What's the cheapest way to get a professional website for a small business?
The real 2026 cost tiers for a small business website: free and AI builders, Fiverr and Upwork, agencies and pay-monthly plans, and what you get.
Published: 2 min read Asen Panayotov, B63
Short answer: the cheapest way to get a website is to build it yourself with a website builder or AI builder, from a few dollars to about $50 a month. The cheapest way to get a professionally built website without a big upfront bill is a pay-monthly or lease plan, which spreads the cost and usually includes maintenance.
The five cost tiers in 2026
| Option | Typical cost | What you get | Hidden cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI website builder (Hostinger AI, Durable, Wix AI) | Free to about $50/month (StaticMania, Cybernews) | A generated draft you finish yourself | Your time writing and fixing it |
| DIY builder (Wix, Squarespace) | About $16–49/month on annual billing (Style Factory, Tooltester) | Templates and hosting | 20–40 hours to build, ongoing upkeep |
| Marketplace freelancer (Fiverr, Upwork) | About $200–1,000 for a basic site; $1,500–5,000 for an experienced freelancer’s five-page site (FactoryJet) | A built site; quality varies widely | Maintenance usually not included |
| Agency, one-off build | UK £3,000–6,000 for most small businesses; US $2,000–8,000 (Whito, Levitate) | A custom site | Hosting and maintenance £500–2,000/year extra |
| Pay monthly / lease | UK plans about £20–90/month (RTWD comparison); B63 €150/month excl. VAT | Build plus hosting and care | Check ownership and minimum term |
All third-party figures are approximate and change often; follow the links for current prices.
Cheapest upfront vs cheapest over two years
“Cheapest” depends on the time frame:
- Cheapest upfront: a DIY or AI builder. Almost nothing to start.
- Cheapest over five years, if you have skills and time: a one-off build you maintain yourself.
- Cheapest for a business owner’s time: a plan where someone else builds, hosts and maintains the site, because your hours are the most expensive input.
How to keep costs down whatever you choose
- Start small. Five strong pages beat twenty thin ones.
- Write your own text, or at least the first draft. Copywriting is often the biggest extra.
- Use real photos of your work, team and premises instead of paid stock.
- Avoid paid plugins and apps you don’t need yet.
- Ask what maintenance costs before you choose, not after.
Where B63 fits
B63 is our studio, so read this with that in mind: we are not the cheapest option on this page. Our plan is €0 upfront and €150 a month (excl. VAT) for 24 months, with a custom design, hosting, domain, updates, daily backups, edits on request and support included, and the site can be yours at the end. One-time builds start from €550 including VAT. It suits businesses that want a professional site with no upfront bill and no technical work.
More detail: website leasing, the full cost guide with UK and US prices, or ask for a free proposal.