How Do I Find Out Who Designed a Website?

To find out who designed a website, check the footer for designer credits, run a WHOIS lookup on the domain, inspect the HTML source code for meta tags, or use tools like BuiltWith and Wappalyzer to detect the technology stack and agency behind the site. Most websites leave visible or technical clues that point you straight to the web designer or website development company behind the project.

Have you ever landed on a beautifully designed website and thought, “Wow, I want something exactly like this”? Maybe it was a competitor’s site, a local business page, or a brand you admire. You’re not alone! This is one of the most common questions people ask before starting their own web design journey.

The good news? Finding out who designed a website is completely possible, and you don’t need to be a tech expert to do it. There are several reliable methods, from simple footer checks to AI website detection tools and technical source code analysis. Some approaches take less than a minute. Others dig a little deeper into a site’s structure and domain records.

This guide walks you through every method, step by step. By the end, you’ll know exactly how to track down the web designer or web design agency behind almost any site — and how to hire one for your own project!

Why Would You Want to Know Who Designed a Website?

There are plenty of great reasons to do a website designer lookup. Here are the most common ones:

• You love a website’s design and want to hire the same custom website design agency or developer
• You’re researching competitors to understand their digital strategy
• You’re verifying the credibility of a business before working with them
• You want to identify what technology platform, CMS, or website framework a site is built on
• You’re a web developer or designer doing industry and competitor research
• You want to find a website development company similar to the one behind a site you admire

All of these are completely legitimate reasons! So let’s get into the methods.

Method 1: Check the Website Footer for Designer Credits

This is always your first stop. Many web designers and agencies include a small credit link in the footer, something like “Designed by [Agency Name]” or “Built by [Developer Name].” It’s subtle, but it appears more often than you’d expect.

Scroll to the very bottom of the page you’re researching. Look for small text near the copyright notice, often in a lighter color. If there’s a linked credit, clicking it will take you straight to the designer’s site.

Not every site has this, especially larger brands that prefer a clean footer. For small business websites and newer sites, though, website footer credits are surprisingly common. It takes about ten seconds to check, so always start here!

Method 2: Use WHOIS and Domain Lookup Tools to Find Website Ownership

If the footer doesn’t reveal anything useful, a WHOIS lookup is your next move. WHOIS is a publicly available database that stores domain registration information, including the registrant’s name, email address, organization, and hosting provider.

Here’s how to run a domain lookup:

1. Visit ICANN WHOIS or any WHOIS lookup tool
2. Type in the domain name (e.g., example.com)
3. Review the registrant details in the results
   
   

Keep in mind that many website owners use domain privacy protection, which hides personal details. In that case, you’ll see the registrar’s information instead. Still, the registrar and hosting provider details can point you toward the website development agency or platform used. A DNS lookup can also be helpful for identifying hosting infrastructure, which often narrows down the type of developer behind the build.

WHOIS lookups are fast, free, and a solid way to confirm website ownership records — even if they don’t always name the designer directly.

Method 3: Inspect the HTML Source Code and Meta Tags

This sounds more technical than it actually is! Every website has source code, and that code sometimes contains comments, generator tags, or developer signatures that reveal the website creator. This kind of HTML inspection and source code analysis is a standard practice among digital marketers and developers.

Here’s how to do it in any browser using Chrome Developer Tools or the built-in View Source option:

1. Right-click anywhere on the webpage
2. Select “View Page Source” (or press Ctrl+U on Windows / Cmd+U on Mac)
3. Press Ctrl+F to search for keywords like “designer,” “developer,” “built by,” “created by,” or “generator”
   
   

For example, if a site is built on WordPress, you’ll often see: <meta name="generator" content="WordPress 6.x" />

This CMS detection tells you the platform used. From there, you can narrow down which type of website development company or freelancer built it. Some agencies also leave code comments like <!-- Designed by XYZ Agency -->. Simple, but surprisingly effective!

Method 4: Use AI Website Detection Tools Like BuiltWith and Wappalyzer

These tools work like x-ray machines for websites. They scan a URL and reveal the full website technology stack behind it, including the CMS, hosting platform, analytics tools, plugins, and sometimes the agency that built the site. This is what’s known as AI website analysis or a website technology checker in action.

