How to calculate website cost | Website Cost Calculator

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Published Date:  17 Jan, 2023 | Updated Date:  11 Oct, 2023

Wondering how to calculate the total cost of owning a website to boost your business sales online? We asked our expert to show us the easiest way to budget for your website build.

You’re reading Part 3 of 3 in our How Much Does it Cost to Build a Website? | Website Development Cost Guide.

Step 1

What do I need to build my website? | Website Design Checklist

Read Now

Step 2

How to budget for a basic website build | Affordable Website Design

Read Now

Step 3

How to calculate website cost | Website Cost Calculator

Read Now

You might be surprised at how many business owners jump into building a website without much forethought.

Often they have no idea what the website building process even looks like…and get their administrators to create them a Wix site!

This can have major drawbacks in the long run when they go to calculate website cost. Basically, when owners don’t know how websites get built, they can end up using the wrong software, spending too much cash, or hiring too many freelancers when an agency could do the job more efficiently.

More importantly, when owners aren’t sure what they’ll be getting in the long-run, they’re less likely to build their websites to scale (which we talked about extensively in Part 1: What do I need to build my website? | Website Design Checklist).

That’s why today we want to be ultra-transparent about what to expect when you hire an agency to build your website.

Using our own process, we’ll explore the different phases of website development for business owners who hire an agency.

Then we’ll take an in-depth look at how much it costs to build a website on today’s market, and compare these prices with how much it costs to build a website through The Digital Navigator.

Hire our Agency for your Website

Our website building process in 5 simple steps:

How to calculate website cost | Website Cost Calculator

We talked about the advantages of hiring an agency vs. a single developer in Part 2: How to budget for a basic website build | Affordable Website Design, and we stick by our advice!

Hiring an agency can bring a ton of positive returns to the investment you make into your website, but most importantly, they’ll already have a process in place to make the whole journey as seamless as possible.

In fact, that’s part of our continued mission at The Digital Navigator: to provide cost-savings to clients through practiced website management expertise. Our solutions are tried and true–and many of our clients are currently reaping the rewards of simplified website creation!

To be sure, the website building features known to our managed services involve the following steps: first new clients fill out an intake form, and then we create a UI kit. We use that kit to design the homepage for your site, and then review the results with you.

Once designs are perfected and approved, we’ll take care of the publication of your site, and stick around to manage important updates and changes as you grow!

1.Fill out an intake form

Clients often schedule an initial consultation with us to learn more about our services, and when they’re ready to start the process, we send them a quote before asking them to fill out a simple intake form.

The intake form was created to help us learn more about your business. We take pride in accommodating your vision for website building into an overall brand strategy – but we have to learn a little about that vision first.

This intake form is also our way of understanding your expectations for website design. We want to make sure we create the website of your dreams, so be as detailed as possible during this phase.

This is how you make sure to set your chosen agency up for success as they begin back- and front end development of your website: they should be asking questions, and ultimately should give you a very clear idea of how long the process will take.

2.Create a UI Kit

Using the information provided on your intake form – such as font of button examples from other websites you like – we will create a UI kit for your website that includes all the design elements you’ll need to grow out your website beyond a static homepage.

This part of the process can be really fun for owners, since they get to be involved with color choices, page design, and other aesthetic elements of their website–all without needing any technical know-how (we have the technical stuff covered).

Ultimately, what you’ll end up with here is a palette depicting all the visual elements we recommend using on your website. At this point, you should also be getting a more realistic sense of what the final product will look like.

Once we create the UI kit and feel it matches the expectations you set out in your intake form, we book a meeting to present our choices and get your feedback in real time.

The beauty of this process is that – because we design your UI kit with Figma – you can change color, font, or button choices while we chat…so you leave feeling satisfied that your homepage will look brilliant.

Learn more about UI Kits

3.Design the site homepage

For about a week, we go away and work on designing your homepage using the UI design kit we developed as a team, in collaboration with you–the business owner.

We also include the option for clients to utilize our in-house copy-writer to get you high-level written content copy for your homepage, as well as other needed pages on the site such as the about page, contact page, or testimonials page.

Based on the final look of your homepage design, we curate a few suggestions and recommendations on what’s working, and will certainly let you know if something is not. Then we book a review meeting with you to go over the homepage design.

4.Review homepage design

This is the moment where you get to see all of our incredible work come together!

During this meeting we will make simple changes in real time based on your live feedback. We also share what recommendations and suggestions we’ve collected to support your final design choices.

Basically, the review sessions happen until you feel good about what we’ve created. Once that page ‘feels good’, then we know we have a usable model for creating and publishing other page types through Wordpress.

