Part of our complete guide to website design & development.
Cost by type of site
- Landing page: ~$1,500–$5,000
- Simple marketing site: ~$3,000–$15,000
- Custom business site: ~$15,000–$40,000
- E-commerce store: ~$20,000–$75,000+
- Web app / portal: $40,000–$150,000+ (see the software cost calculator)
What actually drives the price
- Unique page templates — each one needs design, build and QA. Ten pages using three templates costs far less than ten bespoke layouts.
- Design approach — theme/template, custom design, or a full design system.
- Build/CMS — WordPress vs headless vs fully custom (compare them).
- Features — booking, membership, multilingual, integrations, e-commerce.
- Content — who writes the copy and migrates existing pages.
Get your number
Use the free Website Cost Calculator to get a range for your specific project in about 30 seconds.
Don’t forget ongoing costs
Hosting, domain, SSL, plugin/framework updates, backups and maintenance are modest next to the build but real — budget a care plan rather than letting the site rot.
How to budget sensibly
Give agencies a budget range in your RFP. It isn’t a weakness — it lets vendors right-size the solution and produces comparable, realistic bids instead of guesswork.
FAQ
How much does a small business website cost?
Usually $3,000-$15,000 for a simple marketing site; $15,000-$40,000 if the design and build are custom.
Why do website quotes vary so much?
Because scope does – page templates, design approach, CMS, features and who writes the content. A clear brief produces comparable quotes.
What are ongoing website costs?
Hosting, domain, SSL, updates, backups and maintenance – modest compared to the build, but budget for a care plan.
Is WordPress cheaper?
Usually yes for content sites, especially when hand-built without bloated page builders. Headless and custom stacks cost more but suit app-like products.