How much you should pay for your website?

by Abhijeet Singh Bundela | Nov 2024

So you decided to get your own website? Upgrade it or just plan for it for some time in the future; let's just get right into it.

Variables that decide website price

There are many variables that account for that, and we will go one by one for each most important one and expand on that. We will learn to calculate the price, how much it should almost cost; that is not 100% accurate because many things matter, but it’ll give you a very good idea of the pricing system. But make sure some developers have fixed prices regardless of country because they work internationally. I’m one of those, so you should count this in too.

Some of those very important variables are the following:

• Like, what is your home country you live in, or the country you decided you want your website to be built from?

• Type of your website

• Level of your website

• From whom did you decide to get your website built?

  • Price is dependent upon the type and level of developer, designer, or agency you decide to work with.

Country you live in or the place you want your website to be built in:

It’s one of the most important factors for web development. Every place has its own base price if you decide to work with your local developer or developer or certain place, but also it depends on the developer's own pricing too.

Type of your website

The second most important thing is knowing what category your website falls in; there are many categories your website can fall in. Write the very basics of your website: what you’re trying to achieve with it, its base elements, and what the goal of your website is. Just make a list, and it’ll make it easy to determine. Some of the most important ones are the following; you can also do more research on the internet to get a solid idea.

1. Online Store (E-Commerce)

• Websites for selling products/services online.

• Examples: Clothing stores, gadget shops, handmade crafts.

2. Service-Based Websites

• Designed for businesses offering professional services.

• Examples: Agencies, consultants, plumbers, lawyers.

3. Portfolio Websites

• Personal sites for showcasing creative work.

• Examples: Designers, photographers, writers.

4. Blogs

• For individuals or groups sharing articles and personal insights.

• Examples: Food blogs, tech blogs, travel blogs.

5. Online Learning Platforms

• Websites offering educational content, courses, or training.

• Examples: Skill-based tutorials, certification programs, school sites.

6. News Websites

• Focused on sharing daily news, updates, or niche articles.

• Examples: Local news, tech news, industry-specific updates.

7. Event Websites

• Websites promoting or managing specific events.

• Examples: Wedding pages, conference websites, ticket booking platforms.

8. Restaurant or Food Ordering Websites

• For displaying menus, taking reservations, or enabling food delivery.

• Examples: Restaurant sites, catering services.

9. Health & Wellness Platforms

• For fitness programs, clinics, or mental health resources.

• Examples: Yoga sites, telemedicine portals, gyms.

10. Marketplace Websites

• Connecting buyers and sellers.

• Examples: Freelance platforms, product exchanges, rental sites.

11. Social or Community Websites

• For connecting like-minded individuals.

• Examples: Forums, discussion boards, niche communities.

12. Landing Pages

• Single-page websites to promote a product, service, or campaign.

• Examples: Marketing campaigns, app promotions.

13. Real Estate Websites

• For listing properties and services related to buying/renting homes.

• Examples: Agent sites, property listings.

14. Personal Brand Websites

• Representing individuals, their achievements, or services.

• Examples: Coaches, influencers, freelancers.

15. Review or Comparison Websites

• For reviewing and comparing products/services.

• Examples: Gadget reviews, food reviews, travel comparisons.

16. Financial Websites

• Covering money management, trading, or crypto.

• Examples: Stock trackers, investment tools.

17. Gaming Websites

• Specific types:

  • Gaming News: Game announcements, guides.

  • Gaming Communities: Player forums, clans.

  • Game Platforms: Sites offering online play or downloads.

18. Creative Resources Websites

• Specific types:

  • Art Showcase: Galleries or portfolios.

  • Design Resources: Templates, tools, stock images.

  • Tutorials: Step-by-step guides for creatives.

19. Subscription-Based Websites

• For offering exclusive content to paying members.

• Examples: Online learning hubs, premium forums, entertainment services.

20. Travel Websites

• Specific types:

  • Travel Agencies: Booking and planning trips.

  • Travel Blogs: Sharing experiences and tips.

  • Guides: Recommendations for destinations.

     

Level of your website

After knowing the category, you must decide the level of your website; for example, if your website is user-centric, make sure the most amount of users you want in your website, and what kind of data it’ll add in the database, according to that amount, you can decide what level of hosting you’ll require. There are three base levels your website can fall into: basic, standard, and high-end. Some examples are the following:

1. E-Commerce Websites

• Basic:

  • Single-page store or a basic catalog.

  • Few products (10–20), no advanced features.

  • Payment gateway integration (basic).

  • Example: A small boutique selling handmade jewelry.

• Standard:

  • Organized categories, multiple products (50–100).

  • Custom product pages, coupons, and sales functionality.

  • Inventory management tools.

  • Example: A mid-sized clothing store.

• High-End:

  • Advanced filtering, AI recommendations, multi-currency support.

  • Subscription models, custom dashboards for vendors.

