If you have asked three web designers for a quote, you probably got three very different numbers. One says $500, another says $5,000, a third says $25,000. All three can be honest. They are usually pricing different things, from different countries, with different teams.
This guide covers typical 2026 prices in US dollars (with euros where useful), what drives them, the recurring costs, and how to read a quote.
Quick answer: typical website prices in 2026
Based on public pricing guides published in 2026 by agencies, freelance marketplaces and cost estimators, here are the ranges most businesses will see. Treat them as a starting point. The same project can cost three or four times more in New York or London than with a capable studio in Eastern Europe, South Asia or the Gulf.
| Website type | Typical range (USD, excl. tax) | What you usually get |
|---|---|---|
| DIY with a website builder | $0 to $50 per month, plus your time | A template you set up and edit yourself |
| Landing page (one page) | $300 to $2,500 | One focused page, contact form or chat button, basic SEO |
| Small business website | $1,500 to $10,000 | 5 to 10 pages, CMS so you can edit text, mobile friendly |
| Custom business or lead generation site | $10,000 to $50,000+ | Custom design, more pages, several languages, integrations |
| E-commerce website | $3,000 to $150,000+ | Product catalogue, cart, payments, shipping, stock |
| Custom web app or portal | $40,000 to $500,000+ | User accounts, dashboards, APIs, custom logic |
The upper ends come from US agency guides, for example one 2026 guide puts small business sites at $3,000 to $10,000+, custom lead generation sites at $10,000 to $50,000+ and e-commerce at $25,000 to $150,000+. Freelancers and smaller studios are often well below those figures.
Who builds it, and where, changes the price
Developer rates vary hugely by country. One 2026 cost index gives these typical hourly rates and prices for a standard WordPress site:
| Region | Hourly rate | WordPress site, freelancer | WordPress site, agency |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $80 to $150 | $1,550 to $6,400 | $3,850 to $15,350 |
| United Kingdom | £55 to £90 | £1,050 to £4,400 | £2,650 to £10,550 |
| Western Europe | €60 to €100 | €1,100 to €4,600 | €2,750 to €11,050 |
| Eastern Europe | €25 to €50 | €550 to €2,350 | €1,400 to €5,650 |
| South Asia | $15 to $45 | $350 to $1,500 | $900 to $3,600 |
A lower rate is not automatically a better deal. Compare the total price for a clear scope, communication in your language and time zone, and support after launch.
What each type of website really means
Landing page
One page, one goal: a call, a message or a form. The fastest way to start ads or test a service, and often more useful than a 10 page site nobody reads. Our guide on landing page vs website helps you choose, and you can see our landing page service.
Small business website
Home, about, services, contact. This is what most clinics, salons, consultants and contractors need. The price depends on pages, content and languages.
Corporate or custom business website
More pages, stakeholders and approval rounds, often several languages and a CRM connection. Much of the cost is project management, not code.
E-commerce website
"Online store" can mean 20 products on Shopify or 5,000 synced with a warehouse. Payments, shipping, tax and translated product data all add work.
Custom web app
Booking platforms, client portals, internal tools: software projects priced by the hour or sprint, with maintenance from day one.
What drives the price
- Number of unique page designs. Ten pages that share two templates cost less than ten pages each designed from scratch.
- Template vs custom design. A good template, adjusted to your brand, is cheaper and faster. Fully custom design takes more designer hours.
- Platform. WordPress, Webflow, Shopify, Framer or custom code each have different build and running costs. We compare them in the best website platform for a small business.
- Languages. Each language adds translation, layout checks and testing. Right-to-left scripts such as Arabic add more design work.
- Content. If you supply final text and photos, the price drops. If the agency writes, translates and shoots, it rises.
- Integrations. CRM, booking system, payment gateway, WhatsApp, property feeds, ERP. Each connection is work, and each can break later.
- Revision rounds and approvals. Unlimited revisions are not free; they are priced in somewhere.
