How Much Should a Website Cost?

Pricing for websites is one of the first questions for every business owner, and the answer is never what people like to hear: it depends. That's like asking how much a custom tailored suit would cost without giving the measurements or the type of fabric you want. Unfortunately, there isn't a straight forward answer. But, I can give you things to keep in mind when trying to price out a web design project.

1. Not only do you need a website, you need a well-designed website that will perform well on mobile, desktop, and tablets.
2. Website design is not a product it is a service. That service will vary from company to company so it is all about your preferences and your budget. But keep in mind, you typically get what you pay for so vet the company!
3. Building a website takes planning, redrafting, and a lot of effort!

Keeping those three things in mind, let's talk about how websites can be priced. You can either pay a fixed rate or an hourly rate (this will typically range anywhere from $25-$150 an hour depending on the experience of the designer). The fixed rate price will also vary depending on the experience of the designer(s).

Still not exactly a concrete answer on what to expect for pricing, but here is what to expect service-wise for a basic website. A basic website will act primarily as an online brochure to answer your general questions like “do you exist?”, “are you professional?” and “what do you do?” Here is what will go into creating the most basic website:

Planning
There will obviously need to be content answering the general questions. What is the best way to clearly express who you are and what you do? What are the keywords you should be using on your website to rank for search engines? What color scheme do you want on your site? What graphics do you plan to use? How about any videos? What is the best layout for your website? Will you use a template or do you want something custom? Etc.

Domain Name and Hosting
A domain costs $10 a year and hosting can be anywhere from $10-$100 depending on which hosting service you use.

Images, Video, and Graphics
You can get stock images and video for anywhere between $10-$100. However, custom images and video are preferable as they showcase you as the expert (which is kind of the whole point!) Custom photography and video may be more expensive, but it is worth the pay off. You may also need a logo or a logo refresh which can cost anywhere from $100-$700 depending on your needs.

Mobile and Responsive Design
You already know you need a website, More than 60% of users are browsing the internet on their mobile devices so you need a mobile site as well. Your website needs to look good on mobile and on desktop. That is where responsive design comes in. Responsive design refers to website layout that adjusts to look the best on whichever device you are browsing from. Responsive design will cost 20-30% more than a "regular" website.

Content Creation and Keyword Optimization
Typically the bulk of your web content will come from you and your staff, however you can work with someone to keyword optimize your web text. This will help with your search engine ranking. Expect to spend between $100-$200 per page for optimized content.

Extra Features
There are many extra features that you may want on your website that would add additional cost.

• E-Commerce features like a shopping cart, payment processing features, editable pricing, etc. add an additional $1,500 to $5,000 or more for e-commerce features depending on your requirements and how many products.
• Custom content management systems like a blog will cost an additional $200-$300. If you plan on keeping a blog on your website, which you should (stay tuned for a post on that soon!), you need a content management system.
• Targeted Landing Pages to promote specific products or services will change depending on your marketing efforts and can cost anywhere between $200-$500.

The cost of extra features just like the cost of your website will vary depending on your needs. So for a basic site you could spend as little as $2,000 to as much as $20,000 or more. What you can spend will be based on your budget and your needs, but hopefully this helps give you the gist of what you should expect. If you want to talk specifics feel free to contact me with your questions.

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