  • Example: A marketplace like Etsy.

2. Service-Based Websites

• Basic:

  • Homepage, services page, and contact form.

  • Example: A small business offering plumbing services.

• Standard:

  • Booking system, testimonials, live chat integration.

  • Example: A mid-sized law firm with multiple service pages.

• High-End:

  • Advanced features like client portals, document uploads, and custom calculators.

  • Example: A digital marketing agency with interactive project quotes.

3. Portfolio Websites

• Basic:

  • Single-page portfolio with a few work samples.

  • Example: A student showcasing class projects.

• Standard:

  • Multi-page layout (About, Work, Contact).

  • Responsive design with light animations.

  • Example: A freelance photographer.

• High-End:

  • Interactive galleries, custom transitions, case studies, or storytelling.

  • Example: A creative agency's portfolio.

4. Blogs

• Basic:

  • Simple blog layout with basic commenting features.

  • Example: A personal journal.

• Standard:

  • Categories, search functionality, and social sharing tools.

  • Example: A travel blog.

• High-End:

  • Advanced features like multi-author support, monetization, and dynamic content personalization.

  • Example: A professional magazine-style blog.

5. Educational Websites

• Basic:

  • Single course, basic sign-up, and downloadable resources.

  • Example: A tutor offering one class online.

• Standard:

  • Multiple courses, quizzes, and progress tracking.

  • Example: A small online academy.

• High-End:

  • Full LMS (Learning Management System) with certifications, gamification, and API integration.

  • Example: Coursera-like platforms.

6. Event Websites

• Basic:

  • Basic event details, RSVP form.

  • Example: A wedding website with date, venue, and RSVP.

• Standard:

  • Ticket booking, social media integration, and event schedules.

  • Example: A local concert's website.

• High-End:

  • Dynamic schedules, attendee login, live streams, and interactive elements.

  • Example: A large tech conference site like CES.

One of the best way to figure out what level your website falls in is to understand how much content and functionalities plus the level of UI/UX design you want in your website, if you need very basic of that, that basic level, just standard functionalities and content level then standard level, and if you’re really thinking big then your website falls in high-end category.

Some categories makes it easy to realize what level your website will fall in mostly, for example if your website falls under personal website or portfolio, so many users can be just get benefited from base to standard level of that website.
And if you’re looking for creating e-commerce website it’ll always fall in from somewhere standard to high-end category. Let’s make it simple further.

Basic:

You need a simple website with essential pages (Home, About, Contact) and minimal features. Perfect for starting out or personal use.

Standard:

You want more functionality like a blog, user accounts, or a small store with a clean, professional look. Great for small businesses or growing projects.

High-End:

You require advanced features like custom animations, integrations, or large-scale e-commerce with premium design. Ideal for big businesses or ambitious projects.

From whom you decided to get your website built?

Price dependent upon type and level of developer, designer or agency you decided to work with.

Yes it’s a big factor, and you should decide that dependent upon what kind of website you wanna build in. Freelancers usually will always charge low compare to big agencies and with good freelancer you can get high level of work done with fair amount of budget, but you have find good ones.

There also can be freelancers who may charge more but didn’t deliver according to budget and expectations they’re usually entry level, lacking skills and knowledge but also it’s opposite in many cases.

With bad agencies that are more into money can even give you worse results they may charge really big amount of money but give you very basic results. But you can also look for agencies that are giving very good results but they’ll still charge you industry level and if you’re in budget go for them.

How you’ll find good freelancer or agencies to work with:

Look for honesty and transparency try to figure out how honest the person and agency is, don’t get into manipulative talks and skill and if they try that remember they’re trying to sell you their services, it’s not a bad thing but it gives you some idea. Look for freelancers and agencies that are knowledgeable and result focused, if for them making money is about giving results and deliver solid work then it’s a good start, the most important thing you have to care about getting results and focus on that. Try to figure out their knowledge level by looking at their projects, website and content, see what they delivered and how much it aligns with their own website. That way you can get very close to figure out with whom you wanna work with and you can figure out their pricing later by contacting them or if you can see it in the website.

How you’ll figure out the average budget of your website should be. Try to do these few web searches

• [website category] [website level] level website development average budget in [place name]

• [website category] website development cost [website level] in [place name]

If you wanna build website that falls in e-commerce category, in USA, that is standard level for example. You’ll do following-

• e-commerce standard level website development average budget in USA

• e-commerce website development cost standard level in USA

It’ll open up so many information or websites in search engine next work is little tedious but open like from 10 to 20 minimum website pages and every time when they’re giving range find the just middle price of it and write it down, and if you look at for examples 20 results. Open up calculator add all 20 of these prices and then divide it by 20 (if you do add 15 results then divide it by 15 and so on common formula to get the average). Now you have the idea of pricing somewhere you should expect and it’s pretty much accurate because you have done your research.