How Much Does a Website Cost in 2026? An Honest Price Guide + Hidden Costs

How Much Does a Website Cost in 2026? An Honest Price Guide + Hidden Costs

In 2026, having a website built costs anywhere from €250 to €40,000+, depending on the type of website, its complexity and who builds it. A professional business website typically falls in the €3,000 to €12,000 range. In this article we give you an honest overview of website development costs, including the hidden costs that many business owners overlook.

Key takeaways (TL;DR)

• A simple DIY website costs €250-750 on platforms such as Wix or Squarespace, but it is limited in scalability and SEO potential
• A professional custom website costs €3,000-12,000 and delivers the best ROI for SMEs
• Hidden costs can add up to €50-200 a month for hosting, maintenance, security and updates
• An online shop is 30-50% more expensive than a comparable informational website because of the extra functionality
• Maintenance costs €30-150 a month and is essential for security, speed and search visibility
• A professional website pays for itself within 6-12 months with the right approach
• Website costs depend on five factors: number of pages, functionality, design, choice of CMS and e-commerce

Why transparency about website costs matters

You want a new website, but everywhere you look it says "price on request". Frustrating, because you just want to know what it costs. The cost of having a website built varies widely, but that doesn't mean we can't give you concrete price indications. Below you'll find an honest overview based on the Dutch market in 2026.

What does a website cost, by type?

Website development costs vary enormously by category. Here is a realistic overview of the four main price brackets:

DIY platforms (Wix, Squarespace, Webflow): €250-750

• Suitable for freelancers and hobby projects
• You do everything yourself: design, content and the technical side
• Limitations in SEO, speed and customisation
• Monthly platform fees of €12-40 on top

Template-based / WordPress: €750-2,500

• A more professional look with standard templates
• Basic SEO and responsive design included
• Suitable for small businesses on a limited budget
• Limited flexibility as you grow

Professional custom website: €3,000-12,000

• Fully custom designed and built
• Optimised for speed and Core Web Vitals
• A strategic SEO foundation built in
• Scalable, future-proof CMS
• Ideal for SMEs that want to grow

Enterprise and complex platforms: €10,000-40,000+

• Extensive web applications with integrations
• Multiple languages and multiple user roles
• Advanced e-commerce or booking systems
• Custom integrations with business software

For most SMEs, the professional custom category offers the best value for money.

Which factors determine the price of a website?

The final cost of your website is determined by a combination of factors. Understanding them helps you request quotes more effectively:

Number of pages: a 5-page website is naturally cheaper than one with 25+ pages. Budget €150-400 per extra page for a custom build.

Functionality: contact forms, booking systems, customer portals or search functions all push the price up. Every extra feature takes development time and testing.

Design: a unique design costs more than an adapted template. Custom design starts at €1,500.

Choice of CMS: a WordPress website is usually cheaper than a headless CMS solution.

E-commerce: adding an online shop increases costs by 30-50% because of payment integrations, stock management and the product catalogue.

Which hidden costs do most people forget?

The purchase price is only the beginning. These recurring costs are often overlooked:

Hosting: €5-50 a month. Cheap shared hosting (€5-10/month) is often slow and insecure. Managed hosting (€25-50/month) offers better performance and security.

SSL certificate: €0-100 a year. Free via Let's Encrypt, or paid for extended validation. Without SSL, the browser shows a "not secure" warning.

Domain name: €10-25 a year. A .nl domain costs around €10 a year; a .com is slightly more.

Updates and security patches: €15-50 a month. WordPress sites need monthly updates for plugins, themes and the core. Without updates, you're vulnerable to hacking.

Backups: €5-15 a month. Automatic daily backups are indispensable. Without a backup, you lose everything after a crash or hack.

Accessibility (WCAG compliance): €500-2,000 one-off. Under the European Accessibility Act, accessibility requirements are being enforced increasingly strictly in 2026.

Added up, the hidden costs come to €50-200 a month on top of the one-off investment.

Website versus online shop: which costs more?

A common question is whether an online shop is more expensive than a regular website. The short answer: yes, considerably.

Having a Shopify store built is a popular middle ground: lower initial costs (€2,000-6,000) with monthly platform fees of €30-380 plus transaction fees of 0.5-2%.

What does website maintenance cost per month?

A website is never "finished". Monthly maintenance is essential for security, speed and search visibility. These are the typical rates:

Basic maintenance: €30-50 a month

• Software updates and security patches
• Uptime monitoring
• Monthly backup
• Minor text changes

Extended maintenance: €75-150 a month

• Everything in the basic package
• Speed optimisation and performance monitoring
• SEO maintenance and content updates
• Advanced security and malware scanning
• Priority support

Businesses that skip maintenance end up paying more. Restoring a hacked website costs €500-2,500 on average.

When does a professional website pay for itself?

The ROI of a professional website depends on your industry and conversion rate. A concrete example:

Say you invest €6,000 in a professional website that attracts 500 visitors a month. With a conversion rate of 2%, that's 10 leads a month. If 3 of them become customers with an average order value of €750, you generate €2,250 a month in revenue. Your website then pays for itself within 3 months.

Compare that with a €250 website that ranks poorly in Google and barely generates any leads. The cheapest option is rarely the most profitable.

Why TRON Group for your website?

At TRON Group we don't build websites as a standalone project, but as part of your complete IT infrastructure. That makes a fundamental difference:

Security built in, not bolted on. As an IT services provider with deep cybersecurity expertise, we build websites that are secure from day one. Not a patchwork of plugins, but a solid security architecture.

Hosting and performance taken care of. Your website runs on reliable, fast hosting that we manage and monitor ourselves. No surprises, no downtime.

SEO and technology hand in hand. We combine technical know-how with SEO strategy, so your website doesn't just work well but also gets found. Read more about how SEO and web development come together.

A fixed monthly price for maintenance. No hourly billing, just a transparent monthly fee including updates, backups, security and support.

SME focus with a personal approach. We understand that your website has to contribute to your business goals. That's why we help you think through conversion, user experience and growth.

Want to know straight away what your website will cost?

Would you like a concrete price proposal for your website? We're happy to talk it through with you, with no obligation.

• Call us: +31 85 303 5869 for a no-obligation chat about your website
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• Get in touch: Send us a message and we'll reply the same working day
• Get to know us: About TRON Group and how we work