essays on a plain page
paulgraham.com is a simple list of essays with a design that hasn’t chased trends. Copy this: good content outlasts any redesign.
8. Derek Sivers: a home base for books and ideas
sive.rs collects his writing on philosophy and self-improvement and his books, including Anything You Want and Hell Yeah or No. Copy this: keep a site you own, so your work doesn’t live only on someone else’s platform.
9. James Clear: one main action
jamesclear.com is the site of the author of Atomic Habits, built around his 3-2-1 newsletter. Copy this: decide the one thing a visitor should do, and make it obvious.
10. Lee Robinson: a one-line introduction
leerob.com describes him in three words, “Developer and writer,” then gets out of the way. Copy this: say what you do in a line someone can repeat.
11. Patrick Bushe: a portfolio that sells services
bushe.co is my site. It combines a portfolio of client work, the Chrome extensions and free tools I’ve built, and the services I offer, so a visitor who likes the work can hire me from the same place. Copy this: connect your site to what you actually sell.
What every good personal website has
- Your name and one line about what you do, at the top
- Proof: work, writing, or results someone can see
- One clear next step: hire me, read this, subscribe, or get in touch
- Fast pages that work on a phone
- Your own domain, ideally your name
How to build yours
A website builder like Squarespace or Wix is the quickest way to start, for a monthly fee. WordPress gives you more control. A custom-designed site costs more up front and makes sense when the site has to win clients or jobs for you. For prices, see how much a web designer costs, and if you’d rather hand it off, see freelance web design.
Frequently asked questions
What should a personal website include?
Your name and what you do, proof of your work or writing, a way to contact you, and one clear next step for visitors. Keep it fast and readable on a phone, and put it on your own domain.
How much does a personal website cost?
On a builder, from about $18 to $19 a month billed yearly, plus your domain. A custom-designed site is a one-time project; my custom sites start at $5,000.
Do I need a personal website if I have LinkedIn?
LinkedIn is useful, but you don’t control it. A personal site is yours, shows up when people search your name, and can show your work in a way a profile can’t.
What is the best platform for a personal website?
A builder like Squarespace or Wix if you want it live quickly with no code, WordPress if you plan to write a lot, and a custom build if the design itself is part of what you’re selling.
Want a personal site that brings in work?
I design and build personal and portfolio websites for founders, consultants, and creatives, at a fixed price agreed up front.
See freelance web design