Read More8 Nov 2026
|7 min
How much does a website cost in Australia? (2026 pricing guide)
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Contact us nowA website in Australia costs anywhere from about $3,000 for a template site to $100,000+ for a complex platform. For a custom-designed business site that's built to win enquiries, budget $10,000 to $50,000. Headless and heavily integrated builds usually start around $50,000.
That's a wide range, and it's meant to be. A five-page brochure site and an online store connected to your CRM are both "websites". They're not the same job. This guide breaks down what each type costs, what moves the price, and how to compare quotes. If you're in Queensland and want a straight answer on your project, our Brisbane web design team can scope it with you.
Website cost in Australia by type of site
Type of website | Typical 2026 cost (AUD, ex GST) | Best for |
|---|---|---|
DIY website builder (Wix, Squarespace) | $0 upfront, plus monthly plan fees | Testing an idea, very small budgets |
Template small-business site (5–10 pages) | $3,000–$8,000 | Sole traders and new businesses |
Custom-designed brochure site (5–15 pages) | $5,000–$25,000 | Service businesses that need to win enquiries |
Online store (Shopify or WooCommerce) | $10,000–$50,000 | Selling products online |
Mid-size custom site (15–50 pages, integrations) | $25,000–$50,000 | Established businesses with several services or locations |
Complex custom or headless site | $50,000–$100,000 | Sites tied to a CRM, booking, member or data systems |
Enterprise platform or web application | $100,000+ | Large organisations, portals, custom software |
These are market ranges from published Australian pricing, not quotes. Your number depends on scope, which is the next section.
Website cost by who builds it
The same site can cost very different amounts depending on who builds it. Here's what you get at each level.
Who builds it | What you get | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
You (DIY builder) | Low upfront cost. Your time, a template, limited customisation. | The hours add up. Hard to scale or connect to other systems later. |
Freelancer | Lower rates, one point of contact. A WordPress site typically runs about $2,400–$10,000; Shopify about $2,000–$8,500. | Capacity and continuity. What happens if they're unavailable after launch? |
Small studio | Design and build together, a bit more process. | Check who handles hosting, security updates and support. |
Full-service agency | Strategy, UX, design, development, SEO and support in one team. WordPress agency builds typically run about $6,000–$24,000; Shopify about $5,000–$20,500. | Higher rates. Make sure you're paying for depth you'll use. |
Cheaper isn't automatically worse, and dearer isn't automatically better. The question is what's included. More on that below.
Website cost by platform
Platform | Typical use | Cost notes |
|---|---|---|
Most small to mid-size business sites | Flexible and widely supported. Plugins and maintenance are ongoing costs. | |
Ecommerce | Monthly platform fees and app costs on top of the build. | |
Fast, custom sites that connect to several systems | Sits in the custom tiers. More build effort upfront, more control and speed long term. | |
Businesses already running HubSpot | Website and CRM in one place. HubSpot licence costs apply. |
What drives the cost of a website?
Seven things move the price more than anything else.
- Number of page templates. Not pages, templates. Fifty pages built from four templates can cost less than ten pages that are all different.
- Design approach. Adapting a template is cheaper. Custom design with user research and wireframes costs more and usually converts better.
- Integrations. Every connection to a CRM, booking system, payment gateway or API adds build and testing time.
- Content and photography. Who writes the copy? Who supplies the images? If it isn't in the quote, it's on you.
- Accessibility. Building to WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) from day one is far cheaper than fixing it later. For health, education, government and not-for-profit sites it's not optional.
- Migration and redirects. Moving from an old site means mapping every old page to a new one. Skip this and you lose the Google rankings you've already earned. We see it underquoted all the time.
- Testing. Cross-device, speed and form testing, plus your own team's sign-off time before launch.
The costs most website quotes leave out
A quote covers the build. Running the site costs money too. Ask about each of these before you sign.
Cost | One-off or ongoing | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
Hosting | Ongoing | Who hosts it, and what's included (backups, security, speed)? |
Domain and email | Ongoing | Who owns the domain? It should be you. |
Maintenance and updates | Ongoing | Who applies software and security updates, and how often? |
Plugin, app and platform licences | Ongoing | Which paid plugins or apps does the build rely on? |
Content and photography | One-off | Is copywriting or photography included? |
Changes after sign-off | One-off | How are changes priced once design is approved? |
SEO and redirects | One-off | Are redirects from the old site included? |
Analytics and tracking | One-off | Will GA4 and conversion tracking be set up and tested? |
How to compare website quotes
Three quotes for "a new website" can range from $5,000 to $50,000. That's usually not anyone being dishonest. It's three different readings of the same brief.
Compare scope, not price:
- How many page templates are included?
- Is custom design included, or a theme?
- Which integrations are in scope?
- Who writes the content?
- Are redirects and SEO setup included?
- What support is included after launch, and for how long?
- Who owns the site, the code and the domain at the end?
Not sure what you need? No drama. A short scoping call usually narrows a wide range down to a number you can plan around.
What you get at each price point
The question isn't really "how much does a website cost". It's "what do I get for the money, and what's missing".
Budget | What you typically get | What's usually missing |
|---|---|---|
Under $10,000 | A template or lightly customised theme, standard pages, a contact form. | Strategy, user research, integrations, a proper SEO migration, and much support after launch. |
$10,000–$30,000 | Custom design, a CMS your team can edit, on-page SEO, tracking set up and tested, simple integrations. | Complex integrations and custom functionality. |
$30,000–$50,000 | Discovery and UX, a custom design system, CRM and marketing automation connected, full redirect mapping, accessibility built in, thorough testing. | Usually nothing a growing business needs. |
$50,000+ | Headless or custom architecture, several integrations, portals or custom tools, speed at scale, an ongoing roadmap. | Nothing, if it's scoped properly. |
A cheap website gets expensive when it doesn't convert, can't connect to your CRM, or loses your Google rankings in the move. Budget for what the site needs to do, not just what it needs to look like.
How much does a website cost in Brisbane?
Brisbane pricing sits broadly in line with the national ranges above. Published Brisbane guides put a basic brochure site from around $2,500 and complex custom platforms at $100,000 or more. Choosing a local team mostly buys you easier workshops and someone who knows your market, not a different price band.
Where BFJ Digital fits
We build custom websites for businesses that need their site to sell. That usually means connecting to a CRM, selling online, or running on a headless setup. Most of our projects start at $10,000. If you need a simple template site, a freelancer or a website builder is probably the better fit, and we'll tell you that.
If your site needs to do more than look good, talk to our Brisbane web design team. We'll scope it properly before we put a number on it.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a small business website cost in Australia? Most small business sites cost $3,000 to $8,000 for a template build, or $5,000 to $25,000 for a custom design.
Do website quotes include GST? Often not. Many agency quotes are ex GST. Check before you compare.
Why are website quotes so different? Different agencies read the same brief differently, and include different things. Compare what's in scope, not the bottom line.
Can I build my own website? Yes. Builders like Wix and Squarespace work for simple sites. They get harder once you need integrations, ecommerce at scale, or strong SEO. More on that in DIY vs professional website design.
What does it cost to run a website each year? It depends on hosting, licences and how much ongoing work you want. Ask for these costs in writing with your build quote.
For what ongoing marketing costs on top of your website, see how much a digital marketing agency costs in Australia. Planning to drive traffic with Google Ads? See what PPC management includes and costs.
Ready to See the Bigger Picture?
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Not sure if your CRM is supporting your paid media efforts? Just need some clarity and a clear plan to better ROI?
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