Now, depending on your budget or business needs, you may just sign up for an initial 10-page package. For this we would create the ten pages based on that homepage, set for your review and feedback as before with recommendations and suggestions on content and other layout options.

On the other hand, clients with bigger budgets may enjoy the process we took with the homepage design, and request we deliver all page designs in a similar fashion–a perk we offer with higher-tier pricing plans.

In these cases we’ll take some extra time to design each page in Figma for their review, and only publish once the page meets the clients expectations. We even offer clients unlimited feedback and revisions at this level!

Still, if you’re looking to save cash, having us publish based on the design of your homepage can do the trick. You still get two rounds of revisions, we just don’t use the design tool to provide unlimited feedback before publishing your site.

5.Approve the design and publish your site

Whether you’ve opted to go with a budget-friendly site building service, or have allotted a higher budget for your website design, once all of your pages have been approved by you, it’s up to our developers to make any final adjustments, dot the ‘i’s on their code, and publish your site!

At that point, we will either switch your website out for this new one (if you already had an existing live version), or will ‘turn on’ the site so clients can start interacting with your services there.

This only happens when we…

…get a firm, clearly non-ambiguous “go live” approval
…agree on a mutual date so everyone is informed
…agree on and draft one to three emails to notify their user base, particularly if it is a website with courses, login, subscriptions

We’ll always notify you when you can begin sharing your live URL with clients, but that’s what you’ll get with a business website served up by The Digital Navigator, set and ready to make online sales

How much does it cost to build a website? | Website Cost Calculator

How much does it cost to build a website? | Website Cost Calculator

Here it is! The long-sought after question: how much does it cost to build a website?

Just in case you don’t have a lot of time to read through this section, let us start out by saying that our current offer at The Digital Navigator is $2495 USD for a website running ten pages or less.

This is ultimately the fee you’ll pay (no hidden extras!) for a basic website anytime you opt-in for website management services through us.

How much does it cost to build a budget website?

A basic, budget website build can cost anywhere from $1000 to $5000, depending on how new your developer or agency is to the industry.

If they’re just starting out, you might even be able to get a full website for $300 to $600 from a budding freelancer–though normally the speed at which you will get your website will suffer.

WARNING: The solo option has risks of more bugs, and pages which are not optimized for loading speed. You may not receive great support post-launch either…a fact we’ve learned from clients who moved over to us. They tell us that once they grew to over ten clients, the customer support decreased dramatically!

You may also end up paying more for licensing and other software features if you’re not careful, so again: make sure you go with an agency like The Digital Navigator, who have worked to streamline their process and their technology to the point where you get real cost-savings for your website.

How much does it cost to build an advanced website?

Advanced website development and website creation can be a bit more expensive–for obvious reasons. That’s because advanced websites include membership or subscription websites, or high-level eCommerce websites where products and services will be sold.

These websites include all the integrations, software, and other plugin elements you’ll need to successfully provide full course capacities to your student-clients, or to build in membership payment models for your site.

To build a basic course-membership website for instance, you should plan for a ballpark of around $5000.

 

– Pol Cousineau, The Digital Navigator

For an eCommerce website with minimal features, you’re probably looking at somewhere between $3500 and $4000, with higher rates coming in the more features you add.

These are average prices based on our own business model, and we’re proud to boast such affordable rates…particularly since if you go to any agency marketplace, you’re bound to pay anywhere from $7000 to $10,000 for a similar type of website.

This is where you want to be really careful when you’re working with an agency, or when you’re still shopping around for the right one and using your new website costs calculator.

A lot of the time, these websites are intent on making themselves money with an inflexible, set process that may or may not work for the client, but which certainly works for them.

They might even push for fully custom code, which we DO NOT recommend if you’re looking to save cash with your website–this style can cost up to $100K or more! It’s the most expensive option on the market for website creation, so avoid it anytime it’s not necessary for a special feature or website element.

On the other hand, if you find a good agency (and we do consider ourselves one of the good guys), you’ll notice how they showcase their pricing plans as an investment in a long-term relationship of mutual success.

Not only are they out to provide a great service, but these agencies are constantly looking for ways to make you more money online through their services.

The alternative? You end up paying for your website, without any follow-up management support once it’s live.

Can I build a website for free?

When you calculate website cost, you’ll inevitably ask, can I build a website for free?

You certainly can, but we don’t exactly recommend it if you’re serious about making money online.

WordPress.com is for example a website with free builder tools and plans, or at least low-cost ones you can manage. Wix.com also provides excellent, free website building tools for beginners.

However, these options are rarely good for the long-term, or for businesses who plan to scale operations later down the line.

