How Much Does a Website Cost in 2026?

"How much does a website cost?" is the first question most clients ask me.

The honest answer is the same as it always was: it still depends on the scope. What has changed is where the work goes, and I want to explain that, because AI has made a lot of people assume websites should now cost almost nothing.

AI does most of the work, but that doesn't mean we do nothing

AI really does do most of the typing now. That doesn't mean developers and designers aren't doing anything.

Someone still has to decide what to build, direct it, check it, fix what's wrong and make sure it fits the business. AI can produce a lot very quickly, but it doesn't know what you need until someone tells it, and it can't tell you when the result is wrong.

How I quote now

I quote less for design and development than I did before. Most of my work is based on an hourly rate, and I spend less time designing and developing than I used to.

What I spend more time on is polishing. When the first version comes together faster, the extra time goes into the details: spacing, behavior on different screens, small things that make a site feel finished instead of generated. That's where a lot of the quality comes from.

What still drives the price

Scope

This is the biggest factor. A single landing page and a full website with many sections are very different projects, even with AI helping. If you can describe what you need clearly, I can tell you much more accurately how much time it takes.

Number of pages

The number of pages still counts. AI can generate pages, but that doesn't mean they automatically line up with what you need. Each page still needs to have a purpose, fit into the structure of the site, and be checked.

Content

Content, especially text, is where AI helps the most. It's very good at aligning your keywords with the content and the structure of your website, which saves a lot of time.

It still needs someone to decide what the site should say and to check that it sounds like you and is accurate.

SEO and AI search

I work on SEO now, and I put a lot of effort into it. A good site isn't just one that looks right. It needs to rank, and it also needs to be visible to AI search, which people call AEO or GEO.

That means getting the structure, the content and the technical details right so search engines and AI tools can understand and recommend your site. It's easy to skip and it makes a real difference, so I treat it as part of the work, not an extra.

Why cheap and expensive quotes can both be wrong

A very low quote can leave out the polish, the SEO or the checking. You find out later, when the site doesn't perform or doesn't feel right.

A very high quote might not reflect how much faster some parts of the work have become. Ask what's included and where the time is going.

The right price is the one where you understand what you're paying for.

My advice

Know what you need before asking for a number. Think about what the website is for, which pages you need, and who will provide the content.

If you want to talk about your project, get in touch through my contact page. Tell me what you're trying to build, and I'll tell you what I think it needs.