The 22 Best iPaaS Vendors for Any Budget

As your business grows and evolves, you'll inevitably find yourself adding more applications to your tech stack. If those applications run on different platforms and can't communicate effectively, you're going to run into issues with data loss, duplication of efforts, and bottlenecks that slow your team down.

If you've decided you want to invest in an iPaaS tool but aren't sure where to start, you're in the right place. In this article, we'll go over some of the best iPaaS vendors, so you can discover one that fits your company's unique needs and budget. Let's dive in.

iPaaS Vendors: Top Features to Look For

iPaaS — which stands for Integration Platform as a Service — helps you connect the tools and systems that power your business in one place, so information can be shared without high-maintenance, one-off integrations, or manual data entry.

When considering iPaaS vendors and companies, you should know what to look for to get the most out of your investment. While some solutions are free, others can come with a hefty price tag.

Here are the top features you should look for.

User-Friendly Workflows Tool

iPaaS solutions allow you to integrate two or more apps to automate a process that otherwise takes longer to complete. It’s a critical tool to have in your workflow automation arsenal. As such, it should allow you to build workflows and connect apps in a user-friendly, no-code workflows tool.

The exception would be if you’re planning to create highly personalized workflows and integrations using code.

API Management Tool

You may be looking for an iPaaS provider that can help you build and deploy an API. You may also wish to create a unique integration tool using APIs from various apps and platforms. Some iPaaS services offer an API management feature either within the platform or as an add-on.

Templated Integrations

For small-to-medium businesses without an integration workflow, it’ll be critical to choose a tool that offers at least a few basic templated integrations to get you off the ground. Whether you want to create a simple or complicated series of integrations, the iPaaS vendor should offer a jumping-off point.

Top-Notch Security

iPaaS vendors will be handling your company’s confidential data, so they should offer end-to-end security and encryption. Most iPaaS vendors list their certifications and describe their security measures on their websites. If you have any doubts or special concerns about the security of your data, be sure to bring up any questions during the demo or consultation.

Ready to dive into the best iPaaS vendors of this year?

We wrote a deep dive on iPaaS here if you'd like to learn more about the basics of iPaaS services, view a complete glossary of iPaaS terms, and better understand what iPaaS can potentially offer your business.

Now, it’s time to check out the best iPaaS vendors you can use to integrate your business’s apps and services.

1. Dell Boomi

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Acquired by Dell in 2010, Boomi offers a cloud-based integration and API management solution with all the bells and whistles you could ask for: workflows, API design, application deployment, B2B/EDI management, and much more. Within Boomi, you can design end-to-end workflows and process data across multiple applications. Suitable for enterprise and small businesses from many different industries, Boomi has been considered a leader in the iPaaS space for the last six years by Gartner.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Boomi has a drag-and-drop UI for creating integrations and workflows.
• API management tool: Boomi includes an API management tool to design and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: Boomi includes templates and a process library for the easy creation of integrations.
• Top-notch security: Boomi details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Because of its low starting price and robust features, Dell Boomi is a great fit for small-to-enterprise businesses that have any need for integrations. There are, however, free tools that have similar capabilities.

Price: Starting at $50/month.

2. Oracle Integration Cloud

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If you're looking for a straightforward iPaaS solution with industry best practices and premade integration flows baked into the product, Oracle Integration Cloud might be an option to take a deeper look at. Oracle serves up an extensive library of out-of-the-box adapters to different SaaS and on-premises applications, making the initial set-up less time consuming for your team.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Oracle Integration Cloud offers a drag-and-drop tool for creating connections between apps. There are, however, more user-friendly tools out there, such as Workato.
• API management tool: Oracle offers an API platform.
• Templated integrations: Oracle Integration Cloud includes a vast library of premade integrations.
• Top-notch security: Oracle details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Oracle Integration Cloud is a great fit for enterprise businesses that can benefit from the premade integrations Oracle offers in its library.

Price: Choose from several different pricing structures, including a pay-as-you-go plan starting at $1.2097/message, and a monthly flex plan starting at $0.3226/message.

