- Aaron Gelbman
- Dec 25, 2024
- 12 min read
Updated: Dec 26, 2024
Deciding how much to charge for a website is never easy. If you charge too much, you risk alienating a potential client. But charge too little, and you risk selling yourself short. On top of that, the right price depends on a complex web of factors, from your own skill level to the client’s industry or niche.
Dimitrios Chadoulas, owner of web design studio webo.bot, has maintained a simple but consistent pricing principle throughout his 15 year career: “to get good prices, deliver high quality services—this is what keeps the customers coming.”
We’re big fans of that philosophy. But if you’re craving more nuance, you’re in the right place. This web design pricing guide will help you break down these different elements so that you can figure out what to charge for the websites you create—whether you're starting a web design business from scratch or looking to improve your current margins. Here are the 9 factors that go into determining your pricing model, plus the pros and cons of different models to help you decide what’s best for you.
Starting creating a website on Wix Studio.
How much to charge for a website: 9 elements to consider
Before we begin, let’s go over the two types of costs you’ll incur in your business, which your web design services pricing needs to cover.
Hard costs, or material costs, are the materials for production. These are usually fixed costs determined by service providers, not by you. For example, a Wix Studio site has a fixed monthly or annual fee regardless of how much time you spend to design and code it.
Variable costs are your and/or your team’s time to deliver the project, and these change depending on an individual project’s complexity. Often referred to as the “fee,” this reflects your level of investment in the project and the size of your team, so that you’re properly compensated—and make a profit.
To determine the pricing structure for your hard and variable costs, use these 9 points as a guide:
01. Cost of production
First, let’s go over the most straightforward cost of building a website: the price of the raw materials. These are non-negotiable hard costs priced by the service provider(s), not by you. These might include:
Web design CMS or website builder
Hosting platform
Domain name
Premium add-ons, such as apps or plugins
Maintenance features
Security features
Some of these elements might come bundled together in a package. For example, the monthly price for a Wix Studio site includes the costs for the website builder, CMS, hosting platform, security features and other core services.
These production costs are traditionally paid in full by the client as separate line items from your project fee. Some designers bill clients for these items and then pay the service providers on their behalf, sometimes adding a small markup to cover the payment management. Alternatively, Chadoulas prefers clients to pay service providers, like Wix Studio, directly. This latter option is more comfortable for designers, who don’t carry any liability if payments are late or unresolved.
02. Current market rate
Now, let’s get into the variable costs. But because these reflect the value of your work and time, where do you start?
Analyze the current market rate to get an idea of what others are charging for similar projects. That will give you an approximate cost to aim for as you build your pricing model. Start by browsing freelance marketplaces such as Upwork or Contra. Another helpful resource is the rate sharing page at Freelance Solidarity, a union of digital media workers that displays a comprehensive database of freelancer earnings in the industry. Reddit also is rich with information, with detailed threads that break down pricing strategies.
While it’s a good idea to stay within the ballpark of the prevailing market rate, it won’t surprise you to know that prices vary greatly. Because Chadoulas provides web design services to clients across Africa and Europe, he charges higher or lower rates relative to each country’s currency and standard of living—for example, Germany justifies higher project fees. When comparing what you charge to the prices of others in your field, be sure to take into account:
The types of services you offer
Your geographic location
The industry and scale of your clientele
The tools and technologies you’re using
Your level of expertise
Depending on your price target and cost of living—more on that next—some markets might be less receptive to your services, due to lower budgets and spending power.
03. Your own cost of living
Regardless of the prices others set, your rate needs to work for you. Use your own cost of living as a guideline for your ideal profit margin, i.e. how much money you need to live after paying your business expenses.
Consider factors such as:
The cost of your workspace, whether it’s at home or elsewhere
Utilities costs
Food and grocery costs
Medical costs
Insurance costs
You can take a formulaic approach. Start with how much you spend each month on all your costs to determine how much you want to earn in gross income (i.e., before taxes and expenses). For example:
Monthly expenses and taxes = $6,000
You want a profit each month of = $4,000
Your gross income needs to be = $6,000 + $4,000 = $10,000
Your workdays each month = 20 days
Your daily income needs to be = $10,000 / 20 = $500
By working an 8 hour day, your hourly rate is = $62.50
04. Your skill level
You’ll also want to consider your skill level—what you’re able to do—or background in the field:
Are you new as a web designer? Charge a lower amount at first and then work your way up as you build more sites.
