For a focused small business website, use A$2,500 to A$6,000 as an indicative planning band. A broader custom marketing website may need A$5,000 to A$15,000 or more. The scope, content and integrations determine the quote.
These are Blu Mint Digital planning bands in Australian dollars, not market averages, published client prices or fixed offers. They help you prepare a brief. Your written proposal confirms the total payable, including any applicable GST, before work starts. Do not treat a planning band as a GST-inclusive quote.
Compare website budgets by scope
The categories overlap because a trade business can also need a custom marketing site. Choose the row that describes the work, rather than adding the bands together.
| Project scope | Indicative planning band (AUD) | What changes the scope |
|---|---|---|
| Focused small business website | A$2,500 to A$6,000 | Agreed core pages, supplied content, enquiry form and launch checks |
| Tradie or local service website | A$2,500 to A$8,000 | Number of services, coverage content, job photos and quote journey |
| Custom marketing website | A$5,000 to A$15,000+ | Bespoke layouts, content models, interactions and integrations |
| Custom Next.js website | A$5,000 to A$20,000+ | Editing workflow, templates, APIs and migration requirements |
| Online store, customer portal or web application | Individually scoped | Catalogue or account complexity, payments, data and ongoing operations |
A DIY subscription or a template-only setup covers different work. Compare the time, content, design, implementation and support included in each option. A low price alone does not tell you whether the scope fits.
For more detail, use the tradie website planner, Next.js cost guide and scope builder or online store budgeting guide.
What should the build include?
Ask each provider to quote the same brief. A useful proposal separates the following responsibilities.
| Workstream | Confirm before accepting |
|---|---|
| Pages and design | Page list, reusable templates, mobile layouts and revision allowance |
| Content | Who supplies copy, images, approvals and accessibility descriptions |
| Editing | What you can change, who can publish and what training is provided |
| Enquiries | Required fields, message delivery, failure handling and measurement |
| Search foundations | Titles, descriptions, canonical URLs, internal links, sitemap and relevant schema |
| Existing website | Content inventory, retained URLs, redirects and migration checks |
| Handover | Domain, hosting and repository ownership, documentation and support window |
Copywriting, photography, branding, paid tools, data migration, ongoing SEO and new features are not automatically included. List them explicitly as included, optional or excluded. Search foundations help a site be understood and crawled; they do not guarantee rankings or enquiries.
What do delivered projects tell you?
Clear Ground Excavations is a Next.js website with four service pages, before-and-after sliders, a service-area map and a photo-led SMS and email enquiry journey. Its scope follows an excavation customer's need to describe a job.
AGP Maintenance uses WordPress and Elementor, eight individual service pages, sector sections and a quote form that asks which trade is needed. Its content structure suits a business offering several kinds of maintenance.
These case studies document delivered work. They do not publish client prices or establish a sales uplift. Use the examples to identify the pages, editing needs and enquiry details your own project requires.
Budget for ownership after launch
Separate the one-off build from recurring costs. Domain and hosting renewals, CMS or plugin subscriptions, email hosting and support may be billed by different providers. Check current supplier prices, usage limits and renewal terms when comparing proposals.
Our maintenance cost guide explains care responsibilities. An update and backup plan is different from ongoing content production, SEO or feature development. Ask what happens if a form stops working and who can restore the site.
Turn the budget into a comparable brief
Write down your primary customer action, the required pages, the content already available, the people who will edit the site, and any connected systems. Add the existing URL if this is a replacement. State your budget and deadline so the scope can be prioritised.
For an existing site, our website redesign service starts by separating what to retain, improve and rebuild. For a new site, review website design or small business website design. We confirm the project scope and price in writing before work starts.
Frequently asked questions
How much should a small business budget for a website?
Use A$2,500 to A$6,000 as an indicative planning band for a focused small business website. More content, custom interactions, editing tools or integrations can move the project into a larger scope. Blu Mint Digital provides a written quote after agreeing the requirements.
Are these prices fixed quotes or market averages?
No. These are Blu Mint Digital planning bands, not a survey of Australian agencies, published client prices or fixed packages. The proposal confirms the agreed deliverables, exclusions, GST treatment and total payable before work starts.
What should I budget for after launch?
Allow separately for the domain, hosting, any CMS or plugin subscriptions, email hosting and maintenance. Ask who owns each account, how renewals are charged and which support or content changes are included. Ongoing SEO and new features need their own scope.
Should I redesign my existing site or start again?
Start with the problem: unclear content, an unreliable enquiry flow, difficult editing or a platform constraint. Retain useful content and URLs where possible. Rebuild when the current platform cannot reasonably meet the agreed requirements, and include migration and launch checks in the quote.