If you’ve ever Googled “how much does website design cost,” you’ve probably seen answers all over the map. $500 to $100,000+. Not exactly helpful when you’re trying to figure out what to budget.
I’ve built over 150 websites for coaches and online service-based businesses, with custom projects ranging from $5,000 to $20,000. And yet I still have people tell me they almost didn’t reach out because they assumed I’d “charge huge bucks.” Website design cost varies a lot depending on what you actually need.
In this post, I’ll break down what website design costs at every level, what you’re paying for at each tier, and how to decide what’s right for your stage of business.
A Quick Summary:
- Build it yourself: Free or nearly free to start
- Build it yourself with guided templates: ~$500
- Hire a professional web designer: $5,000–$20,000+
- Ongoing costs after launch: $50–300/month
What Goes Into Website Design Cost?
Website design cost depends on what features and services you need. The number of pages, whether copywriting is included, and whether brand design is part of the project all affect the total.
Here’s what makes up the total cost of a website project:
Website design is the visual layout of your site — how your pages look, the spacing, the color choices, the overall feel. This is what most people think of when they hear “website design cost,” but it’s actually just one piece of the puzzle.
Brand design includes your logo, color palette, font pairings, and visual assets. Those assets keep you looking visually consistent across all of your online presence, not just your website.
Development is the technical build: setting up your site on a platform like WordPress, making it mobile-responsive, and making sure all the buttons actually work.
Copywriting is the process of writing the words on your site (or hiring someone to write them for you). Whether the designer handles the copy for you or you bring your own makes a big difference in the total website design cost.
Hosting, domain, and ongoing maintenance are the costs that continue after your site goes live. More on those later.
How you build your site determines which of these costs you’ll pay, and how much. So let’s start with the most affordable route: doing it yourself.
Not sure what pages your website actually needs? Grab the free Website Blueprint — a 5-part video mini-course that walks you through the five pages every coaching website needs.
How Much Does It Cost to Design a Website Yourself?
Building a website yourself using a website builder or WordPress template costs roughly $200–$500 per year — sometimes less if you’re comfortable with a free plan’s limitations.
If you go this route, you’ll need to pick a platform first. Here are the most common options:
Website Builders (Wix, Squarespace)
These platforms charge about $16–$50/month, which includes hosting, templates, and basic features. They’re simple to use and great for getting something up quickly.
The thing to know is that you’re limited in how much you can customize, and you don’t truly own your site. Think of it like renting a furnished apartment in a high-rise. It looks nice on day one, it’s easy to move into, but you have a landlord. If they raise the rent, you accept it or leave. If you want to knock down a wall, you can’t.
If your business grows and you need more flexibility — custom integrations, better SEO control, or features that don’t exist in their ecosystem — you might end up rebuilding on a different platform down the road.
WordPress
WordPress itself is free. You’ll need reliable hosting and a domain name (~$15/year) to get started, but from there you have full control.
The learning curve is steeper than Wix or Squarespace, but WordPress is more like buying your own house. You own it. You have total flexibility, and it grows with you as your business evolves.
Most website template shops charge $200–$600 for a professionally designed template you can customize yourself. My own Website Kit is about $500 and gives you access to all of my plug-and-play templates, plus step-by-step video training and a peer support group to help you through the build.
I built it because I kept seeing online businesses spend weeks stuck in analysis paralysis, afraid of picking the wrong tools.
The Honest Caveat About DIY
DIY saves money, but it costs time. And if you’re learning design as you go, there’s a real chance your site won’t convert visitors into clients the way a strategically-built site would.
Having guided training and templates definitely shortens the learning curve. And a clean one-page website is more than enough to get started — especially if you’re building your first client base. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the published.
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Web Designer?
Hiring a professional web designer typically costs $5,000–$20,000+ depending on the scope of the project. But where does that sit relative to the broader market?
Here’s what the data shows:
Freelance designers typically charge $500–$5,000 per project, according to a 2025 survey by the Web Designer Academy.
StoryBrand certified agencies that build done-for-you websites with messaging and copywriting typically charge $10,000–$30,000.
Larger agencies charge significantly more — the average project on Clutch comes in at over $38,000.
My own projects range from $5,000 to $20,000, which puts me in the middle. You’re getting the strategic, conversion-focused work of a StoryBrand agency without the large agency price tag.
And then there’s the budget end of the market. You can get a website built on Fiverr for $300–$500 or through GoDaddy’s design services for around $500–$2,000. But those projects are typically template setups with no strategy, no custom copywriting, and no SEO foundation.
Research from Stanford shows that 75% of people judge a business’s credibility based on its website design. So a site that was built without any strategy behind it can actually cost you clients in ways that are hard to measure.
I’ve seen coaches spend $2,000–$3,000 on a quick site, get very few leads for 6–12 months, then come to me to rebuild it properly. The total cost ends up being higher than if they’d invested in a well-built site from the start.
Will a Website Redesign Actually Pay for Itself?