Do you already have an impressive portfolio? You can reflect more experience with premium pricing.
Do you use a low-code, no-code web builder or can you write custom code? With a wider range of web designer skills, you can offer and charge more.
Do you have relevant degrees, certifications or specializations? These credentials can often justify higher pricing.
Get certified with one of these five web design certifications.
Chadoulas opts for consistent pricing over the years—even though his skills increase, he likes to maintain a good rapport and clear expectations with his client base. On the other hand, it’s possible to increase your rates year over year to reflect increased demand or specialization. If you do decide to go this route, here’s how to charge more for your services without losing existing clients.
Once you have a few projects under your belt, create a web design portfolio that highlights your range of skills and showcases your work. Essentially, this will serve as a resume to start conversations with prospective clients.
Portfolio website templates on Wix Studio
Explore more responsive templates for your portfolio on Wix Studio.
05. Type of website
Because no two websites are the same, each is going to have a slightly different price—this is where you should create different prices, says Chadoulas. A one-page personal website, for instance, is going to require less work than designing an enterprise website. When quoting a price, consider whether your client wants only the basics or wants to include bells and whistles, like dedicated product pages or an online store. The more extra features, the more time and labor you’ll need to spend on the project.
Depending on your client’s budget and needs, you might recommend a pre-made website template instead of a custom-built site. These two approaches will vary in cost—owing to the different time and effort required for each—so calculate your web design price accordingly. For example, you could charge $500 for a templated, single-page website and $10,000 for a multi-page website including new branding design. Over time you’ll find the range that’s right for you and your target clients.
06. Scope of the project
Another critical element when deciding how much to charge for a website is how much needs to be done for the project, also referred to as its scope or size. It goes without saying that if it’s bigger and more time-intensive—"or something difficult and unique that can’t be found somewhere else," says Chadoulas—you should charge more, not only in hours but also proportionate to the difficulty of the work. First, ask your web design client questions in order to understand what exactly needs to be done.
These are just a few of the many types of scopes you can encounter:
Updating an existing site will cost less because the foundational structure, technology, code, user flow and design language are already in place.
Building a new website from scratch will cost more because you’ll work through the full web design process including the initial steps like research, UX design strategy, site mapping, wireframing and the website’s information architecture. In fact, Chadoulas recommends to approach all projects as new designs—providing only a “facelift” risks disappointing or underwhelming a client.
Migrating a website could cost even more, depending on how much work you need to do on the original site before migrating and setting up the site on a new platform.
Pro tip: when it comes to the process of scoping, experienced professionals share a few watch-outs they’ve learned the hard way.
Be cautious of scope creep, says Chadoulas, when you lose time on additional tasks or deliverables not outlined—or paid for—in the original scope.
Create a detailed web design proposal or contract to prevent potential misunderstandings, and protect you and your work—play it safe, especially since you don’t yet know your new clients and their personalities, says Chadoulas. The contract should clearly outline the specific items requested by the client, along with the rate. It should also mention that any work beyond the initial scope will require additional payment.
Issue change orders and don’t be afraid to have the conversation to expand the scope and charge more. Chadoulas is familiar with clients who request changes or additions that make the task longer and more involved than you’d originally anticipated.
07. Your client’s industry and scale
Just as your website design pricing will change for different types of projects, it will also vary depending on your client’s niche. Keep in mind that some industries have a higher budget than others. Web designers tend to earn the highest salaries in the media, technology and manufacturing industries. On the other hand, designing websites for clients in restaurants, retail, hospitality, non-profit and education typically pays less. Chadoulas varies his project pricing using a similar scale, charging more to a client that manufactures heavy machines than to a food truck business.
Restaurant website templates on Wix Studio
The scale of a company matters, too—for example, not all B2B websites are created equal. An enterprise-level business will likely spend extra money on special features and a complex design, while a new startup may just want to cover the basics.
Company website templates on Wix Studio
Starting creating a website on Wix Studio for any type of client.
08. Add-on services
Website design is your core service, but if you provide additional services that bring more value to your client’s site, you can add these to your pricing model. Some services that Chadoulas and other professionals recommend are:
Search engine optimization (SEO)
Content marketing
Branding and logo design
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising
Email marketing
Website photography
Monthly maintenance
You can reflect these services in your hourly fee—as more hours or a higher fee—or as additional line items on your project scope per deliverable.
