The cost of building a website in Canada varies, according to a website owner’s decisions. It depends on what a person is looking to achieve by owning a website. It depends on the person’s expertise. It depends on the person’s budget. Above all, the answer is that the cost to build a website in Canada depends on what the website owner is willing to spend.
Website builders
There are free website builders in Canada. A website builder is a means to start for a person who wants to stay within a small budget and lacks technical expertise. For one, it’s user-friendly. The user does not need to know how to code. A small business or nonprofit organization may choose to use a free website builder when it’s not logical to spend a lot on overhead costs. For example, a Canadian organization may want to own a website merely to inform its members rather than sell a product or service.
A company justifies offering a free service by placing advertisements on sites. Through ads, the company will still make money. Therefore, the website owner pays a nonmonetary price for the free service. Customarily, companies will offer free trials for premium plans. Premium plans do not have ads and include more features. Companies now incorporate AI into website builders to help users with design. Though, a user may have to upgrade plans for more advanced features.
It’s common for plans to start in a low double-digit range. Case and point, a basic plan will likely cost around $10-20 CA. For premium plans, the price increases. Some website builders, such as Wix, include free hosting.
Hosting
Hosting is often a part of the overhead costs. From least expensive to most expensive, here are a few different hosting options. There is shared hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated hosting. While shared hosting may cost a few dollars per month, dedicated hosting can cost hundreds of dollars per month. With dedicated hosting, there is more security and autonomy, which totals a higher cost.
If the website generates excessive traffic, which converts into income, the cost of a dedicated hosting may be reasonable. The total cost will depend on whether the dedicated hosting is metered or unmetered. It also depends on whether the hosting is managed or unmanaged. If a company chooses to pay extra for managed dedicated hosting, it speaks to one of two things. One, the company does not have the technical expertise required to use dedicated hosting. Two, the company has preliminary technical expertise but does not want to spend time on server maintenance.
WordPress
When a person mentions WordPress, it’s right to assume that person means WordPress.org. WordPress is open-source software, and it does not include hosting. The hosting and domain name are two of the first costs associated with building a WordPress website. A website owner will need to purchase an SSL certificate. It’s a yearly expense that can cost around $50. Though, it could cost hundreds of dollars if the website owner decides to invest in security.
Additional costs would include premium choices, such as themes and plugins. The website owner may hire a developer. The cost of paying the developer for the cost of labor and for his or her technical expertise can cost hundreds of dollars. One way to offset some of the costs is to set up e-commerce or post ads on the website.
Shopify
Shopify is generally where Canadians will go to build an e-commerce site. If a website owner wants the website built for him or her, Shopify is an option. There are reputable design companies that partner with Shopify. For example, in Canada, Little Rocket partners with Shopify. A website owner can have Little Rocket handle website design, as well as manage social media.
When hiring a design company through Shopify or elsewhere, it’s important to negotiate everything upfront. The design company will structure the work around the initial contract. A website owner could easily spend $3,000 to $5,000 CA on a design package. To avoid additional fees, it’s important to detail every expense.
The cost of a website depends on what the owner decides to spend. There are multiple expenses involved, some of which are monthly fees. If the website owner thinks it’s necessary to outsource building the website, hiring people will add to the total. The cost will boil down to how much the website owner is willing to spend.
