Let me guess. You’re thinking of building a website and looking for the right website-building platform, right? If that’s the case, you probably also want to financially prepare for it—that’s why you’re here.
Don’t worry, if done right, the benefits of having your own website outweigh the website costs. With a professional website, your brand can expand its reach, boost credibility, and seamlessly integrate marketing strategies to turn website visitors into loyal customers.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to website cost in 2024. In fact, there never has been. Website costs have varying factors, and if you’re not careful, you could easily go over your budget.
In this article, we’ll discuss a website’s critical components—pricing, value, and other fees you may need to prepare yourself for.
Let’s talk about the layout
To identify the factors that determine website development costs, we need to examine what makes a website. Before that, you should note that a website’s layout is heavily determined by its type.
Website Types
The most crucial step of web development is laying out the foundation of your website. What does your brand hope to achieve with your site?
Defining goals early on will help guide every decision you make moving forward. Even a basic website should be built with a clear purpose in mind. If you’re unsure about what that is, here are some of the most common types of websites.
Blogs
Blogs were among the most common website forms. They have a very simple and flexible layout and are the easiest to maintain and update.
Blogs share written, visual, and digital content about an individual or organization’s interests. Most monetization efforts for blogs are through PPCs or affiliate marketing.
Business/Corporate websites
Websites focused on entrepreneurial goals are classified as business or corporate websites. People usually confuse this with eCommerce sites. So, let’s set things straight. While eCommerce sites are designed to sell products, business websites focus on explaining how their services, products, or brands provide the best solutions to consumer needs.
eCommerce websites
If you want to build the ultimate shopping experience for your audience, an eCommerce website is the way to go. Although maintaining and setting up an eCommerce site requires far more effort than a regular website, it is an effective way to build a standout brand.
With its consumer-tailored products and services, an eCommerce website is an online store that can easily target consumers. The layout and flexibility of an eCommerce site also encourages users to engage and promote the brand.
One page vs multi-page websites
When building a website, adding more pages generally means higher costs because of the extra development time, features, and ongoing maintenance. That said, it doesn’t mean one option is better than the other. While a single-page site can save you money, it’s important to choose what works best for your needs.
Single-page websites are a popular choice for landing pages and smaller projects. They’re simple, engaging, and make it easy for users to scroll through all the information at once. This can be a great option for personal websites, portfolios, single-product pages, events, or small businesses.
However, single-page websites have their limits. Since you’re working with just one page, it can be tricky to expand in the future, and you might miss some SEO advantages that multi-page websites offer. Plus, while everything is on one page, it can feel a bit overwhelming for users if there’s too much content in one place.
On the flip side, multi-page websites let you organize your content across different pages, making it easier for users to navigate and interact with your site. It’s a great option for businesses that need more space to grow, even if it comes with higher costs and more complexity.
Other factors that contribute to website costs
Once you’ve identified what kind of website you want to make, you can start wireframing it. A wireframe is a skeletal outline of your website. It serves as the blueprint for your pages by setting and defining buttons, transitions, and the overall overview of your website.
With a wireframe, you can easily identify your website needs, such as the:
- Domain name registration
- Web hosting provider
- Website themes and design
- Add on and plugins.
- SSL certification
- On-going website maintenance costs
That said, let’s break down the other factors that contribute to website costs:
Domain name registration
A domain can make or break your website. Whether you choose a .com or a unique top-level domain (TLD), your domain is your primary identifier. It’s the first thing visitors see and how your audience remembers your brand.
Domains usually cost between $10 and $25/ month in their first year. However, a custom domain with popular keywords can cost even more, sometimes reaching thousands.
However, most websites work just fine with domains under $60. That said, the right domains are more about fit and relevance to your brand than just cost.
Can I create a domain outside a registrar?
Domains can only be purchased through a registrar, as they need a centralized system to ensure no one domain is the same. If you’re looking to save money on a yearly subscription, some web hosting providers offer free domain registration with their services.
Website Hosting
You can’t launch your website online without hosting services. A web host provider stores your website’s data and ensures it’s accessible to your users.
Whether you opt for traditional or cloud hosting, it’s important to find a provider that meets your website’s performance and security needs.
For budget-friendly options, work with a website builder that comes with hosting. However, if you decide to create your site independently or you build a WordPress site, you’ll need to pay for a web hosting company.
Depending on the hosting provider, you could be paying between $5 and $500/month. On average, though, most websites spend $100 – $500 a year on their hosting needs.
Can I do my own web hosting?
Self-hosting is certainly doable, but just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Beyond costs, the process itself can be quite complex.
Even with tech expertise, reaching a professional hosting provider’s security and performance level can be hard. If saving money is your goal, there are plenty of affordable hosting options to choose from, including:
shared hosting
As the name suggests, shared hosting means a server powers your site with other websites. This is why this option ranges at only $24-180 per year.
