How Much Does It Cost to Build a Website?

Average price: According to statistics, a presentation website has an average cost of approximately 5000 lei (1000 €) in Romania.

Other estimates place the starting price range between 500 and 1000 € for a simple, basic presentation website.

Typical ranges: A site made with a template or CMS platform can start from 450–500 € upwards, while complex versions with custom design and unique content can reach 1500–2500 €.

For example, a standard site might have a minimum cost of 450 €, but depending on complexity and customization, the price can rise to 2500 €.

Agency vs freelancer costs: Working with a freelancer can be more affordable than an agency. A web design firm may charge between 250 € and 5000 € for a presentation website, offering a professional product and ongoing support.

A talented freelancer might request between 250–650 € for a simple presentation site. However, there are also very cheap options (under 150 €), but these are often unprofessionally made using free templates and may not bring real business benefits.

Concrete examples: An agency in Bucharest mentions a starting price of 699 € for a standard presentation site, and for more complex versions, depending on chosen functionalities, the cost can reach ~3000 €.

For a completely unique design, created from scratch, the cost can range between 1999 € and 5000 €, just for the custom development part.

Case study: For a small firm wanting a presentation website with approximately 5 pages and modern design, made on WordPress with a customized theme, the estimated price is between 500 and 1200 €, including graphic design and implementation.

If the same site were developed completely custom without a CMS, for a unique design, the cost could increase to 2000–3000 € or more, depending on implementation complexity and required programming time.

Average price: The average cost for creating an online store is ~1500 €. More advanced stores can reach 5000+ € for custom functionalities.

Typical ranges: A simple online store (few products, standard platform) can start from ~1000 €. As the number of products and functionalities increases (online payments, ERP, marketing automations), the cost can reach 3000–5000+ €.

Platforms and cost impact: Platform choice influences the final price:

• WooCommerce / OpenCart / PrestaShop → Lower initial cost, no monthly subscription.
• Shopify → Reduced initial cost but involves a monthly subscription (29$/month).
• Magento → Enterprise solution, costs over 5000 € just for initial setup.

Agency vs freelancer costs: A freelancer may charge between 2000-4000€, while an agency might invoice between 5000-15.000€ depending on complexity.

Examples: Some agencies offer packages starting at ~999 € for a basic WooCommerce store. A custom store with advanced functionalities can start from 4899 €.

Case study: A small online store (100 products, WooCommerce) might cost ~1200 € for initial development. If it includes complex filtering, marketplace integration and synchronized stocks, the cost could rise to 3000–4000 €. An enterprise store with high traffic on Magento starts from 5000 € and can increase significantly.

Market prices: Some agencies offer dedicated landing page packages. For example, a standard package for an optimized landing page can start from ~369 €. Other market offers indicate prices between 150–300 € for a simple landing page.

Range: The cost of a landing page can start from 100 € (freelancer, simple template) but can reach 400–500 € for a custom design and well-optimized content.

Costs vs. Benefits: On platforms like Reddit, a developer mentioned charging ~100 € flat rate for a simple landing page if texts are provided by the client. In contrast, agencies may charge ~500 € for more elaborate pages, including advanced design, copywriting, and original graphics.

Case study: A small business wanting a presentation page for an event or product might pay ~200 € to a freelancer for a standard page (basic layout + contact form). If an conversion-optimized landing page is desired, with custom design, original graphics, and persuasive text created by a copywriter, the cost can reach 400–600 €. The advantage is that a well-made page can significantly increase conversion rates, justifying the investment.

In Romania, a .RO domain costs ~8.9 € per year if purchased directly from ROTLD (prices may vary slightly by registrar).

International domains (.com, .eu) have similar costs, between ~8–10 € per year.

New extensions (e.g., .online, .shop, .design) can be more expensive – between ~18 and 62 € per year.

Domain costs are relatively low but represent a fixed annual expense throughout the website's lifespan.

If the site operates with multiple domains (e.g., .ro and .com variants for the same brand), costs multiply.

Budgeting for domain protection (e.g., buying main extensions to prevent abuse) is also recommended – though optional, some companies do this.

Web Hosting: Every website needs a server to run. Hosting costs depend on required resources (disk space, monthly traffic, processing power) and hosting type:

Shared Hosting (on a server shared with other sites): Very affordable, around 2–5 €/month for basic plans, up to ~20 €/month for premium shared plans with more space or features (dedicated IP, SSL). Shared hosting suits small sites or startups – e.g., a simple brochure site or new blog can run well on a 3-5 €/month plan. Limitations: Resources are shared and limited – performance issues may arise with high traffic.

