· Guide · 5 min read
How Much Does a Custom Website Cost in 2026?
A custom business card site costs €600–1,000, a company website with CMS from €1,200, a custom online store from €2,000. See what drives the price and what to expect in 2026.
A custom website for a small business typically costs between €400 and €4,000 net, depending on the type of site, feature scope, and whether you choose a freelancer, an agency, or a website builder. Custom development — built from scratch, no off-the-shelf themes — is 30–50% more expensive than a template-based site, but delivers better performance, security, and long-term maintenance cost.
Below is a straightforward pricing breakdown by site type — no fluff. All prices reflect custom web development, not template-based or DIY builders.
Website Pricing in 2026
| Type | Price (from, net) | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Landing page | €400 | 3–7 days |
| Business card site | €600 | 2–3 weeks |
| Company website with CMS | €1,200 | 4–6 weeks |
| Online store | €2,000 | 6–12 weeks |
Prices reflect freelancer rates for custom website development. Agencies typically charge 2–3× more for a similar scope.
What Counts as a Custom Website?
A custom website is one built from scratch for a specific client, with a bespoke design and functionality — not a reskinned template. The distinction matters for cost: custom development takes more time upfront but delivers:
- Unique design that reflects your brand, not a variation of themes used by thousands of other businesses
- Lean code with only the features you actually need — no plugin bloat
- Better performance (typically 95–100 PageSpeed Insights vs 40–60 for template-based sites)
- Lower maintenance cost long-term (fewer plugins to update, no security patches for unused features)
- Freedom to customize without fighting the template’s constraints when requirements evolve
The trade-off: higher upfront cost (30–50% more than a template) and longer timeline. For businesses that plan to run the site for 3+ years, the total cost of ownership is usually lower with custom — especially when you factor in hosting costs (templates with many plugins often require heavier hosting) and developer hours for fighting template limitations later.
Landing Page — from €400
A landing page is a single page focused on one goal: capturing leads, selling a product, or promoting a service. No navigation, no subpages — just content and a CTA button or form.
When it makes sense:
- Running a paid ad campaign (Google Ads, Meta Ads)
- Promoting a single product or service
- Collecting sign-ups for an event or webinar
At this price point, a landing page includes responsive design, a contact form, basic SEO, and Google Analytics integration.
Business Card Site — from €600
A business card site is the classic small business website: up to 5 pages covering home, services, about, contact, and optionally a gallery or testimonials. It’s the most common choice for local service providers.
What’s included:
- Up to 5 subpages
- Custom graphic design
- Contact form with reCAPTCHA
- SEO optimisation (meta tags, headings, schema markup)
- Responsive layout for mobile and tablet
- Google Maps and Google Analytics integration
When it makes sense:
- You’re a local service provider (salon, mechanic, accountant, clinic)
- You need a professional online presence
- Customers search for you by business name or service
Company Website with CMS — from €1,200
A full company website with a content management system lets you update text, add posts, and manage images yourself — no developer needed. The right choice when you plan to publish content regularly or have a dozen or more subpages.
What’s included:
- Multiple pages and sections
- Admin panel for content editing
- Company blog
- Advanced SEO (breadcrumbs, schema.org, sitemap)
- Integrations (GTM, analytics, maps, newsletter, chat)
- SSL certificate and first-year hosting (optional)
Online Store — from €2,000
An online store is considerably more complex than a business card site. It needs to handle products, a cart, payments, stock management, invoices, and shipping.
The price depends on the number of products, payment gateway integrations (Stripe, PayPal), and any synchronisation with inventory or ERP systems.
What Drives the Cost of a Website?
1. Custom design vs template
A site built from scratch with a custom graphic design costs more than one based on a ready-made template. The price difference is typically 30–50%, but the difference in quality and uniqueness can be far greater.
2. Content management system (CMS)
Adding an admin panel so you can edit content yourself adds €250–750 to the cost. It’s a one-time expense that saves money later — minor updates don’t require calling a developer every time.
3. Integrations and extra features
Each integration takes additional time. Typical costs:
- Contact form with anti-spam protection: included in base price
- Booking system integration: +€120–380
- Newsletter (Mailchimp, etc.): +€80–200
- Multilingual support: +€380–1,000
- On-site search: +€120–380
4. Copywriting and photography
Many quotes exclude copy and images — the client provides the materials. If you need copywriting or product photography, add €250–1,200 depending on scope.
5. Freelancer vs agency vs website builder
| Freelancer | Agency | Builder (Wix, Squarespace) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | €400–4,000 | €1,500–15,000 | €0–50/mo |
| Uniqueness | High | High | Low |
| Quality | Depends on person | Depends on agency | Low–medium |
| Flexibility | High | Medium | Low |
| Support | Direct | Via project manager | Self-service |
Hidden Costs to Know About
The build price is just the start — a website has ongoing running costs:
- Domain: €10–30/year (.com, .co.uk, etc.)
- Hosting: €25–150/year (depends on traffic and site type)
- SSL certificate: usually included with hosting or free (Let’s Encrypt)
- Maintenance and updates: €0–120/month (if you opt for a support package)
- SEO: €120–750/month if you want to actively grow in Google
WordPress sites require regular plugin and core updates — otherwise they become vulnerable to attacks. Sites built in Astro (like the ones I build) don’t have this problem: they generate static HTML and require no ongoing maintenance.
When Does a Cheaper Option Make Sense?
Website builders like Wix or Squarespace make sense when:
- You’re just starting out and testing an idea
- You don’t need SEO or a custom design
- Your budget is genuinely very tight
But fair warning: builder sites have poor performance, limited SEO capabilities, and look similar to thousands of other sites. In the long run, it often turns out that investing once in a professional site was cheaper.
Summary — What Budget to Plan For?
For a small business, a realistic website budget is:
- Minimum (simple card site, template): €400–600
- Sensible (card site with custom design): €600–1,000
- Optimal (company site with CMS): €1,200–2,000
Add roughly €50–120/year for hosting and a domain.
If long-term Google rankings matter to you — it’s worth investing in an SEO-optimised site from day one. Fixing technical SEO issues after the fact is more expensive than getting it right upfront.
Need a quote for your business? Get in touch — I provide free estimates. I’m based in Poland and work with clients across Europe.
