Website Design Prices in South Africa in 2023
An Honest Guide To Website Pricing & Budgets
Perhaps you have a budget in mind or maybe you have no idea what a website costs and want to find out. Either way this website design prices guide* will answer all your questions about what it costs to build a website.
*This guide is intended to educate you on how we price our websites, and what you can expect for your budget. Other developers will have their own unique pricing models.
A quick word on website design prices in South Africa
Before we jump into the heavy stuff, let us briefly talk about the general landscape out there when it comes to web design pricing and what you can expect.
There is no "standardised website pricing"
Plumbers have IOPSA, copywriters have The Writers Guild, but unfortunately there is no regulating body for web designers.
There is no regulation of services, quality or prices. There is no industry standard “web design cost”, it varies from developer to developer. Even this guide is based on we charge for websites.
People will charge what they want to charge
With no price regulation, web designers are free to make up their own prices on websites.
The more reputable developers & agencies (like Launch Digital, ahem) will base their prices on a costing model that considers everything from experience to staff and overheads.
The truth is that many developers are unsure of what to charge, and they will read articles like this one to get an idea.
Cheap doesn't mean bad & expensive doesn't mean good
Considering the above, basing your decision on price alone is dangerous – purely because that price could have been completely thumbsucked.
So, what you should base your decision on is experience, track-record, expertise and the value that you are getting.
So whoever you choose, make sure that their price matches the value they are offering. Here are 5 questions you should ask any web developer.
Factors that affect website pricing
When building a website (regardless of who is building it) there are 4 main factors that affect the cost:
- Functionality
- Design
- Content
- Size
At Launch Digital, this is the order of importance. But other designers might think size is more important than functionality for example.
Functionality
Do you need a simple information website, or do you need an eCommerce website? Do you want a landing page, or a complete website with blog?
What you want your website to do, will be the first thing that affects the price. Developing complex functionalities take time, and will therefore affect the cost.
Design
You can choose an “out-of-the-box” design (a.k.a. template) which is the default choice for most developers. Or you can have a custom design created specifically for your brand.
Templates are mass-produced for the public & therefore cheaper. Custom designs take time & expertise to create, therefore they are more costly.
For most small businesses a template website will do just fine. But look out for those sneaky developers that sell template websites with a custom price tag.
Content
Supplying your own text & images in the right format will reduce the cost of your site.
But if you need a designer to create custom graphics, or a copywriter to write catchy headlines then you will naturally pay more.
Size
It goes without saying that the more pages, categories or products you have the more your website will cost.
Most web developers will include a certain amount of pages in their base website package and anything over that pushes the price up.
Other factors to consider (and yes they matter)
When selecting a web design company or freelancer, the not-so-obvious things that will affect the cost of your website are:
- Overheads
- Experience
- Expertise
Again, these things vary from web designer to web designer, but they will invariably factor into the price.
Overheads
When you bought your iPhone or Samsung, you didn’t just pay for the phone – you paid for the work that went into marketing, shipping & manufacturing of the phone.
The same goes for websites, you are also paying for the “cost” that was involved in building your website.
Agencies, that employ several staff, will naturally charge more for their websites than a freelancer who is only billing for their own time.
Experience
An agency that has been developing professional websites for 20 years will (and should) charge more than freelancers with a year of experience.
Experienced web designers will give you better advice and guidance because they have been there and bought the t-shirt. At the end of the day, you will get a superior website design.
Expertise
Having experience does not make you an expert.
Experience means you have done something a lot. Expertise means you have done something a lot, and you do it well.
Website experts are people who have dedicated themselves to designing and building websites. It’s not just something they do “when they have got a moment”.
You will pay top rates for website experts – because they know the value they can offer you is more than just a pretty website. It’s a website that can turn casual browsers into buyers.
Website design pricing guide
You probably have an idea of what you can spend on website development. The purpose of this guide is to align that idea with a realistic expectation.
Many agencies have unflexible project costs that make it very hard for small businesses with limited budgets to get a professional website.
We understand that website budgets come in all shapes and sizes, therefore we have a website solution for all of them.
Note: The following prices are for a WordPress CMS website. All our websites come standard with on-page SEO and a mobile responsive design.
Less than R15,000 ~ 1-page template website
We would estimate that nearly 80% of clients that approach us will have this kind of budget for their website design.
We have built many quick and affordable websites on a tight budget.
We will install a premium WordPress theme (template) for you and customise it with your branding and business information.
R15,000 – R60 000 ~ Template website
Choose from a wide selection of premium, professional & modern WordPress website templates. We will customise this template to suit your business brand, and marketing objectives.
The responsibility falls on you to give us all the content (images, text, products etc.) and we will make sure it goes in the right place.
R60 000 – R200 000 ~ Custom website design
Custom websites are aimed at large businesses that require a completely bespoke website with advanced integrations into their sales, marketing or ERP systems.
No templates are used at all, these websites are coded line-by-line to create a fast, powerful, and very unique website.
We handle every aspect of the website from the strategy, planning, execution, copywriting, design and development.
The above website design pricing should give you a good idea of what we will charge for a website.
Clients who are serious about their websites won’t get what they need from an out-of-the-box solution. That’s why we provide every client with a custom proposal based on their needs.
How does Launch compare to other web design agencies?
Most agencies focus on building ‘pretty websites’ which unfortunately don’t pay the bills today.
Customers browse websites to find solutions to their problem, not to look at pretty sliders and icons.
We build websites that are geared toward selling your product or service. Everything we do is with the intention of driving more leads, sales and purchases for your business.
Investing in a new website with Launch Digital means you are getting a website that not only looks great but also helps you grow your business.
Website Strategy Session |
Dedicated Team of Specialists |
Full SEO & Analytics |
Money-back Guarantee |
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Website Strategy Session
This is a 2-hour session with your team where we learn everything about your business, services and most importantly your customers.
Understanding who your customers are and what matters to them, allows us to build more effective websites.
Dedicated Team of Specialists
Most agencies leave everything up to one developer. The problem with this is that the developer may not be a creative expert, or understand your marketing goals.
With us, you will get a digital strategist, copy writer, project manager, graphic designer and developer working on your website respectively.
Full SEO & Analytics
Part of our website design process involves doing full keyword research and optimisation to ensure your website ranks on Google for the right keywords.
This is Search Engine Optimisation and is often an “optional extra” with many companies, but not with us. We will also ensure you have Google Analytics to track all website activity.
Money-Back Guarantee
We are so confident that the new website we build for you will be much more effective than your old website that we will provide you with a full refund if it doesnt. Terms & Conditions do apply here.
The Launch Digital Promise
We get it, this is a big investment decision for your business so you want be sure you are making the right decision. Our guarantees are here to give you the peace of mind literally no other web design company in South Africa can give you.
We are so confident that no other company in South Africa can offer the same value at the same price that we will match any verified quote which does.
If your new website does not beat the performance of your old website within 90 days, we will refund you 100% of your money back.
We build our websites to last. If ever you have any issues related to the work we did, just give us a call and we will sort it out no problem.
Get an obligation-free website quote.
It’s time to get a website that works!
Tell us a bit more about your ideal website. One of our strategists will give you a call to discuss your website, and provide you with an idea about costs.