- Compliance. Cookie consent, privacy pages and accessibility work add time, and in some markets they are a legal requirement.
Recurring costs: the part of the budget people forget
The build is a one time cost. These are the costs that come back every month or every year.
Domain name
A .com or most country domains cost roughly $10 to $20 per year, though some extensions and premium names cost much more. Always register the domain in your company's name and keep the login.
Hosting and SSL
Shared hosting starts at a few dollars a month on long prepaid terms; quality managed WordPress hosting is often $30 a month or more; a static Astro site can often run on a free plan. Shopify, Wix and Webflow bundle hosting into the subscription. Basic SSL is free with most modern hosts.
Maintenance
Published guides put website maintenance anywhere from about $50 to over $2,000 a month, depending on the size of the site and what is covered. A simple brochure site sits at the low end; a busy online store at the high end. Maintenance should cover updates, backups, security, uptime checks and small edits. Ask exactly what is included and how fast they respond.
Translation, copy and photos
Translation is usually priced per word, copywriting per page, photography per half or full day. Very low translation quotes can mean machine translation without native review. Check who owns photo usage rights.
Payment fees (for e-commerce)
Expect to pay a percentage of every sale plus a small fixed fee. Stripe's standard US rate in 2026 is 2.9% + 30 cents per card payment, with an extra 1.5% for international cards and more if currency conversion is needed. Rates differ in Europe and elsewhere, so check the pricing page for your country. Compare the full picture: percentage, fixed fee, monthly fee, setup fee and payout timing.
Tax on your invoice
Many quotes exclude tax. In the EU, standard VAT rates range from 17% to 27% depending on the country, UK VAT is 20%, and US sales tax rules on web services depend on the state. Ask whether the price includes tax before you sign.
Legal basics that affect the budget
- GDPR (EU and UK). If you have visitors or customers in Europe, you need a privacy policy, a lawful basis for collecting data, and a cookie banner that blocks analytics and ad pixels until people agree. Consent tools range from free plans to paid monthly subscriptions.
- Accessibility. The European Accessibility Act has applied since June 2025 to many online shops and services sold to EU consumers, with an exemption for micro-enterprises providing services. Building accessibly from the start is far cheaper than fixing it later.
- Data processing agreements. If your agency, host or CRM handles personal data for you, you should have one in place.
Red flags in a website quote
- No written scope. If the quote does not list pages, features, languages and revision rounds, you will argue about it later.
- The agency registers the domain in its own name. You should own your domain, hosting account and website files.
- "Free website" tied to a long contract. The cost is hidden in a monthly fee you cannot easily exit.
- Full payment upfront. A deposit is normal. 100% before any work starts is not.
- SEO promises like "page one guaranteed". Nobody can guarantee Google rankings.
- Vague maintenance. "Support included" without saying what, for how long, and how fast they respond.
- No portfolio of live sites. Screenshots are easy. Ask for links you can open.
Questions to ask before you pay
- What exactly is included: how many pages, which features, which languages?
- How many revision rounds are included, and what does an extra round cost?
- Who writes and translates the content, and is that in the price?
- Which platform will you use, and can another developer take over later?
- Will the domain, hosting and site files be in my name?
- What are the yearly running costs after launch?
- Is the price inclusive or exclusive of VAT or sales tax?
- How will you handle cookie consent and privacy for my markets?
- What happens after launch: who fixes bugs, and is there a warranty period?
If you are in the UAE
Local figures from UAE agency guides and providers in late 2025 and 2026, excluding VAT:
- Build prices: landing page about AED 1,500 to 7,000; small business site AED 4,000 to 15,000; corporate site AED 15,000 to 45,000; e-commerce AED 10,000 to 80,000+; custom web app AED 40,000 to 200,000+. Freelancers roughly AED 3,000 to 30,000 per project, agencies AED 15,000 to 120,000, with reported developer rates around AED 90 to 130 per hour.
