Ask three studios to quote the same website and you can get three very different numbers. That is rarely because someone is overcharging: they are usually quoting three different websites. This guide explains what drives the price so you can compare offers on equal terms.
Why quotes vary so much
A website can be a template with your logo on it, or a custom design with its own content structure, two languages, a content management system and search optimisation built in. Both are called a website. The difference is the amount of thinking, design and engineering behind it.
Before comparing prices, compare what is included. A low quote that leaves out content, Arabic, or the ability to edit the site yourself often ends up costing more.
The six things that decide the price
Almost every website quote comes down to these:
- Number and type of pages: a five-page company site is a different job from a fifty-page catalogue
- Custom design or a template: custom design takes research, layout and several rounds of review
- Languages: a proper Arabic and English site needs right-to-left layouts, not just translated text
- Content management: whether your team can update pages, projects and articles without a developer
- Features: online payments, bookings, member areas or integrations with other systems
- Content: who writes the copy and who provides the photos
Costs people forget
The build is not the only cost. Budget for the domain name, hosting, a business email address, any paid plugins or services, and ongoing maintenance: security updates, small changes and fixes over time.
Ask whether hosting and maintenance are included, for how long, and what they cost afterwards.
How to compare quotes fairly
Send every studio the same brief: your goals, the pages you need, the languages, and examples of sites you like. Then compare the proposals line by line, not by the total.
A good proposal lists the deliverables, the timeline, how many design revisions are included, who owns the site at the end, and what happens after launch.
What a good website should include
Whatever the budget, a professional website today should come with:
- Mobile-first design that loads fast on phones
- Search basics: page titles, descriptions, a sitemap and clean addresses
- Analytics, so you can see where visitors come from
- A contact form or WhatsApp link that actually reaches you
- The ability to edit content yourself