Rentry V.S. Toyhouse V.S. Carrd V.S. Strawpage V.S. Neocities: When should I be using what?

So you’ve got a character. Or an OC. Or a hyperfixation that needs a website. Or maybe you want to talk about yourself, because who doesn’t? You look up the Internet for some choices.

But what you get is… Rentry, Toyhouse, Carrd, Strawpage, Neocities. All different, yet similar? AHH! What do I do?!

Not to fret! Obviously, I’ve been on all of these platforms for quite a while now, so I do have a bit of insight on their main differences.

Quick Summary (For the impatient)

Rentry: The fast and furious– I mean, functional

What it is: A pastebin alternative that somehow became THE place for mini intros.

Best for:

• Quick profiles you need to share now!!!! (you can claim a URL very easily, and start editing right away!)
• Info dumps that need to look decent
• Temporary or experimental layouts

Pros:

• Dead simple to use. Write markdown, paste, done.
• Custom CSS works (with limitations)
• No account needed to view
• Perfect for sharing in Discord servers

Cons:

• Limited customization compared to full sites
• Not great for multiple pages, since you’ll have to claim more URLs
• Can feel a bit “temporary”. You might need to edit your Rentry at least once a year so your URL is not up for grabs…

When to choose Rentry:

You need to share a profile in the next five minutes and you want it to look better than a plain text doc.

Note: I’ve seen a lot of very pretty layouts. However, you do need to work with Metadata a lot, which might have a learning curve.

Toyhouse: The Social OC Hub

What it is: A dedicated platform for original characters. Part gallery, part social network, part wiki.

Best for:

• Managing multiple OCs in one place
• Connecting with other character creators
• Hosting art and lore together
• Finding inspiration from other people’s OCs

Pros:

• Built for OCs specifically
• Robust profile system (custom fields, galleries, etc.)
• Strong community features
• Code customisation available

Cons:

• Invite-only registration (you need a code)
• Custom CSS is limited to profile pages
• Can feel cluttered
• Does not allow original characters based on existing characters (like kinsonas, if you know what those are)

When to choose Toyhouse:

You have multiple OCs, you want community features, and you don’t need full design freedom, just a simple database of all of your characters. (Granted, that you get a code from someone to make an account in the first place, of course.)

Carrd: The Sleek One-Pager

What it is: A simple platform for single-page sites. Extremely popular for link-in-bio, portfolios, and landing pages.

Best for:

• Link hubs (linktree alternative)
• Simple portfolios
• Commission info pages
• Wedding invites (seriously)
• Character landing pages

Pros:

• Beautiful templates out of the box
• Actually works on mobile (rare!)
• Pro version is cheap and powerful
• Custom domains supported

Cons:

• One page only (unless you get fancy with hidden sections)
• Limited to Carrd’s framework
• Less “web revival” energy

When to choose Carrd: You need a clean, mobile-friendly page fast and you don’t need multiple pages or heavy customization.

Strawpage: The New Kid

What it is: A newer, ultra-casual site builder that exploded in certain fandom spaces, especially Twitter. (There’s a Twitter account dedicated to cool layouts, but funnily enough, there’s one about the exact opposite)

Best for:

• Fun and chaotic personal pages
• Interactive elements (the “gimmicks” people love, especially sending drawings and messages)
• Mobile-first editing (allegedly)
• Expressing yourself without caring about polish

Pros:

• Freeform drag-and-drop interface
• “Gimmicks” (interactive widgets) are fun
• Very popular in specific communities right now
• No coding required

Cons:

• Janky to some (it appears making layouts is very inconvenient for some)
• Paywalled features (number of sites published, number of pages, branding removal, custom error page, etc. You can check them out here.)
• Sites often break when switching between devices, especially with different screen sizes
• Subscription-based fee for premium features

When to choose Strawpage: You’re in a community where everyone uses it and you just need to fit in. Or you really, really love those interactive gimmicks and don’t care that your site breaks on half your viewers’ devices. (All power to you, I have my own, the gimmicks are fun, and espcially useful for people who want to interact with their audience!)

Neocities: The Creative Playground

What it is: A Geocities revival! Free web hosting with total creative freedom.

Best for:

• Full character shrines
• Personal websites
• Art projects
• Actually learning web design
• Being part of the web revival movement

Pros:

• Total creative control. HTML, CSS, JavaScript, do whatever.
• Free tier is quite generous
• Amazing community of weirdos and creatives
• Your space is YOUR space
• Can host multiple pages, assets, anything

Cons:

• …Total creative control. HTML, CSS, JavaScript, do whatever.
• You have to actually build it (or commission someone wink)
• By far the steepest leaerning curve
• No built-in templates (though you can steal—ahem, borrow—from other sites with permission)
• Mobile responsiveness is your problem now! :)
• Limited storage of space for free tier (1 GB, though you can technically circumvent this by hotlinking files…)

When to choose Neocities: You want something UNIQUE!! You want a real website, not a profile on someone else’s platform.

The truth… you probably need multiple, lol

Here’s the thing… most people use a combination. Especially artists.

Common setup:

• Neocities for shrines and blogs
• Toyhouse for OC management and commission inquiries
• Rentry for quick shareable profiles / links
• Strawpage for community engagement
• Carrd for commission info or a simple landing page

It’s not really a one-size-fits-all for any of them.

My Personal Take

To be honest, all of them could technically do the same thing. But ultimately what matters most is:

• What’s most comfortable for you to use
• What do you want it to actually look like
• What do you need out of it

Because, at the end of the day, there are things that some platforms can do a lot easier than the rest. For instance, it’s a lot harder to build all the gimmicks you see on Strawpage on Neocities, and practically impossible to do on Rentry, Carrd, and Toyhouse.

So, maybe think about it a little. Maybe plan it out. What do you want your audience to see, both content-wise and visually?

Still Confused?

Drop a comment or DM me! I’m always happy to help.

Or, you know… Just commission me and I’ll build it wherever you want. #ShamelessSelfPromo