The downside is shared hosting makes sites more prone to performance issues during traffic spikes. Still, shared hosting is ideal for beginners and low-traffic, simple websites. With no server configuration requirements, shared hosting is also very easy to set up.
Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting
A Virtual Private Server (VPS) offers a dedicated server-like experience within a shared server. While you share the server with others, each user has exclusive resources, ensuring better performance and stability compared to shared hosting.
VPS web hosting costs between $960 and $6000/year, depending on whether you opt for managed or unmanaged services.
Cloud hosting
VPS and cloud hosting use virtualization, which leads to frequent confusion. While a VPS hosts clients on a single server with separate virtual accounts, a cloud host pools resources from multiple servers.
Both allow users to function independently, but cloud hosting offers greater stability, reliability, and performance, making it ideal for custom or professional websites.
This makes cloud hosting even more expensive, with costs ranging from $120 to $60,000 per year.
Dedicated hosting
Dedicated hosting provides a private, isolated server environment tailored to your needs. Its unmatched exclusivity, security, and customization make it a tempting web hosting service.
However, this may not be practical unless you expect high traffic or need to manage complex content. Since you’re assigned your own server, subscription fees for a dedicated hosting setup can exceed $100 per month, totaling more than $12,000 annually.
Website Theme and Design
Website builders offer themes between $0 and $200, making them popular with beginners. However, these pre-made themes often come with plugins and builders designed for them, potentially causing bloated, glitchy sites, when changes are made
If you’re designing your own business website, consider using a platform that handles the technical aspects for you. Many website builders offer drag-and-drop features for easier layout design. While doing it yourself can cost $0 to $300 per month, creating a wireframe beforehand helps reduce costs even when hiring professional web designers.
How much does a web designer charge?
Unless you’re working on a simple website, it’s best to leave your custom website in the capable hands of a professional web designer. Unfortunately, doing so can significantly increase your website costs.
An in-house web design team may charge a monthly fee of $4,000 to $7,500 or $50,000 to $91,000 annually, often including SEO and maintenance. Alternatively, freelancers charge $500 to $10,000 per project, and agencies can charge up to $10,000 per project.
Add-Ons and Plugins
When discussing website costs, you’re likely to come across terms like “add-ons” and “plugins.”
Add-ons are extra components that enhance software or platforms by adding new features or content. Plugins, however, are a specific type of add-on that integrates directly into a program to expand its functionality.
So, what’s the difference?
While both enhance the software, plugins extend the core capabilities, making them more complex to incorporate. In contrast, other add-ons, like browser extensions or game mods, work independently of the core software, making them easier to install.
Plugins and add-ons can both improve your website’s user experience and drive better traffic. Depending on their complexity and features, these tools cost between $0 and $500 per month.
Add-ons are sometimes essential and provide premium features to your site, particularly in eCommerce. Tools like special offers, wish lists, product recommendations, and chatbots can significantly boost your site’s eCommerce functionality. A small business website can also leverage advanced features like checkout plugins or contact forms to improve user experience.
Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate
A Secure Socket Layer (SSL) is a website security protocol that encrypts communication between a user and a web server. Websites with an SSL certificate show “https” in the browser.
But how do you know if you need an SSL certificate?
Any website handling personal information must secure an SSL certificate. This is especially crucial for sites that accept online payments to ensure data safety.
Many web builders and hosting services include free SSL certificates in their packages. While not mandatory, it’s wise to take advantage of this, especially since Google considers SSL certificates a ranking factor. Without it, search engines are less likely to index your site, leading to reduced traffic and potential revenue.
On average, an SSL certificate costs approximately $60 per year, but prices can range anywhere from $8 to $1000 annually. Several factors influence the price, including the number of domains, the validation process, warranty coverage, and the type of SSL certificate. Common types of SSL certificates include:
- Domain Validation (DV) SSL certificate
- Business Validation (DV) SSL certificate
- Extended Validation (DV) SSL certificate
On-going website maintenance
Just like other development costs, your website’s ongoing maintenance costs depend on the type and structure of your site. Website maintenance costs can range between $3,600 – $50,000 depending on size, complexity, number of pages, and functionality.
Whether you run a professional or small business website, keeping your website’s performance optimal is a must.
Can you conduct ongoing maintenance by yourself?
Technically, you could manage your website’s maintenance yourself. However, if your goal is to save on annual maintenance costs, it’s often more practical to hire a freelancer or, even better, a professional web developer.
