If you've Googled “how much does a website cost in the UK”, you've probably found answers ranging from “free” to “£50,000+”. Neither extreme is particularly helpful when you're a small business owner trying to make a sensible decision. So let's cut through the noise and give you a straight answer — then the full picture.
The quick answer: a basic template website costs around £500. A bespoke, properly built business website sits between £2,000 and £5,000. Complex sites with e-commerce, memberships, or custom functionality run £5,000 to £15,000+. But the real answer depends on what you actually need — and what a bad website is already costing you in lost business.
UK Website Cost at a Glance
| Type | Cost | What You Get |
|---|---|---|
| DIY builder (Wix/Squarespace) | £150–2,000/yr | Template, monthly fees forever, limited SEO |
| Freelancer | £500–3,000 | Mixed quality, may disappear after delivery |
| Agency | £5,000–15,000+ | Full service, slow timelines, expensive retainers |
| Simple Day | £2,995 one-time | Bespoke code, SEO built in, quiz funnel, you own it forever |
Let's break each option down properly so you can decide what's right for your business.
What Affects the Price of a Website?
Before we compare options, it helps to understand why web design prices in the UK vary so wildly. The cost of your website depends on several factors:
- Number of pages — A 5-page brochure site is very different from a 50-page content hub.
- Custom design vs template — Bespoke design costs more upfront but performs better long-term.
- E-commerce functionality — Online shops with product pages, baskets, and payment gateways add complexity.
- SEO requirements — Proper technical SEO, keyword research, and optimised content aren't free extras.
- Content creation — Photography, copywriting, and video all add to the budget.
- Third-party integrations — CRM systems, booking tools, payment processors, and APIs.
- Ongoing maintenance — Some solutions require monthly hosting, updates, and security patches. Others don't.
The biggest pricing difference, though, comes down to who builds it. That's where the four main options come in.
DIY Website Builders: The Hidden Costs
Wix and Squarespace are the go-to options for people who want to build a website themselves. And to be fair, if you're creating a personal blog, a hobby site, or a simple portfolio to share with friends, they're perfectly fine. We'd genuinely recommend them for those use cases — no point spending thousands on something that doesn't need to earn you money.
But for a business that depends on its website to attract customers? The maths gets awkward quickly. Here's what you're actually paying:
- Wix: £13–£159/month depending on the plan. The “free” plan plasters Wix branding all over your site and gives you a wix.com subdomain — not exactly professional.
- Squarespace: £13–£43/month. Better templates, but the same fundamental limitations.
- Premium templates: The nice-looking ones often cost £50–£150 extra.
- App store plugins: Need a booking system? A pop-up? Analytics? Each one adds £5–£30/month.
Over three years, a Wix Business plan alone costs £936 — and that's before templates, plugins, or the domain name. A Squarespace Business plan runs to £1,188+. And here's the part nobody mentions upfront: you don't own any of it. You can't export your site. You can't move it to another host. You can't optimise the code for speed or SEO. You're renting a template, and the moment you stop paying, it disappears.
For a deeper comparison, we've written a full breakdown: Custom Website vs Wix & Squarespace.
Freelancer: The Gamble
Hiring a freelance web designer in the UK typically costs between £500 and £3,000. That's a wide range, and for good reason — quality varies enormously. Some freelancers are brilliant. They've left agencies, built up a client list, and deliver excellent work at fair prices. Others bought a Udemy course last month and are charging £800 for a WordPress theme with your logo swapped in.
The risks with freelancers include:
- They may disappear. No company, no obligation. If they get a full-time job or move on, you're left with a website nobody knows how to update.
- WordPress dependency. Most freelancers build on WordPress, which means plugins, security updates, hosting fees, and a database that needs maintaining.
- No SEO knowledge. Many can make a site look decent but have no idea how to structure it for search engines.
- No conversion optimisation. A pretty website that doesn't convert visitors into enquiries is just an expensive online brochure.
- No ongoing support. When something breaks at 9pm on a Friday, who do you call?
That said, if you find a good freelancer with a proven track record and references, they can be a solid option — especially for simpler projects. Just do your homework.