3. Workato

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This iPaaS solution was designed to enable better connection between business users and IT, allowing both groups to plan, create, and easily maintain integrations between different systems. Workato provides pre-built integration flows between 300 of the most popular SaaS products, and the ability to design custom integrations in a simple, drag-and-drop interface.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Workato has a user-friendly tool for integrating apps and creating workflows.
• API management tool: Workato has an API Platform.
• Templated integrations: Workato has a library of community-made "recipes" for launching integrations.
• Top-notch security: Workato details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Workato is a great fit for small-to-medium businesses that use the apps listed in the Workato community recipes page.

Price: Contact Workato for a quote.

4. TIBCO Cloud™

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TIBCO Cloud prides itself on providing an easy-to-use iPaaS solution that simplifies the creation and management of integration flows in your business. They consider themselves to be an "application neutral" technology partner for their clients — meaning, they won't try to push you towards using a particular application or ecosystem. Instead, they'll work with you to build a solution that connects the on-premises tools and cloud-based applications your business already prefers to use.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: TIBCO Cloud Integration has a visual UI for building workflows and integrations. It does require some knowledge of code, so it’s not recommended for beginners.
• API management tool: TIBCO Cloud offers an API management tool that’s sold separately from its Integration tool.
• Templated integrations: TIBCO Cloud has a library of premade connectors.
• Top-notch security: TIBCO Cloud details its approach to data security here.

Best for: TIBCO Cloud is a great fit for large-to-enterprise businesses that need extensive custom integrations.

Price: Starting at $400/month for a Basic Plan, $1500/month for a Standard Plan, and custom pricing for Hybrid plans based on your unique needs.

5. Elastic.io

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Elastic.io promises to remove the laborious product management component of custom integrations and reduce the amount of time spent on integrations at your company by up to 80%. This iPaaS vendor also takes an as-a-service mentality to how they work with customers, helping you support feature roll-outs and upgrades, bug fixes, and connector updates.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Elastic.io has a user-friendly integration flow designer.
• API management tool: Elastic.io offers an API integration tool that allows you to integrate APIs from other services.
• Templated integrations: Elastic.io has a library of premade connectors.
• Top-notch security: Elastic.io details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Elastic.io’s lower investment and user-friendly integrations builder makes it a great choice for medium-to-large business just starting to create app integrations.

Price: For system integrators, the monthly plans start at €199/month; for enterprise customers, the yearly plans start at €1,499/month; and for software vendors, they offer the platform as OEM with customizable pricing (i.e. on request).

6. Modulus Data

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This iPaaS vendor specializes in integrations for the Human Resources industry, offering a comprehensive library of pre-built connectors aimed at helping your HR department align their applications and tools in one seamless, secure hub. Modulus Data has out-of-the-box connectors with most popular HR applications and software tools, including Workday, Greenhouse, Monster, and Oracle HCM.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Modulus Data offers a visual integrations builder tool.
• API management tool: Modulus Data uses an API-to-API connection to integrate apps; however, it doesn’t offer an option for managing or creating custom APIs.
• Templated integrations: Modulus Data offers a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: While Modulus Data doesn’t have security documentation, it indicates its level of security in its terms and conditions.

Best for: Modulus data is a great fit for recruitment firms and HR departments looking to streamline workflows and integrate the apps in their tech stacks.

Price: Contact Modulus Data for a quote.

7. Informatica

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Informatica has been around since 1993, and still continues to be an industry leader in helping businesses manage their data effectively and securely. Specializing in enterprise level iPaaS solutions, Informatica lists big companies like GE, Unilever, and L'Oreal among their clients. If you're a large company looking for hands-on support on your custom iPaaS journey, Informatica might be a good fit for your needs.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Informatica has a visual integrations builder tool.
• API management tool: Informatica offers an API management tool to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: Informatica offers a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Informatica details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Informatica is a great fit for enterprise businesses with legacy applications that they’d like to integrate with their cloud-based apps and services.

