How much does a tradesman website cost in the UK? (2026 prices)
A website for a UK tradesman costs between £10 a month and £5,000+ up front, depending on the route. Typical 2026 prices: DIY website builders £10–£30/month, a freelance web designer £500–£2,000 one-off, a web design agency £2,000–£5,000+, and subscription ("pay-monthly") trade website services £50–£200/month with no build fee.
Here's what each route actually includes, the ongoing costs most quotes leave out, and what the real bill looks like over three years.
The four ways to get a trade website
| Route | Typical UK cost (2026) | What you get | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| DIY builder (Wix, Squarespace etc.) | £10–£30/month | Templates, hosting included, you build it | Your evenings, weak local SEO out of the box, no one maintaining it |
| Freelance web designer | £500–£2,000 one-off | Custom build, usually 2–6 weeks | Hosting, edits and SEO cost extra; quality varies enormously |
| Web design agency | £2,000–£5,000+ one-off | Polished custom site, project-managed | Big upfront hit; ongoing changes billed at £50–£90/hour |
| Subscription trade-website service | £50–£200/month | Build, hosting, edits and usually local SEO in one price | Monthly cost continues while you use it — check what happens to your domain if you leave |
The costs the quotes don't mention
Whatever route you pick, budget for: a domain (£10–£15/year), hosting if not included (£60–£300/year), business email (£0–£60/year), content changes (agencies charge £50–£90/hour), and local SEO work if you actually want to rank for "plumber + your town" (retainers run £300–£1,000+/month bought separately). This is how a "£1,500 website" quietly becomes £3,000 by year two — and why comparing routes on the sticker price alone misleads.
What it really costs over three years
| Route | 3-year total (typical) | Includes ongoing SEO & edits? |
|---|---|---|
| DIY at £15/month | ~£540 + your evenings | No — you do everything |
| Freelancer £1,250 + hosting/edits | ~£2,200 | Rarely |
| Agency £3,500 + hosting/edits | ~£5,000 | Rarely — SEO retainer is extra |
| Subscription at £149/month | £5,364 all-in | Yes — build, hosting, edits, local SEO, extras in one number |
Honest reading: subscription isn't the cheapest number on the page — it's the number that includes everything and spreads it monthly instead of £3,000 up front. Which route wins depends on whether your website is a brochure or a tool that's supposed to win you work. One extra £340 job a month more than covers a £149 subscription.
What actually matters on a trade website
Price matters less than whether the site does its job. For a trade business that means: a phone number that's tap-to-call on mobile, pages for each town you cover (that's what ranks locally), your Google reviews visible, fast loading on a phone, and — the one almost every trade site misses — a plan for the calls you can't answer while you're on the tools. Industry call-handling studies put unanswered calls to small trade businesses at around 62%, and 85% of missed callers won't leave a voicemail; they ring the next name on Google. A website that captures those calls pays for itself; a pretty brochure that doesn't is an expense at any price.
Frequently asked questions
Is a free website builder good enough for a tradesman?
Usually not. Free tiers put adverts on your site, give you an address like yourname.wixsite.com, and rank poorly in local search. The £10–£30/month paid tier is the realistic DIY minimum — plus the evenings to build and maintain it.
How much should I pay for SEO?
UK SEO retainers run £300–£1,000+/month — more than most sole traders need. The local essentials are a proper Google Business Profile, town pages, correct schema markup and steady reviews. Some subscription services include this in the monthly price; ask specifically.
What does TradeSiteHQ cost?
£149/month, no build fee. That includes the build (live in 7 days), hosting, security, unlimited edits, local SEO pages, a Google review engine, missed-call text-back and automatic callbacks. You see a free homepage preview before paying a penny, there's no contract, and you keep your domain and reviews if you leave.
How long does a trade website take to build?
DIY: several weekends. Freelancer: 2–6 weeks. Agency: 4–12 weeks. Subscription services are usually fastest — TradeSiteHQ goes live in 7 days from brief.
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