How much does a website cost?

10 things to know before asking your web designer.

By Arlene G-Perez | February 1, 2024

The cost of a website can vary depending on a multitude of things. Yet people often ask me… How much does it cost to build a small website? My response is always the same, “it depends…What are you willing to sacrifice?”

How much do template websites cost?

There are cheap template-based websites and there are custom built websites. Neither are small, but if what you need is cost effective, there are a few things to consider.

Not all websites are built the same, so it is important to ask your web designer the right questions. For example, you will find that some web designers and even website agencies, offer template-based websites which are cheaper and faster to build. There is a downside however, these types of websites are highly vulnerable to attacks and are limited in functionality and visual customization. These sites also often experience heavy load times, occasional glitches, and the templates used almost always, have an expiration date they fail to tell you about. Most people looking for a cheap solution go this route. Template based websites go for as little as $300 per site and what you pay is basically what you should expect to get.

I often ask this question…

Would you set up your business at the end of a dark alley where no one can find you or are scared to do business with you, …Or would you pay for a proper location so that your business can flourish? Online is no different, and how you represent your business online tells your visitors or prospects everything they need to know about your business.

How much do custom websites cost?

Custom website builds are websites built from the ground up, usually by a professional web developer. They are more precise and cater to branding, while are more visually appealing and professionally driven. These websites are designed with user experience in mind, while also offering On-site SEO and webpage optimization, which ensure your website looks good across multiple platforms and ranks higher on search engines like Bing and Google. The downside is that they cost more than template websites.

However, to determine cost, your website designer needs to know these 10 key things about what you want in order to provide you with an estimate…

1. Do you need a new website or a re-design?

Most people need or ask for a new website, but on occasions, I get asked to perform updates on a website that is falling apart due to expired templates or errors in the code used to build the website in the first place. Depending on how a website is built, I may recommend a simple update or a whole new web design. The first step, is to find out what type of website you have. If you don’t know, your web designer can help you determine this.

Important Note: Web designers and/or developers will charge you more hourly to update a broken website than to build a new one. If you built your website yourself or had it done for a couple of dollars, expect to pay between $75 to $150 per hour if not more for updating a problematic website. Sometimes it is cheaper and more cost effective to start fresh.

2. How many pages does your site have or will your website require?

Website pages are the same thing as images, tabs or links that when clicked on, take you to a new location on your website. For example, your home or landing page is one page, your contacts page is another page, and you may have a service page or several depending on your level of services, and so on. I determine cost by the number of pages I have to design, build, customize, and optimize for. You can find more information on cost breakdowns here.

3. Will you need a domain (.com) or hosting services?

Most people that ask for a website are surprised to find out that the cost for maintaining a website live is always ongoing.

For example, your domain or .com is paid for yearly and usually runs at an average of $12 to $20 per year depending on where you purchase it through. This is a cost that will remain for the life of your website, regardless of the designer, the type of website build, etc. Furthermore, if you fail to pay it before the grace period at the end of the year term, it can result in a loss of your .com permanently. This is because if not paid within the allotted time, the registry has the right to resale it to the public.

Note: I always recommend putting this on auto pay whenever possible.

A Hosting service provider is another ongoing expense, independent of the website build, that you need to be aware of. A Hosting service provider is a company that rents you space online to upload your website files, photos, and content, so that it can be displayed to website visitors. It can also provide a ton of other benefits but providing storage space online for your site is its primary purpose. Hosting services vary in cost by level of services offered, but you can often find a good one between $10 to $15 per month. I always recommend that my clients checkout A2hosting, as they are pretty reliable and I personally use them for all of my business websites, including this one. Same as with domains, not paying your hosting company can result in loss of your website files which if not kept backed up regularly can also be lost permanently.

Recommendation: Talk to your web designer about maintenance plans that involve backing up your website and keeping up with when these payments are due.

4. Will you be providing your own written content for each page?

Almost every website client I’ve had has said yes to this question. Writing your own content is a good thing because no one knows your business better than you. However, not everyone is a professional writer and website content has a purpose that goes beyond answering simple questions. For example, It can help your website pages rank higher, it can help you sell products and/or services, and it can help visitors find what they are looking for, in addition to, raising your Domain Authority with Google.

It is important to point out to some readers, that copying content from other websites and asking your web designer to rewrite the content for you, is not the same thing as providing your own content. I know… but you’d be surprised how often i get asked to do this, so I deemed it worth mentioning.

5. Do you have or need a website logo?

A logo has to do with your company’s branding and while it is used on the website, it is not part of the website cost or build. Always ask your web designer for a logo estimate if you don’t have one. Many times, your designer may offer a reduced logo rate in combination with a new website project.

6. Will you sell products on your website? If so, approximately, how many?

If your answer is yes, your website is considered an e-commerce website build and the website cost will depend on the merchant or payment system integration, amount of products sold, website additions and per product page build outs, etc. Be prepared to answer questions about the amount and type of products you sell.

7. Do you need a website blog added?

Website blogs are great for adding new content information to your website and driving in website traffic. They also help you rank higher by allowing you to build content around keywords you want to rank for. However, I only recommend adding this if you intend to write articles or blogs for your website. Adding a blog and not using it makes your website look incomplete.

8. Do you need a gallery? If so, how many photos do you want to displayed?

Photos need to be sized properly and optimized for your website. Uploading photos “as is” would result in pages loading extremely slow or not at all. Because all gallery photos need to be altered as a result, the number of photos you have under a gallery can also increase website costs.

9. Do you require additional SEO setup, such as on-site Analytics, or a Google Business page setup?

Depending on whether you plan to do off-site SEO or not, you may need to have website analytics installed for tracking visitors to your website. You may also want or need help setting up a Google business page and connecting it to your website for tracking. These services are in addition to a website build and not all web designers provide them. It is important to ask about this if this is something you want Included.

10. Do you need any 3rd party integrations or other special features on your website, such as, payment options, chat bots, call to action popups, etc.?

Last, are all the additions you would like to add to your website. This includes payment systems, special website features, custom or interactive forms, video editing, animations, chat bots, CRM integrations, call to actions, pop ups, and more. Some may be included with the site build and others may have added expenses involved. It is important that when making decisions of what type of website build you would like, that you ask questions and look for a web design professional that can cover all of your website requirements or wants.

In conclusion: As a web designer and web developer with integrity and experience, I thrive in providing higher quality websites while operating in honesty, transparency and trust with all of my clients. Unfortunately, there are designers that will take your money, give you what you think you asked for and walk away without ever telling you what they did or didn’t do for you.

“Don’t be afraid to ask questions, if your web designer takes the time to listen, they will also take the time to build you what you are looking for.”

I hope this helps. Until next time…
Arlene G-Perez

Master design specialist & web developer with over 19 years of experience

For help on how you can have a top-rated website, contact Designerfox today at (786) 344-2078 or click here to schedule a free On-site SEO consult.