VPS Hosting (Virtual Private Server): A mid-tier option – provides virtual dedicated resources (CPU, RAM) on a physical server. Typical costs start at ~5 €/month for a mini-VPS, rising to 40–50 €+/month for high-resource VPS. Benefits include greater stability and custom configuration. An e-commerce site with moderate traffic may need a ~20-30 €/month VPS for good loading times.

Dedicated Server / Cloud Instances: For large sites or web applications requiring serious power. A dedicated server can cost from ~99 € to 300 €+/month (or more). Similarly, cloud services (e.g., AWS, Google Cloud) vary widely – from tens to hundreds of euros monthly based on usage. These options are only considered for high-traffic/high-demand projects (e.g., a news site with tens of thousands of daily visitors or a large store with thousands of daily orders).

CDN (Content Delivery Network): For global scaling or faster speeds, add a CDN (e.g., Cloudflare, Akamai) to distribute static content worldwide. Many sites use free Cloudflare plans for basic benefits. A Cloudflare Pro plan costs ~20 $/month, but most small businesses don’t need paid plans. CDN becomes relevant for international audiences or very high traffic (reduces load on the main server).

As your site grows, hosting costs will scale proportionally. Budget for successful sites to evolve from 5 €/month to 20-50 €+ when reaching tens of thousands of monthly visitors. Anticipate traffic spikes (e.g., promotions, Black Friday for e-commerce) with temporary scaling costs (plan upgrades, extra servers).

SSL Certificate: Most sites now use SSL (HTTPS) for security. Free options exist (e.g., Let’s Encrypt), often included automatically by hosting providers – usually no direct cost.

An Extended Validation (EV) certificate with a security seal (used by some banks or large stores for enhanced trust) costs ~50-100 €/year.

For most websites, SSL costs 0 € (included in hosting packages via Let’s Encrypt).

Technical Maintenance & Support: Post-launch, sites need regular updates (especially CMS-based ones). This can be handled in-house or outsourced. Many agencies offer maintenance subscriptions:

• 300 lei/month for a simple HTML site – includes ~2 hours of monthly support.
• 600 lei/month for a CMS site (WordPress/Drupal/Joomla) – includes ~4 hours of support.
• 900 lei/month for an online store (WP, OpenCart etc.) – includes ~6 hours of support.
• 1200 lei/month (~240 €) for complex web apps.
• Extra hours typically cost ~200 lei/hour (40 €/hour).

These plans usually cover platform updates, uptime monitoring, minor fixes (content changes, error resolution), and general technical support. Annual maintenance costs can range from ~720 € to 2880 € if outsourced.

Some companies pay hourly, but budget at least a few hundred euros annually for potential interventions (even static sites need server security updates).

Version Updates: Major updates for CMS platforms like WordPress or plugins may require reconfiguration (e.g., migrating to new PHP versions). These efforts can take hours (or days for complex migrations) – either included in maintenance plans or budgeted separately.

Technical Support: 24/7 support (critical for apps) increases costs – via external monitoring services or in-house staff. Small firms rarely need non-stop support, but it’s essential for large projects where downtime is costly.

Feature Scaling: Beyond server scaling, anticipate new functionality over time – e.g., adding a blog, booking system, or new delivery API.

These incur long-term development costs. An annual budget for additional features (beyond initial scope) is hard to estimate, but many owners allocate a percentage of revenue or a fixed annual amount.

Example: An online store might reinvest 10-20% of online revenue into annual tech improvements (optimizations or new features).

For a brochure site, this could mean a few hundred euros/year for a design/content refresh. Remember: websites are dynamic entities – costs don’t end at launch.

Uptime & Security Costs: Sites needing high availability (e.g., 24/7 international stores) may invest in redundant infrastructure (backup servers, failover services) – expensive and unnecessary for most small businesses.

All sites should minimally invest in regular backups (if not included in hosting). Hosting typically offers daily backups (free or low-cost). Ensure automatic backups – data recovery costs after hacks/database corruption can be far higher.

Security: Popular CMSs require security hardening (plugins, monitoring). Services like Sucuri or Wordfence Premium (~100 $/year) add protection layers. Not mandatory, but hacked sites cause downtime & recovery costs (e.g., hiring specialists to remove malware).

Modest preventive spending (security subscriptions, annual audits) avoids major occasional expenses.

