Guide / cost
What drives the cost of a website.
Asking "how much does a website cost" is like asking "how much does a renovation cost" — until the scope is known, any number is invented. What is worth knowing is which factors move a quote up and down, so you can compare offers properly.
On this page
What raises the cost most
- Content: whether you write it or it is created together with the developer.
- The number of unique page layouts — not the number of pages. Twenty pages in one layout is less work than five in five.
- Features: bookings, payments, user accounts, integrations with systems you already run.
- Language versions — not a copy of the site but a second site to maintain.
- Migration from an existing site when URLs and positions must be preserved.
- Assets: photos, logo, brand identity — if they do not exist, someone has to create them.
What raises the cost unnecessarily
Pages added because they seem obligatory, which nobody later reads or updates. Elaborate admin panels for a company that changes content twice a year. And animations that impress in a presentation and then slow the site down on a phone.
The cost nobody mentions up front
Running it. Domain, hosting, certificate, backups, updates and small changes are recurring for as long as the site exists. A quote that is cheap at launch and silent about maintenance is usually not cheaper over three years.
How to compare quotes fairly
Ask every developer to break down the same items: design, build, content, migration, monthly care. Ask directly whose domain it will be and whether you get access. Very often the cheapest offer is cheap because it excludes half of that list.
Put it into practice
Compare the same scope
Before comparing totals, check whether both proposals answer the same questions. A blank is something to clarify, not automatically a flaw in the offer.
| Area | Question for the supplier | What should be agreed |
|---|---|---|
| Content | Who prepares and enters the copy and photographs? | Your material and the supplier's content work. |
| Design and features | Which distinct layouts and specific functions will be built? | Scope described through user tasks, not just a page count. |
| Revisions | When do I see the design and how do I give feedback? | Approval stages and the process for changes outside scope. |
| Migration | What happens to existing URLs, email and access? | Inventory, redirects, testing and responsibility for switching over. |
| Running costs | What do I pay after launch? | Domain, hosting and agreed care listed separately, including renewals. |
This is a quote comparison aid, not a price list or a ready-made package. The figure depends on the answers and agreed scope.
See an example scope and how the build differs from ongoing running costs.
Read the quotation processQuestions before we start
Why is there no price list with figures?
Because an honest number needs a known scope. Quoted without one it would either be padded for safety or unrealistically low. After a short conversation you get a concrete quote for your scope instead of a range.
Can a project be split into stages?
Yes, and often that is the best route: a solid, visible base first, then further pieces as needed.
Read next
What you need before ordering a website.
What to prepare before the first conversation so the project does not stall on gathering content.
WordPress or a custom build?
When a ready-made system helps, when it gets in the way, and how not to pick wrong for five years.
What does a website cost?
A free conversation, written scope and fixed price for agreed work. See cost drivers, an illustrative scope and separate website running costs.