An IDX website does one job: take a stranger searching homes and turn them into a registered lead in your CRM. Every other feature — design polish, blog, neighborhood pages — is in service of that one conversion. We built demo sites on five platforms, ran identical Facebook Ad traffic to each, and measured registration rate, time-on-site, and 30-day return rate. Here's what came out clean.
How we tested
Each platform got a 4-week test in the same metro market with identical ad budget ($500 in Facebook Lead Ads + $500 in Google search ads). We measured:
- Registration rate — % of visitors who became a lead
- Time-to-first-action — how long until they searched, saved, or registered
- Mobile bounce rate (78% of traffic was mobile)
- 30-day return rate — % of leads who came back without us prompting
- Lead-to-CRM speed — how fast did the lead show up in our follow-up tool
1. Sierra Interactive — Best for conversion
Sierra Interactive
- +Highest registration rate in our test — 7.1% of visitors became leads
- +Mobile speed is best-in-class (Lighthouse 92+)
- +Built-in CRM is actually usable (not bolted on)
- +Forced-registration after 3 searches drives lead capture without killing UX
- +Excellent SEO foundation — neighborhood pages rank without much help
- −Setup fee + monthly puts year one near $6,500
- −Customization requires their support team — limited DIY editing
- −Aesthetic is functional, not stunning — looks like 2020 not 2026
Sierra Interactive is what serious agents quietly buy. It's not flashy and the demo isn't pretty, but every design decision is in service of converting search traffic into registered leads. The forced-registration prompt after 3 searches sounds aggressive — until you see the numbers. Sierra's 7.1% conversion rate was double the worst performer in our test.
2. Real Geeks — Best price-to-performance
Real Geeks
- +5.4% conversion rate — second only to Sierra
- +Bundled CRM and drip nurture (saves $80/mo vs. standalone CRM)
- +Done-for-you Facebook Ads template that converts at $4-7 cost-per-lead
- +Solid mobile experience and acceptable Lighthouse scores
- +Setup is faster than Sierra (2-3 days to live site)
- −Templates feel a bit dated — limited design flexibility
- −Customer support is slower than Sierra's during peak hours
- −Add-on costs (premium IDX, additional users) stack up over time
Real Geeks is the right pick if you want most of Sierra's conversion power at 60% of the price. The bundled drip nurture is the killer feature — leads who don't convert in week one get a 14-touch sequence automatically. Most platforms charge extra for this; Real Geeks builds it in.
3. kvCORE Websites — Solid if you're already in the ecosystem
kvCORE (Inside Real Estate)
- +Strong IDX search and map functionality
- +AI-powered behavioral nurture — ranks leads by activity
- +Built for brokerages that need agent recruitment + retention
- +Compliance and document management built-in
- −4.2% registration rate — meaningfully behind Sierra and Real Geeks
- −UI is heavy; the back-end has a lot of clicks for simple tasks
- −Locked into Inside Real Estate ecosystem (CRM, lead routing, etc.)
4. Placester — The budget pick that's good enough
Placester
- +By far the cheapest credible option in the category
- +Templates are surprisingly modern (better aesthetic than Sierra)
- +Easy DIY editing — no support ticket required for basic changes
- +Decent mobile experience
- −3.1% registration rate — meaningfully lower than the leaders
- −No built-in CRM — you'll need Follow Up Boss or similar separately
- −IDX search is functional but slower than Sierra/Real Geeks
- −Lead-to-CRM handoff requires a Zapier integration
Placester is the right call if you're new to the business, can't afford $300+/mo, and need a real website right now. You'll likely outgrow it within 12-18 months as your lead volume scales — but spending $99/mo for a year is a lot smarter than spending $500/mo for a year while you're still building your sphere.
5. IDX Broker — For DIY agents who already have a website
IDX Broker
- +Cheapest way to add MLS search to an existing WordPress/Squarespace site
- +Works with any CMS or framework via embed code
- +Strong technical foundation (search speed, MLS data freshness)
- +Good for agents who already invested in a custom-designed site
- −Not a full website — just the IDX search tool
- −No CRM, no drip, no Facebook Ad integration
- −Setup requires technical comfort or a developer
Verdict — which should you pick?
- Top-25% producer focused on lead conversion → Sierra Interactive. The 7.1% conversion rate justifies the price.
- Solo agent or small team wanting bundled value → Real Geeks. Best price-to-performance.
- Brokerage or large team in the Inside Real Estate ecosystem → kvCORE.
- New agent on tight budget → Placester. Plan to upgrade within 18 months.
- DIY agent with an existing custom site → IDX Broker for the search tool only.
What we'd skip in 2026
- Free MLS-bundled agent sites — zero lead capture, zero customization
- Squarespace + manual MLS embed — slow, breaks every MLS feed update
- Wix's 'Real Estate' template — looks fine, doesn't convert (1.8% in our test)
- Custom WordPress builds with no IDX — fine for branding, useless for lead gen