Few questions come up more often than this one: what does a professional website actually cost? The honest first answer is, it depends. A simple business-card page for a self-employed professional sits in a completely different range than an online shop with an inventory connection. This very span leaves many business owners uncertain, because prices from 300 to 30,000 euros circulate online for what looks like the same product. This article clears up the confusion. It shows realistic price ranges for 2026, explains the individual cost factors, compares fixed price and hourly rate, sheds light on the often forgotten running costs and sets out what is actually included in the XICWEB fixed prices from 1,490 euros net. By the end you will read a quote like a professional and see where quality lies and where only a low price is on offer.
Realistic Price Ranges for 2026
A website is not a shelf product with a fixed label but a service whose price rises with scope. Even so, reliable orders of magnitude can be named. A compact website with three to five pages, suitable for the self-employed, tradespeople or small practices, starts at XICWEB at 1,490 euros net as a fixed price. A more extensive business website with a custom design, content management system and ten to twenty-five pages usually ranges between 3,500 and 8,000 euros net. An online shop based on Shopware CE or a custom portal typically starts at 9,000 euros and depends heavily on catalogue depth, interfaces and processes.
That this investment is rarely wasted money becomes clear when you look at user behaviour. Around 75 percent (Stanford Web Credibility Research) of people judge a company's credibility by the design of its website, and 88 percent (Sweor) of visitors do not return after a poor user experience. A professionally built site is therefore not a cost block but a sales channel that works around the clock. Which building blocks come together here is described in detail in our overview of web design.
Why prices differ so widely
The Major Cost Factors at a Glance
The price of a website does not arise arbitrarily but is made up of clearly nameable building blocks. Anyone who knows them understands every quote better and can decide where budget makes sense and where to save. The following six factors determine the effort, and thus the price, in almost every project.
Scope and page count
Five pages or fifty, that is the most obvious lever. Every additional page needs concept, layout, copy and maintenance.
Design and individuality
A ready-made template is cheap; a custom design tailored to the brand costs more but looks distinctive and builds trust.
Copy and images
Professional copy and imagery are work. Those who supply content save. Those who commission it pay for quality that sells.
SEO and findability
A clean structure, fast loading and search engine basics decide whether the site gets found or stays invisible.
Technology and law
Accessibility under the BFSG, GDPR-compliant forms, privacy and a legal notice are mandatory and belong in every serious quote.
Features and interfaces
A booking system, shop, multilingual setup or connections to other software drive the effort up the most.
The item copy and images is particularly underestimated. Many projects are delayed not by the technology but because the content is missing. In practice, experience shows that around 30 percent (project experience) of a website's total effort goes into concept and content, not programming. Those who are prepared here shorten the project duration and noticeably reduce costs. How professional content is created is shown on our page about content marketing.
Fixed Price or Hourly Rate: What Fits When
Two models face each other when it comes to billing. With a fixed price, the entire scope of services is defined in advance and offered at a binding price. With an hourly rate, the client pays for the time actually worked; in Germany rates between 80 and 150 euros (project experience) per hour are common, depending on qualification and region. Both models have their place but suit different situations.
| Criterion | Fixed price | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Planning certainty | High, the price is set in advance | Low, the final sum emerges along the way |
| Prerequisite | Clearly outlined project with defined scope | Open scope, ongoing adjustments expected |
| Changes | Via defined add-on packages | Continuous, every hour is billed |
| Risk | Carried by the provider | Carried by the client |
| Ideal for | New website with a clear goal | Ongoing development, maintenance, consulting |
For a new website with a clear goal, the fixed price is the better choice in almost all cases, because it provides planning certainty and leaves the risk with the provider. This is exactly why XICWEB prefers transparent fixed prices for the initial build. For later development, smaller adjustments or ongoing advice, an hourly rate or a monthly care package is often more practical, because the need is hard to define in advance. What such ongoing support looks like is described on our page about website care.
The most common mistake when choosing a quote
Pricing Models Compared: Website Builder, Freelancer, Agency
Besides the billing method, providers differ fundamentally in their model. Website builders advertise prices from a few euros a month and are tempting for the start. They suit very simple projects but quickly reach their limits with custom design, SEO, accessibility and growing requirements, and the content does not always belong to the user. Freelancers often offer good value for money and personal contact but are limited in capacity and in the breadth of disciplines. Agencies cover the full spectrum from strategy through design to technology but come at a higher price.
XICWEB deliberately combines both worlds: the personal, direct support of a fixed contact with the professional breadth of an agency, from design through copy to SEO and technology. For recurring project types such as the classic business website there are transparent fixed-price packages, while complex projects like shops are calculated individually. An overview of the full range of services is on the services page, and typical projects are shown in our references.
How to recognise a serious quote
The Often Forgotten Running Costs
Building a website is a one-off investment, yet a website lives and needs care. Those who look only at the build price overlook the running costs, which over the years can make up the larger share. They are not a drawback but the reason a website stays secure, fast and current over the years. Typical running items include the following.
- Domain: the internet address, usually around 10 to 20 euros (project experience) per year depending on the ending
- Hosting: the server space, roughly 10 to 50 euros (project experience) per month depending on performance
- SSL certificate: for the encrypted connection, often included in hosting
- Maintenance and updates: security and software updates so the site stays protected
- Content care: new copy, images, offers and updates
- Backups and monitoring: regular backups and availability checks
These tasks can be handled yourself or handed to a provider. At XICWEB, ongoing website care starts at 39 euros net per month and includes technical updates, backups, availability checks and an allowance for smaller changes. Why this matters is shown by an uncomfortable fact: a large share of successful attacks on websites exploit known but unpatched security gaps. Regular updates are therefore not a luxury but basic protection. How loading time and technology stay in shape over the long term is explored in our article on Core Web Vitals.
What the XICWEB Fixed Price from 1,490 Euros Includes
So it is clear what a fixed price means with us, here is the scope of our entry package. For 1,490 euros net you get a compact, mobile-optimised website with three to five pages, tailored to your business rather than pulled from a template. Included are a responsive design that works on smartphone, tablet and desktop, a contact form with spam protection, the legally required pages legal notice and privacy, basic search engine optimisation with a clean page structure, and setup on your preferred hosting. On request, a content management system is added so you can maintain content yourself later.
Honesty about expectations matters to us. A website is not a self-runner that brings customers overnight. It is a tool whose effect depends on content, care and marketing. We do not promise fixed Google rankings, because Google calculates them from many signals that no one fully controls. What we do assure is a soundly crafted foundation: fast loading, clear structure, accessible design and legally clean basics. On this basis, visibility can grow. How the foundation for findability is laid is described on our page about search engine optimisation.
- Custom, mobile-optimised design instead of a ready-made template
- Three to five pages, with a content management system on request
- Contact form with spam protection and GDPR-compliant processing
- Legal notice, privacy policy and cookie notice
- Basic SEO with a clean structure and fast loading
- Setup, testing and handover with personal support