How to Build a Professional Website on a Budget – Quality Results, Minimal Spend

For those with a tighter budget, getting a new website built can be quite daunting. For simple small business Web Design in the UK, costs can range between £500 to £3000.

The price is certainly worth it, as cheap web design is likely to cost you more in the long run than professional design. Nevertheless, It is still reasonable to want your website design to be affordable. In order to figure out how to save you money on website design, we must first undergo a breakdown of website costs.

That way, we can be better informed when deciding how to go about this.

Created on:
12th of June, 2025
Updated on:
8th of July, 2025

Why Websites Cost What They Do

A website's cost has many factors going into it, but here are some of the most prominent:

Time Investment

Designing and building a website from scratch takes a lot of time, often taking between a month and several months. With such a large time investment on the part of the Designer/Developer, they are going to charge accordingly.

Skill and Experience

Designing and building a website from scratch demands a high level of both technical and design skill. This takes a long time to learn. As with any skill, these skills lead to an increased cost.

As time goes on, Web Designers and Developers grow their skills, which leads to them charging higher rates the more experienced they are.

Number of Pages

The more pages there are, the more time it takes to complete the website. Remember: these pages also need to be designed and built, just like the homepage.

Extra Features and Complexity

For those with more needs than the usual Brochure website, expect a much higher cost. Whether it simply be a blogging feature, or something as complex as an e-commerce feature, Web Designers and Developers will charge more for it.

Every addition means extra time investment and skill requirement, so the price of the website will rise.

Hosting and Domains

Hosting costs add to the expense. They often they charge over £100 a year to keep your website hosted. Luckily, the Domain name you purchase will be very cheap, often around £15 a year.

Ongoing Maintenance

Maintaining a website can be a tricky task. You may opt to keep a developer on to maintain it for you. Some websites are more "needy" than others, with sites build with WordPress notoriously needing a lot of attention to keep everything running.

SEO and Marketing

SEO research is another skill that Designers and Developers charge for. After all, if your website doesn't show on search engines, then what's the point? If you decide on SEO and Ad Campaigns, then the maintenance cost associated with your website will grow.

Developer Expenses

Developers and Designers often have to spend money building up your website. They will add these expenses to the overall cost.

Now we have explored many of the factors that go into website cost, we can figure out a plan to keep these costs down.

How To Reduce Website Costs

A common theme for this section will be to know what you want. With a clear focus, you can be assured that you are only spending money on what you actually need.

Consider DIY Website Builders

This is quite common for those looking to build a website on a budget. There are many cheap and easy to use website builders out there. If you only want to get something out, and don't want to spend months learning web design principles, then this may be an appealing option. Tools such as Wix allow even you to build a website completely for free. Just expect to see their ads displayed on your website.

When considering DIY vs professional websites, the biggest factor would be your budget. If you have a very small budget for a website project, then I would recommend exploring these DIY builders. If you're budget is higher, then consider getting a professional to build it for you. That way, you won't find yourself locked in by their limitations. Such limitations include poor performance and limited customisation.

If you want your digital presence to truly stand out, then a professional design is going to be a much more worth-while investment.

Use Templates and Themes

You don't always need a website to be fully designed from scratch. There are many pre-built templates and themes around. Just be careful when getting these templates. Make sure they are reputable. Check their reviews. Often times, the best templates you can have are ones you pay for, but they still cost considerably less than if you had your website fully custom-built.

Templates that use HTML and CSS are more customisable than those used by DIY website builders, such as Wix. The layout may be changed and adjusted, and your content can be made to fit  into the template more easily than with DIY website builders.

Flexibility here is still more limited than with a custom design. However, if done properly, it will cost you considerably less than if you had a custom design, and be far more effective than a DIY website. If you do decide to have your website built off a template, then the Designer will often look into a number of different templates. You may be given the chance to compare them yourself, and decide which one fits your needs the most.

Focus Only on Essentials

If you do decide on getting a professional and custom website design, then there are still many ways to save money. Most importantly, make a plan. What exactly you need right now? Do you really need all these extra pages right now? Is that blogging feature really something you are going to use? Remember, you can always add features later.

Fewer pages means the Designer spends less time designing your website. No unnecessary features means the Developer spends less time developing these features. Fortunately, many Web Designers offer consultation calls that help you understand your needs. You don't have to worry about figuring all this out yourself.

Plan for Long-Term Maintenance

The cost to maintain a website can drastically increase monthly spending. Regular costs are unavoidable. A website requires maintenance, no matter how it is built. Still, there are factors that go into maintenance costs.

Some websites need more maintenance than others. As said before, WordPress websites are particularly needy, with security management and regular updates. Websites built with Webflow need less maintenance, usually only content updates and general monitoring.

Websites built with code would need someone familiar with languages such as HTML, CSS and JavaScript to maintain it. Since website maintenance requires both time and skill, developers often charge a minimum of £50 a month to maintain a website.

Still, many Web Designers and Developers attempt to make maintenance as seamless as possible. Both Webflow and WordPress use a Content Management System, which makes adding new content quite easy. If this is done well, and the Designer or Developer explains how it works, it can allow you, as the business owner, to handle content updates yourself, saving you yet more money.

On top of this, there are often marketing and SEO packages, as well as maintenance. While they cost more initially, if done right, then they should lead to a greater return-on-investment.

Compare Hosting Providers

Hosting providers can have differing costs and featuers. While some features, like regular back-ups, are pretty much vital, others may not be necessary. Just like with templates and themes, the Freelancer or Agency you are working with may do this research for you, giving you a choice between several Hosting providers.

Understand Pricing Models

Designers and Developers have differing price models. Some charge based on an hourly rate, while others do so by service (design, SEO research, etc.) Knowing these details can help you plan your approach.

Freelancer design rates are often lower than those of Agencies, though Agencies do have a larger team working on your website. The choice is yours which one you prefer, as they both have strong advantages over each other.

These are a few ways to help you save money when getting a new website built. To recap, the most important factor is planning. Plan what features you need, what pages you require. There are many websites out there with features that are entirely unused. Blogs that don't get updated, for instance. Understanding your needs can prevent scenarios such as these.

If you are looking to get a new website built without breaking the bank, feel free to get in touch. I offer a free consultation call where we can explore your needs and find solutions.