For scaling and maintenance, budget for recurring costs: tens of euros/year for the domain, tens of euros/month for hosting (on average), and ideally hundreds of euros/year for updates & support. These costs grow as your business scales.

Platforms like Shopify/Gomag bundle many costs into monthly subscriptions – e.g., no separate fees for hosting or security maintenance (managed by the provider).

Conversely, self-hosted sites (WordPress, custom, Magento) require direct management of these aspects – logistically or financially.

Copywriting and Text Content (including On-Page SEO): Website texts – from company presentations to blog articles – play a crucial role in effective communication and attracting traffic from search engines.

Many website owners initially choose to write content themselves to save costs, but a professional copywriter can deliver superior quality (more persuasive messages, SEO-optimized text with relevant keywords).

Costs: Copywriting services in Romania vary – some charge per word count or per page.

Average price estimate for: creating ~10-20 pages of unique SEO-optimized content can cost 200-500 €. This equals approximately 20-50 € per page, depending on complexity and length.

For example, service descriptions and "About Us" page text can be ~100-200 €.

A blog article package (say 4 articles/month) may cost an additional 100+ € monthly if outsourced to a content writer.

If the site requires translations (multilingual content), localization costs are added (translator rates are typically 10-20 € per page, variable).

On-Page SEO: Good copywriting includes optimization for search engines (using relevant keywords, H1 structure, attractive meta descriptions).

Some agencies include this in website development packages, others offer separate SEO services.

An initial SEO audit and on-page optimizations can cost several hundred euros (e.g., an Audit + Optimization package may be ~359 €).

Long-term, SEO content (e.g., traffic-generating blog articles) is an ongoing cost for growth – either internal time investment or paid outsourcing.

Many freelancers charge ~20-30 € for a 1000+ word SEO-optimized article, while agencies may have higher prices but offer controlled quality.

Brand impact: Well-written texts convey professionalism and clarity for the brand. Visitors perceive sites with creative texts, free of errors and client-oriented differently than those with patchy or machine-translated content.

Investment in copywriting is often underestimated, but it can impact conversions (e.g., an inspired call-to-action can increase click-through rates).

If budget doesn't allow a copywriter initially, at least a text review by a specialist later can be beneficial – minimal cost compared to benefits (e.g., 50-100 € for editing all content on a small site).

This is a subset of copywriting but deserves separate mention since an online store may have hundreds or thousands of products requiring individual descriptions.

Options include:

• Using manufacturer-provided descriptions (free but duplicate, non-optimized content)
• In-house writing (time cost, potentially hiring dedicated staff)
• Outsourcing to e-commerce specialized copywriters. Cost: Typically per product (e.g., 3-5 € per short product description) or per package.

A copywriter might offer packages, e.g.: 100 product descriptions for 300 €.

Thus, for a large catalog, costs can increase significantly. Many small stores invest only in key product/top sellers descriptions to optimize budget.

SEO and Sales Impact:

Unique, well-written descriptions help differentiate on Google (vs. competitors using identical manufacturer text) and can convince customers to buy.

So while costly, this content can increase sales and pays off long-term.

A compromise is using provided content (no cost) initially, then gradually reinvesting profits into rewriting descriptions as the store generates revenue.

Images and Visual Elements: Quality images make sites attractive and communicate the brand visually. Two approaches exist: original visual content (custom photos, designer graphics) vs. stock/template images (purchased or free online).

Photography

For a showcase website, photos can include team, office, products – taken in-house or by a professional photographer.

A professional photographer in Romania typically charges 50-100 € for a short photoshoot or per-photo rates (e.g., product photography ~6 € per edited image with 10+ minimum order).

A product photography offer: ~50 € session + 3 € per retouched photo – totaling ~650 € for 200 images.

Corporate photography (e.g., employee portraits, location) may have higher per-session prices.

Alternatively, buy relevant stock images from sites like Shutterstock, iStock – priced at ~1-5 € per image (depending on subscription).

There's also free stock (Unsplash, Pexels) with good quality, used by many as a zero-cost solution.

Differences

Original images deliver stronger brand impact – showing actual people and products, conveying authenticity.

Stock images, while aesthetic, may seem generic (e.g., the cliché "team hands in meeting" photo seen on many sites).

A brand wanting to appear premium and unique typically invests in custom photography at least for key elements (main banner, leadership team etc.).