09. Time to completion
Time is an important factor in how much to charge for a website. As long as you work on one project, you’re unable to take on others, which can lock you down for days, weeks or months. Like Chadoulas, you can plan and time projects to allow for multiple paying clients in parallel—in his case, five to six designs per month.
When determining the website design’s pricing, create a project timeline to see how much time is required. Chadoulas lets timing requests increase his pricing, for example if clients want additional rounds of revisions or a fast turnaround. It’s particularly important for clients to know when they will review and feedback on materials, because delayed feedback can push out the entire timeline and risk any future projects you’ve lined up.
Over time, with more experience, your timelines might get shorter. When you can complete tasks in less time, you earn more in the long run by freeing up time for additional or more advanced projects.
Your choice of web creation platform can also help you do more in less time. For example, Wix Studio’s AI capabilities can help speed up manual tasks, including:
Responsive designed layouts at the click of a button
Visual sitemap and wireframe generator to structure your website more quickly
Explore AI-powered web design and sign up for Wix Studio.
Deciding how to charge for a website
Once you have an idea of your basic pricing model, you’ll need to decide how to bill your clients. Let’s go into the three most common pricing models.
Hourly rate
An hourly rate means you’ll bill the client for the total number of hours worked. Usually, the number of hours are agreed on before the project begins, so it’s important to estimate well. This is a good option if your web design projects vary significantly from client to client—for simpler projects charge for fewer hours, and for more complex projects charge for more hours. You can also be flexible and charge different hourly rates depending on the types of clients or the skillset required for each project. Chadoulas uses hourly rates for small tasks, like content updates. But is an hourly rate right for you?
Pros: You can easily track the hours you spend on a project to assess if you’re still within scope or at risk of going over. And clients appreciate this transparency by seeing how much time you invest in their business.
Cons: Your personal time management can make or break your profitability. Depending on the reason, you might need to bill the client for additional hours if your first scope runs out.
Flat fee
A flat fee is agreed on from the outset depending on what you’re producing, i.e. the deliverables. Rather than estimate hours from project to project, Chadoulas offers a fixed price for projects depending on the site’s complexity and the number of pages. This is a good approach for designers who have a standardized and repeatable web design process and don’t expect significant variations between projects. For example, creating a brand identity in addition to a website would have a higher flat fee than only designing a website. If an individual client has a simpler or more complex project, Chadoulas increases or reduces the flat fee, ranging from 10% to 50% price differences.
Pros: With a flat fee you can proactively buffer in additional time for potential client-side changes or delays. And if you work quickly and diligently, you can take on more projects simultaneously to make more money.
Cons: You risk underestimating the number of hours you’ll spend on the project. Plus, any unforeseen circumstances, like you or your client falling ill, can derail your standardized process and cost you more time.
Monthly rate
If you plan to work for a client for an extended period of time, a monthly rate helps you and the client anticipate costs and tasks, such as continuous website maintenance or ongoing SEO services. Both hourly rate and flat fee methods can form the basis of your recurring monthly rate. One key aspect of the logic behind a monthly rate is that your monthly burn—how much time you spend on the client in one month—can vary month to month, but balances out over the length of the contract.
Pros: Monthly rates allow you to retain clients over the long-term and have a steady flow of income. Clients are less likely to end an ongoing relationship when you work well together and become more acquainted with their business.
Cons: Without proper oversight, you can become overwhelmed with too much work at one time between monthly contracts and one-off projects. Plus, if a client expects a certain level of availability from you each month, it can be tricky to take time off for vacations or illness.
Which model is right for me?
Most web designers recommend starting with an hourly rate, as it will help you get an idea of how much time goes into each project and what you need to earn to make it worth your while. Afterwards, you can switch to a flat or monthly fee if that works better for you.
For a rough calculation of your hourly rate, divide your desired monthly salary by the number of days you expect to work each month. This is your day rate. Then, divide the day rate by the number of hours you’ll need to work per day.
For example, if you want to earn $8,000 per month (that’s $96,000 per year) over the course of 20 work days, your day rate is $8,000/20, or $400 per day. That’s the equivalent of $65-$70 per hour for a 6-hour work day.
No matter how you choose to price your services, the most important thing is that you know your worth. Do some research on what other web designers are charging, and then factor in the 9 elements above to find the rate that works for you. Head over to the Wix Studio Forum for your research or any additional support—there are hundreds of working designers who can help from their professional experiences.
Starting creating a website on Wix Studio.
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