Five ways to get a web presence, laid out side by side — what you pay in year one, what it costs over three years, who actually does the work, who owns the result, and what happens if you stop paying. No made-up numbers: every figure below is either our own price or a range we checked against public sources.
This is written by SortedSite, so read it knowing we're one of the five — but every cell is something you can check yourself.
| SortedSite | Wix / Squarespace (DIY, you build it) |
UK web design agency (unnamed, typical range) |
“Free site + monthly” service (unnamed, typical shape) |
Checkatrade / MyBuilder profile (no website of your own) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost, year 1 | £499 one-time £149 to start, £350 on delivery |
typically £108–£348 Wix £9–£25/mo, Squarespace £12–£29/mo, annual billing, plus a domain |
typically £1,500–£4,000 bigger multi-page builds can run to £10,000+ |
varies marketed as free upfront, then an ongoing fee — get the exact figure in writing before you sign |
Checkatrade typically £60–£300+/mo depending on trade & area (£720–£3,600+/yr) MyBuilder: pay-per-lead, varies, no fixed monthly fee |
| Cost over 3 years | £599 £499 once + £50/yr domain & hosting from year 2 (or add the optional £29/mo care plan) |
typically £324–£1,044 3 × the annual plan cost, before any price rises |
typically £2,200–£5,800 build cost plus common £20–£50/mo hosting & maintenance |
varies | varies, but often £2,000–£10,000+ in fees over 3 years for an active membership — and you still have no website of your own |
| Who does the work | We do — you send photos and details, we build it | You do, in their editor | The agency does | Usually a template you fill in yourself, or a very basic setup done for you | Nobody — there's no website. You fill in a directory profile |
| Who owns the site | You — domain registered in your name, you're never locked in | You own the content; the site itself only runs on their platform | Varies by contract — ask who holds the domain and hosting login before you sign | Usually no — the site lives on their platform/domain structure | No — it's their platform. There's no site to take with you |
| Time until live | 3–5 working days from go-ahead | As fast as you can build it — hours to several weeks | Commonly 4–8+ weeks | Often same-day to a few days (it's a template) | A profile can go live in days — but it isn't a website |
| If you stop paying | Files are yours; renew domain & hosting (£50/yr) elsewhere or with us — nothing is held hostage | Site goes offline; you can usually keep the domain if it was registered separately | Depends on the contract — check who controls hosting and the domain | Typically goes offline immediately or after a short grace period | Profile is removed — and there was never a website to keep |
Prices checked September 2026; verify before you decide — providers change plans and prices without much notice. We didn't name a specific UK agency because prices vary too much by region and reputation to give one honest number; "varies" means we couldn't find a UK GBP figure we'd stand behind, not that the cost is zero.
For most one-page trade sites, yes — it covers everything listed on our price section. If you need online booking, e-commerce, or several staff logins, it isn't enough on its own, and we'll tell you that up front rather than take the money.
Online booking systems, taking payments on the site, e-commerce, logo design, and paid advertising. From year two, domain and hosting cost around £50/year unless you're on the optional £29/month care plan.
Yes. The domain is registered in your name and stays yours whatever happens — you're never locked in to us.
After year one, if you don't renew the domain and hosting (about £50/year) or take the care plan, the site eventually goes offline — but nothing is deleted on day one, and you can take the files to another host. We don't hold your domain hostage.
Not by default — it isn't a drag-and-drop builder. Two rounds of changes are included when we build it; after that, ask us or add the optional £29/month care plan. No e-commerce, no booking system — if you need those, we're not the right fit.
£149 to start, £350 when you approve the finished site — only after you've seen the free demo. Domain and first-year hosting included. No monthly fees unless you choose the optional £29/month care plan.