BuiltWith is one of the most comprehensive website technology checker tools available. Just enter a domain name and BuiltWith generates a detailed report covering everything from the e-commerce platform to email marketing tools. It even provides historical data so you can see what a site was built with in previous years.

Wappalyzer works similarly but also offers a browser extension. Install it, visit any website, and click the Wappalyzer icon to see a full technology breakdown instantly.

BuiltWith vs Wappalyzer: Which Should You Use?

Both tools are excellent website framework checkers, but they serve slightly different purposes. BuiltWith is better for deep research and historical data, making it ideal for competitive analysis and identifying a website development company over time. Wappalyzer is faster for quick, on-the-go lookups thanks to its browser extension. For most people, using both gives the most complete picture.

Both tools are fantastic for identifying:

• Whether a site uses WordPress website design, Shopify website development, Squarespace, or a fully custom build
• The hosting provider and CDN used
• Third-party tools like CRM systems, chatbots, and live chat plugins
• Web frameworks and JavaScript libraries
  
  

If you’re trying to find a website developer, these AI website design tools give you the clearest picture of the technical choices made during development. That’s often a strong clue about the type of web design agency or freelancer responsible for the project.

Method 5: Use Google Search to Find the Website Creator

Sometimes a simple Google search is all it takes! This works especially well when the website belongs to a local business or niche brand.

Try these search queries:

• "[business name]" + "web design" + "designed by"
• "[domain name]" + "web designer"
• "[business name]" + site:agencyname.com

You can also search the business name alongside terms like “website development agency” or “who built.” Press releases, agency portfolio pages, and case studies often mention clients by name. Many professional web design agencies proudly showcase their work in public portfolios, which makes this approach surprisingly effective.

Additionally, Google’s cached page version sometimes contains older footer credits or meta information removed from the live site. This is a quick, free, and often overlooked website creator finder method.

Method 6: Use the Wayback Machine for Old Designer Credits

The Wayback Machine, hosted by the Internet Archive, stores snapshots of websites going back decades. If a website previously had designer credits in the footer or source code, those details are often preserved in an older archived version.

Here’s how to use it:

1. Go to web.archive.org
2. Enter the domain name in the search bar
3. Browse through historical snapshots
4. Look for older versions that may have visible credits or different footer content
   
   

This method is especially useful if a site recently went through website redesign services and the new version no longer includes designer attribution. The Wayback Machine often catches what the current site hides!

Method 7: Check the SSL Certificate for Organization Details

This is a lesser-known trick, but it can reveal useful information! Every secure website (HTTPS) has an SSL certificate, and that certificate sometimes contains the organization name that registered it. Checking SSL certificate information is a quick supporting step in your research.

To check:

1. Click the padlock icon in your browser’s address bar
2. Select “Certificate” or “Connection is secure,” then “Certificate is valid”
3. Look at the “Issued to” or “Subject” fields
   
   

If the certificate was issued to a company name rather than an individual, that organization is likely the business owner or the agency managing the site. It won’t always lead you directly to the designer, but it adds another valuable data point to your research.

Method 8: Use LinkedIn and Social Media to Identify the Web Design Agency

LinkedIn is a goldmine for this kind of research! Many web designers and agencies list the clients they’ve worked with directly on their profiles or company pages. This is a great way to identify the agency behind a website, especially when other methods haven’t been conclusive.

Try these approaches:

• Search LinkedIn for the business name and look at who’s connected to them with web design or development roles
• Search for “[company name] web designer” on LinkedIn
• Check the business’s own LinkedIn page and look at their technology or vendor tags
• Search Instagram or Behance for the company name alongside “web design” or “branding”
  
  

Many designers also tag their clients in portfolio posts on Instagram, Behance, or Dribbble. A quick search can surface a direct link to the designer’s profile and full portfolio.

Social media platforms are also great for finding “new website launch” posts, where businesses often credit the team that built it. It’s one of the most human ways to find out who made a website!