Price: Contact Informatica for a quote.

8. IBM AppConnect

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IBM's iPaaS solution markets itself as an easy way to connect apps, build APIs, integrate data, and act on events. AppConnect comes equipped with a series of templates made up of common patterns you can use to quickly set-up integration flows for your business, and start getting value immediately. SMBs looking to get started with iPaaS and explore the possibilities of new applications might benefit from using AppConnect.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: AppConnect features a visual, no-code integrations builder.
• API management tool: AppConnect offers an API management tool to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: AppConnect has a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: IBM details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Due to its free starting price, AppConnect is a great fit for small-to-medium businesses that want to try a hand at app integration. The iPaaS vendor then allows you to upgrade as your needs grow more sophisticated.

Price: AppConnect offers a free lite package. Professional packages start at $500/month.

9. SnapLogic

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For companies seeking an enterprise-level iPaaS solution that can handle a lot of data quickly, SnapLogic offers a way to automate integrations across on-premises and cloud-based applications on a large scale. But don't let the hefty capabilities of SnapLogic mislead you into thinking the product itself is for the extremely tech-savvy only — this iPaaS solution is designed with user accessibility in mind, so even teams with less technology experience can build, manage, and scale custom integrations and workflows.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: SnapLogic features a drag-and-drop low-code integrations builder.
• API management tool: SnapLogic offers an API management tool to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: SnapLogic has a library of premade “Snaps,” their name for “connectors.”
• Top-notch security: SnapLogic details its approach to data security here.

Best for: SnapLogic is a great fit for enterprise businesses that need to automate processes across their IT, sales, marketing, HR, and accounting departments.

Price: Contact SnapLogic for a quote.

10. Zapier

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One of the more user and wallet-friendly options in the iPaaS space, Zapier gives businesses of any size the ability to design and manage custom integration solutions that fit their exact needs. Zapier adds new integrations (called "zaps") to their massive integrations library each week, so chances are, there's already an out-of-the-box solution available for you to start using today.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Zapier has a visual workflows builder and is extremely user-friendly.
• API management tool: Zapier does not offer an API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Zapier has the biggest integrations library of this list. Each app has hundreds — if not thousands — of premade workflows.
• Top-notch security: Zapier details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Due to its ease-of-use, Zapier is a great choice for small businesses and freelancers who want to create simpler workflows.

Price: Zapier offers a free basic package. Starter packages start at $19.99/month, and Professional packages begin at $49/month.

11. Jitterbit

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According to G2 ratings, Jitterbit is one of the more user-friendly and cost-effective iPaaS options out there. This iPaaS vendor offers support for a wide breadth of connectors, advanced workflow capabilities, real-time integrations, and a range of data security features. Additionally, Jitterbit has an easy-to-use visual designer to help make the setup and monitoring processes run smoothly — even for teams without a dedicated developer on staff.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Jitterbit features a visual drag-and-drop workflows builder.
• API management tool: Jitterbit offers an API management tool to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: Jitterbit has pre-built templates inside the platform.
• Top-notch security: Jitterbit details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Jitterbit is a great fit for medium-to-enterprise businesses in the energy, financial, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and transportation industries.

Price: Contact Jitterbit to get a quote.

12. Amazon API Gateway

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Built with developers in mind, Amazon's iPaaS solution enables teams to create and manage APIs that act as a "front door" for applications to access data and share information. Amazon API Gateway is unique because you only pay for the API calls you use, rather than most other iPaaS vendors which rely on monthly or annual pricing models. This iPaaS vendor is one to consider if you have a developer on staff and want more direct control over the API calls your company uses.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Amazon API Gateway offers a visual API manager.
• API management tool: Amazon API Gateway is specifically an API management tool; this is its core strength.
• Templated integrations: Amazon API Gateway doesn’t offer any templated integrations.
• Top-notch security: Amazon API Gateway details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Amazon API Gateway is a great fit for medium-to-enterprise businesses that need to build and manage custom APIs at scale.