Conversely, a small startup can begin with free stock images (zero cost), upgrading to professional photos later via a visual refresh when budget allows.

This covers the logo, decorative graphic elements, icons, infographics, and possibly layout design if not provided by the site theme.

A graphic designer has variable rates; in Romania, sources indicate ~20-25 €/hour is average, over 35 €/hour for high-end work.

Many branding packages offer fixed prices: e.g., a professional logo may cost 100-300 € (sometimes much more at established agencies). A custom icon set could take several hours, costing ~50-100 €.

Comparatively, use predefined resources: e.g., instead of paying a designer for icons, use free libraries (FontAwesome etc.) – zero cost but non-distinctive design.

Brand Impact

A unified graphic design, created specifically for the company, provides a cohesive and memorable look & feel.

For example, consistent use of colors and graphic style builds recognition.

Stock images or generic elements may make the site feel less personal.

Depends on budget: a new business might use a cheap logo or temporary in-house version, improving it later.

Again, customer perception is impacted: a poor logo or pixelated images can reduce trust – so allocate resources to avoid visually detrimental elements where possible.

Sometimes small investments yield big differences (e.g., 200 € for a logo and homepage banner by a graphic designer significantly elevates the image versus DIY).

Multimedia Content

If the site includes videos, costs may come from video production (highly variable – from a few hundred euros for a short intro video to thousands for complex projects).

Another cost category is video hosting. Most companies use free hosting on YouTube/Vimeo, embedding videos on-site to avoid extra hosting fees.

A well-made promo video elevates brand prestige but requires significant investment.

Many companies produce videos only for essential purposes (e.g., a homepage showcase spot).

Planning who creates texts, images, and other content is essential. Two main approaches exist:

The low-cost option uses free materials or in-house (DIY) content creation. This reduces financial costs but requires time and may impact perceived quality.

The professional option hires experts (copywriters, photographers, designers), adding hundreds to thousands of euros to project costs but delivers a more convincing and visually distinct site.

Many choose a middle path: invest in critical elements (logo, homepage text, key images), while using stock images where visual impact isn't crucial (e.g., a generic image on secondary pages).

Remember: a quality website isn't just programming, but also the content presenting you to the public. Allocating proper budget for content yields positive ROI through enhanced credibility and higher conversion rates.

A beautiful and functional website doesn't achieve its purpose without visitors. Online promotion (off-page SEO, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, email marketing, affiliate marketing, etc.) requires separate budgets from development.

Although these aren't strictly "website development costs", they are directly linked to its success. It's important to note that after spending X euros to create the website, you'll likely need to spend at least as much (if not more) to bring it in front of the target audience.

• Long-term SEO: Link building, content marketing, creating regular articles – can be done in-house or through agency subscriptions. A monthly SEO retainer can range from €300 to €1500+ per month depending on campaign aggressiveness.
• PPC Advertising: The budget for Ads is completely flexible – could be €5 per day or €500 per day depending on business goals.
• Social media and content: If you plan regular updates (blog posts, social media), either someone in the company will invest time (salary cost) or you'll use freelancers/agencies (outsourced cost).

Web technology and design trends evolve rapidly. A site may need a major redesign every ~3-5 years to remain modern and compatible with current devices.

For example, a site created in 2016 without responsive design would need to be rebuilt in 2020 to be mobile-first.

For online stores, there are commissions from payment processors (e.g., PayU, MobilPay, Stripe), as well as shipping costs.

For example, PayU charges a ~2-3% commission per transaction – a cost that must be built into the profit margin.

Depending on the website type, additional costs may appear for premium plugins or advanced services.

• GDPR compliance plugin: ~€30/year
• SmartBill invoicing module: ~100 lei/year
• Courier module: €49/year

Implementing legal requirements (e.g., GDPR, data protection, terms and conditions) may require legal consultation or purchasing modules.

If new regulations appear (e.g., GDPR in 2018), the site must be adapted – either internally or through external services.

When the site has an admin panel (WordPress, Magento, custom CMS), employees need to know how to use it efficiently.

Agencies usually offer training sessions or user manuals. If staff changes, additional training may be needed, requiring financial resources or invested time.

If the website generates revenue (e.g., online store, SaaS application), every hour of downtime can mean losses.

Preventive investments like uptime monitoring and redundant infrastructure can minimize these risks.

Long-term, you must evaluate the risk of being locked into a technology or vendor.

If the SaaS platform you use suddenly increases prices or disappears from the market, migrating to a new solution can involve significant costs.