How much does a small business website cost in Australia?

You ask three people what a website costs and get three answers that are thousands of dollars apart. That’s not because someone is lying. They’re pricing different jobs. The number only makes sense once you know what the site has to do, who writes the words, and what it costs to keep running.

What sets the price

Four things move a quote more than anything else.

1. What the site has to do. A few pages that explain the business and take enquiries is one job. Online booking, payments, a client login or a quote builder is a bigger one.
2. How many pages, and who writes them. Copy and photos are often the slowest part. A quote that assumes you’ll supply every word and image costs less than one that includes writing them.
3. Design from scratch or from a template. A template is quicker and cheaper. A design built around your business takes longer, and it stands apart from every other site using the same template.
4. What it connects to. Your booking app, your accounts software, your email list, your Google Business Profile. Each connection is work, and it’s often where the time savings come from.

The usual ways to get a website

• A website builder you do yourself. The lowest cash cost and the most of your time. It suits a business that needs a simple online presence and has someone who likes doing it.
• A freelancer or template site. Quicker than doing it yourself. Check who will make changes later and how they charge for them.
• A studio or agency build. A site designed around the business, with the enquiry and booking steps thought through. It costs more upfront, so the quote should say exactly what’s included.

Whichever you choose, compare quotes on what they include, not only the total.

What Vish Builds charges

At Vish Builds, a new website or landing page is a Custom build, from A$1,500. You get a fixed quote before anything is built, and you pay half to start and half at launch. It includes 30 days of changes after launch and two months of Care. After that, Care is A$149 a month for fixes and small changes, and you can cancel it any time.

If the business needs more than a website, such as a rebrand, a relaunch and the systems behind it, that’s The Overhaul, from A$4,500.

All my prices are in Australian dollars, with no GST added. When you compare quotes, check whether each one includes GST.

The running costs to budget for

The build is a one-off cost. These keep going:

• Your domain name. A com.au licence runs for one to five years at a time, then you renew it.
• Hosting. Where the site lives. Some builders bundle it into a monthly plan.
• Business email on your own domain, if you use it.
• Tools the site connects to, like booking software or a form service.
• Changes and fixes after launch.

I quote the running costs in writing before you commit, and they’re billed to your business directly, with no markup.

Make sure you own it

This matters more than the price. Before you sign, ask:

• Whose name is the domain in? auDA, which runs .au domains, says a developer can register a name for you with your written permission, but should use your details, not theirs. A com.au name needs an Australian business connection, usually an active ABN or ACN, and you have to stay eligible the whole time you hold it.
• Who holds the hosting and the logins? They should be in accounts in your business’s name.
• Can you move the site if you leave? If the answer is no, you’re renting it, not buying it.
• What do changes cost after launch? Get it in writing.

Questions worth asking any web designer

1. What exactly is included, page by page?
2. Who writes the words and supplies the photos?
3. Will it work properly on a phone?
4. How will customers contact me, call, enquire or book, from every page?
5. What will it cost to run each year, and who bills me?
6. Who owns the domain, the hosting and the code?

Before you spend anything

Sometimes the site you have needs fixes, not a rebuild. My checklist on why a website isn’t bringing in enquiries covers twelve things to check first. And if customers find you on Google Maps before they reach your site, set up your Google Business Profile properly too.

If you’d rather know where your site stands, the free AI Check reads it and tells you what’s worth fixing first, and what it would cost.