Buyer's Guide: The Cost of a Website

The most experienced buyers of digital services usually have a rough idea of what their dream website might cost. Many don’t. And fewer still know what actually drives that cost.

This article is here to help anyone struggling with planning or budgeting for a website project.

TLDR;

In this article, we outline how the following factors influence the cost of a website:

1. Strategic planning and service design
2. Content presentation
3. Functionality
4. Integrations
5. Content management system
6. Maintenance and ongoing development

Even the simplest custom websites typically start at around €20,000. More extensive sites can cost as much as €100,000.

We’ve designed and developed hundreds of successful websites – ranging from small to large-scale projects. Our clients include the likes of Huoneistokeskus, Lämpöykkönen, the S Group, Retta, World Vision, Plan and Fida.

This blog post is a long one. The topic deserves a thorough explanation, and that takes a fair amount of words.

What factors influence the cost of a website?

Every website project can be broken down into clearly identifiable components that form the basis for pricing:

Strategy, service design and specification
Content presentation
Functionality
Integrations
Technical requirements, such as the content management system and hosting
Ongoing maintenance and development needs

For us, the cost of a website – whether you call it a site, a homepage or web presence (different terms for the same thing) – is primarily based on the amount of expert work required.

Pricing is calculated in person-days, each consisting of 7.5 hours of work by our specialists. The typical rate for one person-day is €825 (VAT excluded).

Our team of specialists includes project managers, content and service designers, designers, technical architects and developers. You’ll find a breakdown of what’s included in a person-day at the end of this article.

Additional licensing or third-party running costs are usually limited to optional paid plugins and hosting fees. These typically amount to just tens of euros per month. Of course, there are also labour costs related to ongoing monthly maintenance, which we’ll cover in the final section.

In this article, we’ll focus on the work involved in the design and technical implementation.

However, a successful web service project also requires management. Project management tasks, such as meetings and coordination, typically account for around 10–15% of the total project effort and cost.

You can also chat with us

We’d be happy to discuss how the cost of a website is structured over the phone or via other communication channels.

Let’s talk

1. Strategic planning, service design and specifications

In website projects, it’s crucial to understand the following: why, for whom, and how the web service will be built. Strategic planning and service design are some of the most essential phases in a successful website redesign.

Even in smaller website projects, our proposals typically include at least a few person-days dedicated to strategic planning and service design. In larger projects, this number is significantly higher. The amount of work also depends on how well the client has already defined their needs and ideas.

Our role is to challenge and validate these definitions with the client.

During this phase of strategy and design, we address the what, why and how of the project. The insights and decisions made in this stage will define the content of the following phases and, therefore, the overall effort and cost of the website redesign.

What content will the web service contain, and how much? How should the content be organised so that users can easily find what they are looking for? And, on the other hand, how can we guide users towards the actions we want them to take?

2. Content

High-quality content is essential for a successful website. It is often also an area that the client is responsible for themselves.

For this reason, content creation typically doesn’t contribute significantly to the workload of the website provider. Nevertheless, we want to support our clients in this area to ensure that the redesigned website ultimately features content that truly represents its value – not just text, but also images and videos, for example.

In website redesigns, it is primarily the content and its various presentations that determine how complex the service is to design and implement. It’s crucial, therefore, to define the content types, content blocks, and the functionalities with which the content will be presented in different ways. Some examples are given below:

Mega navigation: 2475 €

If your website contains a large number of pages and the site hierarchy reaches the third level or deeper, a mega navigation – an expanded menu – is usually the best solution.

Our own site uses a kind of mega navigation as well, although primarily for visual reasons. A standard navigation would have worked functionally just as well.

Static content area: 600 €

You’re reading this text inside a content area. A standard content area – with headings, text formatting and typical layout options – usually requires just over half a person-day of work. That’s 600 €.

The workload and cost increase when the content area needs more advanced formatting tools, such as this accordion element or the sidebar prompt you may have noticed earlier: “you can also chat with us.”

Typically, a content area and all its interactive elements can cost several thousand euros. It’s a worthwhile investment – after all, content is king.