Even for a small business website, investing in website maintenance is crucial. It covers many important areas, and you don’t want to overlook any of them. Ongoing maintenance includes:
- security, plugin, and theme updates
- Search engine optimization
- backup and disaster recovery
- performance and uptime monitoring
- accessibility and user testing
- support and maintenance plans
How can you save on website maintenance?
Conducting regular checkups is smart for your website and your wallet. However, if you want to reduce costs and simplify management, some website builders include free maintenance plans in their packages.
Website builder or web developer?
To answer the question, “How much does a website cost?”, you first need to consider your layout and decide who will build your site or where you want to build your site.
While it may seem straightforward, building a website isn’t as simple as choosing one option. There are many website builders, professional developers, and agencies to choose from. Before you do, let’s first explore the difference between the two.
What’s the difference?
A website builder is a user-friendly platform that lets anyone create websites quickly without the use of code, though some do offer the option to incorporate it.
With pre-set themes, templates, and drag-and-drop features, website builders are a fun and convenient choice. However, those seeking a more professional site often turn to web developers.
While working with a web developer is generally more expensive than using a website builder, it offers more comprehensive coverage.
If you’re building a small business site, a website builder might be enough, but hiring a professional developer is often the better option for an eCommerce website or online store.
How much does a website developer charge?
Freelance web designers or developers typically charge by the hour or per project, with costs ranging from $500 to $5,000 annually, though prices can exceed $250,000 depending on the project’s size and complexity.
Many small businesses prefer this route because freelance developers offer more flexibility and room for negotiation than developers associated with a web design agency.
Additionally, you can find freelance web developers who specialize in specific types of websites. They can help you add advanced features and effectively boost your site’s search rankings.
Of course, there’s no guarantee, and you might end up spending more time or money than you should. If it feels overwhelming, you can hire a professional developer.
Keep in mind, these rates reflect the cost of the developer’s expertise and time, not the website itself.
What about web builders?
Website costs in 2024 can burn a hole in your pocket, which is why many small businesses choose to create the site themselves and have a professional website developer fine-tune the details later.
It’s a smart strategy, but only some have the time for it. Still, using a website builder is a great way to cut costs while learning how your website works.
You’d be surprised how much you can save by using a website builder—many offers free hosting, domain registration, and maintenance as part of their packages. You can spend as little as $500 annually with a website builder covering plugins, themes, hosting, and an SSL certificate.
Website builders you can explore
With hundreds of website builders on the market, narrowing it down can be tough. Let me simplify the search for you. Here’s a list of some of the best website builders that you can try:
Web.com’s AI builder
Web.com provides a one-of-a kind AI Builder, for small business owners and forward-thinking individuals like you.
It makes website creation simple and hassle-free!
Web.com’s AI website builders is very budget friendly, with the first year’s website cost starting at just $4.95 – $13.95. You’ll also get a free domain when you subscribe to an annual plan.
Apart from being an affordable choice, Web.com offers highly competitive packages. The AI website builder is designed to be user-friendly. It’s so simple to use, and it feels like you’re building a website with your own personal assistant.
Explore all the features and tools with the free trial before making a decision. Experience it firsthand and find out if it’s the perfect fit for your needs.
WIX
Wix is a top choice for both beginners and professionals. Its user-friendly drag-and-drop interface offers over 900 professionally designed templates, making it easy to create stunning websites.
Wix’s AI-powered builder offers personalized suggestions based on your preferences, helping you create a tailored website effortlessly. Its built-in SEO tools come with an intuitive interface, making enhancing your site’s visibility simple. Pricing starts at $17 per month, and if you’re hesitant to commit, they provide a feature-limited free trial.
Squarespace
Squarespace could be your website builder if you’re looking for modern, customizable templates. In addition to its professional design, the platform’s well-organized backend ensures that most websites are mobile-friendly.
Squarespace also includes unlimited hosting, built-in security, SSL certificates, and 24/7 support, with plans starting at $16/month. Like Wix, Squarespace offers a free trial period to explore its platform.
Weebly
Weebly plans start at $10 per month, making it one of the most affordable website builders. What truly sets it apart, though, is its commitment to no intrusive ads, even on free sites.
Weebly also offers affordable eCommerce features, free SSL, and the ability to customize site elements using HTML and CSS.
While Weebly’s customization options are limited, they still provide great value. Users can build and expand their websites without restrictions with unlimited bandwidth, pages, and media support.
Overall, Weebly is a solid choice for those seeking simplicity and affordability.
Hostinger
Hostinger is a budget-friendly web hosting and website builder, making it a solid option for both beginners and professionals. Their custom-built HPanel is designed for ease of use and comes with a 99.99% uptime guarantee. Starting at just $2.99/month, Hostinger offers highly affordable plans.