You should be asking yourself, how much does a website cost per month, as opposed to just how much does it cost to build a website.

For example, as soon as you try to test paid advertising, you can be sure there are going to be issues on the web builder end with proper coding.

These builders also offer less optimization capacity, meaning your site will be less discoverable in search engine results (no matter how much you’re paying for SEO).

Most importantly however, you are less likely to test and iterate your website because (aside from simple analytics included in the platform) you are less likely to see what is working about your website, and what isn’t, based on user interactions.

Of course, some business owners will connect with a developer who is just trying to improve their portfolio, and who is willing to do the work for free. This might seem like a breath of fresh air in an expensive online world, but this can also have its drawbacks.

So, if you have a serious business, or a proven offer on one of your products, projects, or services, then you probably don’t want something for free. Invest your initial income into a website building agency, and rake in more returns as you grow!

Should I DIY my website?

A lot of business owners are under the impression that building a website is much cheaper if they choose to do it themselves.

And while those who have degrees in web design or development, or who are extremely technologically-inclined may be able to build their own website on the cheap, your time investment to build your own website will likely outscale the monetary investment, leading to a reduced ROI.

Let’s say for example you decide to DIY your website build. At an average of about 50 to 250…to even 500 hours for a proper website build (not counting any technical obstacles you might run into)–we think your time could be much better spent on growing your business!

Worse yet, what if you get half-way through and then decide you want to hire an agency? The potential for wasted effort can make or break your budget, and even worse, it can make the fun enterprise of your business distinctly UN-fun.

“Our prospects and clients will say the reason they’re with us is because they tried to DIY their tech, and found out how much they do NOT like it. The technical aspects are handled by our team so you can actually relax and have a breath of fresh air!”

 

-Pol Cousineau, The Digital Navigator

That’s why we recommend utilizing an agency that knows what they’re doing, and can lead you through every step of the way. It’s way less expensive in the long-run, and most get a ton of hands-on experience throughout the process.

At the end of the day, you’ll save way more money hiring an agency, than deciding to DIY your website build.

Ready to start building your business website?

cost to build a website

Congratulations! You’ve made it to the end of our latest article series, How Much Does it Cost to Build a Website? | Website Development Cost Guide, and should have a much better idea of how much it’s going to cost to build a great website for your business.

Not only that, but you’re in a much better position to outsource the development of your business website–even if this isn’t your first website rodeo.

You know how the whole process works, and how much easier it is to trust in an agency than DIY a website for your business.

As you go through your options for online website development, keep in mind that it costs less than $1500 to build a ten-page website with The Digital Navigator…and we’re always ready to explain and explore how we back up that price with authentic solutions that tangibly increase online sales.

In fact, we like to think that building out your website is our small investment in what is sure to be a successful long-term engagement. That’s because once your site is live, you’ll likely still need experienced website managers to run the whole show.

Website management is no easy task, particularly if you don’t have the support of a team, or from the developer you hired.

In other words, just because you managed to get someone to build your website, doesn’t mean they’re obligated to stick around and help with maintenance, updates, security, or other website support needs.

Our last piece of advice then, is to budget for an agency that is willing to help you with website hosting, management, and marketing in the long run–and who has an interest in the present and future success of YOUR business…not just their own.

With that, we wish you the best in your website development journey. Know that we are always around for more questions about website building, development, and management, and are willing to sit down with you to talk shop when you next have a moment.

Good luck, and happy website building!

Schedule a Free Consultation

You’re reading Part 3 of 3 in our How Much Does it Cost to Build a Website? | Website Development Cost Guide. If you just got here, head back to read Part 1: What do I need to build my website? | Website Design Checklist, or Part 2: How to budget for a basic website build | Affordable Website Design.

FAQ

How much does it cost to build a website?
Our current offer at The Digital Navigator is $2495 USD for a website running ten pages or less. To build a basic course-membership website for instance, you should plan for a ballpark of around $5000. For an eCommerce website with minimal features, you’re probably looking at somewhere between $3500 and $4000, with higher rates coming in the more features you add. Other agencies or developers can run much higher rates, so be sure to compare costs where necessary.
Can I build a website for free?
You certainly can, but we don’t exactly recommend it if you’re serious about making money online. WordPress.com is for example a website with free builder tools and plans, or at least low-cost ones you can manage. Wix.com also provides excellent, free website building tools for beginners. However, these options are rarely good for the long-term, or for businesses who plan to scale operations later down the line.
Should I DIY my website?
While those who have degrees in web design or development, or who are extremely technologically-inclined may be able to build their own website on the cheap, your time investment to build your own website will likely outscale the monetary investment, leading to a reduced ROI.

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