How much does a small business website cost in the UK?

If you run a café, salon, garage or clinic, the honest answer is: it depends on who builds it and how much you want them to do for you. Here's a plain-English breakdown so you can budget without guessing.

The three routes

• DIY builders (Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy): roughly £10–£30/month plus your time. Cheap to start, but you design, write and maintain it yourself — most owners never finish.
• Freelancer: typically £300–£1,500 for a small site. Quality and reliability vary a lot; make sure you agree what's included in writing.
• Agency / done-for-you: usually £500–£3,000+ for a local-business site. You brief them once and they handle design, copy, photos and launch.

One page or several?

Most local businesses convert perfectly well with a single, well-structured page: a strong headline, your services, photos, reviews, opening hours, a map, and one clear action (call, book, or enquire). Multi-page sites make sense when you have a large menu, many service areas, or want to rank for several different search terms.

What actually drives the price

• Copywriting — do you write the words, or do they?
• Photos — your own, or sourced/stock for you?
• Integrations — online booking, payments, menu, Google reviews.
• Number of pages and how much is bespoke vs templated.
• Ongoing support — edits after launch, hosting, and who to call when something breaks.

Don't forget the running costs

Beyond the build, budget for a domain (around £10–£15/year) and hosting (free on some platforms, or a small monthly fee). Ask any provider to spell these out — a quote that hides hosting or charges per edit can cost more over a year than a higher upfront price.

A fair way to compare quotes

Ask every provider the same five questions: What's the fixed total? What's included (copy, photos, booking)? How long until it's live? How many rounds of changes? What happens after launch — edits, hosting, and ownership? If someone can't answer clearly, that's your answer.