How much does a website cost for a small business in the UK?

The four main ways to get a website

Almost every small business website comes from one of four routes. Each one suits a different kind of business, and each one moves the cost (in money or in your time) to a different place.

1. Build it yourself with a website builder

Online builders give you templates, hosting and an editor for a monthly subscription. You do the design, the writing and the photos yourself. It's the cheapest in money, and the most expensive in your own time. It works well if you enjoy that kind of thing and have the evenings to spare. It's harder if you want the site to bring in enquiries, because layout, wording and local search take some know-how.

2. A freelancer, as a one-off build

A freelance web designer builds the site for a fixed fee, then hands it over. You usually pay hosting separately and pay again for changes later. Quality varies a lot, so look at sites they've built for businesses like yours.

3. An agency

Agencies have designers, developers and often copywriters and marketers under one roof. They suit bigger projects: online shops, lots of pages, custom features or a brand from scratch. For a one-van plumber or a two-chair salon, a full agency build is often more than the job needs.

4. Pay-monthly websites

You pay a setup fee (sometimes none) and a monthly fee that covers the build, hosting and some updates. The appeal is no big upfront bill. The catch is in the contract: some pay-monthly deals tie you in for 12 to 36 months, and with some you rent the site rather than own it, so you leave with nothing if you stop paying.

Rough price ranges at a glance

Comparing the main ways to get a small business website (rough ranges)

Route	Upfront (rough)	Ongoing (rough)	Best for
DIY website builder	£0	About £10 to £40 a month	Tight budgets and people with time to learn
Freelancer, one-off build	About £500 to £3,000	Hosting, plus changes charged as you go	A simple site you'll rarely change
Agency	About £3,000 and up	Often a monthly support or retainer fee	Large or complex sites, online shops
Pay-monthly	£0 to a few hundred pounds	About £25 to £200 a month	Spreading the cost, if the contract terms are fair

What pushes the price up or down

Two quotes for "a five-page website" can be very different jobs. These are the things that make the difference.

• Number of pages. A one-page site is quicker than separate pages for every service and every town you cover.
• Copywriting. If the designer writes your wording, that's real work. Writing it yourself saves money but often costs you enquiries.
• Photos. Your own phone photos of real jobs are free and usually work better than stock images. A professional shoot costs extra.
• Online booking. A booking system linked to your calendar adds setup time, and some booking tools charge their own monthly fee.
• Integrations. Connecting forms to your job software, a lead list, text messages or payments all add work.
• Ongoing updates. Will someone change your prices, hours and photos for you, or are you on your own after launch?
• Hosting. Somewhere has to keep the site online. It's sometimes bundled in, sometimes a separate bill.
• Domain name. Your web address, such as yourbusiness.co.uk, is a small yearly cost, but who owns it matters a lot (more on that below).

Hidden and ongoing costs

The headline price is rarely the whole story. These are the costs that tend to turn up later.

• Your domain. A .co.uk domain usually costs about £4 to £8 a year. Some providers charge a lot more, or register it in their own name.
• Hosting. Anywhere from free to a monthly fee, depending on the provider and the site.
• Updates and fixes. On a one-off build, every change after launch may be charged by the hour.
• Add-on tools. Booking systems, email addresses, text messages and some plugins carry their own fees.
• Long minimum contracts. Some pay-monthly deals run for 12, 24 or 36 months. A low monthly price over three years can add up to more than a one-off build.
• Leaving fees. Some contracts charge to release your domain or a copy of your site, or don't release them at all.

A simple way to compare is to add up the setup fee plus the monthly fee for the full minimum term, then add hosting, domain and any tools on top. That gives you a fair total for each quote.

What to check before you sign

Whoever you choose, ask these questions and get the answers in writing.

1. Who owns the domain? It should be registered in your name, or your business's name, with logins you can access.
2. Who owns the website? Will you get a copy of the site files if you leave, or is it rented?
3. How long is the minimum term? And how much notice do you need to give after that?
4. What happens if you leave? Is there a fee? How long does the handover take? What do you walk away with?
5. What's included each month? Hosting, security, backups, how many updates, and how you ask for them.
6. How do you get help? Email, a ticket system, or a named person who knows your business?
7. Is VAT included? Check whether the prices you've been quoted include it or have it added on top.

Where Keep Busy fits

We're a web designer in West Sussex working with trades and local services. We sit in the pay-monthly group, with a setup fee and a short minimum term. Every plan includes a custom-designed website, and you see a free visual of your site before you pay anything. Every business is different, so we'll agree a clear price with you once you've seen your free visual.

• 6-month minimum, then month to month with 30 days' notice.
• You keep your domain and a copy of your site if you leave. Your domain is in your name from the start, and on Get found and Stay busy so are your texting number and lead list.
• Your own running costs are paid directly by you: a .co.uk domain (about £4 to £8 a year) and, on Get found and Stay busy, your texting usage, which we estimate at about £5 to £35 a month depending on volume.
• Full details, including the founding-client offer and the 30-day setup refund, are on our plans section.

We're not the cheapest option, and we're not trying to be. If you're happy building your own site, a DIY builder will cost less. If you need an online shop or a large custom system, an agency is a better fit. We suit busy local businesses who want a site that brings in calls, looked after for them, without a long contract.

See what that looks like for your trade: plumbers, electricians, salons, cleaning businesses, garages and dental practices.

The bottom line

There's no single right price for a small business website. Decide what you need it to do, add up the full cost over the minimum term, and make sure you own your domain and can take your site with you. A cheap deal with a three-year lock-in can cost more than a fair one with a short term.