Short answer: a professionally designed website for an Ontario small business usually costs somewhere between a few hundred and several thousand dollars to build, plus a smaller monthly amount to keep it running. Where you land depends far more on what the site has to do than on how many pages it has.
That range is wide because “a website” can mean a one-page landing page or a booking-enabled site with ten templates and a CRM connection. This guide explains what actually drives the price, what ongoing costs to expect and how to compare quotes properly. We use our own published prices as a worked example, because they’re real numbers you can check, not averages pulled from nowhere.
What a website costs: a transparent reference point
Most studios don’t publish prices, which makes comparison hard. We do. These are the starting points on our pricing page, in Canadian dollars:
- Landing page: from $750. One focused page for a campaign, a launch or a single service.
- Small business website: from $2,500. The core pages most service businesses need.
- Professional business website: from $4,500. More pages and templates, more structure.
- Premium website: from $7,500.
- Advanced website: from $10,000.
- Bespoke or complex website: from $15,000.
Online stores are a different build. A Shopify store starts at $4,500 on our Shopify development page, because a catalogue, product templates, cart, payments, shipping and tax all have to be planned and tested.
These are starting points, not final prices. Every project gets a fixed quote once scope is agreed, which is how most reputable studios work. Be wary of any quote that’s a single number with no breakdown of what’s included.
The six things that really drive website cost
1. Templates, not pages
A site with 30 pages that share three layouts can cost less than a site with eight pages that each look different. Design and development time goes into templates: the home page, a service page, a team page, a blog post. Once a template exists, adding another page that uses it is quick. When you’re comparing quotes, ask how many unique templates are included.
2. Content: who writes it and when it’s ready
Content is the most common reason website projects stall. If your copy, photos and service details are ready, the build moves quickly. If they need writing, budget for it: we charge $150 per page for copywriting, and other providers will have their own rate. Sites built around placeholder text and then “filled in later” almost always launch late and read worse.
3. Functionality
Every feature that connects your website to something else adds cost, because it has to be built, tested and kept working. Typical examples, using our add-on prices:
- Booking integration: $400
- Lead capture system: $300
- CRM integration: $500
- Payment integration: $400
- Custom API integration: $750
Before adding a feature, ask whether it saves real time or brings in real enquiries. Our guide to website automations that save admin time covers which ones usually earn their keep.
4. Moving from an old website
Replacing an existing site isn’t just a rebuild. Old URLs need redirecting to their new equivalents, or you lose the search visibility those pages built up. We charge $500 for a website migration including redirects. A quote that doesn’t mention redirects when you already have a site is a warning sign.
5. Accessibility and compliance
If your organization has 50 or more employees in Ontario, the AODA requires your public website to meet WCAG 2.0 Level AA. Building that in from the start costs far less than fixing it later. Our AODA website compliance guide explains who’s covered and what it means in practice. Even if you’re smaller, accessible sites are easier for everyone to use.
6. Brand and design maturity
If you already have a clear logo, colours and type, the website inherits them. If you don’t, the website project quietly becomes a branding project, and it’s better to scope that honestly. Our brand identity cost guide covers what that involves.
Ongoing costs most quotes leave out
The build is a one-off. Running the site isn’t. Expect some or all of these:
- Domain name: renewed yearly with your registrar.
- Hosting: monthly or yearly. Cheap shared hosting is often the cause of slow sites.
- Licences: some themes, plugins and apps charge annual fees.
- Maintenance: software updates, backups, security and checks. Our CHRISPS Care plans start at $99/month. Our website maintenance guide explains what a good plan includes.
- Content updates: new services, staff changes and seasonal offers.
- Sales tax: if your provider is registered for GST/HST, Ontario HST at 13% is added to the invoice. Check whether a quote is before or after tax.
Three worked examples (built from published prices)
These are illustrations of how the numbers add up, before tax, not quotes. Real projects get scoped first.
A Cambridge trades business that wants online bookings
Small business website ($2,500) + booking integration ($400) + analytics setup ($250) = $3,150, plus hosting and an optional Care plan.
A Kitchener product brand launching online
Shopify Starter ($4,500) + product upload for 60 products at $10 each ($600) = $5,100, plus Shopify’s own subscription and any apps.
A Waterloo services firm replacing an outdated site
Professional business website ($4,500) + website migration with redirects ($500) + copywriting for six pages ($900) = $5,900.
Notice what moves the total: features, migration and content, not the page count. If you’re a growing tech company deciding when to leave a template site, our guide for Waterloo startups covers that decision.
How to compare website quotes properly
Two quotes for “a website” can describe completely different projects. Put these questions to every provider:
- How many unique page templates are included?
- Who writes the content, and what happens if ours is late?
- Is the design custom, or a customised bought theme?
- Will we be able to edit pages ourselves? Is training included?
- Are redirects from our current site included?
- What accessibility standard do you build to?
- Who owns the site, the domain and the hosting account?
- What does it cost to keep running after launch?
- Is the price fixed? How are changes quoted?
- Is tax included?
Ownership matters more than people expect. You should own your domain, your hosting account (or have full admin access) and the site itself. With us, you own the site outright from launch.
Fixed price or hourly?
Hourly billing suits small, unpredictable jobs. For a website build, a fixed price based on agreed scope protects you from open-ended costs and makes the provider plan properly. The trade-off is that scope changes mid-project get quoted separately, which is fair as long as it’s agreed before the work happens.
When it’s smart to spend less, and when it isn’t
Spend less if you’re testing a new idea, your offer is still changing, or one page will do. A landing page is often the right first step.
Spend more if your website is how most customers find you, you take bookings or payments online, you’re replacing a site that already ranks, or you have accessibility obligations. In those cases a cheap build usually costs more over two or three years in fixes, lost enquiries and a second rebuild.
Fix before you replace if your current site is basically sound but slow or broken in places. Our guide on whether to redesign or rescue a website walks through that decision.
Frequently asked questions
Are website prices in Ontario usually quoted with HST?
It varies. Providers registered for GST/HST charge 13% on top in Ontario, and many quote before tax. Always ask.
How long does a small business website take?
It depends mostly on how ready your content is and how quickly feedback comes back. A good provider gives you a timeline alongside the fixed quote, before anything starts.
Can I start small and add to the site later?
Yes, if it’s built on a sensible system. Ask whether new pages can reuse existing templates without a developer.
Get a real number for your project
The fastest way to a real figure is to describe what you need. Our project estimator totals one-off and monthly costs from our published prices as you choose options, and sends us a brief. If you already have a site, run a free website audit first; it often changes what you actually need to spend.
Written by the CHRISPS studio in Cambridge, Ontario. All prices quoted are CHRISPS’s own published starting points in CAD at the time of writing; check the pricing page for current figures.