Think of a website budget as a sliding scale, increasing and decreasing along with your site's complexity.


If a business weren't listed in the phone book 25 years ago, it likely begged many questions:

Is this company legitimate? Can I trust them? Who is in charge here?


Nowadays, if a business does not have a website, the same types of questions arise. Long story short, a website is essential for a business of any size, from the e-commerce craft store based in someone's bedroom to a firm large enough to have an executive boardroom.

How Much Does it Cost to Build a Website

 


A website should be included in a business’ startup and everyday costs, but how much does it cost to build a website? It depends on several factors, including business needs, functionality, aesthetics, and design, how large the site will be, and the level of customization required. As a general rule, the larger and more complex the site, the more it will cost.

Website Builder for Basic Websites

 


You can use a basic website builder if you want a simple website. A simple website can adequately serve home-based or very small businesses that require just a few pages, minor customization, and basic functionality. There’s no shortage of free or low-cost website builders that feature a library of templates that utilize drag-and-drop tools for a relatively simple design. The best website builders will also offer a boatload of customization capabilities, SEO features, and support help to ensure you get your site looking and functioning just the way you want it.


Depending on your level of familiarity with website builders, the largest investment is the time to write your copy and design the pages, which could eat up dozens of hours. These builders don’t require much HTML knowledge, but it wouldn’t hurt to know the basics.


COST: Around $10 to $30 per month

Professional Website Design and Development

 


If a basic website builder won’t work for you, you’ll have to enlist a professional web design company to build your site for you. By going this route, you should expect more customization, increased functionality, on-brand aesthetics, search engine optimization (SEO) across the board, and overall a much larger site.


At the higher end of this budget range, a small business will be able to seamlessly integrate with your CRM and marketing tools, including social media, analytics tools, client portal, and data capture capabilities that feed your automated marketing programs.


COST: $5,000 to $10,000

Complex and Customized Website


Do you need all the bells and whistles, a custom video player perhaps, e-commerce capabilities, dozens and dozens of pages of website content, a chatbot, technical support, and full integration with all your marketing, social, analytics, and email programs? Well, this is going to cost you.

It will take a professional web development team a lot of time to develop and design a comprehensive website such as this. It will pay off, however. Your website will be beautiful, functional, and offer an immaculate user experience.


COST: 10,000 and above


No matter which avenue you chose, Folio Websites is available to assist you. Whether you choose to build your own website or have our team built you the website of your dreams, we’re here to help you every step of the way. Try Folio Websites today.