Should you build your own website or hire a designer? Everyone who answers this sells one of the two options. So do I: I run a website builder. The only honest way to write this is to put my option in the same table as the others, with what it doesn't do, and let you decide.
What hiring a designer really costs
A freelance designer typically charges $500 to $3,000 for a small business site, usually built on WordPress or a builder. An agency starts around $2,000 and goes up from there. That's the upfront part. Then come hosting and maintenance ($29 a month is a common retainer), the domain, and changes: every time you want to update a price or swap a photo, it's an email and a small invoice, or you wait until the next maintenance window.
Budget agencies that charge a low monthly fee instead look cheaper, but read the fine print: often a setup fee to enter your content and per-change fees, and you should check who the domain is registered to before signing.
Hire a designer when you need something genuinely custom: an unusual layout, a brand built from scratch, integrations with your booking or inventory system, or a site that is your product. That's real work and it deserves real money.
What building it yourself really costs
DIY on WordPress: hosting ($5-$10/mo), a theme, plugins for bookings, forms, cookies and backups, and your weekends keeping all of it updated. Flexible, and the most expensive option in time. Worth it if you enjoy tinkering.
A website builder with industry templates: pick a template made for your trade, change the words and photos, publish. Wix and Squarespace business tiers run $16-$36/mo plus the domain, with bookings and shops as add-ons. 1h1app is $16/mo or $160/yr with bookings with deposits, menus, a shop, maps, blog and the privacy and cookie pages included, a free .com for year one on annual, and a 7-day trial with no card.
Build it yourself when what you need is what most small businesses need: show up on Google and Maps, hours and phone one tap away, a way to book or order without calling, a few good photos and the legal pages done. We break that down on the affordable small business website page, by trade.
The comparison, side by side
- Upfront cost: designer $500-$3,000 · DIY WordPress $0 plus your time · builder $0.
- Monthly: designer ~$29+ maintenance · WordPress $5-$10 hosting plus plugins · builder $16.
- Time to go live: designer 3-8 weeks after you send the content · WordPress weeks of learning · builder one afternoon.
- Changing a sentence: designer email and invoice · WordPress you, if you know how · builder you, instantly.
- Who owns the domain: designer sometimes the agency · WordPress you · builder you (1h1app buys the .com for you, sets it up, and transfers it to you if you leave).
- Compliance (privacy policy, cookies): designer depends · WordPress plugins · builder built in (with 1h1app).
- Try before paying: designer no · WordPress — · builder 7 days free, no card.
What a small business website actually needs
Fewer pages than you think:
- A home page with one clear sentence about what you do and for whom, a photo and a button (book, get a quote, see the menu).
- Services or menu with prices. Hiding prices doesn't bring more customers; it brings more phone calls asking for them.
- Bookings or a form. If you live on appointments, online booking with a deposit. If you live on quotes, a form that lands in your inbox.
- Where and when: a real map, hours, one-tap phone.
- About you, short, with a photo. People hire people.
- Privacy policy and cookie notice. Required under GDPR in the EU and UK; good practice everywhere.
Build a website without coding: the afternoon plan
- Create an account (no card with 1h1app). First time? A 7-step guide inside the editor asks you for what it needs.
- Pick the template for your trade. It comes with real example content, not lorem ipsum, so you see your site almost done before writing anything.
- Change the words. Start with the home-page sentence and the services with prices. Use the words you'd say on the phone.
- Upload your photos. Five good ones beat twenty average ones. The editor crops and compresses them.
- Turn on what makes you money: bookings with deposits, the menu, a shop with sizes or by-weight pricing, a quote form.
- Fill in your business details and let the privacy policy, legal notice and cookie notice generate themselves.
- Publish at 1h1app.com/yourname. You're live. Your own .com can come later; it's free for year one on the annual plan.
The honest bottom line
If you need custom work, hire a designer and pay them properly. If you need what most small businesses need, try the afternoon plan first: if three hours later you have a site you like, you've saved the money and, more importantly, the dependency. If not, you've lost nothing: 7 days free, no card, cancel anytime.
FAQ
Is it cheaper to build your own website or hire a designer?
Building it yourself: a builder like 1h1app is $16/mo with everything included, versus $500-$3,000 upfront plus about $29/mo maintenance for a designer. Hiring makes sense only when you need custom work.
Can I build a website without coding?
Yes. With a builder that has templates for your trade you pick one, change the words and photos and publish. Design, mobile version and compliance pages are handled for you.
How long does it take to build your own website?
One afternoon if you have your content ready (words, prices, hours, photos) and use an industry template. DIY WordPress takes weeks of learning.
What does a small business website need?
A clear home page, services or a menu with prices, a way to book or request a quote, map and hours, a short about page, and the privacy and cookie pages. Everything else is optional.