How much does a website cost for a small business in 2026?

The owner of a heating firm asks, "What does a website cost?" The honest answer is: it depends on who builds it and what you expect from it. The gap between a few euros a month and several thousand is not in the price tag. It is in whose time you are paying for.

1. 01Template builderYou build it yourself
2. 02Hand-made by a studioA small studio builds it for you
3. 03AgencyA larger team and process

This article compares three routes. What our own packages contain is covered in a separate post, which is in Slovak only. Here the question is which route suits you.

Route 1: a template builder you run yourself

Wix, Squarespace and WordPress.com are tools where you assemble the site yourself from ready-made templates. You pay a subscription and you do the work: text, photos, layout, settings.

The prices below are what the providers showed on 4 November 2026:

• Wix has a plan at no cost. On yearly billing the paid plans are Light $17.77, Core $29.77 and Business $39.77 a month. These are US dollars, and prices vary by location.
• Squarespace, on its euro page, shows Basic €13.53, Core €20.91 and Advanced €35.67 a month, VAT included. We read these as annual billing. Annual plans include a custom domain at no charge for the first year.
• WordPress.com has a no-cost plan with no custom domain. Paid plans on yearly billing are Personal $4, Premium $8, Business $25 and Commerce $45 a month, with a domain at no charge for the first year.

A quick worked example: Squarespace Core at €20.91 a month comes to €250.92 over a year (12 times €20.91), with the domain at no charge for the first year. Over three years (36 times the monthly price) Squarespace Basic is €487.08, Core €752.76 and Advanced €1,284.12. From the second year, count the domain too, and still your own time.

These are price lists, nothing more. They tell you nothing about how many hours the site will take you or how it will turn out.

A builder is worth it if you have the time and a feel for writing and layout. If not, the site often stays half-finished.

Route 2: a hand-made site from a small studio

A studio designs and builds the site for your firm. You pay for the work, not the tool. It is usually a one-off sum agreed up front, sometimes with a fee for maintenance on top.

The advantage: you do not learn a tool, and the site fits your trade. The drawback: you depend on one supplier. So what you receive at the end matters: access, a domain in your name, and documentation.

For comparison, here is our offer as one example of this route:

• Start, €390: up to 5 pages, one language.
• Business, €790: up to 10 pages, two languages.
• Custom, from €1,490: made by hand.

The price is fixed and in writing, with no monthly fee. SEO, mobile, speed, a contact form and accessibility are in every package. The site is ready in 14 days. We price later changes first as an estimate in hours, then bill €20 an hour. Other studios may work differently, which is why you ask.

Route 3: an agency

An agency usually offers a wider team: a strategist, a designer, a developer, a project manager and often marketing. The price is higher and made up of several parts, typically a project fee plus monthly maintenance or campaigns.

We give no price ranges here, because we did not find a published survey of agency prices that we could cite honestly. Prices vary a lot with team size, city and scope. That is exactly why you should ask an agency for an itemised breakdown.

An agency makes sense when the site is more than a business card: an online shop, links to internal systems, or campaigns and website in one package. A heating firm, a dentist or a barber rarely needs that.

What is one-off and what recurs

Whichever route you pick, split the costs into two groups.

One-off:

• building the site (or your own time, if you build it),
• photos and text, if someone else makes them,
• launch and setup.

Recurring:

• the domain, usually yearly,
• hosting, unless it comes with the builder subscription,
• maintenance and updates,
• changes after launch.

The domain should be registered in your name. Ask about it at the start, not when you leave a supplier.

The three routes side by side

"Typical" is the key word. Every supplier sets up their own model, so treat this as orientation, not a rule.

Five questions for any quote

1. What exactly is included? Number of pages, languages, text, photos, SEO.
2. What do I pay regularly, and for what period? Domain, hosting, maintenance.
3. Who holds the domain, and what access do I get?
4. What do later changes cost, and how are they counted? An hour estimate, an hourly rate or a flat fee.
5. What happens if I leave? Can I take the site with me, or does it stay with the supplier?

If an answer is missing, ask for it in writing. A good supplier does not mind the questions.

How to choose

A simple rule: if you have more time than money and like writing, try a builder. If you have more work than time and want a clear sum, approach a studio. If you need a large project with several systems, compare agencies.

There is also a middle route. You can make a draft yourself and have someone who does this for a living finish it. We describe it in Your own draft in a builder, finished by a pro.

If you want to see our example in detail, here is the price page.