You asked three studios for a quote on a brochure site and got three completely different prices back. It is not necessarily an attempt to overcharge you: more often than not, the developers are offering genuinely different things under the same name.
What drives the price
- A custom theme or a bought one. An off-the-shelf theme is cheaper, but it looks like plenty of other sites and is harder to adapt.
- The number and complexity of the pages. A page with a calculator form takes far more work than a page of text.
- The content. Copy, photography and translations are usually the most underestimated part of a project.
- The features. An online store, bookings, several languages or integrations all add development and testing time.
- What happens after launch. Maintenance, updates and support may be included or billed separately.
Questions to ask before you sign
- Who writes the copy and who supplies the images?
- Can I edit the content myself after launch?
- Who owns the code, the domain and the hosting?
- What does the warranty cover and how does maintenance work?
A cheap site you cannot update yourself turns out, over time, to be the most expensive option.
Always ask for a detailed quote with clear stages and deliverables. That is the only way to compare proposals fairly and to know exactly what you are paying for.
