Website costs depend on what you're building and who builds it

A website can cost anywhere from $0 to $50,000 or more in the first year, depending on whether you build it yourself, hire a freelancer, or pay an agency. The biggest factor is labour — your own time, or someone else's. The second is what features you need: a simple contact form costs nothing extra, but an online store with payment processing, inventory tracking, and shipping integration costs real money.

Most small businesses and individuals fall into one of three categories: DIY with a website builder ($100 to $500 per year), freelancer-built ($1,000 to $10,000 one-time), or agency-built ($5,000 to $50,000+ one-time). Each has different ongoing costs too. This guide breaks down what you actually pay at each stage and what changes the price.

Key Takeaways

  • Website builders like Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress.com charge $100 to $500 per year and require no coding knowledge, but offer less customization than building from scratch.
  • Freelancers typically charge $1,000 to $10,000 to build a site, depending on complexity and your location, and you own the result but pay for hosting and maintenance separately.
  • Hosting costs $5 to $50 per month depending on traffic and features, and domain names cost $10 to $15 per year — these are ongoing whether you use a builder or hire someone.
  • A simple five-page business website costs far less than an e-commerce site with a shopping cart, payment processing, and inventory management.
  • The cheapest option upfront is not always the cheapest long-term: a $200 website builder may cost $2,400 over ten years, while a $3,000 freelancer site might cost $3,600 with hosting.

Website builder plans: $100 to $500 per year

Website builders like Wix, Squarespace, WordPress.com, Weebly, and GoDaddy Website Builder let you build and host a site without touching code. You pick a template, add your content, and publish. Most charge a monthly or annual subscription that includes hosting and a domain name.

A basic plan usually costs $10 to $20 per month ($120 to $240 per year) and covers a simple business site with a few pages and a contact form. Mid-tier plans run $20 to $40 per month ($240 to $480 per year) and add features like email marketing, basic analytics, or a small online store. Premium plans can reach $50 to $100+ per month if you need advanced e-commerce or custom code.

The trade-off is flexibility. You cannot move your site to a different host easily, and you are locked into the builder's design system. Customization beyond the template usually requires paying extra for a developer or upgrading to a plan that allows custom code. If you outgrow the builder later, moving to a custom site takes work.

Hiring a freelancer: $1,000 to $10,000 one-time

A freelancer builds a custom site tailored to your needs. Costs vary widely by location, experience, and complexity. A simple five-page business site might cost $1,000 to $3,000. A site with custom design, multiple pages, and a contact form that sends data to your email might cost $2,000 to $5,000. An e-commerce site with a shopping cart and payment processing typically runs $5,000 to $15,000.

Freelancers usually charge by project, by the hour, or by the page. Hourly rates in the United States range from $25 to $150 per hour depending on experience; a 40-hour project at $50 per hour costs $2,000. Overseas freelancers often charge less, but communication and revision cycles can take longer.

When you hire a freelancer, you own the finished site and can move it to any host. You pay for hosting and domain separately, usually $5 to $50 per month and $10 to $15 per year. You also pay for maintenance and updates yourself or hire someone to do it — budget $50 to $200 per month for ongoing support, or handle small changes yourself if you learn how.

Agency-built sites: $5,000 to $50,000+ one-time

A web agency handles design, development, strategy, and sometimes marketing. They work with you to understand your goals, design a site that reflects your brand, and build custom features. Costs start around $5,000 for a small business site and can reach $50,000 or more for a large or complex project.

Agencies typically charge by project, and the price depends on scope: how many pages, what features, how much custom design, whether it integrates with your existing tools, and how much revision time is included. A site with a custom design, ten pages, a blog, and a contact form might cost $8,000 to $15,000. A site that integrates with your CRM, payment processor, and email system costs more.

Like freelancer sites, you own the result and pay for hosting separately. Agencies often recommend hosting providers and may offer ongoing support packages. Maintenance and updates typically cost $200 to $1,000 per month depending on how much work you need done.

Hosting and domain costs: $15 to $65 per year, plus monthly fees

If you hire a freelancer or build on your own, you pay for hosting (the server that stores your site files) and a domain name (your web address) separately. A domain name costs $10 to $15 per year from registrars like GoDaddy, Namecheap, or Google Domains. Some registrars charge more for the first year as a promotional offer, then raise the price on renewal.

