What a free website audit should actually tell you
Most free website audits are forty pages of red warnings and a sales call. A useful one tells you what’s working, what’s worth a look and what’s worth fixing, in order.
How much does a website cost in Vancouver? (2026) Honest numbers.
In Canadian dollars.
Who builds it and what it has to do decide the price. Here’s where the money goes.
You work with me, Troy.
The short answer
$1,000 to $25,000+.Most small business websites in Metro Vancouver cost $1,000 to $8,000 from a freelancer or studio, and $8,000 to $25,000 or more from an agency. Ours start at $899.
Five ways to pay
for a website.
| Who builds it | Typical cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself | About $170 to $336 a year | A builder like Wix or Squarespace, plus your evenings. You keep paying for as long as the site is up. Compare the builders. |
| A freelancer | A few hundred to about $5,000 | Prices swing widely. Ask who fixes things after launch. |
| A small studio | $899 to about $8,000 | Designed for your business, usually with copy and support. Typical small business sites: $3,000 to $8,000. Ours start at $899. |
| An agency | $8,000 to $25,000 and up | Bigger teams and longer timelines. Large custom sites run $10,000 to $75,000 and more. |
| An online store | From about $5,000 | Small shops $5,000 to $10,000. Big stores with lots of products, $10,000 to $60,000 and up. |
Ranges from GoDaddy Canada’s 2026 cost guide and Impeka’s Canadian pricing guide (2026). All CAD, before tax. Custom software, like customer portals or apps with their own database, is always quoted on its own.
After launch
What you keep
paying for.
The build is one cost. These are the ones that come back every month or year.
Your domain: about $20 a year.
A .ca or .com. Register it in your own name, never your web person’s.
Hosting: a few dollars to about $100 a month.
Depends on the site and how busy it is. Builders include it in the subscription.
Business email: per person, per month.
Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, so you’re you@yourbusiness.ca, not a free address.
Upkeep: $25 to a few hundred a month.
Updates, backups, fixes and small changes. Our Care starts at $39 a month.
Domain, hosting and upkeep ranges from GoDaddy Canada (April 2026).
What moves the price
Why one quote says $900
and another says $9,000.
The size of it
- How many pages, and how many of them are new
- Who writes the words and finds the photos
- A second language, done properly
Ten pages cost more than five. Writing them costs more than pasting yours in.
What it has to do
- Bookings, quote forms or online payments
- A store, a members area or a customer portal
- Connections to your booking software, CRM or email list
Every feature that saves you time later costs a little more now.
How it’s made
- A template with your logo, or a design from scratch
- Speed, accessibility and search basics built in
- Moving an old site without losing its Google traffic
The difference shows up on a phone, and on Google.
Before you sign
How to compare
website quotes.
- 01
Ask what happens after launch.
Who hosts it, who updates it, who fixes it, and how fast they reply.
- 02
Check who owns what.
Your domain, the website, your Google Business Profile and your analytics should all be in your name.
- 03
Ask how they keep your Google traffic.
A redesign needs redirects from every old page, or the visitors Google sends you can vanish. How we handle it.
- 04
Test their work on a phone.
Open a few of their sites on your phone, or run them through Google’s free PageSpeed Insights. Slow examples make slow websites.
- 05
Get it in writing.
The pages, the features, the price, the payment schedule and the timeline. If it isn’t written down, it isn’t included.
What we charge
Our prices
are on the website.
Websites from $899.
Designed from scratch around your business, with a written scope and price before any paid work starts.
Interest-free over 3, 6 or 12 months.
Pay in full, or spread it out once your project is $300 or more. Your quote sets out every payment.
Or free, until December 31.
Choose Silver or Gold Care on a 24- or 12-month plan and we build your new website free. See Care.
Take it with you
Get this guide
as a PDF.
Every number on this page in one PDF, to read later or pass to your business partner. We’ll email it to you.
Good to ask
Questions about
website costs.
How much does a small business website cost in Vancouver?
Most cost somewhere between about $1,000 and $8,000 from a freelancer or small studio, and $8,000 to $25,000 or more from an agency. Doing it yourself on a builder costs about $170 to $336 a year, plus your time. Ours start at $899, quoted in writing.
Why do website quotes vary so much?
Because they rarely describe the same thing. One quote is a template with your logo on it; another is a custom design, written copy, booking connections and three months of support after launch. Ask every quote what’s included, who owns what, and what happens after it goes live.
Is a DIY builder cheaper in the long run?
Up front, yes. Over time, not always: a builder at $30 to $50 a month adds up to $1,800 to $3,000 over five years, and you still do the work. A custom website costs more on day one and nothing to keep using if you host it yourself, or a monthly fee if you want someone looking after it.
What ongoing costs should I budget for?
A domain (about $20 a year), hosting, business email for each person, and someone to keep the site updated and backed up. Builders bundle hosting into the subscription. Our Care plans start at $39 a month.
Do you charge for a quote?
No. Start with a free Site Check, or tell us about your project and we’ll come back with a written quote. You see the scope, the price and the payment schedule before anything starts.
From the blog
Worth a read
before we talk.
You probably don’t need another subscription
Businesses collect software one small problem at a time, and even big companies use barely half of what they pay for. A once-a-year check-up, and why the fix is rarely a bigger tool.
Fix these five things before you spend a dollar on ads
Ads rent attention. If the page they land on leaks, you pay for the leak. Five things to fix on your website first, with what Google and the research say.
Tell us what
you need.
A rough idea is enough.
You talk to Troy, not a sales team.