How much does a website cost in the UK?

Many web design businesses offer completely different packages when it comes to website design, so the answer to how much a website costs can vary greatly.

 A very basic web design could cost you from £0 to £500, a mid-range from £500-£6,500 and you can even get agencies charging up to £20,000 and more.

The real question to ask when deciding how much to spend on website design for your business, is really: What do you want your website for? Depending on your answer, that will help inform you on how much you can expect to spend on your business website.

The very cheap or free website option

Many business owners don’t think about the fact that a website is a marketing tool and is the only place on the internet where you can really showcase what your business does for a relatively low cost. But when I say low cost, I don’t mean less than £500, cheap or even free. 

If you are serious about scaling your business a free or very cheap website will not work for you. It’s far too limiting as usually the website templates are built on platforms that don’t have the ability to scale with your business. They tend to be proprietary platforms that not many web designers work with, which will hinder you if you need to find a professional. Often, when you want to expand your website, the costs become expensive as designers don’t want to work on your site, and the platform it’s hosted on is proprietary and inadequate. By this time you’re more likely to stay with the platform you’ve chosen because at this point “you’ve gone this far already” (known as the sunk-cost fallacy). You end up with a website that doesn’t work for your business, and you cringe at the thought of people seeing it, which means you don’t promote it with pride which means no traffic and no clicks! 

I get it, you may be new to running a business and you’re not sure if your business model will work. My advice is to do your website research and choose a platform you know that you will be able to scale with when you are ready. I offer websites created with WordPress or Squarespace, and I find one of those two options usually works for my clients. When starting out, there’s nothing wrong with just having a main homepage and contact page – as I say, it’s really about starting with the right platform so you can be ready to scale when you’re ready to invest more into your business.

The low-end budget website

So, let’s talk about the low-budget end. For under £500 you should be able to get a basic website, and by this I mean a simple 5-page website. I don’t offer 5-page websites as I think, like free or cheap websites, they are very limiting for your business. 

Just think about it – a website structure needs to be carefully thought about. There are specific pages you ‘need’ your website to have. These are: 

• Homepage
• About page
• Contact page
• Privacy Notice
• Cookie Policy
• Website Terms of Use
• Accessibility statement

That’s 7 pages already and you haven’t even thought about these pages:

• Service pages
• Product pages
• Blog pages
• Portfolio/gallery pages

Why waste time with a basic 5-page website if it’s not going to get you enquiries from the start?

I get it though – you don’t have a repeat client base or enough money to invest in a larger website at the point you are in your business. Well, as I’ve said above, this is where you need to think of a platform that you know you can scale with when you are ready. WordPress and Squarespace are great options to look into, and there are plenty of web designers (like me) who use these platforms, so if you ever get stuck you should be able to find professional assistance relatively easily.

I do offer a lower-cost website option, which is specifically designed for business owners who want something to get started. For more information about this service, click here

The mid-range website design option

If the reason for your business website is to encourage visitors and customers to engage and contact you through your website, then you probably want to think about a more mid-range website designer. And guess what, that’s me!

My website costs range from £900+ depending on the platform (Squarespace or WordPress). These costs are approximate costs and are based on a small-sized business with a maximum of 3 people.

You see a website is actually your marketing tool, and having a website that not only you love, but also can be used as a marketing tool is a sure-fire way to scale your business. And that’s what you want right? Why else would you be looking for a website for your business?

“But I wasn’t expecting those costs…” I hear you say…

I know, it seems like a lot of money at first thinking, but let me explain what goes into your website design. It’s not simply going to be a website you love, it’s going to give you the opportunity to speak exclusively to your ideal customer.

If you choose to work with me you’ll have a website that you LOVE and reflects your business in your way. Overflowing with your personality, values, and flair, you’ll be eager to get as many eyeballs on it as possible!

My websites are bespoke, streamlined, effective, and easy to navigate, making it easy for visitors to convert into clients. They also ooze your unique YOU-ness.

To top it off you’ll have a website that:

• Works for you, not against you
• Converts visitors into clients with ease
• Will help you scale your business for maximum growth and impact

There are also a lot of behind-the-scenes things that need to be set up, as building a website to look good is actually only a small part of effective web design.

I remember speaking with one of my clients in person and she said “I definitely have got clients I wouldn’t normally have had because of my website, and the money I spent with you has definitely paid off. I”m really happy with my website”

And let’s not ignore the fact that a website is a marketing tool so if you use it like this, you will easily make back the money you’ve spent on its design. Plus you could end up charging more for your services.

A client I helped with some graphic design work gave me this testimonial “…The design was great, in keeping with our brand, stylish and professional. Because of this, we have been able to increase our pricing and offer different packages within our software. Not only has it helped our clients, but also improved our revenue…” and that’s exactly what you can apply to your website if you invest in the right person to help you with your website design.

The high-budget agency website design option

This is by far the most expensive web design option I’ve seen. Costs can be nearer the £20,000 mark and this is usually because you would be working with a team of employees, so naturally, the website design costs will be higher as they need to pay for their staff. You also find that within these agencies, they tend to focus on every element of web design, for example, writing the copy, regular SEO (which can be expensive), email management, eCommerce and handling big customer databases, the list goes on.

I would ask yourself, do you really need these services now? If you choose the right platform to start with as I’ve mentioned, and if in 5 years’ time you find you do need to scale this much, it will be much easier to move to a larger agency. But really, a lot of business owners I speak with don’t need this type of service. The high-end agency website design option is aimed at larger firms, rather than smaller 1-3 person-sized businesses.

Plus, choosing the lower-cost or mid-range web design option gives you the ability to decide when or if you want to invest in any additional service, like, copywriting, which can be purchased as a separate investment, as and when you are ready. So there’s no need to feel the pressure to go all in with a high-budget website if you don’t feel you’d use all the additional services.

The round-up

So, if you are a small service-based business owner ready to scale using your website, get in touch with me as I would love to help. I focus on helping business owners who have outgrown the free, very cheap or low-end budget website options, and are wanting a cost-effective, bespoke, streamlined, effective, and easy-to-navigate website, making it easy for visitors to convert into clients. Contact me today or book a free 30-minute Zoom call.