The Best Websites for an Online Portfolio

Editor's Note: Artisan has published multiple updates to this blog. See here for portfolio resources:

• Best Platforms to Build Your Portfolio
• Top 6 Design Portfolio Trends
• Ways to Refresh Your Portfolio (Without Going Crazy)
• Why You Should Have Case Studies in Your Portfolio
• Create a Design Portfolio Employers Will Love

A question our recruiters are often asked is "Should I have an online portfolio?" The answer is a resounding - YES! Regardless of your profession, you should have an online portfolio.

Employers are interested in what you have to say, what you’ve designed, and what your skills are. If you were born to create, you need to share those skills with potential employers. The best way to get the good word out is to put your portfolio online. If you don’t have a lot of time or money, there are many free sites where you can be up and running with an online portfolio in an hour or less. For employers, these sites are talent-rich with graphic designers and content writers.

Free Online Portfolio Sites

We wanted to share some of our favorites. Let’s start with the freebies:

• Coroflot - Founded in 1998, it hosts more than 1.4 million creative portfolios. They have a job board and an easy search tool by type of talent.
• Behance Network – Launched in 2006, it has millions of page views a month. Interesting features include an activity feed, groups and collections. You can look for talent in many ways – even by the types of graphics tools they use.
• Contently – We like Contently’s simplicity. If you’re a content writer, you can be up and running in 30 minutes. Writers and employers can be a part of Contently’s freelance job marketplace.
• Wix – 50 million users can’t be wrong. The website templates are cool and the site is easy to navigate. There are paid plans available that include a unique domain name.

Paid Online Portfolio Sites

Paid sites include a variety of subscription options, including high-end web site templates, social media integration, analytics, domain names and much more. Two favorites are:

• Journo Portfolio – Join for free, but paid subscriptions start at $10/month and add real value, including social media integration. Thousands of journalists, writers and bloggers use this site every month.
• Squarespace –The site features all kinds of creative talent. They have a cool new feature called Cover Pages for when you don’t need a full web site and just a single page will do.

As an agency specializing in creative talent, we’ve seen thousands of portfolios. No matter what your specialty, if you’ve got the talent, and a fresh, online portfolio, we’d love to see it. If you’re a business looking for talent, or talent looking for a home, we’re just a phone call away: Call us today!