Agency: Paying for Their Rent
A web design agency in the UK will charge £5,000 to £15,000+ for a standard business website. Some charge considerably more. Why? Because you're not just paying for the website. You're paying for:
- Staff salaries (designers, developers, project managers, account managers)
- Office rent in a nice part of town
- The “discovery phase” and “brand workshops”
- Multiple rounds of revisions through layers of approval
- Monthly retainers of £500–£2,000 for ongoing updates and hosting
The typical agency build timeline is 8 to 16 weeks. That's two to four months before your website goes live. For complex projects with genuine technical challenges, this makes sense. For a 5–10 page business website? You're paying for process, not product.
Agencies absolutely have their place. If you need a large-scale e-commerce platform, a custom web application, or a site with complex integrations across multiple systems, an agency with a full team is the right call. But for most small businesses that need a professional website that ranks on Google and converts visitors into customers, it's overkill.
Simple Day: £2,995, and You Own Everything
Here's what we do differently at Simple Day. For £2,995, you get a website that's built with bespoke code — the same technology (Next.js) used by Netflix, TikTok, and Notion. Not WordPress. Not a template. Every line of code is written for your business.
Here's exactly what's included:
- Bespoke code, not a template. Built with Next.js — fast, secure, and optimised out of the box. No bloated plugins, no database vulnerabilities, no monthly WordPress updates.
- SEO built into every page. Not bolted on afterwards. Not an extra monthly fee. Proper technical SEO, structured data, and optimised content from day one.
- Quiz funnel included. Instead of a boring contact form that converts at 2–5%, you get an interactive quiz funnel that converts at 15–28%. That's not marketing fluff — it's the difference between 5 and 25 enquiries per month.
- Mobile-first responsive design. Over 60% of web traffic in the UK is mobile. Your site will look and perform brilliantly on every device.
- You own every line of code. No monthly fees. No lock-in. No subscription. If you ever want to move to a different developer, you can. It's yours.
- Delivered in days, not months. We don't pad timelines. Most sites go live within a week.
- 50% upfront, 50% on completion. Straightforward. No hidden costs, no surprise invoices.
Is Simple Day right for everyone? No. If you need a large e-commerce platform with thousands of products, you probably need a bigger team. If you want a hobby blog or personal site, Wix or Squarespace will do the job for less. But if you're a small business, tradesperson, or service provider that needs a website to bring in customers — that's exactly what we build.
Ready to see if we're the right fit? Start our 60-second quiz and we'll give you an honest answer.
The Real Cost of a Bad Website
Most people focus on what a website costs to build. They should be focusing on what a bad website costs them in lost business. Let's run the numbers with a deliberately conservative example:
- You get 500 visitors per month (modest for a local business with any kind of online presence).
- A poorly built website converts at 1% = 5 enquiries per month.
- A properly built website converts at 5% = 25 enquiries per month.
- That's 20 lost enquiries every single month.
- If your average customer is worth £500 (again, conservative for most trades and services)…
- That's £10,000 per month you're leaving on the table.
- Over a year: £120,000 in lost revenue.
Now, will every visitor become a customer? Of course not. Not every enquiry converts to a sale. But even if you close just a quarter of those extra leads, that's still £30,000 a year from a £2,995 investment. The return on investment isn't marginal — it's transformational.
A cheap website isn't cheap. It's the most expensive decision you can make, because it costs you every day it's live and not converting.
Proof: What £2,995 Actually Gets You
We don't ask you to take our word for it. Here's a real example from our portfolio.
bbqpods.uk — a BBQ pod supplier — came to us with nothing but a 15-page supplier PDF. No existing website, no content, no brief beyond “we need to be online”. Here's what happened:
- Built in 12 hours from that supplier PDF. Bespoke Next.js code, not a theme.
- #1 on Google for “bbq pods uk” within 8 weeks — no paid ads, no ongoing SEO retainer.
- 905 clicks and 7,024 impressions from Google Search alone.
- Visitors from 114 countries — organic reach that most businesses spend thousands on advertising to achieve.
No monthly SEO spend. No content marketing agency. No pay-per-click budget. Just a well-built website with SEO baked into the code. That's the difference between a template and bespoke.
