How much to charge for websites

NeoVo

NeoVo

NeoVo

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2 Feb 2009
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Right so basically, I've finished my second year at uni, Comp Science, and am taking a year out to build up some experience ready for final year.

Last couple of years, I've sort of decided id like to go into web development/ designing. I've made upteen websites for myself, and have gained some interest for various people (they approached me) asking me about websites.

Obviously id imagine the cost of the website depends on the complexity and requirements, but just wondering what typical sort of price is for say, basic HTML/CSS website for a company mostly information based but with image gallery etc.

And how would you generally charge, hourly or per website.
 
Depends on how good you are and what your reputation is like. There is no point in charging £300 a day if you're an unknown quantity - if I was a customer i'd rather pay an established free lancer the same and minimise the risk.... but it seems like you already know that.

If its just a basic html/css site for which you have templates and can reuse a lot of your code I would ask for a flat fee; lets say £800-£1000. (im assuming you could churn out the site in ~5 days, so you're looking at charging about £200 a day)

Make sure you both have a clear understanding of what the requirements are and what they expect to be delivered; then make sure they are written down, agreed and signed off. If they want any additional functionality, which is fairly basic, then charge an hourly rate ~£20-£30.

I would then demand 50% cash upfront (although in your situation you may initially have to settle for less) and then the rest on completion of the product.
 
Imagine you're going for a job interview. The more experience you have and the better your portfolio, the more money you can demand.

I don't frequently taken on small jobs but what I normally do with them is offer the client a choice of cheap templates from various template sites and offer a site based on them. I can then charge my relatively high daily rate for that kind of work but the customer still only ends up paying £600 or so for like half a day to a day's work.

I don't bother trying to compete on price when it comes to basic sites.
 
I just started freelancing and one of the biggies I have learnt is not to quote a flat fee unless it is horrendously simple. Still working on a project that I will have earned about £3 an hour by the end.

Oh and be careful who you work with as some clients are an absolute nightmare and make your job near impossible. Not dodgy, just have a complete inability to do anything you ask them or aid the development process at all.
 
Speaking of which...

REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING. REQUIREMENTS IN WRITING.
 
Brilliant, cheers :).

Gunna set up a website with some previous website examples and link any interest i have there.

Suppose i should start relatively cheap, build up a portfolio, then when im more experienced, start charging more.

As the hosting package for the websites wont be hosted by myself, im assuming that i'd purchase the relevant hosting for the client myself and then add that cost to the web design/ development costs? Or would the client generally purchase this and then forward the information. I suppose either way wouldn't matter, but would be more logical for me to keep a standard form of working.
 
Until you have a decent client base, arrange hosting for them, set it up yourself on a monthly basis and charge accordingly.

Once you have a decent client base, get yourself a dedicated server and host things yourself. A typical basic server will cost around £600/year.

You can get hosting for a single client for around £3-5/month, if they already have it in place then just charge for your time, if you have to set it up as well then charge extra ontop of the monthly cost. If its £3 a month for hosting, charge £5 or more.

After all its your time and expertise they are paying for really.
 
I usually just play advisor when it comes to hosting, even though I've got my own dedicated server. The problem with providing hosting to your clients is that the reliability of the service is usually completely out of your control so best to shift the responsibility for that to whom it should be with - the real host. Same goes for email hosting; really not worth the hassle.

Instead just link your clients to a hosting provider and make it absolutely clear you're not responsible for it.

Then simply offer your services to manage THEIR website on THEIR hosting and make your recurring income that way.
 
1. Set a clear hourly rate. Work on at least a 1.5x basis for all quotes as you need breathing space if you encounter issues.
2. Ensure that you clearly set out 'terms of business' and I would advise at least 25% deposit as 50% may be a little too high as previously suggested.
3. Ensure that requirements and specification is concrete and you agree to provide services based on these requirements.
 
Imy said:
I usually just play advisor when it comes to hosting, even though I've got my own dedicated server. The problem with providing hosting to your clients is that the reliability of the service is usually completely out of your control so best to shift the responsibility for that to whom it should be with - the real host. Same goes for email hosting; really not worth the hassle.

Instead just link your clients to a hosting provider and make it absolutely clear you're not responsible for it.

Then simply offer your services to manage THEIR website on THEIR hosting and make your recurring income that way.
Click to expand...

couldn't agree more. i think people need to really respect that hosting isn't just a plug and play situation; it takes a lot of time and experience to get it right and be reliable. having your website un-accessible for even a very short amount of time could cost the business a lot of money so it's not worth being responsible for this.
 
Convert a PSD £50-100. For a design £200, for a non back-end site with a few pages, £200-£400. Medium sized site with back-end £1000+

It's all very relaxed though. Think it of like people have said, hourly rate, say £10-20 per hour.
 
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