When considering the cost of web design, you should separate website builder solutions from professional services that create custom sites for specific clients. As you might expect, the former is significantly less expensive, and the latter varies by design specs and client needs.
Website Builder Pricing
If you are working with a small budget for website design, website building software is likely your best option. Most no-code web design platforms offer free personal plans, free trials, and tiered subscriptions that increase in price and functionality with each level. Subscriptions are charged in monthly rates and often discounted if you pay annually.
Most entry-level subscriptions cost around $10 per month for each website, while intermediate subscriptions tend to be in the $15-$20 monthly range. Higher-end drag-and-drop design packages, which often include more customization options and better analytics, usually cost around $25 to $40 a month and can increase into the hundreds for specialty platforms geared toward large enterprises. Keep in mind that a plan with e-commerce capabilities typically costs more than one without.
Although web design software is intuitive and user-friendly, it is helpful to have coding experience if you want to make unique modifications. When you sign up for this software, there isn't much room for negotiation, since it has preset plans. However, you can always request a free demo before making a commitment.
Website Design Services Pricing
Pricing for a website design service is more difficult to determine, since the scope of work depends completely on each business's website goals. Although the price varies, even a basic website will cost you at least a couple thousand dollars, and that price will climb with each feature or design element you add.
If your business is moving out of the SMB space and into the enterprise realm, or if the specifics of your website design are essential to your daily business, it will be money well spent. Just make sure to request price quotes from a few different website design services before you make a final decision.
The biggest mistake SMBs make when they go for custom creation is heading into the process without a clear goal or plan, and then getting talked into unnecessary extra features, resulting in higher maintenance costs going forward. For this reason, the aim of your website should be clearly defined and meticulously detailed long before you approach a web design service. Issues like security needs, ongoing maintenance, SEO, integration with other products or systems, and must-have features should all be covered in your plan. This level of planning will not only help you get what you want, it will also help the designers.
A responsive website created by an individual web designer that only lists basic company information is, of course, much less expensive than an agency-built site that has a custom chatbot, integration with multiple systems, embedded videos and different login permission levels. One thing you can do to keep your costs low is to only include the features you need in your build and ask early on about the maintenance or support plan costs you will incur going forward.