3-Year Cost Comparison
Here's what each option actually costs over three years when you factor in hosting, maintenance, and retainers. This is the comparison most web designers don't want you to see:
| Wix Business | Squarespace Business | Freelancer (WordPress) | Agency | Simple Day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | £312 | £396 | £2,000 + £500 hosting | £8,000 + £1,000 retainer | £2,995 |
| Year 2 | £312 | £396 | £500 hosting + £300 updates | £1,000 retainer | £0 |
| Year 3 | £312 | £396 | £500 hosting + £300 updates | £1,000 retainer | £0 |
| 3-Year Total | £936+ | £1,188+ | £4,100+ | £11,000+ | £2,995 |
| SEO Included | Basic | Basic | Extra cost | Extra cost | Yes |
| You Own Code | No | No | Maybe | Usually | Yes |
The DIY builders look cheapest on paper, but remember — that lower cost comes with lower performance, limited SEO, and zero ownership. You're renting. The moment you stop paying, your website vanishes. With Simple Day, you pay once and it's yours forever.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the average cost of a website for a small business in the UK?
For a professionally built website that actually performs, you're looking at £2,000–£5,000. You can spend less on templates and DIY builders, but they typically cost more in the long run through monthly fees, poor SEO performance, and lower conversion rates. At the higher end, agencies charge £5,000–£15,000+, though much of that goes towards overhead rather than your actual website. The sweet spot for most small businesses is a bespoke site in the £2,000–£5,000 range — enough to get something properly built without paying for someone else's office.
Is Wix really free?
Technically, Wix has a free plan. In practice, it's unusable for a business. The free plan gives you a wix.com subdomain (e.g., yourbusiness.wixsite.com/site — not exactly confidence-inspiring), plasters Wix advertising across your pages, and limits storage and bandwidth. To get a custom domain and remove Wix branding, you need the Combo plan at minimum (£13/month). For anything business-grade, you're looking at the Business plan at £26/month or higher. And that's before apps, plugins, and premium templates.
Why are some websites £500 and others £15,000?
The £500 website is almost certainly a pre-built template with your logo, colours, and content dropped in. It looks like a template because it is one. There's no custom design, no SEO strategy, and no conversion optimisation. The £15,000 website should include bespoke design, a proper content strategy, technical SEO, and a conversion-focused user experience — but often, a significant chunk of that budget goes towards agency overhead: account managers, project managers, office space, and layers of process. The question isn't “how much should I spend?” — it's “what am I actually getting for the money?”
Can I pay monthly for a website?
We offer a straightforward 50/50 split: half upfront to begin the build, half on completion when you're happy with everything. After that, there are no monthly fees, no hosting charges, and no retainers. You own the website outright. If you're looking for monthly payment options, some agencies and builders offer subscription models — but be careful. Monthly website subscriptions often mean you don't own the site, and you'll end up paying far more over time.
Do I need to pay extra for SEO?
Not with us. SEO is built into every Simple Day website as standard — proper technical foundations, structured data, optimised meta tags, fast page speeds, and clean code that search engines love. Most agencies and freelancers treat SEO as an add-on service, charging £300–£1,000+ per month on top of the build cost. We believe that a website without SEO is like a shop with no sign — it defeats the purpose. So it's included.
How long does it take to build a website?
It depends on who's building it. Agencies typically take 8–16 weeks for a standard business site. Freelancers vary wildly — anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months, depending on their workload and how organised they are. At Simple Day, most websites are delivered within days. Our flagship case study, bbqpods.uk, was built in 12 hours from a supplier PDF and was ranking #1 on Google within 8 weeks.
So, How Much Should You Spend?
If your website is a hobby, spend as little as possible. Wix, Squarespace, even a free WordPress.com blog — they'll do the job. No judgement.
If your website is a business tool — if customers need to find you, trust you, and contact you — then it's worth investing in something that actually works. A bespoke website with SEO built in, a conversion-optimised funnel, and code you own outright is the most cost-effective way to grow a small business online.
The best time to get a proper website was yesterday. The second best time is now.
Ready to find out what we'd build for your business? Take our 60-second quiz and we'll get back to you with an honest answer — even if that answer is “Wix would be fine for what you need”.
Or if you're local to Swindon and want to chat in person, check out our web design in Swindon page. We're always happy to have a no-pressure conversation about what your business actually needs.