Price: Pricing is determined by the quantity and type of API calls used.

13. Pabbly Connect

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Pabbly Connect enables you to seamlessly integrate applications from multiple niches such as marketing, CRM, finance, and more to create automated workflows. Additionally, you can create multi-step calls, set instant triggers, apply conditions using various filters, add unlimited applications, and do a lot more in your workflows.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Pabbly Connect offers a visual integration creator.
• API management tool: Pabbly Connect offers an API modules tool for connecting apps, but it doesn’t offer a standalone API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Pabbly Connect doesn’t have a library of premade integrations.
• Top-notch security: While Pabbly Connect doesn’t have security documentation, it does describe some of its security measures in its privacy policy.

Best for: Pabbly Connect is another great tool for freelancers and small businesses; whether you choose it over Zapier depends on which apps you’d like to integrate.

Price: Free and paid plans available. With the basic plan that comes at $9/month, you get unlimited workflows.

14. Celigo Integrator.io

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If you aren't sure how an iPaaS solution will work for your company and are wary of hefty fees, Celigo offers a free version of their iPaaS product. Their Integration Marketplace is stocked with plenty of prebuilt, supported integrations with common applications, and their "flow" subscription model means you can start off with the free version and only start paying if you increase your usage and add new integrations into the mix.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Celigo offers a visual no-code flow builder.
• API management tool: Celigo includes an API management tool to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: Celigo has an integration marketplace with prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Celigo details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Celigo is a great fit for large-to-enterprise businesses that want to create custom integrations and APIs.

Price: Packages start at $7,200/year.

15. Tray.io

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This iPaaS vendor was designed with the intention to better connect the tools and workflows used by your marketing, sales, product, and services teams. They offer out-of-the-box integration solutions developed with these specific teams in mind, and aim to empower your teams to manage and create the integrations they need without requiring developer assistance every step of the way.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Tray.io offers a visual drag-and-drop workflow builder.
• API management tool: While Tray.io uses APIs to connect apps, it doesn’t offer a standalone API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Tray.io offers a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Tray.io details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Tray.io is a great fit for businesses that need to foster greater collaboration between its teams, since it allows you to share workflows between teams.

Price: Contact Tray.io for a quote.

16. Xplenty

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If you're seeking a straightforward way to visualize your workflows, integrations, and data flows, Xplenty might be a good option to consider. Their simplified dashboard enables you to manage how your tools and data are working together in one central place, and your developers will love that they can connect Xplenty with their existing monitoring systems using service hooks.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Xplenty offers a visual user interface; however, it still requires some coding.
• API management tool: Xplenty doesn’t offer an API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Xplenty offers a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Xplenty.io details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Xplenty is a great fit for small-to-enterprise businesses with a team of developers to build custom integrations.

Price: Contact Xpenty for a quote.

17. Mulesoft

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Used by tech giants like Netflix and Airbnb, Mulesoft offers a wide range of customized iPaaS solutions for different industries and tech setups. Their selection of out-of-the-box connectivity options means your team will spend less time initially building out new integrations, since prebuilt integrations are easier to get up and running fast.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Mulesoft features a visual workflows “composer” for creating integrations without coding.
• API management tool: Mulesoft offers an API manager.
• Templated integrations: Mulesoft has a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Mulesoft details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Mulesoft is a great fit for large-to-enterprise businesses that are looking to integrate apps and deploy APIs in one convenient platform.

Price: Contact Mulesoft for a quote.

18. Cleo Integration Cloud

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Cleo Integration Cloud offers a user-friendly, easy-to-use platform for automating processes across various teams in your businesses. The integration platform is focused on breaking down silos so that there’s utmost clarity between your business processes. The platform offers an integration environment called CIC Studio that helps you create workflows and integrations in an intuitive way.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Cleo offers a visual drag-and-drop workflows editor for creating integrations without coding.
• API management tool: While Cleo uses APIs to connect apps, it doesn’t offer a standalone API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Cleo offers a library of prebuilt connectors.
• Top-notch security: Cleo lists its security certifications here.

