Small-business website guide
What does it really cost to build your own small-business website?
For a simple business website, plan on a few hundred dollars in the first year and roughly $20 to $100 per month after that. A store, booking system, or growing collection of paid add-ons can cost more.
The software bill is only part of the answer. The honest DIY cost also includes the time it takes to plan the pages, write the content, learn the platform, test the site, and keep it current.
Cost at a glance
Start with the job the website needs to do.
Simple site
$250 to $800
A reasonable first-year planning range for a basic service or brochure site.
More features
$600 to $1,500+
A broader first-year range when booking, premium tools, or more flexibility is needed.
Online store
$700 to $3,500+
A first-year range before product photography, inventory work, and transaction fees.
These are planning ranges, not vendor quotes. Plans, promotions, billing cycles, regions, taxes, and renewal prices change. Ranges reviewed August 2026.
Pricing differences
The least expensive platform is the one that fits the work.
A lower monthly price is not much of a savings if you need several add-ons or have to rebuild six months later. Compare the full setup, not just the number on the first pricing screen.
| Platform path | Typical initial cost | Typical ongoing cost | Usually best for | Costs to watch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wix or Squarespace | Usually low | About $20 to $65 per month | A straightforward service, portfolio, or brochure site | Email, scheduling, memberships, advanced forms, and renewal pricing |
| Self-hosted WordPress | About $100 to $600 | About $15 to $75 per month | More control, custom content, and room to grow | Hosting quality, plugin renewals, updates, backups, and maintenance |
| Shopify | Usually low to moderate | About $40 to $300+ per month | A business whose website is primarily an online store | Paid apps, premium themes, payment fees, shipping, and catalog work |
On a phone, swipe across the table to compare every column.
Wix or Squarespace
Fewer moving parts and a quicker start.
An all-in-one builder can be a very sensible choice for a service business, consultant, restaurant, artist, or other business that needs a polished informational site. Hosting, templates, security, and the editor are bundled together, so there are fewer technical decisions at the beginning.
Budget for the website plan, the domain after any introductory period, and professional email. Check whether scheduling, payments, memberships, forms, or marketing tools are included in the plan you are comparing. If the business outgrows the platform, moving the design and content elsewhere may require real rebuilding.
Self-hosted WordPress
More flexibility, with more responsibility.
WordPress itself is open-source software, but a working business site is not free. You still need a domain, hosting, a theme or design system, and possibly paid plugins. You also need a plan for updates, backups, security, performance, and compatibility.
WordPress is often a strong fit when the business needs custom content, deeper integrations, or long-term control over the site. The tradeoff is a steeper learning curve and more maintenance than an all-in-one builder. Low-cost hosting can work for a small site, but support and reliability matter more than saving the last few dollars each month.
Shopify
Built for selling, not merely having a website.
Shopify usually makes the most sense when the store is the center of the business. The platform handles products, checkout, orders, inventory, and payment tools in one system. That can be much easier than assembling a store from separate pieces.
The monthly plan is only the starting point. A realistic budget may also include a paid theme, apps, transaction or card-processing costs, point-of-sale tools, and the time required to prepare products, policies, shipping rules, taxes, and customer emails. A simple service business that does not sell online usually does not need an ecommerce platform.
The cost of your time
DIY is less expensive only if the time makes sense for you.
A business owner may spend several focused workdays planning pages, writing copy, choosing images, learning the editor, setting up forms, checking the mobile layout, and fixing the details that appear at launch. A more complex site can take much longer.
A simple reality check
Estimated hours × the realistic value of your time + software costs = a more honest DIY total
If 40 hours of website work replaces 40 hours of paid client work, operations, or rest you genuinely need, the platform subscription is not the largest cost.
That does not make DIY a bad choice. Learning the site may give you useful independence later. The question is whether you are choosing that learning project on purpose.
DIY or professional help?
Both can be responsible business decisions.
The right answer depends on complexity, available time, risk, and how important the website is to revenue. A small first site and a business-critical rebuild are not the same project.
When DIY makes sense
Build it yourself when the scope is clear and manageable.
- You need a small, straightforward site with a few stable pages.
- You are comfortable learning new software and troubleshooting ordinary setup issues.
- You can write the content, choose useful images, and make decisions without the project stalling.
- The site does not depend on unusual integrations, complex forms, or high-risk data.
- You want to learn the platform because you plan to maintain it yourself.
When professional help makes sense
Bring in help when delay, complexity, or risk costs more.
- The website needs to support bookings, payments, memberships, integrations, or a large catalog.
- Your launch date matters and the learning curve would put it at risk.
- You are unsure how to organize the content or explain the business clearly.
- Accessibility, performance, search visibility, privacy, or security requirements are more than basic.
- You have already spent weeks circling the project without getting a usable site online.
The middle ground
You do not have to choose between doing everything and handing over everything.
Get help with the foundation
Have someone set up the platform, page structure, forms, search basics, and technical launch. You provide the business knowledge and maintain the content.
Bring a draft for a review
Build the first version yourself, then pay for a focused review of mobile usability, accessibility, performance, search basics, and anything that feels uncertain.
Use a template with guidance
Choose a proven template and get help adapting it to the business instead of commissioning a fully custom design.
Keep ownership and learn the handoff
Make sure the accounts, domain, content, and documentation stay under your control, with enough training to handle ordinary updates confidently.
Before spending money
Write down the essentials first.
- What should a visitor understand within the first few seconds?
- Which pages and features are truly needed at launch?
- Who will write, approve, and maintain the content?
- What must connect to the site, such as email, booking, payments, or a customer system?
- Which accounts and business assets need to remain under your ownership?
You can also use the free Small-Business Website Visibility Checklist to review a site you already have, or read about practical website builds and redesigns if you are comparing professional options.
Want a second set of eyes?
Start with a free 30-minute website assessment.
Bring an idea, a half-built site, or the website you already have. I will help you identify what matters, what can wait, and whether DIY, focused help, or a professional build is the most sensible next step. You will leave with a recording and a practical checklist you can use on your own.