One of the most frequently asked questions by most of the offline businesses is: “How much does website design cost?”. If you are among them looking to know the cost to build a website for your business then you have landed on the right article where we will give you detailed information about website design pricing.
Well if you need the answer in short then the cost to build a website is very much dependent on the size of your business and the type of website, the number of pages, and the design you need in your website. However, it is important to understand every small detail of website design pricing so that when you hire a website design company you have every small detail about the price they are quoting.
In today’s tech-driven marketplace, having a website has become one of the most basic criteria to take one step toward online success. If you have already planned to build a new website for your business then you have made the right decision for your business as well as for customers.
The website design pricing is very much dependent on how much work is involved in creating the full website. The size and complexity of the site are considered to be the two main cost deciding factors. That means a 20 pages website with general customization is going to cost less than a custom-built website with more than 35+ pages with all the functions and features.
The website design and development industry is considered to be a vast industry where website design pricing is scattered across the board. That’s why before you make your decision it’s essential to understand the full cost of building a website.
In this web design pricing guide, we are going to walk you through some of the important points on how you can make use of this guide to identify which pricing structure suits your business and some key points to consider before making your successful purchase.
Table of Content:
- Importance of having a website
- What kind of website is right for your business?
- Two important factors to consider when deciding the website design pricing
- Five Different Website Design Choices (With Pricing)
- Tips to consider before making your final decision
- Conclusion
What is the importance of having a website?
Running an offline business in a competitive marketplace can be difficult. Today we see more offline businesses shutting down their functioning just because they are not able to reach their potential customers. To gain new customers it’s important for businesses to identify and understand where their potential customer’s hangout.
With the world diverting more toward online platforms it has become essential for businesses to have a website for their business. To survive and make your business successful in digital work you need to have a website. If your business does have a website then you might be losing lots of potential customers.
A website can play a vital role as it can be used to accomplish various marketing strategies to help you acquire new customers and grow your business. Having a website allows you to develop an online presence and establish credibility as a business. There are lots of advantages of having a website for your business let’s take a look at some of them:
- Having a website helps the user to find the answer to their questions (contact details, questions relates to product/services, and more)
- A website displays your reputation and communicates your card values
- Help you acquire new customers and capture new leads
- Increases trust and encourage potential customers to make the successful purchase
- Help you to make your product and services reach wider audiences
- Allows existing and new customers to make a successful purchase from your online store
- Showcase your existence
- Helps you to give detailed information about your product and services
What kind of website design pricing is right for your business?
Before we move ahead to identify “how much does it cost to build a website”. It’s important to identify what kind of website can be best for your business. Different businesses have different requirements, few may wish to have a standard website with less number of pages and others may need a fully functioning ecommerce website for their business.
So, regardless of the industry, your business belongs to it’s important to identify the website design pricing that is from a basic website to a fully functioning ecommerce website. In the beginning, you might need a basic website but if you have started with good backup support (well funded) then you may wish to have the best custom-coded website design for your business.
Either way, you are going to need a website so why not have a detailed idea about different types of websites that you can have for your running business. In the coming paragraph, we are going to give detailed information about each website design pricing. So let’s take look at a different type of website you can build for your business
Below we are going to give detailed information about each one of them with the pricing structure so that you are able to select the right one for your business. Once you successfully select the type of website right for business then it could become easy for you to understand the pricing structure as well.
Two Important Factors to consider when deciding the website design pricing
1. Scalable Website Design Pricing
The first and most important thing to consider when discussing the website design cost is scalability. No matter how attractive the design you are getting represented by a website design company the cost of the design should be scalable.
With hundreds and thousands of website design companies competing for getting design projects, it’s easy to find one that can offer you website design for $500 – $600. But the website design offered by them may not match your expectation and sometimes it may look worse than the website you could have made by yourself.
In short, we can say today the website design you get totally depends on what you are going to put in. So why not invest the amount more wisely in the right website design company that can help you get a triple or quadruple return on the amount your company invested in.