While the basic plan has some limitations, such as one email account and no cPanel, users can still easily scale up as their needs grow. Overall, it’s a cost-effective solution for those seeking reliable hosting.
eCommerce websites
eCommerce websites are more complex than regular sites. The one easy part? Choosing a domain name. There are a lot of details to manage, from web hosting to design, themes, and plugins,
A good content management system (CMS) is also a must for an eCommerce store. While small businesses can benefit from a CMS, it’s essential for eCommerce stores to keep everything running smoothly, from search engine optimization and product listings to digital marketing strategies.
Why Invest in an eCommerce website?
eCommerce is booming! Shoppers love convenience, and an online store gives them just that. In fact, 60% of users go to online shops first when looking for products. It’s not just about prices anymore—customers connect with brands that match their values. Plus, they’ll love sharing your excellent brand with others!
How much does it cost?
On average, the total cost of building an eCommerce store ranges from $1,000 to $50,000, while ongoing maintenance can range between $500 and $10,000 annually.
While the price might seem steep, much of the investment is toward building a solid backend infrastructure. eCommerce stores also integrate plugins, add-ons, and other features necessary for a highly interactive, user-friendly, and secure shopping experience.
Digital marketing needs
While digital marketing isn’t technically part of the website building process, it’s an additional cost you’ll want to keep in mind for the future. In fact, it’s something you should consider as early as possible.
What does digital marketing have to do with your website?
The biggest indicator of your website’s success is the number of visitors and how they interact with it. How many clicks do you get? How often do visitors return? How many purchases do they make after visiting once or twice?
No matter the purpose of your website, all creators share a common goal: getting their message, products, or services across to users. Digital marketing plays a crucial role in achieving that. In fact, when you create your website, many add-ons and plugins are designed with this in mind
Here’s an estimate of what digital marketing is going to cost you down the line:
Digital marketing can be tricky and time-consuming. While you can handle it yourself, working with experts often leads to better results and can double your revenue. It’s a smart move if you’re new to website building.
Digital marketing agencies
One of the easiest ways to boost your SEO is by partnering with an agency. They can refine your content, design, and technical setup to drive more traffic. While they may not always build websites from the ground up, their focus is on optimizing your site for better visibility and performance in search rankings.
The role of Digital Marketing Agencies in your web development
Though optional at first, digital marketing services can be valuable as your business grows. Many website builders even offer these services alongside their development tools.
Digital marketing agencies can help you with their:
- Brand management
- Copywriting services
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Social media marketing
- Google Ads management
- Email and content marketing
- Conversion optimization and analytics tracking
- Account planning
Digital marketing covers a wide range of areas that you might overlook. Digital marketers are experts in analytics, and they know exactly which parts of your website need improvement. They help enhance user experience by making it more user-friendly. Whether it’s optimizing the layout, streamlining navigation, or tweaking content, their insights can boost your site’s performance and increase online visibility.
How much does it cost to hire a Digital Marketing Agency?
Marketing agencies are costly. They charge anywhere from $900 to $20,000 per month. Despite the high costs, many small businesses invest in digital marketing services to grow their online presence and stay competitive.
Choose Web.com’s pro services
Web.com’s pro services are designed to work alongside your business, offering expert guidance and valuable insights from start to finish. Instead of taking over, they help you improve what you’re already doing—offer strategic feedback and optimize every aspect of your online presence.
From your website’s design and content to backend operations and add-ons, Web.com’s pro services ensure your site performs at its best. All without compromising your brand’s identity or the results you’re aiming for.
Website Design
With Web.com’s DIY website builder, you can forget about complicated backends. The intuitive drag-and-drop templates make customization easy, giving you full control over your site’s design. As your business grows, professional design services are available to add custom features, ensuring your website evolves with your needs.
SEO
With pro services, all your SEO needs are covered—from keyword research to site improvements. Our experts enhance your search engine rankings with on- and off-page SEO.
By updating your site with relevant content and building authority through business directories and referral links, web.com’s professional SEO services keeps you ahead of the competition.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC)
A PPC campaign is a quick way to grow your brand, and with Web.com’s expert team, you can create strategies based on real-time data. Pro services help you stay on track with keyword research, results analysis, and personalized suggestions to improve your site and boost performance.
Business Directories
Keep your addresses, contact information, and other business details on point. Pro services automatically update your business information across major directories like Google My Business, Yelp, Yellow Pages, and Bing Places. This ensures your consumers always know where and how to find you, both online and offline.
So, how much does it cost to build a website?
Website costs can vary greatly, ranging from $500 to $140,000, depending on your project’s size, type, and complexity. While a standard website builder can help reduce expenses, the goal of this article is not to find the cheapest option but rather find the best that fits your needs and budget.
While using a builder can help cut costs, sometimes, hiring professionals is a more cost-effective option in the long run.
