What a small business website costs in 2026
Real numbers for 2026: Wix and Squarespace, freelancers, agencies and our own published plans, plus the costs nobody mentions until the invoice.
The short answer: building it yourself on Wix or Squarespace runs about $17 to $49 a month. A freelancer typically charges $1,500 to $5,000, and an agency $5,000 to $15,000. Ours is $0 down, $199 a month, with everything a website needs included.
Building it yourself: Wix and Squarespace
Website builders are the cheapest way in. These are their own published prices in October 2026, per month on a yearly plan:
- Wix: Light $17.77, Core $29.77, Business $39.77. Core is the cheapest plan that lets you take payments.
- Squarespace: Basic $19, Core $29, Plus $49 ($25, $39 and $65 if you pay month to month). Basic takes a 2% fee on store sales.
The subscription isn’t the real cost, though. You’re the designer, the writer and the photographer, and the site tends to look like the template it started as. If you have more time than budget and need something up this week, a builder is a fair choice.
Hiring a freelancer
A freelancer typically charges $1,500 to $5,000 for a small business site, and experienced ones charge well past that. Quality varies more here than anywhere, so look at sites they’ve built that are still live, and ask who hosts it and who you call when something breaks a year from now.
Hiring an agency
A full-service agency usually charges $5,000 to $15,000 for a small business site, and more for online stores or complex builds. You get a team and a process. You also tend to get an account manager between you and the people doing the work, and a monthly retainer afterwards.
What we charge, and why it’s on our site
Most studios won’t put a price on their website. I do, because you should know whether we’re in your budget before you spend twenty minutes on a call.
- The Site: $199 a month, $0 down, 12-month minimum. Up to 6 pages built from our proven design for your industry, in your brand, with a quote form, a gallery, your Google reviews, hosting and up to 5 small changes a month included.
- Add-ons, only for work done every month: Online booking $49 a month, Blog and local SEO $99 a month, AI assistant $149 a month.
- Custom: a site designed from scratch, one project price from $2,500; most land between $2,500 and $8,000. Flagship: from $10,000, for stores, logins and payments.
$99 of each monthly payment is care (hosting, up to 5 small changes a month and a monthly check-up) and the rest goes toward the site. After 24 payments the site is paid off and yours, and the payment drops to $99 a month, or $20 for hosting alone. Your price never goes up while you stay.
The costs nobody mentions
- Your domain. A small yearly fee to keep your address. Make sure it’s registered in your name, not your designer’s.
- Words and photos. Many quotes leave out copywriting and photography. A site with stock photos and placeholder text won’t win anyone over, so ask who writes it and where the pictures come from.
- Changes after launch. Hours, prices and photos change. Find out what a small change costs before you sign, not after.
- Renewals. Builder and hosting prices often go up after the first year’s discount.
- Your time. A cheap site that takes thirty of your evenings isn’t cheap.
Which one is right for you
- More time than money: start on a builder. You can always move later.
- You want one person and a fixed price: a good freelancer, if you can see their live work.
- A bigger business with a marketing team: an agency.
- You want it done properly without paying it all upfront: that’s what our monthly plans are for.
Whoever you choose, ask three questions before you pay anyone: who owns the site, what a change costs after launch, and what happens if you leave.