Below we are going to highlight three different pricing that will help you to identify what’s best for your business
The low website price: When we say low web design pricing then it commonly refers to a website that is built using templates (DIY) without the help of a professional designer. Most of the new beginners and newly started companies with less to no customer base prefer to create the website by themselves using free templates. These types of websites are functional but don’t offer an enhanced and attractive look to visitors that why small and medium level businesses prefer to go with a website design agency.
Medium level website price: If you are starting with a basic business model then DIY (do it yourself) is the best option to opt for. But as you see a surge in your traffic and conversion then you can start looking for web design professionals. In these criteria, we can include both freelancers and website design companies. Having a professional working for your website will enhance your website design and function for better results.
Earlier freelancers used to be the primary choice of every small business but with the increase in the forgery and lack of transparency, even small businesses started to take help of experienced website design companies. Apart from that, mid-cap businesses prefer website design agencies over freelancers because of the cost and quality offered by them. Yes compared to freelancer agencies could be a bit costlier but again “what you get in your website design is dependent on how much you put in”.
Expensive but worth each penny: From the word expensive you might have recognized the meaning and some of you might have thought of jumping onto the next paragraph. When it comes to website design pricing than hiring a highly experienced website design company can cost you between $10000 to $100000. These agencies are generally hired either by enterprise-level businesses or by well-funded companies. The website pricing might be high but the final product is great too. These types of websites are created after conducting market research and getting an in-depth understanding of potential customers.
2. Functionality & Features Over Appearance
When it comes to understanding aspects of web design cost, most businesses commit mistakes by keeping their first and sometimes last preference as the website looks. If you are among them then we recommend not to get confused with the website that looks good with websites that are actually good. Confused?
Let me explain, most people are attracted to website design and appearance but in reality, website functionality plays an essential role in the website design and development process. Functionality should always be preferred overlooks. That means before you decide how the website is going to appear or look. It’s important to understand what features and functionality we are going to add to make it the best website in terms of functionality and appearance.
So before you decide on the appearance of the website make sure you know the functions and features you need in the site. When it comes to website design, it encompasses a few fields like:
User Interface (UI): It is considered the most important aspect of website design that helps users to easily interact with your website and helps them to move around in the website and complete the task. Earlier we have mentioned that to create websites for enterprise-level businesses, website design companies carry out a lot of research. This is where the data from research comes into play. Understanding the potential customer behavior helps website [professionals create user-friendly interfaces that match site visitor expectations.
User Experience (UX): From the term user experience you can easily recognize that it tells about how users feel while interacting with the website. A confusing menu, website structure, and most importantly layout can frustrate users and drive them away from the website. An un-optimized user experience can also affect the search engine ranking. So UX is also an important aspect of website design.
Graphic Design: In website design graphics have a lot more to do as it can grab user attention and convert them to customers. Not only that but it also helps businesses and brands to display their personality and reputation in front of their potential customers. Allows users to communicate through different visuals like images, color scheme, typography, buttons, and more.
So while deciding the cost of the website design don’t limit yourself just to the look of the website but also focus on functionality. Instead of focusing on how your website should appear the first thing you need to focus on is what do you want it to do? The features and functions you want to have on your website.
Undoubtedly visuals are crucial for a website but only after you define the purpose and usability of the website. Once you know what you want, understanding, and deciding the cost of the website design will become easier. The interface, number of pages, features, and the design all combined make the website design pricing.
To have a website that performs well in every aspect that is from driving traffic to conversion, then focus on hiring a website design company that can offer your both attractive website design with all the necessary features and functionalities.
Five Different Website Design Choices (With Pricing)
Now that you have got a clear idea of what your website needs and some of the important factors to consider in website design pricing. Next, we are going to high three ways to get your website designed individually so that you are able to decide what’s best for your business. Remember the cost we are going to highlight may not include the cost of the host, maintenance, and other fees.
