Most tradespeople don't need a big website. You need somewhere that shows your work, your reviews and the areas you cover, makes it easy to call you or ask for a price, and turns up when someone searches for your trade and town. That's a small site, and a small site shouldn't cost a fortune.
What changes the price is mostly the deal you sign up to. There are three main ways to get a website.
1. Build it yourself
Website builders like Wix, Squarespace and GoDaddy let you make a site yourself for a monthly subscription. On paper it's the cheapest route.
What it really costs
- A monthly or yearly subscription for as long as you want the site online.
- Your time. Most people underestimate this: writing the text, sorting photos, setting up the contact form, and getting it to look right on a phone.
- Google setup is down to you, and it's the part most DIY sites skip.
Good for: people who enjoy doing it and have evenings to spare. If you'd rather be paid for your time on a job, it's rarely the cheap option it looks.
2. A monthly website deal
This is the one that turns up on the phone or in your inbox: a website for a small setup fee, then a monthly payment. It's usually somewhere around £45 to £100 a month, and it often includes hosting, small changes and sometimes "SEO".
What to watch for
- Contract length. Many deals tie you in for 12, 24 or even 36 months.
- Who owns the domain. If it's registered to the provider, leaving can mean losing your web address, the one that's on your van and your cards.
- What happens if you stop paying. With most deals, the website goes offline. You've been renting it, not buying it.
Good for: people who want no upfront cost and are happy to keep paying. Just add up the full contract before you sign.
3. A one-off build
A freelancer or small studio builds the site for a fixed price, and you own it. Prices vary a lot depending on how many pages you need and who builds it. A one-page trade site from a freelancer can be a few hundred pounds; a larger custom site from an agency can run into the thousands.
My own price is £695, one-off, for a site with your services, a gallery of your work, your reviews, the areas you cover and a quote form that goes straight to your email, set up on Google from day one.
What it really costs
- The build price, once.
- Your domain, usually around £10 a year, paid directly to the registrar in your name.
- Hosting, which can be free for a small site on services like Cloudflare Pages.
- Optional help with updates. Mine is £29 a month and you can cancel any time.
The three-year view
Monthly deals look cheap because you only ever see one month at a time. Here's the same website over three years, using a £49-a-month deal as the example.
| One-off build (£695) | £49 a month deal | |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | £695 + £10 domain | £588, plus any setup fee |
| Year 2 | £10 domain | £588 |
| Year 3 | £10 domain | £588 |
| Three years | £725 | £1,764 or more |
| If you stop paying | You keep the site | Usually goes offline |
The monthly deal overtakes the one-off price after about 14 months. Even if you add a £29 care plan to the one-off build, you're still ahead, and you can stop that at any time without losing your website.
What you should get for your money
Whichever route you choose, a trade website should do a few simple things well. Check for these before you pay:
- A phone number you can tap at the top of every page on a mobile.
- A quote form that comes straight to your email, ideally asking the questions you'd ask anyway.
- Your real work and real reviews, not stock photos.
- The areas you cover, so Google and customers know where you work.
- Google set up properly: Search Console, a sitemap and a link to your Google Business Profile.
- Fast on a phone. Most of your customers will find you on one.
- The domain in your name, so you can move whenever you like.
Questions to ask before you sign
- What's the total I'll pay over the full contract?
- Whose name is the domain registered in?
- What happens to the site if I stop paying, or want to move?
- What does a change cost after it's built, like new photos or a new service?
- Can I see a site you've built for another trade, and speak to them?
A good provider will answer all five straight away. If the answers are vague, that tells you something.
Still deciding whether you need a website at all? Read do I need a website if I have a Facebook page?
Want to see a real one? I built BDL Carpets & Vinyl's website and set up their Google profile. Have a look at the case study, or see exactly what's included for £695.
In short
- How much should a tradesperson pay for a website? For a one-page site with your services, photos, reviews and a quote form, a fixed one-off price in the hundreds of pounds is reasonable. Denny Digital charges £695. Bigger sites with many pages cost more, and agencies building custom sites usually quote more again.
- What are the running costs of a small business website? Usually just the domain name, around £10 a year. Hosting for a small site can be free on services like Cloudflare Pages. Optional extras include email at your own domain and a care plan for updates.
- Is a monthly website deal cheaper? Only at the start. At £49 a month you pay £588 a year, which passes a £695 one-off price in about 14 months. Over three years it comes to £1,764, and with many deals the site goes offline if you stop paying.
- Do I need to own my domain name? Yes. Your domain is your address online and is printed on your van, cards and invoices. Make sure it is registered in your name, so you can move your website to someone else whenever you like.