Best for: Cleo Integration Cloud is a great fit for B2B businesses that need to create sophisticated integrations with different protocols.

Price: Contact Cleo for a quote.

19. Talend Cloud Data Integration

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Talend Cloud Data Integration is an iPaaS solution for hybrid information systems — it can connect both cloud-to-cloud applications and cloud-to-on-premise applications, which makes it a great pick if your team isn't looking to go full cloud just yet. You can develop and launch integrations in a central dashboard.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Talend uses a visual “pipeline designer” to create workflows.
• API management tool: Talend offers API services for creating and deploying APIs.
• Templated integrations: Talend has a list of supported connectors; however, it’s more limited than others in this list.
• Top-notch security: Talend details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Talend is a great fit for large-to-enterprise businesses that want to connect on-premises solutions with cloud apps.

Price: Contact Talend for a quote.

20. Blendr.io

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Blendr.io offers a low-code visual builder to create complex enterprise-grade or standardized self-service integrations. They also provide a set of features to embed integrations in the UI of your platform (including HubSpot) into the UI of other SaaS platforms.

Blendr.io integrates marketing, sales, events, productivity, and 300+ other cloud platforms. If you end up not finding the integration you need in their library, you can ask the Blendr.io team to add it at no additional cost to your plan.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Blendr.io has a visual no-code automation builder.
• API management tool: Blendr.io allows you to manage API integrations, but doesn’t allow you to build and deploy APIs.
• Templated integrations: Blendr.io has a list of premade connectors.
• Top-notch security: Qlik, Blendr.io’s creator, details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Blendr.io is a great fit for SaaS businesses that need to automate internal processes and are also interested in embedding an integration feature into their own software. Blendr.io allows you to embed their UI into your SaaS product.

Price: Contact Blendr.io for a quote.

21. RudderStack Cloud Extract

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Formerly called Blendo, RudderStack Cloud Extract is a self-service iPaaS solution that can connect applications from your sales, marketing, and financial teams and flow directly into a number of popular data warehousing options. RudderStack Cloud Extract was designed to make reporting across multiple applications more straightforward, so they ensure you can access your data in your preferred reporting platform.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: RudderStack Cloud Extract has a user-friendly no-code integration builder.
• API management tool: RudderStack Cloud Extract doesn’t offer an API management tool.
• Templated integrations: RudderStack Cloud Extract has a list of premade connectors.
• Top-notch security: RudderStack doesn’t have any security documentation on their website, though they do provide some details in their service agreement.

Best for: RudderStack Cloud Extract is a great fit for B2B businesses that need to aggregate customer data from both cloud apps and internal databases.

Price: Starts at free, while Pro starts at $750/month.

22. Skyvia

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Last but certainly not least, we have Skyvia, a no-coding cloud data integration platform that offers both ELT and ETL approaches. It has both visual tools for simple integration cases and powerful mapping and transformation settings for more complex scenarios. The platform also offers no-coding OData and SQL web API layer and has ADO.NET provider and ODBC driver for accessing your data via these APIs over the web. Skyvia supports all major data sources — from SaaS apps like Salesforce and BigCommerce, to databases like MySQL and SQL Server.

Features

• User-friendly workflows tool: Skyvia has a user-friendly no-code integration builder.
• API management tool: Skyvia doesn’t offer an API management tool.
• Templated integrations: Skyvia has a list of premade connectors.
• Top-notch security: Skyvia details its approach to data security here.

Best for: Skyvia is a great fit for small-to-large businesses because of its free plans and robust data management tools. You can easily integrate both cloud and on-premise data.

Price: Choose from a Data Integration Free plan (free), a Data Basic Integration plan ($19/month), and a Data Integration Standard plan ($99/month).

