How Much Does It Cost to Build a Website? Year 1 vs Year 2

Building a website costs from about $47 to $370 in year one if you build it yourself, using list prices we checked on 25 October 2026, and the bill usually changes in year two. If you pay someone to build it, add a one-off build fee: freelancers on Upwork typically charge $15 to $30 an hour, and our own done-for-you packages start at $997.

Most “website cost” pages give you a range like “$0 to $100,000” and stop there. This one prices real setups line by line, shows what each part renews at, and ends with two free tools: a budget builder that works out your own 3-year cost, and a 12-point checker for any quote you get.

How much does it cost to build a website for a small business?

For a typical local business site (5 to 10 pages, a contact form, maybe bookings) the real answer depends on two choices: who builds it (you or a pro) and where it lives (a website builder like Squarespace, or WordPress on your own hosting). The chart above prices four real setups from the vendors’ own pages.

Look at the WordPress on SiteGround setup. It is the cheapest to start and the one that jumps the most, because the hosting’s first-year deal ends. That pattern, not the starting price, is what decides your real cost. Before we get to it, here is what you are paying for.

What you are paying for: the 7 parts of a website bill

A website is easier to price if you picture it as a small shop. Every website, cheap or expensive, is made of the same seven parts. Some are free, some are yearly, and one is usually a one-off.

Two things in that table surprise most owners. The padlock (SSL) that hosts sometimes sell is free. And the hosting price you see on the sign is almost never the price you pay later.

The renewal trap: why year 2 costs more than year 1

Hosting companies advertise a first-term price that only applies if you pay for the whole term up front, and then renew at full price. Domains work the same way. Here are the exact numbers from each company’s own page:

None of this is hidden; it is on each pricing page. But it changes the maths. SiteGround’s StartUp plan costs $35.88 for the first year and $215.88 for each year after. Hostinger’s $2.49 deal is fine value if you are happy to pay $119.52 for four years today. The rule is simple: compare renewal prices, not first-year prices.

How to work out your website budget in 5 steps

You can do this in ten minutes with the budget builder below. Here is what each step means, so you know what you are choosing.

Step 1. Decide who builds it

Doing it yourself costs time, not money. A freelancer or agency charges a one-off build fee. If you hire, ask whether the fee covers the words and photos, or only the design. (More on fair prices in the $1,500 section.)

Step 2. Choose where it lives

A website builder (Squarespace, Shopify, WordPress.com) bundles hosting, security and updates into one monthly fee. WordPress on your own hosting is cheaper and more flexible, but you handle updates and pay the renewal price later. If you are torn, our comparisons of Squarespace vs WordPress and Shopify vs WordPress go deeper.

Step 3. Register the domain in your own name

Many annual plans (Squarespace, WordPress.com, Hostinger, Bluehost) include the domain free for the first year. Take it if you like, but make sure the domain account is in your name and note its renewal price. Whoever controls the domain controls your website and email.

Step 4. Add the extras you will really use

Business email is the one most owners need: $7 per person per month. A premium theme or page builder is optional. Selling online adds card fees: Shopify Basic charges 2.9% + 30¢ per online card sale, and Squarespace’s Basic plan adds a 2% transaction fee on online store sales.

Step 5. Multiply by three years, then compare

Look at year 1, year 2 and year 3 side by side. The cheapest first year is often not the cheapest website. The builder below does the sums for you.

Free website budget builder

Pick your options and the receipt updates. Every price comes from the vendor’s own page, checked on 25 October 2026. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

Try one thing: switch between SiteGround and Hostinger and watch where the money lands. Same kind of hosting, very different cash flow.

How much does a website cost per month?

A do-it-yourself website costs about $4 to $29 a month on most website builder plans billed yearly, or $2.49 to $3.99 a month for WordPress hosting on a long first term, renewing at $9.99 to $17.99 a month. Add about $1.50 a month for a .com domain after year one, and $7 per person for business email.

Sources: WordPress.com pricing, Squarespace pricing, Shopify pricing, all checked 25 October 2026. Paying monthly costs about a third more on Squarespace and Shopify, and more than double on WordPress.com Personal, so once you are sure of the platform, switch to yearly.

How much does it cost to pay someone to build a website?

Paying someone adds a one-off build fee, which is simply hours multiplied by an hourly rate. According to Upwork, web designers on its platform cost $15 to $30 an hour and web developers $15 to $50 (median rates). For comparison, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts median pay for web developers and digital designers at $47.85 an hour in 2025.

So the price of a build depends less on the rate and more on the hours, and the hours depend on scope: number of pages, who writes the words, bookings or a shop, and rounds of changes. A fixed-price package removes that guesswork. For reference, our web design packages are $997 one-time for up to 5 pages (live in 2 to 3 weeks) and $1,797 for up to 12 pages (about 4 weeks), and we design your homepage first so you only pay once you like it.

Is $1,500 a good price for a website?