Topical content, such as a blog: 1 650–3 300 €

Articles require a listing page, ideally with filtering options – for example, to separate blog posts, news updates and expert insights. A good example of this can be seen on Plan.fi, as well as on our own blog listing.

Each article also needs its own dedicated template, since articles typically require tailored content blocks. One example is a hero element at the top of the page, which displays the article’s publication date and author information.

Content blocks: 400–2 475 €/each

Most WordPress websites today are built largely using content blocks. These are like hierarchical Lego bricks that allow marketers to create rich and versatile content with ease.

In a typical website project, around ten blocks are usually created. The amount of work required for each individual block depends on factors such as:

Configuration options and flexibility
Dynamic behaviour
Visual settings (such as colour schemes and layout choices)

3. Functionalities

Website functionality also affects the overall cost. Functionality refers to the features that users interact with when visiting the website.

It’s important to clarify functional requirements already at the proposal stage, so that the client truly understands what they are investing in.

Below are some examples of typical website functionalities:

Search function: 1 650–3 300 €

Our philosophy is that website content should be organised in a way that allows users to find what they need without using the site’s search function.

That said, search is an excellent way to support and potentially speed up the user’s journey on the site. There are many types of search functionalities, and a poor search is of little use.

For websites that aren’t exceptionally large, a search built with a plugin like Relevanssi Premium typically does the job well.

However, if your content volume is extensive, it might make sense to use separate, paid search engines – such as the more robust Algolia. It’s worth approaching external search engines with a pragmatic mindset, as they often come with a monthly cost rising up to hundreds of euros.

The good news is that many of these paid solutions already incorporate AI in meaningful ways.

Forms: 825–1 650 €

Website and e-commerce visitors should always be offered their preferred way of getting in touch. So make sure phone numbers and email addresses are clearly visible! In addition to these, various types of contact and feedback forms are commonly used.

In almost every web project we undertake, we design and implement at least a newsletter sign-up and a general contact form. This includes visual design for the forms and error messages, as well as the technical implementation. Submitted form data is collected within the content management system and also forwarded to selected email addresses. Forms are often integrated with systems like newsletter tools and CRMs – more on integrations later in this article.

Designing and building basic forms typically costs between 800 and 1,600€. This work includes setting up the form tool – usually Gravity Forms in WordPress. The tool allows site administrators to create an unlimited number of customised forms directly within the CMS, without needing further help from us. It’s a smart one-time investment.

You can see an example of our own contact form – built with Gravity Forms – here.

Multilingual content: 825–1 650 €

The WordPress content management system offers high-quality plugins for multilingual websites. One widely used option is WPML, which enables even large-scale sites to support multiple languages effectively.

Our setup and configuration of a multilingual tool typically costs just over 1,000 €. However, the real work begins on the client’s side – all content needs to be entered separately for each language. Fortunately, modern translation tools often include helpful AI-powered features, which make this process more efficient.

At the top of our own website, you’ll find a FIN/EN toggle, which allows you to explore our multilingual setup built using Polylang – a popular alternative to WPML.

E-commerce funtionalities: starting from 20 000 €

When a website needs to support selling products or services, we are talking about e-commerce. A typical e-commerce implementation involves defining, designing and developing the following elements:

Login and user registration
Customer account: managing personal details and viewing order history
Shopping cart and related functionality
E-commerce views: product listings, filters, cart steps, product recommendations
Payment process and receipts
Order fulfilment process
Integrations
Custom reporting tools for the online store
Additional features such as similar products, wishlists, discount codes and promotional campaigns

A fully custom-designed and implemented set of basic e-commerce features typically represents an additional workload valued at a minimum of 20,000 euros – on top of all other elements already discussed.

Does the data entered on the website need to be automatically transferred to a third-party system?

4. Integrations

Integrations have a significant impact on the cost of a website. Does the data entered on the website need to be automatically transferred to a third-party system? If so, an integration is required. If not, you can skip to the next section.

Integrations are the area most dependent on third parties. The role of these third parties plays a major part in determining the overall cost of building integrations. It’s important to note that in some cases, custom integrations require time from the third-party system’s administrators, which is usually billed to the client.

