One of the most common questions we hear from business owners is: 'How much should a website cost?' The honest answer is that it depends — but that answer is actually useful if you understand what it depends on.
The Three Tiers
Most business websites fall into one of three categories. Template-based websites (built on platforms like Squarespace or basic WordPress) typically range from $1,500 to $5,000. These are fine for very simple brochure sites, but they come with real limitations around customisation and performance. Custom-designed websites — built to your brand, your goals, and your specific user journey — typically range from $5,000 to $20,000 depending on complexity. Enterprise or e-commerce builds with integrations, custom databases or complex user flows can cost $20,000 and above.
What Drives the Cost Up
The biggest cost drivers are the number of pages, the level of custom design work, third-party integrations (CRM, booking systems, payment gateways), and the amount of content that needs to be written or sourced. Ongoing costs — hosting, maintenance, SEO, updates — are separate and should be factored into your budget from day one.
What You Are Actually Paying For
A website is not a brochure. It is a sales tool, a credibility signal, and often the first impression a potential client gets of your business. A poorly built site that ranks nowhere and converts nobody is not a $3,000 investment — it is a $3,000 loss. The right question is not 'how cheap can I get this?' but 'what return do I need this to generate, and what does that require?'
How to Get the Best Value
Be clear about your goals before you brief any agency. Know your target audience, the actions you want visitors to take, and any systems the website needs to connect to. A good agency will scope against your goals, not just deliver a pretty design. Always ask to see examples of work and ask for client references. If an agency cannot explain how their work has generated results, that is a red flag.
Our Recommendation
For most small to medium businesses, a professionally designed custom website in the $6,000 to $15,000 range — built with SEO fundamentals in place from the start — is the sweet spot. You get something that looks and performs the way your business deserves, without paying for enterprise complexity you do not need.