Website builder vs custom website: which pays off for your business

Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Framer and Shopify are good for their own jobs. We show when a builder is enough and when a custom website at a one-off price pays off, with our prices shown upfront.

Website developmentTimeline: 10–14 days

What a custom website looks like

A website builder (Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Framer) gives you ready-made blocks and a subscription: you pay every month and work within the platform's limits. A custom website is paid once, and the code, domain and accounts belong to you. There is no universal winner: the choice depends on timing, budget, number of pages, languages and whether you need non-standard features.

When a builder is enough. You need a site for a couple of weeks, the budget is minimal, there are few pages and you are ready to build and edit it yourself. A builder suits testing an idea or a small personal project.
When a custom website is better. The site must live for years, you need several languages, leads going to a CRM, non-standard pages, speed, or a move away from platform lock-in. Then a three-year subscription often matches the one-off price of a website.

Approximate display: images and texts are chosen as an example. In your project the features, design and architecture will be different, built for your goals.

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On a computer

On a phone

Website development · timeline 10–14 days

Custom website or website builder — from €599

A website of up to 10 pages that brings in leads from search: blog, two languages, SEO for 20 queries, and leads straight into your CRM.

Life Wellness Wave: a platform with ranks, gamification, subscriptions, an LMS, an SEO blog and 18 languages. Tasks like these usually hit a builder's platform limits. We take ready-made modules from real projects and adapt them to your conditions instead of building everything anew. See also: multilingual website.

Languages and markets. We build sites in English, Russian, German, Spanish, Polish and Ukrainian. A second language costs €290, including translation, editing and separate SEO setup.

A builder is faster to start, but you are tied to the platform and the subscription. Freelance marketplaces (Upwork, Fiverr, Toptal) help you find a contractor, but quality and access depend on the person. A studio makes a big site, but timing and prices are often unclear. We work at fixed prices and hand over the code and access to you.

Agency or freelance marketplace. On a marketplace you choose a person; with us you get a team, a process and responsibility for the result. If the task is small and urgent, a freelancer may be faster. For a permanent site it matters more that the code and access are yours.
AI builders and quick generators. AI-based tools assemble a draft quickly, but legal pages, custom design and integrations still need work. We can take such a draft and finish it into a working website.

Good for: services people search for: service providers, clinics, lawyers, studios · Companies that need leads from search, not just an address · Teams that already have a CRM or a lead spreadsheet

Order a business website Compare the packages in this category →

What a custom website from €599 includes

One price for the whole list: no extra charges for hours or individual items.

A builder's price is made up of the plan, paid add-ons, domain, apps and your time. We do not quote other platforms' plans, as they change them, so check current prices on each service's site. Our prices are fixed: a 24-hour website €599, a brochure website €990, a landing page €790, a business website €2,490, a second language +€290. See also: brochure website, business website.

What to count when comparing prices. Add up the plan for 2–3 years, paid apps and plugins, payment fees and the cost of a designer's work. Compare it with the one-off price of a website and your own costs for subscriptions and hosting.
€0 infrastructure at the start. A custom website can be hosted on Cloudflare, GitHub and Supabase with no monthly fee at the start. We add no markup on subscriptions: you pay the domain to the registrar directly.

1Design and texts

Structure of 10 pagesHome, three or four services, about, prices, blog and contacts: people find what they need in a couple of clicks.
Custom design and two rounds of revisionsWe design to your brief and colors and show the home page before coding. Pages work well on phones.
Service pages for search queriesEach service gets its own page for the query people search for, and brings in customers from search.

2Build

Leads into your CRMThe form sends each request as a card to your CRM, and you get an email right away.
Analytics and goalsYou can see where leads come from and which pages perform better.
Site editorLog in at yoursite/admin and change texts, photos, prices and pages yourself, no developer needed.

3Content

Blog and the first 3 articlesFeed and article template. We write the first three pieces, then you publish on your own.
Two languages: German and EnglishEdited translation and separate page addresses (/en/), so the site can be found in both languages.
SEO for 20 queriesWe pick queries for your market and set page titles and descriptions to match them.

4Launch and handover

Legal pages and cookie bannerPolicy, terms, cookies and company details in the footer: templates for your country, final review by your lawyer.
Email on your domainAn address like info@yourdomain, set up so that emails do not end up in spam.
Publishing, Google and access handoverA secure connection, Search Console and a sitemap; the domain, code and accounts are registered to you.

Approximate display: images and texts are chosen as an example. In your project the features, design and architecture will be different, built for your goals.

What to add to a custom website

Optional, now or later. The price is fixed before work starts.

If you are choosing a web studio in your own city, look at work examples, clear prices and who the code and domain are registered to. We work remotely with clients in the US, the UK, Germany, Spain, Poland, the UAE, Kazakhstan and across Europe. Legal pages and currency are chosen for the country.

Questions to ask any studio. What the price includes, who owns the code, how much changes cost after launch, how access is handed over if you decide to leave.

