A small business website in the UK can cost anything from under £20 a month on a DIY builder to £25,000+ from an agency. Most small businesses with a brochure site end up paying a freelancer or small studio somewhere between £500 and £3,000, plus running costs. Here's how to tell what you actually need.

The short answer: UK website costs in 2026

OptionTypical cost
DIY website builderAbout £9–£80 a month for most plans
Freelancer: brochure site£500–£3,000
Small studio£2,000–£5,000
Agency: brochure site£3,000–£12,000 (London £8,000–£25,000)
E-commerce shop£2,000–£15,000+, rising with products and features

Freelancer and agency ranges come from ExpertSure's 2026 UK website cost guide and Kwiboo's 2026 breakdown.

DIY builders: Wix, Squarespace and Shopify

Website builders are cheapest upfront, but you do the work and pay every month.

The catch is lock-in. Kwiboo estimates moving off a builder platform later starts from around £500, and you can't take a Wix or Squarespace design with you.

Freelancer vs small studio vs agency

  • Freelancers are usually the best value for a 5–10 page site. Kwiboo puts freelance day rates at £240–£550.
  • Small studios add design depth and reliability.
  • Agencies make sense for complex sites, large shops or ongoing campaigns across a team.

Whoever you choose, ask to see sites they've built, how fast they load on a phone, and what happens after launch.

What drives the price

  • Number of pages and how much copy needs writing.
  • Custom design versus a template.
  • E-commerce: the number of products, payment set-up and stock management. ExpertSure puts a small WooCommerce shop at £3,000–£10,000.
  • Integrations such as booking systems, CRMs and forms.
  • SEO set-up: page titles, descriptions, structured data and a sitemap so Google understands your site.

Ongoing costs: domain, hosting, email and care

  • Domain: a .co.uk typically costs about £10–£15 a year, but watch renewal prices. One comparison found renewals ranging from about £10 to over £27 a year after cheap first-year deals.
  • Hosting: shared hosting is often £7–£12 a month, managed WordPress £9–£18. Modern static sites can be hosted on services like Cloudflare Pages, whose free plan covers most small business sites.
  • SSL certificate: now usually free.
  • Business email: Google Workspace starts at £5.90 per user a month.
  • Maintenance or care plan: ExpertSure puts freelancer retainers at £50–£150 a month and agencies at £100–£500.
  • ICO data protection fee: most small businesses that handle personal data pay £52 or £78 a year unless exempt.

Hidden costs and red flags

  • Who owns your domain? It should be registered in your name, not your designer's. You can check a .uk domain with Nominet's WHOIS lookup.
  • Who owns the design and code? Under UK law, the person who creates a work usually owns the copyright unless you agree otherwise in writing. Ask for ownership to be transferred to you in the contract.
  • Lock-in. Can you move your site to another provider if you leave?
  • Transaction fees on e-commerce platforms, such as Shopify's extra fee if you use a third-party payment provider.
  • Limited companies must show their registered number, registered office address, where they're registered and that they're a limited company.
  • Sole traders and partnerships trading under a business name must show the owners' names and an address. Businesses selling online must also give a geographic address and clear prices, according to Business Companion.
  • A privacy notice explaining how you use personal data, as the ICO's right to be informed guidance sets out.
  • Cookies: you need consent for non-essential cookies such as advertising trackers. Since February 2026, analytics used only to improve your site no longer needs consent, but visitors must be told and given an easy way to opt out. See the ICO's cookie guidance.

This is general information, not legal advice.

Our pricing, and why

We build fast, cinematic websites, like this one, from £1,000 at our founding rate for clients who join by 31 January 2027 (standard price £1,500 after that), with hosting and care from £49 a month after launch. Every site is mobile-first, set up for Google, and the domain stays in your name. See what's included on our website design page.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a small business website cost in the UK?

A brochure site from a freelancer typically costs £500–£3,000, while agencies usually start around £3,000 and can go much higher. DIY builders cost roughly £9–£80 a month.

What are the yearly running costs of a website?

Expect a domain (around £10–£15 a year for .co.uk), hosting, email and optionally a care plan. Kwiboo estimates a typical small business spends around £500–£2,500 a year in total, including maintenance.

Is Wix or Squarespace cheaper than hiring a web designer?

The monthly fee is lower, but you do the work yourself, and moving away later typically costs from around £500.

Do I need a cookie banner?

If you use non-essential cookies such as advertising or tracking, yes. Simple analytics used only to improve your site now just needs clear information and an easy opt-out.

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Sources (16)

Figures were checked against these sources on 3 November 2026. Prices and rules change, so check the latest before acting. This article is general information, not legal or financial advice.