What Are the Real Alternatives to Building My Own Website?
If building your own website hasn’t worked out, it’s worth stepping back and looking at the other alternatives to building your own website – and what they actually cost. Below is a practical comparison of the four main routes: DIY builders, freelancers, agencies, and done-for-you services. Including typical costs and how much time they usually require.
What are the main alternatives to building your own website?
The four main options are DIY website builders (such as Wix or Squarespace), freelance web designers, web design agencies, and done-for-you build services. Each with different costs, time requirements, and levels of involvement from you.
Many business owners jump straight to either DIY builders or full agencies. The middle options — freelancers and done-for-you services — are often overlooked, even though they’re frequently the most practical for small businesses that need a professional result without a large upfront spend.
How much does each option cost in the UK?
DIY builders cost £220–400/year once you add email and domain; freelancers typically charge £500–2,000; agencies charge £2,000–10,000+; done-for-you services like Duport’s start at £144 as a one-off build.
The price difference reflects the level of work involved and how customised the site is. With a freelancer, you’re paying for a custom site and a relationship; the design brief, revisions, and handover take time. Agencies usually involve designers, developers, and project managers. That makes sense for complex sites, but it’s often unnecessary for a standard small-business website. A done-for-you service builds to a professional standard at a fixed price with no negotiation and no briefing sessions, you provide the content, they build it.
How much of your time does each option require?
DIY builders require 10–40 hours of your time; freelancers need 3–6 hours of meetings and feedback; agencies need 5–10 hours; done-for-you services typically need around 30 minutes.
The time cost of DIY is the number most often underestimated. Building a Wix or Squarespace site that looks professionally credible, not just passable, takes most business owners between two and five full working days across multiple sessions. That’s time not spent on your actual business, and the result is often still not quite right. As we covered in our article on the problems with DIY website builders, the real cost of building your own site isn’t the subscription fee — it’s the hours.
→Full breakdown of why DIY builders cost more than they appear → → Why DIY Website Builders Don’t Work for Small Businesses
What’s the difference between a freelancer and a done-for-you service?
A freelancer creates a custom design from scratch based on your brief; a done-for-you service builds a professional site to a proven structure using your content, at a lower cost and faster turnaround.
Both options take the technical work off your hands. The difference is customisation versus speed. A freelancer gives you more control over the design outcome. You can specify the layout, the colours, the structure. However, that process involves briefing meetings, revisions, and timelines that typically run four to eight weeks. A done-for-you service, like Duport’s, produces a live site in 72 hours because the build process is structured and efficient. For businesses that simply need a professional site quickly, a done-for-you service can be the fastest route.
When does it make sense to use a web design agency?
An agency makes sense when your website is a core part of your business model. For example, ecommerce, bookings, or complex integrations, and you have a budget of at least £3,000–5,000.
Many new small businesses find that agency projects are more expensive and complex than they need in the early stages. An agency is the right choice when the website is doing something complex, hundreds of products, custom booking logic, member-only content, not when you need a clear five-page site with a contact form. If you’re a sole trader or new limited company that needs a professional online presence before you can confidently send clients there, a done-for-you service covers exactly that.
What’s the most cost-effective option for a new small business?
For most new UK small businesses that need a professional website quickly, a done-for-you build service is the most cost-effective option. Lower upfront cost than a freelancer, less ongoing time than DIY, and ready in days rather than months.
Duport’s done-for-you website build costs £144 and includes domain, business email, and hosting. Not as extras, but built in. That’s a one-off cost that gets you live within 72 hours. Compare this to £220–400/year ongoing for a DIY builder that you’re still managing yourself, or £800–2,000+ for a freelancer with several weeks of back-and-forth. If your business is also a limited company, the full bundle at £244 upfront covers your formation, website, email, and seven compliance tools, with renewal at £194/year.
→If you’ve been using Wix specifically and want to understand the failure points in detail, see → → Why Wix Doesn’t Work for Small Business UK
→ For the honest answer on which website builder (if any) is actually best for small businesses, see → → Best Website Builder for Small Business UK — An Honest Answer
Ready to stop figuring it out yourself?
If you’ve spent time trying to build it yourself and you’re ready for a professional result without the technical work, Duport’s done-for-you website build gets you live in 72 hours for £144 — domain, email, and hosting included, no ongoing headaches.
View the full details: duport.co.uk/related-services/website-design
FAQs
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Can I hire someone to build a website on Wix or Squarespace?
Yes, freelancers will build on Wix or Squarespace, typically charging £300–1,000, though you’ll still own the ongoing subscription costs and email setup after the build is complete.
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What’s the cheapest way to get a professional website for my small business in the UK?
A done-for-you build service, where a provider builds a professional site using your content, typically offers the best combination of low cost, speed, and professional result for new small businesses.
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How long does it take to get a website built by a freelancer?
Most freelance web design projects take 4–8 weeks from initial brief to live site, depending on complexity and how quickly you can provide feedback during revisions.
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Do I still need to pay for hosting if I hire someone to build my site?
If a freelancer builds on WordPress, you’ll need to pay for hosting separately (typically £5–15/month); done-for-you services like Duport include hosting in the build cost as standard.
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Is a website builder or a done-for-you service better for SEO?
A professionally built done-for-you site with clean structure and fast loading is typically better for SEO than a self-built DIY site with inconsistent formatting and slower page speeds.