- Domain: .ae domains are sold through registrars accredited by aeDA. One well known UAE registrar lists about AED 125 for the first year and AED 145 on renewal.
- Hosting and maintenance: local shared hosting from about AED 20 to 70 a month. One Dubai agency describes maintenance from a few hundred dirhams a month for a brochure site up to about AED 2,000 for business sites and AED 2,000 to 6,000 for e-commerce.
- Arabic translation: one Dubai agency publishes about AED 0.30 to 0.40 per word, so a 3,000 word site is roughly AED 1,000 to 1,200.
- Payment gateways: Stripe UAE around 2.9% + AED 1 per transaction, plus 1% for cards issued outside the UAE. Telr publishes tiered plans around 2.49% to 2.69% + AED 0.50 to 1 plus a monthly fee. PayTabs lists around 2.85% + AED 1 with setup and monthly fees.
- VAT: 5%. Registration is mandatory once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 over 12 months, voluntary from AED 187,500.
- Data protection: the UAE PDPL covers personal data from your forms; DIFC and ADGM have their own rules.
How dhowly prices websites
We are a small web design, AI and automation studio licensed in the UAE, working with clients worldwide, remotely, in English and French. We publish our prices so you can compare them with other quotes.
- Launch, from AED 990 (about USD 270). A one page landing page with a contact form and messaging button, SEO basics and analytics, 2 revision rounds, delivered in 5 to 10 working days.
- Automate, from AED 2,450 (about USD 670). A website plus a CRM set up and connected, 2 automations such as an instant reply and a follow-up, and a training session for your team.
- Growth Partner, AED 2,750 per month (about USD 750). An AI assistant on your site or WhatsApp, new pages and updates every month, automations monitored, plus a monthly report and call.
Prices exclude VAT and third-party subscriptions such as your domain, hosting, CRM or payment gateway. See full details in our pricing section and on our web design service page.
If you need a large custom platform, we will tell you we are not the right fit and help you write a clear brief.
So how much should you budget?
For most small businesses, a sensible first budget looks like this: a landing page or small site for the build, a domain and hosting for somewhere between almost nothing and a few hundred dollars per year, and a small monthly amount for maintenance or updates. Add translation if you need several languages, and payment fees if you sell online.
Start with what brings you leads now. You can add pages, languages and automations once the site is earning its keep.
Get a second opinion on your quote
dhowly works with businesses worldwide, remotely. Have a quote in hand, or a current site that is not bringing in enquiries? Book a free 15-minute call and we will give you an honest view of the price and the scope.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a basic website cost in 2026?
A one page landing page typically costs around $300 to $2,500, and a small business website around $1,500 to $10,000, excluding tax. Prices vary with the number of pages, languages, content and where your designer is based.
How much does an e-commerce website cost?
A small Shopify store built by a freelancer or studio can start around $3,000, while US agency guides put custom e-commerce at $25,000 to $150,000 or more. Add payment fees, for example Stripe's standard US rate of 2.9% + 30 cents per card payment.
Is a freelancer or an agency cheaper?
Freelancers are usually cheaper. One 2026 cost index puts a US freelancer WordPress site at about $1,550 to $6,400 and a US agency at about $3,850 to $15,350. Agencies make sense when you need design, content, development and support in one place.
What are the yearly running costs of a website?
Plan for the domain (about $10 to $20 a year for a .com), hosting or a platform subscription, and maintenance. Maintenance ranges from about $50 a month for a simple site to $2,000 or more for busy online stores.
Do website quotes include VAT or sales tax?
Often not. EU VAT ranges from 17% to 27% by country, UK VAT is 20%, UAE VAT is 5%, and US sales tax depends on the state. Always check whether tax will be added to the invoice.
Does GDPR make a website more expensive?
A little. If you have EU or UK visitors, you need a privacy policy, a working cookie consent banner and careful handling of form data. Building this in from the start costs far less than fixing it later.
