How much does a small business website cost in 2026?

If you’ve asked three people what a website costs, you’ve probably heard three wildly different numbers. Here’s how the market actually breaks down in 2026, and how to choose.

The four main options

1. Do it yourself with a site builder. Tools like Wix or Squarespace typically cost a few hundred dollars a year. The catch is your time — often 40–80 hours — and a site that looks like many others.

2. A freelancer. Published 2026 benchmarks put a five-page freelance site at roughly $1,500–$5,000, with wide variation in quality, communication and reliability.

3. A small agency. Agency pricing varies widely; Clutch’s pricing guide shows most reviewed projects under $10,000, with US agencies typically billing $100–149/hour, plus monthly fees. You get strategy and polish, but timelines are often measured in months.

4. A fixed-price studio. Productized studios like ours sit in between: agency-level process at closer to freelancer pricing, with a fixed scope and a fixed date. Our Launch Site package is $1,500–$3,000 and ships in 5–7 days.

What actually drives the price

• Number of unique page layouts, not just page count.
• Features: booking, payments, member areas and integrations add real engineering work.
• Content: if you need copywriting and photography, budget for it.
• Editing needs: a content management system adds setup time but saves you money later.

Hidden costs to watch for

• Monthly “care plans” that cost more over three years than the build itself.
• Sites built on a provider’s account, so you can’t leave without starting over.
• No documentation, meaning every future change needs the original developer.

How to decide

Ask any provider three questions: Is the price fixed in writing? Who owns the accounts and code? What happens if something breaks after launch? Clear answers to all three matter more than the headline price.

Price ranges above are drawn from publicly available 2026 benchmarks and vary by region and scope.