How Much Does a Small Business Website Cost in Australia in 2026?

Short answer: in 2026, most Australian small businesses spend roughly $2,500 to $10,000 for a professionally built website, or a few hundred dollars a year on a DIY builder. Ongoing domain, hosting and maintenance costs come on top.

Those figures are broad market ranges taken from published Australian pricing guides, including GoDaddy Australia and WP Creative. Your own quote will depend on how many pages you need, which features you want and who builds the site. This guide breaks the total into its parts so you can set a realistic budget and compare quotes fairly.

What makes up the cost of a small business website?

When people ask what a website costs, they usually mean the build. The build is only one of four parts that make up the true cost:

• The one-off build: design, content setup and development.
• Your domain name: your web address, for example yourbusiness.com.au.
• Hosting and maintenance: the server that keeps the site online, plus updates, security and backups.
• Ongoing extras: search engine optimisation (SEO), paid advertising and fresh content.

Definition: Total cost of ownership (TCO). For a website, TCO is the upfront build cost plus every recurring cost (domain, hosting, maintenance and marketing) over the time you expect to keep the site, usually three to five years. Comparing quotes on TCO, not just the build price, shows you the real difference between options.

One-off build costs: DIY builder vs freelancer vs agency

DIY website builders

Platforms such as GoDaddy, Wix and Squarespace let you build a site yourself from a template. GoDaddy's Australian guide lists its own Website Builder at $14.95 to $22.69 per month on an annual plan, with hosting and a domain included. WP Creative puts DIY builders at around $500 to $1,500 per year. The catch is your time: you write the content, choose the layout and handle any troubleshooting yourself.

Freelancers

A freelance web designer usually costs less than an agency and can still give you a custom look. WP Creative's 2026 guide gives a freelancer range of $1,000 to $10,000. That wide spread reflects big differences in experience, scope and what's included. Before you sign, check who will host and maintain the site once it goes live.

Agencies

Agencies bring design, development, copywriting and marketing under one roof. WP Creative estimates a typical small business site at $3,000 to $10,000. GoDaddy gives a similar range of $2,500 to $10,000 for a designer-built brochure website. For sites with requirements a standard platform can't meet, the independent guide What's The Damage puts custom builds in Melbourne at $10,000 to $30,000. Online stores cost more: GoDaddy quotes $8,500 to $20,000+ for a small-to-medium eCommerce site.

Domain name costs and .com.au eligibility rules

A domain is cheap compared with everything else. GoDaddy lists .com.au domains at about $20 to $50 per year. According to business.gov.au, you register a domain through an accredited registrar or reseller, and most hosting companies can do this for you.

A .com.au domain comes with eligibility rules. Under the auDA .au Domain Administration Rules: Licensing, you must have an Australian presence and be a commercial entity (an ABN holder, for example). The domain name must also be one of the following:

• an exact match of your company, business or personal name
• an acronym of that name
• a match of your Australian trade mark
• a match or synonym of a service, product, event, activity or premises you provide

Strictly speaking, a .com.au is a licence rather than something you own outright, so keep your details current and renew it on time.

Hosting and maintenance costs

Hosting keeps your site online. For a simple brochure site, GoDaddy quotes hosting at $6.95 to $29.95 per month. WP Creative lists shared hosting at $20 to $50 per month and managed WordPress hosting at $50 to $150 per month.

Maintenance covers software updates, security patches, backups and small content changes. The published ranges vary a lot. GoDaddy says maintenance retainers run from about $90 to $2,000+ a month. What's The Damage estimates yearly upkeep at 10 to 25 per cent of the original build cost. Some providers bundle hosting and maintenance into one monthly fee, which makes budgeting simpler.

Ongoing extras: SEO, ads and content

A website on its own won't bring in customers if nobody can find it. Most businesses end up budgeting for some of these:

• SEO: WP Creative puts initial SEO setup at $1,500 to $4,500 and analytics and tracking setup at $600 to $1,200. Ongoing SEO is usually a separate monthly service.
• Paid advertising: with Google Ads or Meta ads you set your own spend, and management fees are usually charged on top. A good performance advertising partner should tie spend to leads or sales.
• Content: blog posts, photos and updated service pages help both search rankings and customer trust. Write them yourself or budget for a copywriter.