Choose an IPAAS Vendor to Break Down Silos

An iPaaS vendor can help you integrate disparate apps, streamline processes, create collaborative workflows, and unify all of your customers’ data. The result is that your team will no longer be working in silos, empowering you to grow better.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in June 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

The 22 Best iPaaS Vendors for Any Budget was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

Best Personal Websites: 19 Examples to Blow Your Mind

Here's the thing about resumes and cover letters: No matter how unique you try to make your own, for the most part, they tend to read dry. And there's a good reason for it: It's supposed to be a single, no-frills page that documents your work experience. And while being concise is good, there's very little opportunity to convey your uniqueness, or for your personality to shine through at all for that matter.

While a resume is a sole, largely unchanging document, a personal website can be customized and updated according to what you're working on, or what you want to emphasize. It's both fluid and current.

Did you know 80% of businesses say a personal website is important when evaluating job candidates? Recruiters are looking you up online, and a personal website that tells the story you want to tell can make all the difference between you and a competing candidate.

If you're thinking about creating a personal website of your very own, check out the examples below that hit the nail on the head. Inspired by a particular type of website? Click one of the following links to jump to that section of this article:

• Personal Resume Websites
• Personal Portfolios
• Personal Blogs
• Personal Demo Websites

Best Personal Websites

1. Gary Sheng
2. Brandon Johnson
3. Quinton Harris
4. Sean Halpin
5. Tony D'Orio
6. Verena Michelitsch
7. Gari Cruze
8. Melanie Daveid
9. The Beast Is Back
10. Daniel Grindrod
11. The Everywhereist
12. Side Hustle Nation
13. fifty coffees
14. Minimalist Baker
15. Mr. Money Mustache
16. Albino Tonnina
17. Robby Leonardi
18. Samuel Reed
19. Devon Stank

Personal Resume Websites

Whether you create a single-page site or a larger portfolio, the web resume serves as a more personalized option for sharing information and demonstrating your technological skills -- and it can be used by all types of job seekers.

Even if you have very little work experience, you can leverage a website to build a better picture of your capabilities and yourself as a candidate, while leaning on your traditional resume to provide the basic background information.

1. Gary Sheng

Unlike a standard resume document, Sheng's website makes it easy for him to include logos and clickable links that allow his software engineering and web development skills to shine.

We love that visitors can choose to scroll down his page to view all of the website's categories ("About Me," "My Passion," etc.), or jump to a specific page using the top navigation.

The "My System" section reads like a company mission statement, and this personal touch helps humanize his work and make him more memorable.

2. Brandon Johnson

Johnson's incredible resume must be seen to be believed. Beautiful images of planets help to complement his planetary science background, and animations make his resume more of an experience than a document.

In terms of design, the textured, multi-layered background adds greater depth to the two-dimensional page in a way that evokes feelings of space and the planetary systems, which Johnson's work focuses on.

3. Quinton Harris

Harris' resume uses photos to tell his personal story -- and it reads kind of like a cool, digital scrapbook. It covers all the bases of a resume -- and then some -- by discussing his educational background, work experience, and skills in a highly visual way.

Not to mention, the copy is fantastic. It's clear that Harris took the time to carefully choose the right words to describe each step of his personal and professional journey. For example, the section on storytelling reads:

NYC, my new home, is filled with the necessary secrets to not only propel my craft forward, but my identity as an artist. With every lens snapped and every pixel laid, I am becoming me.

Finally, at the final navigational point (note the scrolling circles on the left-hand side of the page), users are redirected to quintonharris.com, where he goes on to tell his story in more detail.

Best Practices for Resume Websites

1. Code your resume so it can be crawled by search engines.
2. Offer a button to download your resume in PDF so the hiring manager can add it to your file.
3. Keep branding consistent between the website and document versions: Use similar fonts, colors, and images so you're easy to recognize.
4. Be creative and authentic to yourself. Think about the colors, images, and media you want to be a part of your story that you couldn't include in a document resume.

Personal Portfolios

Building an online portfolio is a highly useful personal branding and marketing tool if your work experience and skill set call for content creation. In fact, photographers, graphic designers, illustrators, writers, and content marketers can all use web portfolios to show off their skills in a more user-friendly way than a resume or hard copy portfolio.