In the simplest cases, integrations in website projects involve one-way data transfers, such as sending newsletter sign-ups to a newsletter system (e.g., MailChimp, ActiveCampaign) or transferring contact form submissions to a CRM system (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot). These globally used systems offer clear APIs for data transfer. Simple one-way integrations typically start at around 1,000 €.

More often, websites now require the import of data via integrations. For example, customer contact details or product/service information may need to be imported from the client’s systems. Larger, more complex integrations can quickly increase in cost to thousands of euros.

5. Technical considerations regarding the CMS and server

Phew – we’re almost there. The price and workload of a website are also significantly influenced by the technologies and systems used to build it. Additionally, where the website is hosted (the server) also plays a role.

We build almost all websites and e-commerce stores using WordPress (and its WooCommerce e-commerce plugin). Therefore, this article and the examples of work effort are based on using WordPress.

If exactly the same tasks were to be carried out using, for example, Drupal or the Magento e-commerce platform, the workload would increase by tens or even hundreds of percent. This is because the aforementioned platforms are not as easily customisable as WordPress, making work with them slower.

The workload associated with the server is practically zero if we can choose a server that provides, for example, web hosting optimised for WordPress implementations. However, if a client requests the website to be set up on a less optimised server – typically one that aligns with the client’s own IT practices – this may add billable work. Research and communication with hosting providers may take several days of work – in this case, we’re talking about thousands of euros.

6. Maintenance and further development

Our maintenance service for smaller websites costs 150 euros per month. For larger web services, such as e-commerce stores, the monthly maintenance cost may be around 350 euros.

Our maintenance service includes version updates for the CMS and its external plugins. Additionally, we perform security updates during maintenance. Updates and ensuring their functionality are carried out simultaneously. Therefore, our fixed-price maintenance service is also based on the working hours of our specialists.

We believe that clients should not pay for work that has not been done. This is why we assess and carry out all further development on a project-by-project basis. Remember: further development of web services is important so that, three years down the line, the website or e-commerce store isn’t “outdated.”

Clarification: What does our experts’ person-days include?

The cost of a website often relies on tens of person-days – equating to hundreds or even thousands of work hours.

How is that time allocated? In addition to project management (which accounts for at least 10% of the total project workload), time is spent on the following areas of expertise:

StrategyThe web service must be developed strategically and purposefully in order to help you succeed. The project requires strategic planning, typically starting from 3,000 €.
Service DesignWhen planning actions in line with the strategy, service design methods are utilised in the planning process. These include, for example, workshops, research and interviews. Therefore, the project requires service design – typically starting from 3,000 €.
DesignWhen improving a digital service, the user experience must aim for excellence. The visual design of the user interface plays a significant role in how your brand looks and feels. Our designers focus on both the defined functionalities, the user experience, and the brand-aligned aesthetics during their work phase. Typically starting from 8,000 €.
DevelopmentOur software developers, or coders, have extensive and diverse experience. Large integrations and custom functionalities are part of our daily work, and we deliver technical solutions following best programming practices. We test and document our deliverables thoroughly. Therefore, the project requires software development. Typically starting from 15,000 €.
Data & analyticsIn order to assess the success of the web service, it must be measured. To develop the web service in a well-founded way, it must also be measured. We provide custom analytics solutions or collaborate with your current analytics partner. Therefore, the project requires data and analytics services. Typically starting from 3,000 €.
ContentEven the best web service is useless if the content is not right. For this reason, we are accustomed to assisting with content planning and content creation. Therefore, the project requires content expertise. Typically starting from 1,000 €.

Website pricing

As you may have noticed, a fully tailored website can’t be priced with a fixed package. Every high-quality website requires a customised scope of work – and therefore, a tailored price.

Even a small but professionally and fully customised website starts at a minimum of 15,000 euros. A smaller online store or a standard-scale website typically ranges between 30,000–50,000 euros. Larger websites start from 40,000 euros and can easily exceed 100,000 euros. Large-scale e-commerce sites, in turn, almost always start at over 80,000 euros.

Any questions? If so, let’s talk!

And good luck with the procurement process!

Buyer’s Guide: The Cost of a Website