Best Durable Alternative for Agencies & Builders
A website that can't answer the phone is a brochure. SeldonFrame pairs the AI-generated site with an AI receptionist, CRM and booking calendar — $29/mo flat, unlimited workspaces.
Durable vs SeldonFrame: what you need to know
Most people looking for a Durable alternative hit the same wall: the site goes up in 30 seconds, and then the phone rings and nothing answers it. There's no AI voice at all — AI means a chat widget and content generation — the output is famously template-alike, users report domain-transfer friction, and the top plan caps at 5 businesses with no whitelabel layer, so agencies can't run a client book on it.
That's not to say Durable isn't impressive — it made instant websites real, the free tier is genuinely usable, and the pricing is refreshingly transparent. For a solo operator who just needs a web presence this week, it's a fine choice. But local service businesses don't lose jobs to a missing website nearly as often as they lose them to a missed call.
SeldonFrame vs Durable: features & pricing
A row-by-row breakdown of pricing, the AI receptionist, and the business system behind it.
| Features | Durable | ★ RecommendedSeldonFrame |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Solo operators who need a cheap site fast | Agencies & builders running AI front offices for clients |
| Pricing model | Free tier; ~$22–$95/mo; top plan capped at 5 businesses | $29/mo flat — unlimited workspaces, no per-feature add-ons |
| AI receptionist (calls, SMS, chat) | None — AI chat widget and content generation only, no phone answering | Native — AI receptionist answers, qualifies & books across voice, SMS & web chat |
| Website, CRM & booking behind the agent | Partial — site + light CRM + invoicing; no real booking calendar behind an agent | Included — multi-page website, CRM, booking calendar, intake forms, review requests in every workspace |
| Whitelabel & client workspaces | None — not built for agencies | Included — whitelabel client portal, per-client workspaces, custom domains, one-click multi-client deploy |
| AI usage costs | Bundled, capped by plan (messages/images per month) | BYOK — bring your own AI (and Twilio) keys and pay providers at raw cost, zero markup |
| Sell / resell what you build | No | Built in — publish agents to the marketplace or rent them via MCP (5% marketplace fee) |
Durable vs SeldonFrame: pros & cons
Durable
- +Site live in ~30 seconds — real low-friction magic
- +Usable free tier and transparent pricing
- +Website + light CRM + invoicing bundled cheap
- +Good enough web presence for a solo operator
- −No AI voice/phone answering at all
- −Template-alike output with limited differentiation
- −Reported domain-transfer friction
- −No agency whitelabel; top plan caps at 5 businesses
SeldonFrame
- +AI receptionist that answers calls, SMS and web chat — and books real jobs into a real calendar and CRM
- +The whole front office included: multi-page website, CRM, booking, intake forms, review automation
- +$29/mo flat with unlimited workspaces — BYOK means AI and telephony run at raw provider cost
- +Whitelabel built in: branded client portal, per-client workspaces, custom domains, one-click multi-client deploy
- +Build it free before you sign up — paste a URL, get the working workspace in ~3 minutes
- +Open core and portable — your agents are plain editable skill files, your data lives in your workspace
- −No funnel-builder or email-campaign suite — it's a front office, not a marketing automation platform
- −Bring-your-own-key setup (Claude/ChatGPT/Gemini + optional Twilio) takes a few minutes
- −Newer platform — smaller template ecosystem and community than decade-old incumbents
- −No native mobile app yet (the dashboard is mobile-responsive)
Why agencies & builders switch from Durable
The site answers its own phone
SeldonFrame generates the multi-page site AND the AI receptionist behind it — calls answered, leads qualified, jobs booked into a real calendar.
Built for a client book, not 5 businesses
Durable's top plan caps at 5 businesses with no whitelabel. SeldonFrame is unlimited client workspaces with a branded agency portal at $29/mo.
A CRM that closes the loop
Every call, chat, form fill and booking lands in the workspace CRM with follow-up automation — not a contact list bolted to a site builder.
Sites grounded in the real business
Paste the business's existing website or describe it — SeldonFrame extracts services, reviews and FAQs so the generated site (and the agent) speak the client's actual business.
Who should use Durable vs SeldonFrame
Durable is the better choice if…
- #1You just need a cheap simple website this week
- #2You're a solo operator with no call-answering need
- #3Invoicing + a contact list is enough back office
SeldonFrame is the better choice if…
- #1Your missed calls cost more than your missing website
- #2You want the site + receptionist + CRM + booking as one system
- #3You're an agency running many client sites under your brand
- #4You want the generated site grounded in the client's real services and reviews
To be fair: Choose Durable if you're a solo operator who only needs a simple website and invoicing this week, with no phone-answering or client-management needs.
How to switch from Durable to SeldonFrame
- 1
Build the replacement free (3 minutes)
Paste the business's website into seldonframe.com — SeldonFrame extracts services, FAQs and business facts and generates the workspace: site, CRM, booking calendar, intake and the AI agent. No account needed until you claim it.
- 2
Bring what matters over
Paste your Durable site's URL — SeldonFrame rebuilds the workspace from its content in ~3 minutes; move the domain over when it looks right.
- 3
Connect your keys and number
Add your AI key (Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini — ~30 seconds) and, for phone, connect your Twilio number so calls and missed-call text-back run at carrier cost.
- 4
Test the agent, then go live
Every agent ships with auto-evals; talk to it, watch it book into the calendar, then publish. Point your domain when the site's ready.
- 5
Run both in parallel for a week
Keep the old tool alive while SeldonFrame answers the phones. Cancel when the CRM shows the bookings landing — cancel-anytime on both sides means zero risk.
Frequently asked questions
Does SeldonFrame generate multi-page sites like Durable?
Yes — a full multi-page service site (services, service areas, reviews, booking, intake) generated from one conversation or a pasted URL, with a dark/light theme system and custom domains.
Can I move my existing Durable site over?
Paste its URL — SeldonFrame extracts the services, copy and business facts and rebuilds the workspace around them in about 3 minutes; you point the domain when you're ready.
How can SeldonFrame be $29/mo flat when competitors charge per minute or per credit?
Because you bring your own keys. Your agents run on your own AI provider key (Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini) and, for phone, your own Twilio account — so you pay providers at raw cost and SeldonFrame never resells tokens or minutes with a markup. The subscription is the platform, not a meter.
Do you take a cut of what I charge my clients?
SeldonFrame follows the same principle as Shopify: the platform is $29/mo flat, plus 2% on sales processed through SeldonFrame checkout, and 5% when you sell agents through the SeldonFrame marketplace. Client retainers you invoice outside SeldonFrame carry no fee at all.
How fast can I see it working?
Paste a business's website (or describe it in a sentence) and SeldonFrame builds the whole workspace — site, CRM, booking, intake and the AI agent — in about 3 minutes, free, before you ever sign up.
More comparisons
See your client's AI front office before you pay anything
Paste a business's website and SeldonFrame builds the site, CRM, booking calendar and AI receptionist in about 3 minutes — free, before you sign up. Then it's $29/mo flat for unlimited workspaces.