One of the most common questions we hear from our readers is: “How much does it cost to build a website?” We’re here to answer that question, and to help you put your money where it matters.
After 10 years of reviewing everything from web builders to hosting providers, you can bet we’ve made all the usual mistakes – meaning we can help you avoid them first-time!
First of all, let’s play a quick game: Which website do you think costs the most?
What did you guess? If you chose Website A, then you’d be correct – it’s a custom-made site, meaning it probably cost around RM25,000. The other design is… drum roll please… free website templates from DIY website builders Wix and Squarespace.
With these builders, it costs a minimum of RM50 to RM60 per month to build an ad-free website.
It’s pretty hard to tell which design cost more just by looking at them, which shows that there is no right or wrong way to build a website.
Building a website can cost as little as $6 per month with a website builder, while hiring a web designer can cost in excess of RM10,000 upfront to design and build a site.
As you can see, it’s important consider the varying costs before learning how to build a website.
How Much Does Building a Website Typically Cost?
On average, though, it costs around RM900 to build a website, with an ongoing cost of around RM250 per month to maintain it. This estimate is higher if you hire a designer or developer – expect an upfront charge of around RM26,000, with an ongoing cost of RM4,500 per year.
There are three main ways to build a website: use a website builder, build with WordPress, or hire a web designer. Which method you choose will have a huge impact on how much your website costs.
For example, creating content is free with a web builder, but can cost over RM20,000 if you’re using a web designer.
Website builders are usually the cheapest way to build a website. While WordPress is technically a free, open-source platform, you have to pay for hosting, themes, and plugins, and even professional help from a developer, which can increase your total cost.
Hiring a web designer is the most expensive option. Realistically, you don’t want to pay less than RM20,000 for a web designer, otherwise you might end up with a disappointing end result that you’re not happy with, but that you’ve still paid a few thousand for.
You need to choose the right method for you. Hiring a web designer is expensive, but it takes the technical hassle out of your hands.
Using a website builder is cheap and easy, but you don’t get the same level of control as you do with WordPress.
WordPress gives you flexibility, but it’s the most time consuming and hands-on approach.
We’ll walk you through each option, explore the various costs involved, and explain how to ask the right questions to get the most out of your money. Ready? Let’s go!