1. Basic Website ($50 – $2000)
From the name, you can recognize that these types of websites are either used by a small business or by a newly started business with less to no customer base. If you are someone who recently started with very tight budgets then you can also plan to have a basic website for your business. There are various platforms like WIX, wordpress, Squarespace, and more that come with all the features required to create a basic website for all types of business. But again a basic website can be categorized into two different pricing categories.
i. Do It Yourself website (DIY) ($50 – $400)
The DIY type of basic website is generally preferred by new bloggers and small businesses. Compared to other types of websites DIY websites are considered to be more effective, convenient, and most importantly, cost-effective for small businesses who recently planned to shift to online platforms. Apart from cost-effectiveness, another reason behind using DIY websites is due to the increase in the number of website building platforms like wordpress, Wix, square space, and more.
These website building platforms come with all the basic features required to build a fully functioning website. Among them, wordpress is the most popular and widely used free plugin where you can create a fully functioning website if you have the domain and hosting. But again between the price range ($50-$400), you will be able to create a basic website with less to no graphics and features. For that, you may need some technical knowledge or get help from outside.
DIY is meant for beginners who wish to have a website up and running for their business. To add extra features and design you need to access the codes. So if you find yourself a non-technical person then we recommend not to touch the coding part instead you can make use of free tools and services offered by them. Here are the basic costs that you need to pay before making your website live.
- Domain name ($3 – $400 / year)
- Hosting ($20 – $500 / year)
- SSL Certificate ($0 – $800 / year)
- CMS ($0 – $1000 / year)
- Website Maintenance ($200 – $1500 / year)
ii. Professionally built basic website ($2000 – $6000)
Today if a customer wishes to know about any product and services they directly search for it on the internet. The main goal behind having a website is to showcase detail about products and services (act as a brochure). If you are someone who wishes to have a basic website that comes with all the basic features and design that can be used to showcase products and services then you can get a professionally built basic website for your business.
Most of the existing small and mid-level businesses that are looking to make a good online presence and attract more customers prefer to go with the professionally built basic website. These types of basic websites generally contain a minimum of 8-10 pages and range between $2000 – $5000. The content inside these websites contains all the details about your business, products, team members, content details, and more.
To create a professionally looking website business either take the help of a developer or a small website design agency. If you are opting for one then make sure the backend interface post-delivery is easily accessible and you can add and manage the content on the product page and on the blog page.
Using a basic website you can perform all the marketing activities, showcase all the products and searches, and generate more leads for your business. Next, we are going to highlight why businesses with a good budget can either opt for template-based or custom-made website design.
2. Template Based Website ($4000 – $10000)
Today the template-based website is widely used by small and medium-sized businesses that are functioning with a good marketing and website design budget. WordPress is one of the popular and widely used CMS platforms that powers more than 25% of the website on the internet. It comes with hundreds of free and paid templates that allow businesses and companies to create a fully functioning website for their business.
But remember when it comes to customization templates have their own limitations. But using a WordPress backend you can edit your website design, logo, color scheme, and more. There are website design companies that can offer you a deal saying that they can implement the template-based design for $2000. But remember templates can be pre-built but still you need to do research and create a design that grabs user attention and meets their expectations.
So the pricing we have listed above includes the time for planning the design, structure, launch support, and more. The pricing is also calculated based on the number of hours it takes to build a fully functioning template-based website. But again if you are looking to create a research-based conversion-centric website for your business with more than 20+ pages and other landing page support then we recommend going with a custom-coded website design.
We are not saying that a template-based website is not right for businesses but when it comes to customization there is a limitation that stops developers, designers, and the company from creating and delivering the best website for the business.
3. Custom Coded Website ($12000 – $25000)
With the complication and various limitations in the template-based website, the business has started to focus more toward custom coded wordpress websites for their business. A custom-coded website is suitable more for medium and large-sized businesses that plan to create an attractive and conversion-centric website with a good budget in hand.
The website design pricing might look a bit high but the end product you get is worth spending each penny in the design and development process. Before implementing any design an experienced website design company has to do a lot of planning, research, consulting, and more to create a strategy for the design and development. If you still think the amount is high then remember businesses spend more than $40,000 in just making a tv commercial which will last for days and months.
But the website you are going to create for your business is going to last for years and it will also act as your online identity. So now the custom website design pricing may not look too expensive. To build a $15000+ website there are many people involved like the technical team, designing, team, developers, marketers (SEO experts), and more. Every team has a tighter deadline, more meetings, sharing their expertise, and more.