Who Designed My Competitor’s Website? Here’s How to Find Out

So you’ve spotted a competitor’s site and want to know exactly who built it. This is smart competitive research, and there’s nothing wrong with it! Here’s a focused strategy to get the answer quickly:

1. Start with the footer and source code for any visible credits
2. Run a BuiltWith or Wappalyzer scan to identify the CMS and hosting platform
3. Do a WHOIS lookup to find the domain registrant or registrar
4. Search Google using the business name alongside “web design” or “built by”
5. Check LinkedIn for employees or agencies connected to the brand
6. Look at the Wayback Machine for older versions with visible credits

Combining two or three of these methods almost always surfaces the answer. For example, knowing a site uses WordPress website design with a specific premium theme quickly narrows down which agencies or freelancers specialize in that niche.

Understanding the website designer vs developer distinction also matters here. A developer builds the backend and functionality; a designer handles the visual and UX side. Many agencies, especially full-service graphic and web design agencies, handle both. And if you’re weighing agency vs freelancer web design options, our guide on how to choose a web design company is a great starting point.

Website Builder vs Custom Website: What’s the Difference?

When you identify a site’s technology stack, you’ll often find it was built using either a website builder (like Wix or Squarespace) or through custom website development. Understanding this distinction helps you know what kind of designer or company to approach.

Website builders are template-based, fast, and affordable. Custom websites are built from scratch, fully tailored to a brand’s goals, and typically deliver better performance, SEO results, and scalability. If the site you admire is custom-built, you’ll want to look for a custom website design agency rather than a template designer.

For more on this, check out our post on affordable web design vs cheap web design to understand the difference in quality and investment.

AI SEO and Answer Engine Optimization: How This Article Was Built to Be Found

You may have noticed that this article is structured to answer your questions directly at the top. That’s intentional! Modern search engines, including Google AI Overviews and AI tools like ChatGPT, are built to surface content that directly answers specific questions. This approach is known as Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) or GEO SEO (Generative Engine Optimization).

AI-powered search optimization means writing content that’s clear, structured, and factually grounded so that AI models can extract and cite it accurately. Including a quick answer, using subheadings as questions, and covering related tools and comparisons all contribute to AI citability and visibility in AI search.

Whether you’re building a website for AI search optimization or traditional Google rankings, SEO-friendly web design is a critical part of the foundation. It ensures your site gets found, however your audience is searching.

Want a Website Like That? How to Hire a Web Designer

Once you’ve found the designer behind a website you love, you have a few options. You can reach out to that specific agency, or you can use what you’ve learned to find a similar professional who fits your budget and location.

Here’s what to look for when hiring a web design agency or professional website designer:

• A strong portfolio with projects similar to what you want
• Clear communication and a structured design process
• Experience with your industry or business type
• SEO-friendly design practices built into every project, including responsive website design and strong UX/UI design services
• Website maintenance services and ongoing support after launch
  
  

At ImageDpi Graphics, we design custom, high-performance websites for businesses across Virginia, Maryland, and beyond. Our team has completed 500+ projects and is trusted by businesses from Alexandria to New York. We offer professional website design services tailored to your brand, budget, and goals — whether you need business website development, ecommerce website design, landing page design, or a full website redesign.

We proudly serve clients looking for a local website design company near them, including in Alexandria, Arlington, Maryland, Baltimore, Gainesville, Manassas, Reston, Virginia, Washington DC, and New York.

Not sure if your current site needs a refresh? Read our post on 10 signs your website needs a redesign to find out. And for the latest in the industry, our top web design trends to watch in 2025 breakdown is a great read before your next project.

Ready to Build a Website Worth Investigating?

Finding out who designed a website is genuinely easier than most people expect. Start with the footer, run a source code analysis, use a website technology checker like BuiltWith or Wappalyzer, and search social media. Combine two or three of these methods and you’ll have your answer in minutes.

But here’s the real takeaway: knowing who built a great website is only useful if you act on it. If you’ve been inspired by what you’ve seen and want a website that makes others ask “who designed that?” — this is the right time to start.

At ImageDpi Graphics, we build websites that get noticed. Our approach combines SEO-friendly design, strong UI UX design services, and fully responsive website design to create sites that look stunning and perform even better. Visit us on Google Maps or book a free consultation to get started today!

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