One more languageThe website opens for customers from other countries in their own language, and they do not need a translator.+ €290Details
We will translate and edit all pages into the chosen language, add it to the switcher and set up search for it. Useful when some of your customers live in another country or read in another language.
Timeline: +2 days
SEO articles for queriesWe prepare new pages for the questions your customers ask search engines, so they find the answers with you.+ from €150 per articleDetails
We will pick the search queries, write an article with your facts and publish it with search settings. Useful when the basic pages are ready and you want more visitors from search. We do not guarantee ranking growth.
Deadline: 3–5 days per article
One more integrationRequests from the website go straight to where your team works with them, and nothing gets lost along the way.+ from €690Details
We will connect your website forms to your CRM: a request creates a customer card with the source and the message text. Useful when there are more requests than is convenient to sort through in email.
Timeline: +2 days
SEO promotionWe keep working so that your website is found in search more often: queries, pages and a monthly report.from €390/moDetails
Every month we improve pages, add materials and send a report with clear conclusions. You need it when the website is live and you want to get customers from search. We do not guarantee rankings.
Timeline: monthly

Paid separately, not to us: a domain, about €10–15 a year, paid directly to the registrar · a subscription to your CRM, if it is paid · photo and video shoots. All add-ons →

Our offer

Turnkey promotion: where your customers will come from

If you have outgrown a builder, the site can be moved to a custom build: we keep texts and page addresses so you do not lose search rankings. A redesign with migration starts from €1,490, and a shop move from Shopify, Wix or WordPress is priced separately, from €1,490. After the move you pay only for the domain and your own services. See also: website redesign and migration, turnkey online shop.

What is kept in a move. Texts, page structure, addresses and photos. If an address changes, we set up redirects. We cannot guarantee search positions, but a careful migration reduces the risk.
When not to move. If the site works, you are happy with it and the subscription is no burden, you do not need to move. There is no reason to rush a move for its own sake.

A website does not bring customers by itself: channels do.

Turnkey promotion: stages and prices

PositioningWho your customer is, how you differ, what to say€990

Analytics and goalsYou see where requests come from and what they costfrom €590

SEO promotionPages for customer queries, technical orderfrom €490/mo

AI search visibilitySo that ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity name you+ from €490/mo

Google and social media adsSetup and management; the budget goes directly to the platformsfrom €490/mo

Social media (SMM)Content plan, posts, profile designfrom €790/mo

Every month you get a report: how many requests came in and what each one cost. You pay the ad budget directly to the platforms.

Turnkey promotion

So customers keep coming every month, not just on launch day

We will choose 1–3 channels for your business and budget, launch them, and show you every month what a request costs.

Step 1 · 15 minutesDiscuss promotion for "my website"A short brief → the same day we send you which channels and what it costs. Catalog · pricesAll promotion servicesSEO, ads, social media, AI search, mailings: packages and "from" prices.

Which pages are included

This is what your website menu looks like in this package. We adjust the section names to your business.

yourwebsite.com

HomeServices ▾AboutReviews and casesPricesBlog ▾Contacts

Services overview

Service 1

Service 2

Service 3

Site map

up to 10 pages + legal

menu pagesblog and newslegal

Home
Services
1. Services overview
2. Service 1
3. Service 2
4. Service 3
About us
Reviews and cases
Prices
Blog
1. Article feed
2. Article template
Contacts

How we work

How we build a website instead of a builder

The steps switch automatically, or click any of them to read more.

Design to your brief without templates, mobile adaptation, a contact form, legal pages for your country (templates, with final review by your lawyer), email on your domain and an editor where you change texts and photos yourself. Timing: 24 hours for a one-page site, 3–5 days for a brochure website, 10–14 days for a business website. Timing counts from the brief, materials and domain access. See also: 24-hour website.

An editor like in a builder. You change texts, photos and prices yourself without a developer, just as in a familiar builder. A new type of page or block is added by us.
What we do differently. Prices are shown upfront, everything is registered to you, and ready-made modules come from real projects. If you need a builder, we will say so honestly.

1. Brief

A short 15-minute questionnaire: what the business is, who it is for, what you need and by when. By voice, text or a call.

We ask only what affects the result and the price
Materials (logo, photos, texts) can be sent later
We reply the same business day: what we offer, what it costs and how long it takes

Start the brief →

How long15 minutes of your time

Resultan offer with a price and a deadline

Questions

FAQ

Which is better: a website builder or a custom website?

It depends on the task. A builder suits a small site at the start and testing an idea. A custom website pays off if the site must live for years, you need languages, a CRM and non-standard pages, and a subscription over several years matches the one-off price of a website.

How much does a website on Wix, Squarespace or Webflow cost?

Platform plans change, so check current prices on the services' own sites. Add up the plan for 2–3 years, paid apps, domain and fees. For comparison: our 24-hour website costs €599, a brochure website €990, a business website €2,490.

Can a website be moved from Wix or WordPress to a custom build?

Yes. We keep texts and page addresses and set up redirects where an address changes. A redesign with migration is from €1,490. Search positions cannot be guaranteed, but a careful migration reduces the risk of losing them.

How is your website different from a builder website?

The design is made for you, not from a template. Code, domain and accounts are registered to you, and there is no subscription to our platform. You change texts and photos yourself in an editor, as in a builder.

Freelance marketplace or agency: which to choose?

A marketplace is good for small urgent tasks, but quality and access depend on the contractor. An agency takes responsibility for the result and the process. For a permanent site it matters in either case that the code and access are yours.

Can I build a site with an AI builder and give it to you to finish?

Yes. An AI draft helps show an idea quickly, and we will finish the design, legal pages, contact form and integrations. If the draft is weak, we will say so and offer to build it again.

How long does a custom website take compared with a builder?

A 24-hour website for one page, a brochure website 3–5 days, a business website 10–14 days. Timing counts from receiving the brief, materials and domain access. A builder is faster only if you assemble everything yourself.

What if I am better off staying on a builder?

We will tell you directly. If the task is small and you are comfortable with the platform, you should not overpay for development. Come when the site hits its limits, and we will help with the move.