It’s a fair question. My friend Carla Moats, who’s a financial coach for entrepreneurs, has a really simple framework for thinking about this. She said the first thing she asks any client considering investing in a new website is, “How will you measure the success of this investment?”
And the thing about a website is that you can actually measure it. You can track your visitors, your conversion rate on each page, and how many consult requests come through. So before you decide what to spend, do the math: how many clients would your new site need to help you book to pay for itself?
If your average client is worth $3,000–$5,000 and a custom website costs $10,000, you’re looking at two or three clients. If a well-built site helps you convert even a small percentage more of the visitors you’re already getting, or stops losing the ones who are showing up but clicking away, the investment pays for itself faster than you’d think.
Here’s what one of my clients, Danna, had to say about her website project:
“I will tell you that people are totally losing their breath over the site! My friend who does writing for high net worth executives couldn’t say enough about the copy and how it all flows throughout the site.”
Every custom project my team does starts with what I call Success Planning — a strategy and discovery sprint that happens before we design a single page. That way we know exactly who we’re writing the site for, what you actually need, and what the investment will be before we design anything.
If you’re curious about working together, you can learn more about my web design services.
What I Charge Per Project (Behind-the-Scenes Breakdowns)
Every project is different, but to give you a concrete sense of what website design cost looks like in real life, here are a few anonymized projects from my studio with the actual deliverables included.
I’m sharing these because the biggest frustration I hear from people researching website pricing is that the ranges are too wide to be useful. “Somewhere between $5,000 and $20,000” doesn’t help you budget. Seeing what a specific dollar amount actually bought someone does.
Project A — Total Project Cost: ~$5,000
Who this is for: A coach or service provider who needs a professional one-page site with copywriting and basic integrations, and already has their own logo and brand in place.
Website: 1-page custom WordPress site built to the StoryBrand framework so the messaging hits the right notes from the very first scroll.
Brand design: Not included (client had existing branding)
What else was included: Done-for-you StoryBrand copy for the entire page, a newsletter confirmation email, email opt-in form setup, scheduling tool integration, and on-page SEO.
Project B — Total Project Cost: ~$12,500
Who this is for: A coach who needs a multi-page site with done-for-you copywriting, a lead magnet funnel, and a designed lead magnet, and already has their brand in place.
Website: 7-page custom WordPress site
Brand design: Not included as a full package since the client had existing branding. However, the project did include lead magnet PDF design, up to 6 pages.
What else was included: Done-for-you StoryBrand copywriting for all pages on the site, lead magnet writing, a 3-email autoresponder sequence, and on-page SEO.
Wondering what your specific project would cost? Every custom project begins with Success Planning, a $1,500 investment where I dig into your business, research your audience, and map out everything your website needs before any design work starts. Learn more about how it works.
Project C — Total Project Cost: ~$20,000
Who this is for: An established coach or service provider who needs the full package — brand design, done-for-you copywriting, and a complex marketing system.
Website: 10-page custom WordPress site
Brand design: Logo variations, color palette, font pairings, style guide, and a slew of branded assets for Instagram, LinkedIn, email, and Facebook — including editable Canva templates so the client can maintain visual consistency on their own.
What else was included: Done-for-you StoryBrand copywriting for the entire site, a ScoreApp quiz (including the technical setup, all the questions, and the conditional email sequences based on quiz results), and on-page SEO.
What you’re paying for at each level is the scope of the design, content, and strategy work — including having an experienced designer’s eyes on your business and your audience, not just your pages.
What About Ongoing Website Costs?
After your site launches, expect to budget roughly $50–$300/month for hosting, domain renewal, security updates, and content changes.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the ongoing costs:
Hosting runs about $15–$30/month for a good, reliable host. Don’t go with the cheapest option here — your hosting affects your site speed, uptime, and security, all of which directly impact how visitors experience your site.
Domain renewal is roughly $15/year — easy to forget, but important to keep on auto-renew so you don’t accidentally lose your web address.
Plugin licenses and renewals can run $50–$300/year depending on what your site uses. If you’re on a designer’s care plan, those licenses are often covered as part of the package.
Maintenance and care plans typically cost $50–$200/month and cover things like WordPress updates, security monitoring, backups, and minor content changes. You can handle this yourself, but most business owners I work with prefer to hand it off so they can focus on their actual work.
And here’s the cost most people don’t think about: your time.
Your website is the foundation, but it’s just the start. To make that investment actually pay off, you need to budget time for marketing — email marketing, blogging, social media, all of it takes real effort. I wish more coaches thought about this before they launch. A beautiful site without a plan to drive traffic to it is like a billboard in the desert.
That’s why SEO and email marketing matter so much as next steps after your site goes live.
Not sure where to start? Every custom project begins with Success Planning — a $1,500 discovery sprint that maps out exactly what your website needs before any design work begins.
How Do You Know When It’s Time to Upgrade Your Website?
The clearest sign that you need to uplevel your website is that you’re losing potential clients or partnerships because your site doesn’t match the caliber of your work.