So, in the backend, there is a lot of work involved when creating a $15000+ custom website for any business working in any industry. Partnering with an experienced and reliable website design company can help you to get a revenue-generating website design that drives more traffic and conversions.
4. E-commerce websites ($25000 – $100000)
Ecommerce websites are best suited for businesses and companies that are planning to sell their product online. Setting up an ecommerce site is very much different from a blogging or standard website. To operate an eCommerce website business needs to have different functions and features for the front end as well as backend users.
Most of the business get surprised by seeing the pricing but it’s important to know that ecommerce website pricing is dependent on the features you want to have, design of the website and most importantly, number of pages. For each product, the business is going to need a separate page that should grab user attention and encourage them to purchase the product.
With the increase in the online shopping platform shoppers are getting habituated to accessing the best interface, design, and shopping experience. So, to meet their expectation you need to have an ecommerce website that offers a fast and easy shopping experience. Today’s shoppers need an optimized shopping experience from the website, if your ecommerce website is failing to offer the best experience then there are chances that you may end up losing new as well as existing customers.
When it comes to building an ecommerce website we always recommend you to hire the best and experienced ecommerce website design company. Partnering with the reliable and experienced ecommerce website design company will help to get access to their expertise that can be used to create a conversion-centric and revenue-generating website for your business.
5. Web Application ($20000 – $500000 Planning + Development)
The pricing of the web application is very much dependent on the requirement so quoting an exact range can be difficult but depending on our previous experience we are quoting a minimal range. The pricing of the web application can go up to millions of dollars There are many web applications in the market that take millions of dollars to develop.
The web application is something that can be accessed from anywhere from the web. Developing a custom web application requires a lot of planning and research so that users are able to access the interface of the web application. Turning an idea into a web application is a difficult process that requires a lot of time, expertise, and most importantly, budget. A custom web application can be large and small, sometimes a basic cost of a web application can start from $5000 as well. So before you come to any conclusion it’s recommended to get in touch with an experienced web application development company.
Tips to consider before making your final decision…….
Having a website for your business is one of the most crucial aspects to succeed in the online competitive marketplace. Above we have listed three different website design options that you can select depending on your budget. But before you make your final decision below we are listing some of the important tips that every business should consider to save their time as well as money.
1. Understand Requirement & Create Goals
By now you might have a clear idea about the website design pricing. Not only that but you might also be clear with what type of website you are going to need for your business. Every business has a big plan to have a website that dominates search engines and outperforms its competitors. You might be dreaming to have the same attractive design full of features and functionalities.
But before that we recommend you to identify your requirements and necessities so that you are able to make more wise decisions and most importantly save your time. Once you are aware of your website requirements then depending on that you can set goals. Having goals for your website will offer you more clarity about what type of website you are going to build for your business.
Remember the goal does not have limitations, it can go to any extent like having a website the same as Facebook, Amazon, and more. That’s why we have listed some important points that will help you to determine how you can set your goals using the below point:
- If you have a good budget in your hand then you can also prefer to build a high-end, research-based conversion-centric website for your business by hiring an experienced website design company.
- Technical skills for managing the backend. Whether you have an in-house developer or a person who has good knowledge of technical skills. If you don’t have any of them then your bank balance allows you to hire a website design agency who can do small changes in your website whenever you need one.
- Time for your website. Once the website gets delivered to you there should be someone who can dedicate their time to enhance the functionality.
If you don’t have time or tech-related knowledge and the budget to again hire a website design agency then post delivery managing your website can be tough. On the other hand, if you already know that you will not have any time for these then during the discussion phase you can ask your website design company to create a simple and user-friendly back-end interface that can be operated by any non-technical person.
2. Ask the right question before making the final decision
In the above paragraphs, we have already answered how much does website design costs (in-detail). But just knowing about the pricing will not help you to make your final decision. That is the reason why we are going to highlight some of the important questions that you can answer before making your final decision. Here are some questions to ask before you make your final decision:
i. What is my budget?