4. Sean Halpin

Halpin's portfolio is short, sweet, and to the point, which is authentic to his voice and personal branding outlined on the site. Instead of a lot of copy, Halpin presents large thumbnail cards so that his projects speak for themselves and allow the user to delve deeper if one catches their eye.

5. Tony D'Orio

It's important to keep the design of your visual portfolio simple to let images capture visitors' attention, and D'Orio accomplishes this by featuring bold photographs front-and-center on his website. His logo and navigation menu are clear and don't distract from his work. And he makes it easy for potential customers to download his work free of charge.

Want to give it a try? Click on the hamburger menu in the top left corner, then select + Create a PDF to select as many images as you'd like to download.

Once you open the PDF, you'll notice that it comes fully equipped with D'Orio's business card as the cover ... just in case you need it.

6. Verena Michelitsch

When you're a designer, not one pixel on your personal website should go unused. Verena Michelitsch's portfolio, shown above, is covered end to end in artwork. From her extensive library of work, she chose to exhibit multiple colors, styles, and dimensions so visitors can see just how much range she has as a designer. It's a perfect example of the classic adage, "show, don't tell."

7. Gari Cruze

Cruze is a copywriter. But by turning his website into a portfolio featuring images from different campaigns he's worked on, he makes visitors want to keep clicking to learn more about him. Also, there's a great CTA at the top of the page that leads visitors to his latest blog post.

His site's humorous copy -- specifically in the "17 Random Things" and "Oh Yes, They're Talking" sections -- serves to show off his skills, while making himself more memorable as well. These pages also include his contact information on the right-hand side, making it easy to reach out and connect at any point:

8. Melanie Daveid

Daveid's website is a great example of "less is more."

This developer's portfolio features clear, well-branded imagery of campaigns and apps that Daveid worked on, and she shows off her coding skills when you click through to see the specifics of her work.

While it might seem overly minimal to only include three examples of her work, Daveid did her portfolio a service by including her best, most noteworthy campaigns. At the end of the day, it's better to have fewer examples of excellence in your portfolio than many examples of mediocrity.

9. The Beast Is Back

Christopher Lee's portfolio is busy and colorful in a way that works. When you read more about Lee on his easily navigable site, you realize that such a fun and vibrant homepage is perfect for an illustrator and toy designer.

Known by his brand name, "The Beast Is Back," Lee's web portfolio highlights eye-catching designs with recognizable brands, such as Target and Mario, along with links to purchase his work. This is another gallery-style portfolio with pops of color that make it fun and give it personality, thus making it more memorable.

10. Daniel Grindrod

This freelance videographer is another example of a simple but sleek portfolio, allowing his potential clients to browse deeper into his "Work" and "Stills" sections. The opening video on the homepage -- as shown on the still image above -- also ensures his site visitors that he's actively creating beautiful work.

Best Practices for Portfolio Websites

1. Use mainly visuals. Even if you're showcasing your written work, using logos or other branding is more eye-catching for your visitors.
2. Don't be afraid to be yourself. Your personality, style, and sense of humor could be what sets you apart from other sites!
3. Organization is key. If your portfolio is full of photos, logos, and other images, make sure it's easy for visitors to navigate to where they can contact you.
4. Brand yourself. Choose a logo or icon to make your information easily identifiable.

Personal Blogs

Consistently publishing on a blog is a great way to attract attention on social media and search engines -- and drive traffic to your site. Blogging is a smart way to give your work a personality, chronicle your experiences, and stretch your writing muscles. You might write a personal blog if you're a writer by trade, but virtually anyone can benefit from adding a blog to their site and providing useful content for their audience.

11. The Everywhereist

This blog looks a bit busier, but its consistent branding helps visitors easily navigate the site. The travel blog uses globe iconography to move visitors around the site, making it easy to explore sections beyond the blog.

Owned by writer Geraldine DeRuiter, this blog also features a "Best Of" section that allows new visitors to learn about what the blog covers to get acclimated. The color scheme is warm, neutral, and free of excess clutter that could distract from the content.

