What does a business website really cost? The factors behind the price

Why do website quotes vary so much?

Ask three agencies for "a company website" and you may get three very different quotes. Usually neither side is unreasonably expensive or cheap — each is simply imagining a different product. A brochure site built from a ready-made theme and a custom-designed website with content management, multiple languages and a CRM connection are completely different amounts of work.

Understanding the factors below helps you compare quotes properly and avoid paying for things you don't need.

1. The type of website

• ✓Brochure site (landing page / company website): a few static pages — about, services, contact. The smallest amount of work.
• ✓Website with content management: your team publishes news, articles and products through an admin page.
• ✓E-commerce website: cart, online payment, order management, inventory, shipping.
• ✓Web app / service portal: user accounts, permissions, booking, your own business logic. Closer to software development than to "making a website".

2. Template or custom design

A template is cheap and fast, and suits you when you need to be online soon. Custom design takes longer because it involves understanding your brand, laying out each page and optimizing for mobile, but the website will carry your company's identity and won't look like everyone else's.

3. Number of pages and amount of content

Ten pages with the same structure are very different from ten pages that each have their own layout. On top of that, who writes the content and prepares the images is a cost to account for: if your business doesn't have them yet, the quote should say so clearly.

4. Features and integrations

Each integration is its own piece of work: payment gateways, Zalo OA, email marketing, CRM, accounting software, Google Maps, live chat. Multiple languages also add cost, because every page needs a translation and its own URL structure so Google can index it.

5. SEO and speed

A "beautiful" website isn't necessarily one Google can find. Doing it right from the start includes heading structure, meta tags, a sitemap, structured data (schema), page load speed and a good mobile experience. Doing it right the first time is always cheaper than fixing it later.

6. Costs after launch

This is the part people often forget when comparing quotes:

• ✓Domain name: renewed every year
• ✓Hosting / server: paid monthly or yearly, depending on traffic
• ✓SSL certificate: usually free, but it has to be configured and renewed automatically
• ✓Maintenance: security updates, backups, fixes when browsers or libraries change
• ✓New content: articles, products, campaigns

If you already have a website and need someone to look after it, see our maintenance, operations and upgrades service.

How do you get a quote that matches your needs?

Before contacting a web agency, prepare:

• ✓Your main goal: is the website for introducing your business, collecting leads or selling?
• ✓A list of pages you expect and a few websites you like (with the reasons why)
• ✓Must-have features and "nice to have" features
• ✓How much content and imagery you already have
• ✓When you need to launch and your expected budget

When comparing quotes, ask clearly: which pages and features are included, do you receive the source code and admin access, how long is the warranty, and what are the yearly running costs.

Conclusion

There is no single figure for the cost of a website — it depends on the type of site, the level of design, the features and how you run it after launch. Start with a clear goal and a scope that is just enough, then expand once the website is bringing in customers.

DankTech offers web design and development for businesses, from brochure sites to web apps. The first conversation is free — contact us for a quote based on what you actually need.