Typical website cost ranges in Australia (summary table)

The table below summarises the ranges published by the named sources. Treat them as broad market ranges, not quotes.

Cost item	Typical range (AUD)	Source
DIY website builder	$14.95–$22.69/month (GoDaddy builder, annual plan); $500–$1,500/year (market range)	GoDaddy AU; WP Creative
Freelancer build	$1,000–$10,000	WP Creative
Small business / brochure site (professional)	$2,500–$10,000	GoDaddy AU; WP Creative ($3,000–$10,000)
Custom build (beyond standard platforms)	$10,000–$30,000	What's The Damage (Melbourne)
Small-to-medium eCommerce site	$8,500–$20,000+	GoDaddy AU
.com.au domain	$20–$50/year	GoDaddy AU
Hosting (brochure site)	$6.95–$29.95/month; shared $20–$50/month	GoDaddy AU; WP Creative
Maintenance	$90–$2,000+/month, or 10–25% of build cost per year	GoDaddy AU; What's The Damage
Initial SEO setup	$1,500–$4,500	WP Creative

Example: DataStep's Digital Jumpstart packages

Bundled packages are one way to keep costs predictable. As one example, DataStep's Digital Jumpstart packages, at the time of writing, are:

• Starter: custom website, mobile friendly, hosting & maintenance at $35/month, setup fee $800–$1,000*.
• Growth: Starter + $400 setup, adds Google presence (search + ads).
• All In One: Starter + $800 setup, adds social media and ongoing marketing.

* The Starter setup fee is based on the number of pages and complexity of the website.

Whoever you choose, ask for the same breakdown: setup fee, monthly fee, and exactly what each one covers.

Are website costs tax deductible?

Often, yes, but the timing depends on the type of cost. The ATO's guidance on digital product expenses says business owners can claim a deduction for digital products used in running the business. Whether a cost is an operating expense or a capital expense decides when you claim it, and you can only claim the business-use portion. Running costs such as hosting are generally treated differently from the cost of building a new site. Eligible small businesses may also be able to claim some capital costs sooner. Check with your accountant or tax adviser before you lodge.

How to budget for your small business website: a 6-step checklist

1. Define the job of the website. Decide whether it needs to generate calls, take bookings, sell products or simply build credibility.
2. List the must-have features. Note the number of pages, contact forms, bookings, payments and integrations with tools you already use.
3. Secure your domain. Confirm you meet the auDA .com.au eligibility rules and register the name early.
4. Get two or three like-for-like quotes. Ask each provider to separate the build, hosting, maintenance and marketing costs.
5. Calculate three-year total cost. Add the build fee to 36 months of recurring fees for each option.
6. Set aside a marketing budget. Plan for SEO, ads or content so people actually find the site after launch.

If you'd like help scoping a build, our web development page explains how we approach small business websites.

Frequently asked questions

How much should a small business pay for a website in Australia?

Published Australian guides put a professionally built small business website at roughly $2,500 to $10,000, according to GoDaddy Australia and WP Creative. DIY builders cost much less upfront but take more of your time.

Is it cheaper to build a website myself?

Upfront, yes. GoDaddy's builder starts at $14.95 per month on an annual plan, with hosting and a domain included. But you supply the design effort, content and ongoing updates yourself, so count the value of your time.

How much does a .com.au domain cost?

GoDaddy Australia lists .com.au domains at around $20 to $50 per year. To be eligible under auDA rules, you need an Australian presence, such as an ABN, and a domain that matches or closely relates to your business.

What are the ongoing costs of a website?

Expect hosting, maintenance and domain renewals at a minimum. Published ranges include hosting from $6.95 per month and maintenance retainers from about $90 to $2,000+ per month. SEO and advertising are extra.

Can I claim my website as a tax deduction?

Usually, for the business-use portion. The ATO treats operating expenses and capital expenses differently, which affects when you claim. Ask your accountant how this applies to your business.

Next steps

The right budget depends on what you need the website to do. If you'd like a second opinion on a quote, or a clear estimate for your own project, get in touch with the DataStep team. We're happy to talk it through, with no obligation.