How much does a website cost in 2026 (and what really makes it go up)

It's the first question everyone asks us, and rightly so. The honest answer is: a website starts at around €950 + VAT for a well-made showcase, but the real price depends on what the site has to do for you. Let's see from what, without mincing words.

The three bands, basically

• Showcase site: from around €950 + VAT. Few pages, tailor-made design, fast and optimized for Google. It serves to introduce you and collect contacts: for many businesses this is already enough.
• Professional site: mid-range. Multiple sections, blogs, multilingual, reservations or advanced forms. Especially useful for those who work with tourism and foreign clients.
• E-commerce: high end. Catalogue, cart, payments, order management and shipping. Here the price really depends on how many products and how many automations are needed.

What makes the estimate go up

It's not the "number of pages" itself, but how much work goes into it: content to create, integrations with management software or software you already use, customized features, e-commerce, multilingual. The more the site has to work for you (and not just look good), the more it goes up.

How to understand if a price is right

Be wary of the two extremes. The €300 "turnkey" items are usually recycled templates, zero SEO and no assistance: you pay for it later, in lost customers. But also be wary of inflated and vague estimates. A good partner tells you in advance what they do, how long and why, with a clear quote.

How much does a website cost per year?

In addition to the initial cost, there are expenses that come back every year. The domain costs from 10 to 30 euros. Then there is hosting and maintenance, i.e. updates, backups, security and the small changes that are always needed sooner or later. For a showcase site we are generally talking about a few hundred euros a year. A tip: if these items do not appear in the estimate, ask for them. The surprises are almost always hidden there, not in the starting price. In our case, managed hosting includes SSL, backup, monitoring and assistance in Italian, with an annual fee declared immediately.

"Simple" or professional site: what's the real difference?

If you need to start quickly and with a limited budget, a simple site is fine: a landing page or a three or five page showcase. The important thing is that it is fast, readable by phone and optimized for Google from day one. The professional website is the next step and makes sense when you need multiple sections, a blog, reservations or a second language. It costs more because there is more planning behind it, not because there are many pages.

WordPress or custom site: does the price change?

At the beginning, a WordPress with template costs less, and that's why so many people offer it to you. But the bill comes later: plugin licenses to be renewed, slowness on the phone, updates that occasionally break something, and a design that you've already seen on a thousand other sites. The tailor-made site turns logic on its head. You spend more at the beginning and less over the years, because there are no licenses, the performance is better (and Google notices it) and the design is truly yours. Which one is better? It depends on your budget and goals. We tell you clearly in the quote, even when the answer is WordPress.

What about a restaurant or a hotel?

Catering and hospitality have their own needs: the digital menu, table reservations, languages for tourists. We have written a separate guide: how much does a restaurant website cost.

We always start with a free consultation and a transparent quote. If you want a price idea for your specific case, write to us on WhatsApp: we will reply within 24 hours.