Typical prices
These are the ranges I work with as an independent developer, in USD. Agencies usually charge more, and template sites less.
| Project | Typical starting price | Usual timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Simple business website (about 5 pages) | from about $1,500 | 2–4 weeks |
| Online store | from about $3,000 | 4–8 weeks |
| Custom software or web platform | from about $8,000 | 2–4 months |
| Mobile app | priced per project | depends on scope |
These are starting points, not fixed prices. Every proposal is written for the specific project.
What changes the price
- Number of unique page designs. Ten pages that share two layouts cost less than five pages that are all different.
- Languages. Each extra language adds translation, layout checks, and, for Arabic, a right-to-left version of the design.
- Content. Writing text, taking product photos, and preparing images are real work. If you provide them ready, the price drops.
- Payments and delivery. Cash on delivery is simple. Card payments, wallets, and delivery zones add setup and testing.
- Integrations. Connecting to accounting, stock, booking, or shipping tools takes time to build and test.
- Custom features. Anything a ready-made platform doesn’t do, like a product builder or a customer portal, is built from scratch.
Why one quote is $400 and another is $4,000
Very cheap quotes usually mean a purchased template with your logo added, no planning, little attention to phones or speed, and no support after launch. That can be fine for a temporary page. It’s a problem when the site is meant to bring you customers for years.
Higher quotes should come with visible differences: a proper discovery call, a written scope, a design made for your business, testing on real phones, search setup, and support after launch. If a higher quote can’t explain what you get for the difference, ask.
Yearly costs after launch
Budget for these every year, whoever builds your site:
| Item | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Domain name (.com) | about $10–20 per year |
| Hosting | about $5–50 per month, depending on traffic and type |
| Business email | a few dollars per user per month |
| Shopify or similar platform, if used | from about $30–40 per month, plus app fees |
| Payment processing | a percentage per card transaction, set by the provider |
| Maintenance and updates | optional, often a small monthly or yearly fee |
How to get an accurate quote
Before you ask anyone for a price, write down:
- 01
What the website must achieve: calls, WhatsApp messages, bookings, or online sales.
- 02
The pages you need and the languages they should be in.
- 03
Whether you’ll provide the text and photos.
- 04
Any payments, delivery, or tools it must work with.
- 05
Two or three websites you like, and what you like about them.
With that list, quotes become comparable, and you’ll quickly see who has understood your project.
Ways to spend less without cutting quality
- Launch with the pages that matter most and add the rest later.
- Prepare your text and photos yourself.
- Start with one language if most customers use it, and add the second in a later phase.
- Choose a platform like Shopify when its standard features fit, instead of paying for custom work.