What determines the cost of having a company website built?
The cost of having a website built depends on the type of site and on how much of the work falls to the supplier. A brochure site on a ready-made theme and a content management system is a very different job from a custom-designed web application with logins and a database. That is why searching for "website prices" and finding a single figure is misleading. Hatson Tech does not publish fixed prices; the useful question is not "how much?" but "what work does each line of the quote cover?"
There are three basic routes. Ready-made theme: a template is installed on a CMS (content management system), and your logo and text are added. It is quick, but the design is limited. Custom design: screens are drawn around your brand and built in a CMS or in code. Web application: features such as accounts, payments, booking and an admin panel are programmed. Most company sites sit somewhere between the first two.
What sets the price is often uncertainty rather than page count. Is the content ready, how many languages will the site have, does data need to move from the old site, which systems must it connect to? Quotes cannot be compared until these questions are settled.
Which cost lines should a quote contain?
The table below lists the lines you should see in a quote and what each one changes. It contains no prices; the aim is to let you read quotes on the same footing.
| Line | What it affects | Ask the supplier |
|---|---|---|
| Design | Ready theme or custom | How many drafts and revisions are included? |
| Page and template count | Development effort | Are templates or pages counted? |
| Multiple languages | Translation, URL structure, upkeep | Who does the translation? |
| Content | Text, images, photography | Do you or the supplier prepare it? |
| SEO foundations | Titles, sitemap, speed | Which technical settings are included? |
| Domain and hosting | Yearly renewal, backups | Whose name are the accounts in? |
| KVKK compliance | Privacy notice, cookies, form consent | Who prepares the texts? |
| Maintenance and support | Updates, security, bug fixes | What are the response times and scope? |
How do you choose between a theme, custom design and a web application?
Features decide the choice before budget does. If the site describes your products and services and takes an enquiry form, a ready-made theme is often enough. If your brand's look helps you sell, or you need a specific page flow, custom design makes sense. If you need customer logins, order tracking, booking or data exchange with another system, you are now talking about a web application. Work through it in this order.
- Write down the purpose: what is the one thing the site should get a visitor to do: search, fill in a form, buy?
- Count the page types: home page, service pages, blog, contact and so on.
- Decide who manages it: if you will update content yourself, the admin panel must be easy to use.
- List the integrations: connections to a CRM, payments, email or accounting raise the cost quickly.
- Think about growth: if a new language or accounts are coming within two years, the foundation should allow for them.
What should you check when comparing quotes?
The difference between three quotes is usually scope, not arithmetic. Ask for written answers on the points below.
- Speed and user experience: Google defines page experience through Core Web Vitals. According to the web.dev documentation, a good experience means the largest content loads (LCP) within 2.5 seconds, interaction responds (INP) in 200 milliseconds or less, and layout shift (CLS) stays at 0.1 or below. Thresholds can change over time; ask how these metrics will be tested.
- Search engine basics: Google's SEO starter guide covers the basic steps that help a search engine understand your site. They are part of the build, not decoration added later.
- Multilingual structure: if there is more than one language, Google's documentation on localised versions recommends linking each language version with hreflang annotations. Ask whether the supplier does this.
- Accessibility: the W3C's WCAG standard sets criteria for users with disabilities. Have the target level written into the quote.
- Personal data: contact forms and cookies can collect personal data. Under the information duty in Law No. 6698 (KVKK), Article 10, it should be clear who prepares the notices and who carries out the legal assessment.
- Ownership: the domain, hosting and source-code accounts should be opened in your name, and administrator access should be handed over at delivery.
Which costs continue after launch?
Costs do not stop when the site goes live. The domain and hosting renew, software updates and security patches are needed, and content changes. Have the quote state what maintenance covers: bug fixes only, small changes as well, or new features billed separately. Response times and backup frequency should also be in writing.
How do you accept the site at handover?
If acceptance criteria are written into the contract from the start, there is no argument on delivery day. The short list below can be a starting point for most company sites; adapt it to your needs.
- Device test: the site is opened and browsed on a phone, a tablet and a desktop, in at least two browsers, with no overflowing or shifting elements.
- Speed measurement: the home page and one service page are measured against the Core Web Vitals thresholds above, and the results are delivered as a report.
- Form test: the contact form is filled in, and you confirm that the message reaches the right address and the consent text appears.
- Search basics: each page has one meaningful title, a description and a place in the sitemap.
- Admin training: the person who will update content adds a page and unpublishes it, with the supplier alongside.
- Backup and access: the restore method is demonstrated and administrator accounts are handed over to you.
What should you prepare before the first meeting with a supplier?
A good quote starts with a good brief. Before the meeting, write one page covering why you want the site, who your audience is, three example sites you like and dislike, which pages are essential, how many languages you need, who will prepare the content, which systems it must connect to, and your target launch date. The clearer the brief, the closer and more comparable the quotes will be.
If you already have a site, also discuss which pages will move, which addresses will change and whether old addresses will redirect to the new ones. If URLs change without redirects, your visibility in search engines can suffer.
How do you read quotes side by side? A worked example
For example, an accounting firm wants a bilingual eight-page brochure site and gets quotes from two suppliers. The totals are close. When the firm writes the lines out one by one, it sees that the first quote excludes copywriting, translation and KVKK texts. The second uses a ready-made theme with one language, and the English version is a separate line.
The firm equalises the scope: two languages, eight pages, KVKK texts and 12 months of maintenance. Now three lines must be added to the first quote and one to the second. The eight pages of text the firm would write itself also mean several working days of its own time. So the quote that looked cheaper can end up at the same level once the firm's time is counted. These figures are hypothetical; the lesson is that prices cannot be compared until the scope is written down and identical.
What mistakes do people make when commissioning a website?
- Assuming the software company will prepare the content; content is often the one thing that delays a project.
- Leaving the domain and hosting in the supplier's account, which can hold the site hostage if you part ways.
- Choosing the cheapest quote without asking about maintenance and security.
- Not testing the mobile view and speed at handover.
- Postponing the KVKK privacy notice and cookie texts with "we'll look at it later".
- Not writing acceptance criteria; "I don't like it" should be replaced by a measurable list.
How Hatson Tech helps
Hatson Tech builds websites and web applications in Ankara under its custom software development service. The first meeting and discovery are free; we write the scope with you and present the lines in a clear quote. We do not publish fixed prices, because scope sets the price.
When planning a budget, the line-by-line logic in our article on the cost of an AI project may also help. If you want your site to appear in AI search answers, see our guide to AI search visibility.