Template Builder vs. Sitefinity Layout Editor, differences?

I'm trying to understand what the Template Builder is for. Typically I create a site in Sitefinity by creating 1 or more master files to use as my base templates, and then using the Sitefinity Layout Editor to create nested templates using those base templates.

However, I see that there is a separate Template Builder. How is the template builder different than the layout editor, and when might it be useful? Is the template builder just an alternative to hand coding the master files?

Hello Jennifer,

Thank you for using our service. 

Template builder is an easy way to create powerful templates and you don't need to know CSS or HTML in order to create your template. You can easily add some styling, e.g. background images, set color,  text heading, etc. The output of Template builder is a master page with style sheet files and images that template requires. In order to use generated template you have to import it in Sitefinity. This is done with Template Import module, which is available with Sitefinity SDK.

The layout editor is built in Sitefinity. In order to set some styling (font, coloring, etc.) to the template you have to set an already registered theme in Sitefinity.

Here are two link regarding Template builder and Layout editor. Hope they will be helpful.

Template Builder:
http://www.sitefinity.com/resources/tools/template-builder

Layout Editor:
http://www.sitefinity.com/documentation/documentationarticles/designer-s-guide/page-templates/creating-a-template-using-the-layout-editor