$1,500 can be a fair price for a small business website, but only if the quote says exactly what you get. Two $1,500 quotes can be completely different jobs. The real risk is not the number on the quote; it is the lines that are missing from it.

Before you sign anything, run the quote through this checklist. Tick each item the quote clearly names.

If the quote names 10 or more of these at your budget, it is probably a fair deal. If it names 4, the low price is not low yet. Our guide to choosing a web design company covers the questions to ask on the call.

Hidden costs most website quotes leave out

• Hosting and domain renewals. The jump shown above, every year from year 2.
• Payment fees. Shopify Basic: 2.9% + 30¢ per online card sale. Squarespace Basic: 2% on online store sales, on top of card fees.
• Business email. $7 per user per month at Google or Microsoft. Three staff is $252 a year.
• Licences. Paid themes and plugins renew yearly. Astra’s “special introductory pricing” note says all renewals are at full price.
• Accessibility. According to UsableNet, more than 5,000 digital accessibility lawsuits were filed in 2025, and 64% of the companies sued had under $25 million in revenue. Building with readable text, labels and good contrast from day one is easier than fixing it later.
• Your time. Updates, backups and content edits take time every month if nobody else does them.

Can I make my own website for free?

You can build one for free, but you cannot run a proper business website for free. The software is free: WordPress is open source under the GPLv2 licence, and SSL certificates are free from Let’s Encrypt. What you still pay for is a domain (from $11.28 for the first year) and somewhere to host the site. Free plans put your site on someone else’s address (yourname.something.com), which looks out of place on a van or a business card, so the realistic minimum is around $47 to $48 for the first year, as in the setups above.

Can ChatGPT build a website for me?

ChatGPT and similar tools can write your page text, draft code and explain each setup step, which saves real time. They do not buy your domain, pay for hosting, publish the site or check it works on a real phone. Use AI as a helper, then check every page yourself. And once your site is live, test whether AI assistants mention your business with our free AI Visibility Checker.

Is a website worth the money for a local business?

Yes, because your website is where people go right after they decide they like you. BrightLocal’s 2026 Local Consumer Review Survey found consumers are most likely (54%) to visit a business’s website after reading positive reviews, and 45% now use AI tools for business recommendations, up from 6% a year earlier.

Most of those visits happen on a phone: StatCounter measured mobile at 58.99% of worldwide web traffic in September 2026. That is why speed is worth paying for. When we rebuilt our own site in 30 days, load time went from 5.4 seconds to 2.4 seconds and Lighthouse from 54 to 98 (see the rebuild). For Sugar & Wax Haven, a beauty salon in Tempe, the new site became the foundation for 591% organic traffic growth (case study).

Already have a site? Check it before you spend anything new: run a free Website SEO Audit and a Core Web Vitals check. If the problems are small, a fix usually costs less than a rebuild. If you would rather hand the whole thing over, see our web design packages; for what drives design fees specifically, read how much website design costs.

Website cost cheat sheet (free to save and share)

Everything above on one page. Save it, send it to a business partner, or pin it for the next time someone quotes you for a website.

FAQs

How much does a small business website cost per year?

A do-it-yourself small business website costs about $48 to $368 a year at list prices checked on 25 October 2026: $48 on WordPress.com Personal, $228 on Squarespace Basic and $348 on Squarespace Core or Shopify Basic, plus a domain after year one. Add $84 a year for each business email inbox.

Is a website builder cheaper than WordPress?

In year one, self-hosted WordPress is often cheaper: SiteGround hosting plus a Namecheap domain is $47.16. From year two it can cost more, because that hosting renews at $17.99 a month. Builders like Squarespace keep one flat yearly price and include hosting and security, so compare the three-year total.

How long does it take to build a small business website?

It depends on the number of pages and who writes the content. As one reference point, our Launch package (up to 5 pages) goes live in 2 to 3 weeks and our Growth package (up to 12 pages) in about 4 weeks. Content that is ready on day one is the biggest time saver.

Why did my hosting bill go up so much this year?

Most hosts advertise a first-term price that ends after your first 12 to 48 months, then renew at the full price. On 25 October 2026, Hostinger Premium renewed at $10.99 a month after $2.49, Bluehost Starter at $9.99 after $3.99, and SiteGround StartUp at $17.99 after $2.99.

Should I pay for a website upfront or monthly?

For the build itself, a one-off fee for a clear scope is usually simplest. For running costs, paying yearly is cheaper: Squarespace Basic is $19 a month billed yearly versus $25 monthly, and Shopify Basic $29 versus $39. Pay monthly only while you are still testing a platform.

Sources

• Prices: Namecheap, GoDaddy, Squarespace domains FAQ, Hostinger, Bluehost, SiteGround, Squarespace, Shopify, WordPress.com, Astra, Elementor, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365. All checked 25 October 2026, US prices, before tax.
• Free software: WordPress.org, Let’s Encrypt.
• Labour: Upwork web designer rates, Upwork web developer rates, BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.
• Research: BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, StatCounter, UsableNet, Google.