By going through all three you might be convinced to hire a website design company that can offer you a mo9re advanced website for your business. But it’s important to see whether it fits your budget or not. Your budget does not have to hold your business back from getting one of the best and highly lucrative website designs for your business.
But it should also not affect your business cash flow. If you think you are running tight on budget then you can always be frank with the company and sometimes negotiation also works out.
In website design and development there are basically two different costs involved
- The design and development cost
- The ongoing cost of maintenance
Most businesses think about the final cost involved in website design and development. But very few care about the post-delivery cost. WordPress is undoubtedly the cheaper option but again when the custom-made wordpress website is more effective than a normal template-based. Hiring a developer can be expensive but as we have explained above hiring a reliable website design company and getting your website built by them can bring more revenue and ROI to the table.
But remember website design costing shouldn’t nil you back balance because there are a lot of things that need to be done after getting your website delivered. So the best solution we would recommend is understanding the requirement like the total number of pages you need, features you want to include, and more to get a specific quote.
Make sure you are realistic when setting up your budget. Many times businesses assign a budget for website design but due to some mistake calculation goes wrong and in the midway of development you realize the budget needs to be cut in half. Don’t let yourself come across these situations.
ii. How am I going to manage my website post-delivery?
Most businesses think website design is the only process they need to focus on but the actual work starts after getting the website delivered. A wise person always makes a strategy for post-delivery so that they can focus more on getting business. So you need to determine whether you are going to manage the website by yourself, hire a professional for doing the work, or partner with the same website design company to focus more toward the work.
One of the advantages of managing a site on your own is that it allows you to make the changes instantly. You don’t have to convey the message to the developer and wait for them to make changes. You Can edit the website any time but make sure you know how to do it. Partnering with an experienced website design company will help you to create a user-friendly dashboard that can be used to make the basic changes in your website.
Mainly these types of dashboards are helpful for businesses who don’t have or plan to have an in-house developer in the future. No matter whether you are using a started website or a fully functioning ecommerce website these dashboards will allow you to make all the necessary changes in the content page and in the product page.
So, if your company doesn’t have to make changes to the website frequently then we recommend not to hire a developer or an agency. If you plan to hire an agency for a long time then you might have to pay ongoing fees. You can ask your website design company to build a dashboard for making those changes.
iii. What features am I going to need for now and in the future?
A wise person always takes their step with future plans. Earlier we have mentioned that before you make your final decision it’s always recommended to understand your requirement. But there is one thing you need to know, your requirement list may contain both simple and complex features that you wish to have in your website. Jumping directly into the complex features may bring more trouble.
Instead of focusing on building a complex website try developing simple websites that are easily accessible by any user. Make a list of features that you wish to include in your website and another list of features that you may need in the future. So you can divide your ideas into three different lists:
- List of features that you are going to need now to make your website up and running
- Make a list of feature that you wish to have in the future after your website starts grabbing an abundance of traffic and conversion
- What and all features it would be nice to have on the website.
Once you have the list of features then it will become easy for you to decide the most important feature you want to include on your website. After creating the list take a look at every feature and ask yourself how it is going to help your website and the visitors.
If you think there are chances that your website may not perform well if it doesn’t have those complex features then here is a thing without the complex feature your website can still perform well in the competitive marketplace. Try including all the features that help site visitors and make your website more navigational.
Can I handle the technical side of the website?
Once your website gets delivered to you then the most important question to answer is: are you going to assess the technical part on your own or need someone’s help in it? Most of the time website owners prefer to take help from outside because if something goes wrong in the technical part then it could affect in many ways.
Sometimes these technical problems can also result in slow website speed, rank fall, security-related issues, and more. So before getting your hands into the technical part it’s recommended to know whether you will be able to do it by yourself or not.
Conclusion:
By now I might have an in-depth idea of all the main website design pricing for different types of business ranging from a basic startup to an enterprise-level business. Depending on your business requirement you can select the right website design pricing that fits your budget. Remember the level of quality will differ depending on the type of pricing you select. So if you have a budget then never hesitate to spend money on getting the best website built for your business by hiring a highly experienced website design company for your business.