Updated · Facts checked
Six signs it's time
A site doesn't need replacing because it's a few years old; it needs replacing when it stops helping customers choose you.
- It's awkward on a phone: tiny text, buttons too close together, a menu that doesn't open.
- You can't update it: every price change needs a developer you can't reach, or a login nobody has.
- The facts are wrong: old services, old prices, a phone number you no longer answer.
- No padlock: browsers warn visitors when a site has no working security certificate.
- It's slow: pages take several seconds to appear on mobile data.
- It doesn't say what you do in the first lines. A visitor should know your trade, your area and how to reach you without scrolling.
The free Website Check tests most of these in about ten seconds.
Sometimes a fix is enough
Before paying for a whole new site, check whether a few targeted changes would solve the actual problem.
- Wrong facts: update the words and photos, if you can still log in.
- No padlock: most hosts turn on a free security certificate in a few clicks.
- Slow pages: oversized photos are the usual cause, and resizing them is a quick job.
If the site is built on a platform you can't log into, or every change costs more than the change is worth, a rebuild is usually cheaper over a year or two.
What to keep when you switch
An old site can carry history that's worth keeping, even when every pixel of the design is replaced.
- Your domain. Never switch to a new web address just because the design changed.
- Page addresses that bring visitors. List your current pages before the switch; if you have Google Search Console, export the pages that get clicks.
- Redirects for every old address. Point each old page to its closest new page with a permanent (301) redirect. Google's John Mueller recommended keeping redirects for at least one year [1].
- Words that work. Your best service descriptions and answers to common questions, updated rather than thrown away.
- Your Google Business Profile link pointing at the new home page, and the same phone number everywhere.
What a redesign costs in 2026
A redesign costs about the same as a new build, because in practice it is one, so the usual price ranges apply.
Our 2026 website cost guide compares builders, freelancers and agencies with sources. Our own redesigns are priced like any other site: $249 for a one-page site, $599 for up to 8 pages and $1,500 for up to 20, one time, with a free preview before you pay. If you're moving from a platform, the website cost calculator gives an estimate for a site like yours.
A switch-over checklist
Following the same order every time keeps a redesign from breaking the things customers rely on.
- List every current page and the address it lives at.
- Decide which new page each old address should go to.
- Check the new site on a phone: phone number, forms, menus, every page.
- Switch the domain, then set up the redirects the same day.
- Submit the new sitemap in Google Search Console and update your Business Profile.
- Test a few old addresses a week later to make sure they land on the right new pages.
Planning the new structure? See what pages a small business website needs.
Questions about redesigning a website
What owners ask before replacing an old site.
Will a redesign hurt my Google traffic?
It can if old page addresses disappear without redirects. Keeping your domain, redirecting every old address and keeping your useful content protects most of what the old site had.
How often should a small business redesign its website?
There's no fixed schedule. Redesign when the site stops working for customers or for you, and keep the facts current in between.
Can you move my site off Wix or Squarespace?
Yes: we rebuild it as a new site on your existing domain rather than copying the platform's code. Your old page addresses should then be redirected to the new pages, as described above.
Keep reading
Related pages for the same kind of business, plus the guides and free tools that go with this one.
Sources
Every outside fact on this page comes from the sources below, read on the date shown. Prices and plans change; check the source before you decide.
- Search Engine Journal, "Google: Keep 301 Redirects In Place For A Year" (December 2, 2021; read October 26, 2026). John Mueller: keep a redirect in place for at least one year so Google sees it several times.