Maybe referral partners hesitate before sending high-value clients your way. Maybe potential clients research two or three competitors after seeing your site. Maybe people assume your prices are lower than they are because your site doesn’t convey premium quality.
For most online service-based businesses, your website is your storefront. You don’t have a physical office or a brick-and-mortar location. This is your overhead, your real estate. It’s where people go to decide whether to trust you. That means it deserves to be treated like the business asset it is.
Here’s what my client Krista St-Germain said about her website project:
“My website hadn’t had major updates for a couple of years and it no longer felt aligned with my business. The website build process was smooth, even with a tight timeline and last-minute changes. Jennie also worked well with my team and many issues were resolved without me even needing to get involved. I’m ecstatic with the end product!”
And Sherry Price, who’s worked with me on multiple projects:
“Jennie understands my business model and she comes up with beautiful designs, beautiful content, and better ideas than I could. This has really kept me coming back to her and her team over and over again to help keep improving things that I want to accomplish in my business.”
What the Right Budget Looks Like at Each Stage
Just starting out: ~$500. A clean one-page site is all you need. That’s exactly what the Website Kit is designed for.
Growing: A few thousand dollars. You’re ready to add pages and work with a professional designer to level up.
Established: $10,000–$20,000. Polish matters. Your audience will judge your website, and so will potential partners and collaboration opportunities.
Think about how many clients you’d need to sign to pay for the project. For most coaches and service providers, the answer is two to four. A well-built site is working for you around the clock.
How to Evaluate a Web Designer (Red Flags and Green Flags)
If you decide to hire a professional, knowing what to look for can save you a lot of headaches (and money).
Green Flags
They have a portfolio you can browse. And not just any portfolio — the aesthetic and tone of their previous work matches what you want. What you see in their portfolio is likely what your site will look and feel like.
Look at their copywriting samples specifically. Unless they have a skilled copywriter on the team who can pivot tones, their writing voice is their writing voice. If the copy on their portfolio sites feels stiff or generic, that might carry over to your project.
They use project-based pricing. You know what the project costs before work begins, and you won’t get a surprise invoice three months in because the project ended up taking longer than the designer estimated.
They have a defined process with a clear timeline. You should know what to expect at each stage. A good designer will walk you through the whole flow before you sign anything.
Good communication from the very start. If they’re hard to get a hold of before you’ve even hired them, it’s unlikely to improve once the project begins.
They ask about your business goals, not just your color preferences. The best designers care about what your website needs to do, not just how it looks.
Red Flags
No portfolio or no website of their own. If a designer can’t build a site for themselves, that tells you something.
They can’t explain their process in plain language. You shouldn’t need a computer science degree to understand how your website is getting built. If they hide behind jargon, that’s a bad sign.
Hourly billing with no project cap. Hourly rates can spiral quickly, and you have very little control over what the final number ends up being. You want to know your total investment before the work starts.
Ownership concerns. You should own your website files and be able to switch hosts or designers if you want to. Ask about this before signing a contract. If they build on a proprietary platform where you can’t take your site with you, that’s a problem.
They push features you don’t need. If someone’s selling you an ecommerce setup when you’re a coach who books consults, they may not understand your actual business. Be sure to use discernment and don’t pay for more than you need.
Frequently Asked Questions About Website Design Cost
How much does a basic website cost for a small business?
It depends on who builds it. A DIY site using a builder like Wix or Squarespace costs about $200–$500/year. A template-based design from a freelancer runs $500–$5,000. A fully custom site with strategy and copywriting costs $5,000–$15,000+. The right option depends on your budget and how much your website needs to do for your business right now.
How much does it cost to maintain a website per month?
Plan for about $50–$300/month for hosting, security updates, plugin management, and content changes. Many web designers offer monthly care plans that bundle all of this — including covering plugin licenses — so you don’t have to manage the technical side yourself.
Is it cheaper to build your own website or hire a designer?
DIY is cheaper upfront, but it costs your time — and if the site doesn’t convert visitors into clients, you might be leaving money on the table every month. Here’s a better way to think about it: how many clients would you need to sign to pay for the project? For most coaches and service providers, it’s two to four. If a well-built website helps you book even a few extra clients, it usually pays for itself pretty quickly.
How often should you redesign your website?
A well-built site can last 5–7 years with small tweaks along the way. Some of my clients are on year 7 or 8 and still making their site work with minor updates. The trigger to redesign isn’t usually a change in design trends — it’s when your business has outgrown your current site’s messaging and positioning. If your niche, audience, or offers have shifted significantly, that’s when a redesign makes sense.
Making the Right Website Design Investment
The website is the foundation, not the finish line. Budget time and energy for the marketing that drives people to your site, too — that’s what turns a beautiful website into a business-growing one.
If you’re looking to partner with an expert to build or redesign your site, learn more about my web design services.
If you’re just getting started and need a DIY option to keep costs low, the Website Kit will walk you through the whole process.
