You're trying to figure out how much a website should cost for your small business. Google gives you answers ranging from "free" to "book a call and we'll tell you later." That's not helpful.
I'm a web designer in Louisville, Kentucky. I work with a small roster of local service businesses across Louisville, Jeffersonville, and Southern Indiana, and I build sites for the kinds of trades and shops you'd expect, from contractors to restaurants to salons. I'm going to give you real numbers based on what things actually cost in our local market, not marketing fluff. You can see the work I can show publicly on my client work page.
The Short Answer
For a typical small business website (5-10 pages, professional design, mobile-friendly), expect to pay:
That's the quick answer. But the real question isn't "how much does a website cost?" The real question is "what do I actually get for my money?" Let me break it down.
Option 1: Hire a Local Web Designer ($2,500 setup + $399/month)
This is what I do. A local freelancer or small agency builds your site from scratch, handles the technical stuff, and delivers a finished product.
What You Get:
- Custom design that matches your brand (not a template that looks like everyone else)
- Mobile-responsive layout that works on phones and tablets
- Basic SEO setup so Google can find you
- Contact forms that actually work
- Someone to call when something breaks
What It Costs:
- Pro small business site: $2,500 setup + $399/month
- Custom build: Starting at $7,500 for complex sites, larger page counts, or advanced functionality
My public Pro plan is $2,500 setup and $399/month. The setup covers design, build, and launch. The monthly plan covers hosting, domain, SSL, support, Google Business Profile work, local SEO, content improvements, and reporting.
Why the range is so wide: Website costs depend on complexity. A 5-page site for a plumber costs less than a 50-page site for a law firm with custom intake forms and appointment scheduling. More features = more work = higher price.
Option 2: DIY Website Builders
Squarespace, Wix, Weebly, GoDaddy. These let you build your own website without knowing code. They're cheap upfront, but there's a catch.
What You Get:
- Drag-and-drop templates you customize yourself
- Hosting included in the monthly fee
- Basic features out of the box
What It Costs:
- Basic plans: lower subscription cost, fewer business features
- Business plans: more features, more setup decisions, still on you to build
- E-commerce plans: more moving parts, especially products, payments, pickup, delivery, and tax settings
The Hidden Cost: Your Time
Here's what the DIY platforms don't tell you: building a website takes time. A lot of it.
Most business owners I talk to spent 20-40 hours wrestling with Squarespace or Wix before giving up. That's a full work week. If those hours could have gone into jobs, customers, hiring, or sales, the cheaper tool may not be cheaper.
Some people enjoy this and have the eye for design. Most don't. Be honest with yourself about which camp you're in.
For a deeper comparison, read my article on Squarespace vs. Hiring a Web Designer.
Option 3: Large Agencies
Big marketing agencies charge big prices. Sometimes it's justified. Often it's not.
What You Get:
- Account managers, project managers, designers, developers (lots of people)
- Detailed strategy and discovery phases
- Custom everything
- Ongoing SEO and marketing services
What It Costs:
- Small agency: often higher than a one-person local build
- Mid-size agency: usually includes more meetings, strategy, and handoffs
- Large agency: built for larger budgets and larger teams
For most small businesses, this is overkill. You're paying for overhead: offices, account managers, long meetings, and layers between you and the person doing the work. If you're a local contractor, restaurant, or service business, you need a website that gets found and makes the next step obvious.
Want a Straight Quote?
I'll tell you exactly what your website will cost. No sales pitch, just numbers.
The Ongoing Costs Most People Forget
Building the website is step one. Keeping it running is step two. Here's what you'll pay after launch:
Hosting
Your website needs to live somewhere. Cheap shared hosting can mean slow loading times and poor security. Better hosting is part of what you are paying for with a professional monthly plan.
Domain Name
Your web address, like mybusiness.com, renews every year. With my Pro plan, domain management is included so you are not left chasing logins later.
SSL Certificate
The "https" and padlock show your site is secure. This should not be treated like a mystery upsell. It is included in Pro.
Maintenance and Updates
Websites need updates. Hours change. Staff changes. Services change. If you are on WordPress, plugins and security also need attention, which is a big part of why I weigh WordPress against a custom site for most small businesses. You can handle that upkeep yourself, or you can pay someone to keep it off your plate.
What Drives the Price Up?
Not all websites are created equal. Here's what makes prices climb:
- Number of pages: More pages = more work. A 5-page site costs less than a 20-page site.
- Custom design: Template tweaks are cheap. Custom designs from scratch cost more.
- E-commerce: Selling products online adds complexity (payment processing, inventory, shipping calculations).
- Booking/scheduling: Appointment systems, calendars, and integrations add cost.
- Custom forms: Complex intake forms, quote calculators, or multi-step workflows.
- Copywriting: If you need someone to write your content, that's extra.
- Photography: Professional photos of your work, team, or location.
How to Not Get Ripped Off
I've seen people overpay for websites because they did not know what to ask. Here's how to avoid that:
- Get multiple quotes. Talk to at least 3 different providers. Prices vary wildly.
- Ask what's included. Does the price include hosting? Maintenance? Updates? A year from now, who do you call?
- Ask to see work. Every web designer should show you sites they've actually built or clear work examples they can explain.
- Watch out for vague discovery fees. Paid planning can make sense for complex projects, but it should produce something useful, not just another sales call.
- Beware of lowball quotes. If the quote sounds impossible, ask what is missing: copy, mobile work, SEO setup, support, hosting, or ownership details.
Red flag: Any web designer who can't tell you their pricing upfront is hiding something. I tell people my prices on the first call. No "it depends" games.
Is a Website Worth It?
Here's the math that matters: How much is one new customer worth to you?
If you're a plumber and one good repair call is worth more than a month of website support, the website does not need to work miracles. It needs to help the right people find you and call.
If you're a restaurant, the site needs to make your menu, hours, location, and ordering path easy to find. If you're a salon, it needs to show your work and make booking obvious.
The question is not just whether you can afford a website. It is whether you can afford to be hard to find when someone nearby is ready to call.
What I Charge (Transparency)
Since you're researching prices, here's exactly what I charge for small business websites in Louisville:
- Pro website setup: $2,500
- Pro monthly plan: $399/month
- Website Rescue diagnostic: $250, applied to the project if you move forward
- Google Business Profile setup: $250 as a standalone add-on, included in Pro
- Google Ads setup: $400
- Custom builds: Starting at $7,500
No mystery menu. Month to month. After 12 months, ownership options become available. I'm the guy who builds it, maintains it, and answers when you need changes.
The Bottom Line
For Louisville Web Guy, the public Pro offer is simple: $2,500 setup and $399/month. That is the realistic path for a small business that wants the site, hosting, support, Google Business Profile work, local SEO, and reporting handled in one place.
Cheaper than that and you're either doing it yourself or getting something that won't serve you well. More expensive than that and you're probably paying for overhead you don't need.
If you're in Louisville or Kentucky and want to know exactly what your website would cost, give me a call. I'll give you a straight answer in 5 minutes. You can also review the website packages or start with real client work.
