What a small business website costs in Michigan

What Michigan studios charge

Most studios don’t put prices on their websites. A few Michigan studios do publish ranges in their own cost guides, and they’re worth reading, because they’re honest about how wide the spread is:

Put together, a professionally built small business site in Michigan runs from about $2,000 to $15,000, and bigger agencies go well past that. The spread is that wide because “a website” can mean one page with your phone number on it, or forty pages with a shop and a booking system.

What it costs to do it yourself

Squarespace and Wix let you build a site yourself from one of their templates. There’s nothing to pay up front, just a monthly plan:

For a lot of brand-new businesses that’s a perfectly good place to start, and I’ll tell you so if you ask me. What it really costs is time: choosing a template, writing every word, sizing every photo and fixing whatever looks off on a phone. I compare all four options in custom-built websites compared with Squarespace, Wix and WordPress.

Why one website costs more than another

• How many pages. Every page needs its own words, its own layout and its own testing on phones. That’s why most studios, me included, price by the number of pages.
• Who writes the words. Writing is usually the slowest part of a project, and some studios charge for it separately. I help with the writing at no extra cost.
• Photos. Real photos of your own work beat anything else. A photographer is a separate cost if you need one.
• Features. Online booking, payments, a shop or customer logins add cost. Often the cheapest way is to connect a tool you already use, like your booking app, instead of building one from scratch.
• Moving an existing site. If your current site brings in customers from Google, moving it properly means pointing every old page address at its new home. Done carelessly, a new site can quietly lose that traffic. Some studios charge extra for the move. I don’t.
• A template or a design of your own. A template is quicker and cheaper. A custom design is made for your business and nobody else’s.

Monthly and yearly costs

The build is only part of it, and these are easy to forget when you compare quotes. They come up every month or every year, whoever builds your site:

• Your domain name, the yourbusiness.com address: about $18 to $23 a year to renew at the big registrars.
• Hosting, the computer your site lives on. It’s included in a Squarespace or Wix plan, and it’s $20 a month with me.
• Email on your domain, like you@yourbusiness.com. Google Workspace starts at $7 per person per month on a yearly plan. Email is separate from the website almost everywhere, including with me.
• Upkeep. A WordPress site needs regular updates to WordPress itself, its theme and every plugin, and many premium plugins charge a yearly license. Squarespace and Wix handle their own updates. My sites have no plugins to update.
• Changes after launch. Some designers charge for every small edit, so ask before you sign. With me you change your own words and photos for free. Bigger changes are $75 to $125 each, or Care+ covers up to 2 hours of changes a month for $99.

What it really costs over three years

Comparing only the up-front price hides the monthly bills. Here’s the same small business website counted over three years:

Doing it yourself is the cheapest in dollars by a long way, and for some businesses it’s the right call. A custom site costs more, and what you get for the difference is a site made for your business, with nothing for you to keep updated. The studio range is wide because their quotes are, and it counts hosting only. Some studios also charge for upkeep and changes, often $100 to $300 a month.

My prices

I’m a one-person studio, so there’s no office, sales team or account manager built into the price. Here’s all of it, the same as on my Services page:

Every site comes with your own edit screen for your words, photos and hours, a design built for phones first, search engine setup, a contact form that’s tested before launch, and your first month of care free. Moving your old site and help with the writing are included, and nothing is added later.

Your domain is always in your name, in an account you own. If you already have one, it stays where it is. If you don’t, I’ll walk you through buying it on a short call, about $18 to $23 a year.

Hosting is month to month and you can cancel any time. The site is yours: if you ever want it somewhere else, I’ll set it up on the host you choose for a one-time $200.

Questions people ask

How much does a website cost per month?

Squarespace runs $19 to $99 a month and Wix $17 to $159 a month on yearly plans, depending on the plan. With a web designer, the monthly cost is usually hosting plus any changes. Mine is $20 a month for hosting. Care+ is $99 a month and includes up to 2 hours of changes. Add your domain and email either way.

How much does a one-page website cost?

Mine is $2,000, usually ready in 1 to 2 weeks. One long page that covers who you are, what you do, where you work and how to reach you is enough for a lot of new businesses.

How much does a website redesign cost?

Often as much as a new site or more, because a good redesign is really a rebuild. Niek Design Group’s 2026 Michigan guide puts most small business redesigns at $8,000 to $15,000. The cost to watch for is moving your old pages without losing your place in Google, so ask whether it’s included. With me it is, at the same price as a new site.

How much does it cost to hire a web designer in Michigan?

Clutch, a directory of agencies, puts a typical Michigan small business website at $5,000 to $25,000, with most agencies charging $75 to $150 an hour. One-person studios and freelancers usually come in lower, which is where my prices sit.

Is $500 or $1,500 a good price for a website?

It can be. Before you say yes to any quote, cheap or expensive, ask these:

• Is the domain registered in my name, and do I own the site?
• What does it cost every month, and can I cancel it whenever I want?
• Who makes changes after launch, and what do they cost?
• If I already have a site, will my old page addresses keep working?

A low price with good answers to those is a fine deal. A low price that leaves your domain in someone else’s name isn’t.

Do I have to pay for it all up front?

Not with me. Half holds your spot, and the rest is due when you approve the finished site, before it goes live.