The short answer
- DIY website builder: about $200 to $470 a year in plan fees (Wix and Squarespace, billed annually), plus the hours you put in. [1][2]
- Freelancer: roughly $300 to $4,500 for a simple site, if it takes 20 to 60 hours at the $15 to $75 hourly bands Upwork publishes. Hosting is extra. [3][4]
- Agency: usually $2,000 to $10,000 for a small-business site. Clutch says most projects reviewed on its site cost under $10,000; US agencies list about $100 to $149 an hour. [5]
- Sitelings (us): $249 to $1,500 one time, plus hosting at $49 a year (the first year is included on Business and Growth). A single landing page is $99.
Year one, side by side
| Option | Year one | How we got it |
|---|---|---|
| DIY website builder | $204 to $468 | Plan fees only: Wix Light $17 × 12 = $204 up to Wix Business $39 × 12 = $468 (Squarespace Basic $19 × 12 = $228, Core $29 × 12 = $348). Plus your own time. [1][2] |
| Sitelings (our prices) | $298 to $1,500 | Starter $249 + hosting $49 = $298; Business $599 and Growth $1,500 include the first year of hosting. |
| Freelancer | $300 to $4,500 | Our assumption of 20 to 60 hours for a simple 5-page site, at Upwork's bands: 20 h × $15 = $300 up to 60 h × $75 = $4,500. Hosting is extra. [3][4] |
| Web design agency | $2,000 to $10,000 | Clutch: agencies typically start around $2,000 and most projects reviewed there cost under $10,000. Larger projects go far higher. [5] |
Three years in
A website is a three-to-five-year purchase, so the yearly costs matter more than the sticker price. Here's what the plan fees and our prices add up to over 36 months.
| Option | Three-year total | Math |
|---|---|---|
| Wix Core | $1,044 | $29 × 36 months [1] |
| Squarespace Core | $1,044 | $29 × 36 months [2] |
| Squarespace Basic | $684 | $19 × 36 months [2] |
| Sitelings Starter + hosting | $396 | $249 once + $49 × 3 years (or download the files and host them anywhere) |
| Sitelings Business | $697 | $599 once (year one of hosting included) + $49 × 2 years |
| Freelancer or agency | Build cost + hosting + changes | Hosting and later changes are usually quoted separately; ask before you sign. |
Builder prices are list prices before tax and promotions, and they change; Squarespace raised several plans in July 2026. [2]
What you get for the money
DIY builder
You pay: a monthly or yearly plan. You get: templates, hosting and an editor. On you: the writing, photos, layout, search basics and every change. Good if you enjoy it and have the evenings.
Freelancer
You pay: by the hour or a project fee. You get: a person who designs and builds to your taste. On you: finding the right one, writing a clear brief, and hosting and upkeep unless they offer it. Rates vary widely by country and skill. [3][5]
Agency
You pay: a project fee, often with a monthly retainer. You get: strategy, design, development and project management from a team. The right call for custom features (member logins, booking or inventory systems, integrations with your other software) or a big brand launch. [5]
Sitelings
You pay: a one-time price, and hosting only if you want us to host. You get: a crew of AI specialists that plans, writes, designs and checks a standard small-business site, a free preview before you pay, and a set number of revisions. Not for: custom software or features beyond a marketing site and contact forms; for those, hire a developer or agency.
Costs people forget
- Domain name. The wholesale price of a .com is $10.26 a year, rising to $10.97 on November 1, 2026; registrars add their markup on top, and renewal prices are often higher than first-year promos. [7]
- Business email at your domain, if you want one, is usually a separate monthly fee per person.
- Words and photos. Someone has to write the pages and supply real photos. Stock photos and copywriting are extra with most options.
- Changes after launch. New hours, prices or services. Ask how changes are billed before you choose.
- Apps and plugins. Booking, reviews, chat and forms add-ons often carry their own monthly fees.
- Your time. DIY is cheapest in dollars and most expensive in hours.
For context
- An in-house web developer is rarely realistic for a small business: the US median pay for web developers and digital designers was $99,520 a year ($47.85 an hour) in May 2025. [6]
- Cost has kept businesses offline for years: in Clutch's 2018 survey of 351 small businesses, 26% named cost as a key reason they had no website, and among owners who had one, 28% had spent $500 or less. That survey is old; we show it only as background. [8]
How to choose
- Write down what the site must do: be found, show services and prices, take calls or bookings. If that's the whole list, you need a marketing site, not custom software.
- Decide what your time is worth. Ten evenings on a builder costs more than it looks.
- Price three years, not one, and ask every option how hosting and changes are billed.
- Check the basics on anything you're shown, including ours: HTTPS, mobile, a real title and description, readable contrast, and contact info a thumb can tap. Our free Website Check does that in about 10 seconds.
Sources and method
Prices were checked on October 25, 2026. Builder prices are US list prices billed annually. Freelancer hours (20 to 60 for a simple 5-page site) are our own assumption; everything else is quoted from the sources below or is plain arithmetic on them. Sitelings prices are our own, from our pricing page. Spot an error? Email [email protected] and we'll fix it and note the change.
- Wix, "Wix premium plans" (Wix blog, updated October 20, 2026). Used: Light $17, Core $29, Business $39 and Business Elite $159 per month, billed annually.
- PetaPixel, "Squarespace Is Increasing Prices By Up to 26%" (July 17, 2026). Used: Basic $19, Core $29, Plus $49, Advanced $99 per month billed annually ($25, $39, $65, $139 billed monthly).
- Upwork, "How much does it cost to hire a web designer". Used: Median freelance web designer rates of $15 to $30 an hour.
- Upwork, "Cost to hire a web designer" (resources). Used: Average hourly rates by project: $15–40+ (one-page site), $20–50+ (CMS design), $45–75+ (full custom design); very small projects from about 10 hours.
- Clutch, "Web design pricing guide" (updated September 21, 2026). Used: Most projects reviewed on Clutch cost under $10,000; agencies typically charge $2,000 to $100,000; US agencies around $100–$149 an hour; average project $38,105 (pulled up by large projects).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Web Developers and Digital Designers. Used: Median pay $99,520 a year ($47.85 an hour), May 2025.
- Domain Name Wire, "Verisign raising wholesale .com prices" (April 23, 2026). Used: Wholesale .com price rising 7% from $10.26 to $10.97 a year, effective November 1.
- Clutch, 2018 Small Business Survey (351 owners, January 31, 2018). Used: 26% named cost as a key reason they had no website; of owners with a site, 28% spent $500 or less and 48% spent $500 to $10,000. Older data, shown for context only.
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