12. Side Hustle Nation

Side Hustle Nation is the business blog of Nick Loper, an advisor whose website offers tons of valuable financial advice for individual business owners. His homepage, shown above, sets a lighthearted yet passionate tone for his readers. It suggests you'll get friendly content all committed to a single goal: financial freedom. The green call to action, "Start Here," helps first-time visitors know exactly how to navigate his website.

On Nick's blog page, shown above, you'll notice two unique types of content: "My Podcast Production Process," the top post; and "Quarterly Progress Report," the third post down. The top post shows readers how Nick, himself, creates content that helps his business grow, while the third post down keeps his readers up to date on his blog's growth over time. These content types give people a peek behind the curtain of your operation, showing them you practice what you preach and that your insight is tried and true.

13. fifty coffees

The website fifty coffees chronicles the author's series of coffee meetings in search of her next job opportunity, and it does a great job of using photography and visuals to assist in the telling of her lengthy stories.

The best part? Each post ends with numbered takeaways from her meetings for ease of reading comprehension. The high-quality photography used to complement the stories is like icing on the cake.

14. Minimalist Baker

I'm not highlighting Dana's food blog just because the food looks delicious and I'm hungry. Her blog uses a simple white background to let her food photography pop, unique branding to make her memorable, and mini-bio to personalize her website.

15. Mr. Money Mustache

Mr. Money Mustache might take on an old-school, Gangs of New York-style facade, but his blog design -- and the advice the blog offers -- couldn't be more fresh (he also doesn't really look like that).

This financial blog is a funny, browsable website that offers sound insight into money management for the layperson. While his personal stories help support the legitimacy of his advice, the navigation links surrounding his logo make it easy to jump right into his content without any prior context around his brand.

Best Practices for Blogs

1. Keep your site simple and clutter-free to avoid additional distractions beyond blog posts.
2. Publish often. Those who prioritize marketing efforts are 13x more likely to see positive ROI.
3. Experiment with different blog styles, such as lists, interviews, graphics, and bullets.
4. Employ visuals to break up text and add context to your discussion.

Personal Demo Websites

Another cool way to promote yourself and your skills is to create a personal website that doubles as a demonstration of your coding, design, illustration, or developer skills. These sites can be interactive and animated in a way that provides information about you and also shows hiring managers why they should work with you. This is a great website option for technical and artistic content creators such as developers, animators, UX designers, website content managers, and illustrators.

16. Albino Tonnina

Tonnina is showcasing advanced and complicated web development skills, but the images and storytelling methods he uses are simple and easy to understand. In the process, you get a demo of the depth of his animation and coding experience.

17. Robby Leonardi

Leonardi's incredible demo website uses animation and web development skills to turn his portfolio and resume into a video game for site visitors. The whimsical branding and unique way of sharing information ensure that his site is memorable to visitors.

18. Samuel Reed

Reed uses his page as a start-to-finish demo of how to code a website. His website starts as a blank white page and ends as a fully interactive site that visitors can watch him code themselves. The cool factor makes this website memorable, and it makes his skills extremely marketable.

19. Devon Stank

Stank's demo site does a great job of showing that he has the web design chops and it takes it a step further by telling visitors all about him, his agency, and his passions. It's the perfect balance of a demo and a mini-resume.

Plus, we love the video he includes as an intro. It's a consumable narrative that at once captures Stank's personality and credentials.

Best Practices for Demo Websites

1. Brand yourself and use consistent logos and colors to identify your name and your skills amongst the bevy of visuals.
2. Don't overwhelm your visitors with too many visuals at once -- especially if your demo is animated. Be sure to keep imagery easy to understand so visitors aren't bombarded when they visit your site.

Developing a Personal Website

Regardless of the type of personal website you're building, there's plenty of inspiration above on how to convey personality while connecting with your audience. Keep in the above tips in mind, remember to design for your audience's experience, and most importantly have fun.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in April 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Best Personal Websites: 19 Examples to Blow Your Mind was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns