shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use Awwwards?

Website awards and curated gallery of winning web design - awwwards.com

Depends. Worth paying for only if you are a designer or agency whose clients recognize Awwwards badges; browsing the gallery is free. Skip it if you need a usable, conversion-focused site or broad business credibility — critics say awarded sites favor style over usability.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 20+ public sources; user review volume is thin (7 Trustpilot reviews), so ratings carry low statistical weight.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of useNo evidence in sources
  • Feature depthNo evidence in sources
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

~€75 one-time

Site submission

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly fees~€75
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes
User plansNot published in sources

Best for

  • Design agencies chasing credibility badges
  • Freelance designers building portfolio prestige
  • Designers hunting cutting-edge visual inspiration

Not for

  • SaaS or e-commerce teams needing conversion-focused, usable sites
  • Startups expecting an award to equal business credibility — it's a design-niche badge
  • Small businesses that just need a working website
  • Anyone expecting guaranteed ROI from submission fees

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

Submission fees (~€75) recur; agencies entering many sites pay repeatedly

medium

Prestige is design-circle-only; clients outside the niche may not recognize it

medium

Trustpilot shows 2.3/5; review volume tiny but negative

low

Paid user plans promise only 'dedicated email assistance' for support

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Large curated gallery of top web design for inspiration
  • Recognized badge agencies cite alongside Clutch and G2 awards
  • Juried evaluation system for submitted sites
  • Listed among the best free web design inspiration sources

Cons

  • 2.3/5 on Trustpilot from just 7 reviews
  • Awarded sites criticized as style over usability
  • HN critics call it 'not at all representative' of good design
  • ~€75 per submission with no guarantee of winning

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/20/2026 - 14 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x3review x6security x1news x4

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • ~€75 one-time

    Starting price

  • 14

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. ~€75 per submission, no win guarantee
  • Ease of use. No evidence in sources
  • Feature depth. No evidence in sources
  • Support quality: 2/5. 2.3/5 Trustpilot; email-only help on paid plans
  • Security posture: 2/5. No public security page found
  • 2.3/5 Trustpilot rating only 7 reviews
  • ~€75 Submission fee per website, per Reddit users
  • $494.4K Projected revenue per Crunchbase
  • Yes Free tier browsing and inspiration are free

Pricing

Site submission

~€75 one-time

  • Juried evaluation
  • Award eligibility (SOTD, honorable mentions)

User plans

Not published in sources

  • Dedicated email assistance

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

The design community respects Awwwards craft but is split, with many designers criticizing awarded sites as heavy, style-over-usability work.

“It's up to you if it's worth 75 eu”
Reddit, r/web_design
“Why do most designers hate websites featured on Awwwards? I dont understand why I like those websites a lot but some designers dont”
Quora
“Starting with Awwwards is a mistake.”
Hacker News

Companies that use it

  • Shopify
  • Jam3
  • Zensite
  • VALMAX
  • Digidop
Full analysis

Based on 20+ public sources; user review volume is thin (7 Trustpilot reviews), so ratings carry low statistical weight.

Free to browse for inspiration. Pay ~€75 per submission only if award badges help you win design clients.

Methodology

Based on 20+ public sources; user review volume is thin (7 Trustpilot reviews), so ratings carry low statistical weight.

Sources

  1. Trustpilot reviews of awwwards.comtrustpilot.com
    review
  2. Awwwards Submission — Reddit r/web_designreddit.com
    review
  3. Unpopular opinion: Awwwards sites — Reddit r/web_designreddit.com
    review
  4. Starting with Awwwards is a mistake — Hacker Newsnews.ycombinator.com
    review
  5. Why do most designers hate Awwwards sites? — Quoraquora.com
    review
  6. Awwwards Review: Criteria, Pricing, and Categorieswebdesignawards.io
    review
  7. Best Directory Websites — Awwwards as curated showcasedirectory-launch.com
    news
  8. 16 Best Web Design Inspiration Sites — colorlibcolorlib.com
    news
  9. Awwwards — Crunchbase financialscrunchbase.com
    news
  10. Awwwards — Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
    news
  11. Awwwards User Plansawwwards.com
    official
  12. Submit your websiteawwwards.com
    official
  13. Evaluation Systemawwwards.com
    official
  14. awwwards.com/security pageawwwards.com
    security

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