You’ve come across this article because you are looking for the cheapest way to have a website.
Maybe you’re an entrepreneur, business owner, writer or creative and you don’t have a large budget that will allow you to hire a freelance website designer or agency to build it for you.
No, problem! Whether you have a side project, want to create a blog or offer your services, creating a website doesn’t have to “empty your wallet.”
I wrote this article to give you 5 ways to get a website cheap and the pros and cons of each.
If you are starting a business for the first time, I recommend testing your idea by setting up a cheap website and see how it goes.
Here are the 5 ways to build a cheap website.
#1: Use a FREE Website Builder
Website builders like Yola, Wix, Google Sites, and others (there are a ton of them) allow you to create a professional-looking site without needing coding skills. For the budget conscious, you can find free plans and cheap monthly subscriptions. For instance, you can find options starting FREE or as low as .99 per month.
Website builders are perfect for beginners, small business owners, bloggers, or anyone looking to establish an online presence quickly and affordably. They take away the need to know HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc. as they do the heavy lifting for you. Whether you’re launching a personal blog, a portfolio, or a small business site, a website builder can help you get online in no time!
Keep in mind that using a free website builder has limitations, depending on which one you choose. If you’d like to know which builders are best for you, read this excellent article by David Hartshorne of Zapier.com. He gives you the pros and cons of truly FREE website builders.
NOTE: If you opt to use a free website builder to design your site, keep in mind, they give you a ugly domain as part of their offering. Something like website.yolasite.com. It is recommended you purchase your domain separately (I recommend namecheap.com). That way, if you choose to move your domain to another provider, it won’t be complicated or time consuming.
#2: Leverage Free Hosting Platforms
While free hosting platforms offer great benefits, they do come with some limitations. Most notably, you’ll often have to deal with ads on your site, and your domain name will include the platform’s branding (like yoursite.wixsite.com).
Additionally, storage space and customization options may be limited compared to paid plans. If you want to remove ads, access more advanced features, or use a custom domain (like yoursite.com), you’ll typically need to upgrade to a paid plan, which can range from $5 to $30 per month depending on the platform and features you choose.
This option is best if you have a hobby, small project or just want to “test the waters” of getting to know a hosting platform and building your website.
Here is a great article by ThemeIsle that gives you twenty free website hosting services you can choose to get your site up and running.
#3: Consider DIY Website Design
When venturing into DIY website design it can be exciting, and frightening at the same time. Here’s a quick look at the pros and cons of designing your own website!
Pros of DIY Website Design
Cost-Effective: You can create a website for little to no cost, especially if you use free platforms or templates.
Full Control: You have complete autonomy over your design choices, content, and updates, allowing you to create a site that truly reflects your vision.
Experience: Creating your own website is a great way to pick up valuable skills in web design and management that will serve you well down the road.
Flexibility: You can make changes whenever you want, whether it’s tweaking the design or adding new features, without waiting for someone else to do it.
Immediate Updates: Need to make a quick change? You can do it instantly without relying on a designer’s schedule.
Cons of DIY Website Design
Time-Consuming: Creating a website from scratch can take a significant amount of time, especially if you’re learning as you go.
Technical Challenges: If you encounter technical issues, troubleshooting can be difficult without prior experience.
Limited Features: Free or low-cost platforms may not offer all the advanced features you might need for a more complex website.
Learning Curve: Familiarizing yourself with design tools and best practices can be overwhelming for beginners.
Professional Appearance: Unless you have design skills, your site may not look as polished as one created by a professional.
You may find this resource helpful if you wish to take the DIY web design route. Although, you may want to read my article on why you shouldn’t design your own website.
#4: Look for Cheap Web Designers
If doing it yourself is not an option or something you are interested in, then you can find a cheap website designer to build it for you.
There are freelancers or agencies in your local area or online that will build you an affordable website that run in the range of $99 to $500. This is a good option if you have a small budget and don’t want to deal with the headaches of doing it yourself.
Like the other options, there are drawbacks, such as:
Not a very professional looking website. First impressions matter and if that is important to you, I would hire a website designer.
Support will be very limited and most likely non-existent. Be ready to troubleshoot and fix any technical issues yourself.
You will have to pay for any additions or updates to your website.
They won’t focus on getting your website found online using SEO. That will cost extra.
Your site design will NOT be custom and they will probably use a pre-built theme.
Here are some tips you can use to reduce the cost when hiring a cheap web designer:
Only include the pages you need. You can get away with just a home page where you can list your services and how to contact you.
Reduce complexity, such as, ecommerce, custom functionality, animations, etc. Keep it simple and text-based.
Provide the content for your pages. Having the content written for you will be costly.
Provide the media needed, such as, images, photos, videos, and documents.
For further research, you may be interested in my article on the biggest mistakes to avoid when hiring a web designer.
#5: Ask Family or Friends
This could be a free or low cost option.
Do you have a family member or friend that is in university, just started freelancing or possibly works for a design agency?
It could be that uncle or cousin in your family or a childhood friend you can ask to build your website for you. Hey, maybe you’ll end up with a decent website in the end saving you hundreds, possibly, thousands of dollars.
But, beware that just because you think your Uncle Bob or Cousin Joe seem to be “techie”, doesn’t mean that they can design you a professional looking website. If you are asking a favor of them to save costs, you may not end up with a favorable result.
Keep in mind, if it doesn’t work out that great, it could cause friction in the relationship or at the worst, ruin it.
Some things your “techie” family member or friend may not include or know:
Basic principles of design, user experience (UX) or user interfaces (UI)
Proper on-page SEO steps so your site gets found online by your target market
Provide support when / if something goes wrong. Again, you’re most likely on your own.
My thoughts on the cheapest way to have a website
So, there you have it.
The above options are great if you’re just starting out and your budget is limited or zero. But, I don’t see them as ideal.
My best advice is to start with option 2 and create a free website using WordPress and install a free template. Then, spend some time in the dashboard, learn about pages and posts, and get comfortable with the CMS platform.
I personally use WordPress to design my client websites. Most of my clients were already using WordPress before reaching out to me, so they were already familiar with it and didn’t need to learn a new system over again.
What Are Your Thoughts?
What has been your experience with the above options?
Please leave a comment below as I’m anxious to hear your opinion.