Hosting costs depend on traffic and features. Shared hosting, where your site shares a server with others, costs $5 to $15 per month ($60 to $180 per year). Virtual private server (VPS) hosting, which gives you more control and resources, costs $20 to $50 per month ($240 to $600 per year). Managed WordPress hosting, optimized for WordPress sites, costs $15 to $100+ per month depending on traffic.

Website builders include hosting in their monthly fee, so you do not pay separately. If you use a builder, there is no additional hosting cost beyond the subscription.

E-commerce adds $500 to $5,000+ to your first-year cost

An online store requires a shopping cart, payment processing, and inventory management. Website builders with e-commerce features charge $25 to $100+ per month. Freelancers typically charge $3,000 to $10,000 to build a custom store. Agencies charge $10,000 to $50,000+.

Beyond the build cost, you pay transaction fees. Payment processors like Stripe and Square charge 2.2% to 3% per transaction plus $0.30 per sale. If you sell $10,000 per month, you pay roughly $220 to $300 in fees. Some e-commerce platforms charge a monthly fee instead of or in addition to transaction fees.

You may also need inventory management software, shipping integration, or email marketing tools. These add $20 to $200 per month depending on what you use. A small store with low volume might spend $50 to $100 per month on tools; a larger store might spend $500+.

Maintenance, updates, and security: $0 to $500+ per month

After your site is live, you pay to keep it running. Website builders handle updates and security automatically — it is included in your subscription. Freelancer or custom sites require you to handle updates yourself or pay someone to do it.

WordPress sites need plugin updates, theme updates, and WordPress core updates roughly monthly. If you do this yourself, it costs nothing but your time. If you hire someone, expect $50 to $200 per month for basic maintenance. Security monitoring, backups, and malware scanning add another $20 to $100 per month if you do not handle them yourself.

If your site breaks or gets hacked, emergency repairs cost $200 to $2,000 depending on severity. Buying a maintenance plan upfront ($100 to $300 per month) can prevent surprises and is often cheaper than paying for emergency fixes.

Comparing total cost over time

The cheapest option depends on how long you keep the site. A website builder at $300 per year costs $3,000 over ten years. A freelancer site at $3,000 upfront plus $30 per month hosting costs $6,600 over ten years. A freelancer site with a $100 per month maintenance plan costs $15,000 over ten years.

If you plan to keep the site for only a few years, a builder is usually cheaper. If you plan to keep it for five years or more and want to own it, a freelancer or custom build often makes sense. If you need advanced features or plan to scale, an agency build may be worth the cost.

Consider also what happens if you stop paying. A website builder site disappears if you stop paying the subscription. A freelancer or custom site stays live as long as you pay hosting — you can pause it, move it, or sell it. That ownership has value if your business grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I build a website for free?

Yes, with free website builders like Wix Free, WordPress.com Free, or Weebly Free. These include hosting and a free domain (usually subdomain.wix.com instead of yourname.com). The trade-off is limited features, ads on your site, and less customization. Most free plans do not include e-commerce or email marketing. Free sites work for portfolios or hobby projects but are not recommended for businesses.

What is the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org?

WordPress.com is a website builder that hosts your site and charges $4 to $45+ per month. WordPress.org is free software you install on your own hosting. With WordPress.org, you pay for hosting ($5 to $50 per month) and a domain ($10 to $15 per year), but you own everything and can customize it fully. WordPress.org is more powerful but requires more technical knowledge or hiring help.

Do I need to pay for SSL or security?

Website builders and most hosting providers include free SSL certificates, which encrypt data between your site and visitors. You do not need to pay extra for basic SSL. Advanced security like malware scanning, firewalls, or DDoS protection costs $20 to $100+ per month and is optional unless you handle sensitive data or run an e-commerce store.

What if I want to change builders or hosts later?

Moving from one website builder to another is difficult — you usually have to rebuild the site from scratch. Moving from one host to another is easier if you use WordPress or another open-source platform; a hosting provider can often migrate your site for you. If you think you might change later, avoid locked-in builders and choose WordPress.org or a freelancer-built site instead.

How much should I budget for a website in my first year?

Budget $200 to $500 for a website builder, $1,500 to $5,000 for a freelancer-built site (including hosting and domain), or $5,000 to $20,000+ for an agency site. If you need e-commerce, add $500 to $5,000. If you plan to hire ongoing support, add $50 to $500 per month. The right budget depends on your business size, how much traffic you expect, and whether you plan to sell online.