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In this article I am going to show you exactly how website pricing is calculated and what you can expect. After building hundreds of websites for businesses across Cape Town (and beyond), I get this question almost daily: “How much will my website cost?”
Short answer: The pricing gap is very large but in Cape Town (and on average) a basic business website will cost you between R15k – R100k as a once-off payment OR R599 – R1399 per month on a subscription plan.
Larger, more complex websites with custom features can range from R100k to R1mil+
Now let’s dive into what actually drives these costs and how to figure out what’s best for YOUR business.
Table of Contents
- Website pricing breakdown
- Monthly vs. once-off website pricing
- Hidden website costs
- Website payment options explained
- Real website cost examples from Cape Town
- Choosing the right web developer or web agency in Cape Town
- Common questions about website costs in Cape Town
- What’s the right website cost for YOUR Business?
# Website Pricing Breakdown: What Am I Even Paying For?
After a decade in web development and building everything from small business sites, to corporate websites at Matogen, e-commerce sites, and even Cape Solace’s solar website that’s now used across Africa, I can break it down in plain English.
Here’s what you’re actually paying for:
1. Website Type & Complexity
Just like houses, websites come in different shapes and sizes:
- Basic Info Website (Brochure website) (R5k – R25k once-off or R599 – R1399/month)
This is a simple 5-page website with your basic info, contact form, and mobile-friendly design. Perfect for a small local business or consultant that just wants to display information about their business online and does not put high value on converting visitors.
- Business Website (R15k – R100k once-off or R799 – R1999/month)
This is typically offers what most Cape Town businesses need –
- More pages
- A planned sales/marketing funnel on the website
- Better design (for the user experience)
- Contact forms with conditional logic and custom integrations
- Social media integration
- UX design
- Conversion optimisation
- Analytics
- And best-practice SEO
- Business Website (R15k – R100k once-off or R799 – R1999/month)
- E-commerce Store (R12k – R200k+ once-off or R799+/month)Full online shopping experience with product pages, payment systems, and inventory management.
When we built Wolf Shuttles’ online booking system, we used WordPress and WooCommerce to create a custom solution that was way more affordable than coding from scratch – but still had all the e-commerce features they needed. It would have probably cost our client 10x the amount to build everything from scratch, and would probably have taken months longer.
2. Design Approach
There are two main ways to build your site:
- Template-Based (Cheaper) Using pre-made designs customised with your logo, colors, and content. Has less customisation options available and typically requires less hours to develop.
- Custom Design (More Expensive) Built from scratch to your exact specifications. This is what we do for each of our clients. Every business is unique and has unique challenges and goals. To stand out in a crowded market where everyone looks the same, you need to be and look different to demand attention.
3. Content Creation (Copywriting and media resources)
Who’s writing all the words and taking all the photos? This can be a hidden cost that surprises many Cape Town business owners!
- DIY Content: Free (but takes YOUR time and can be very unprofessional, untargeted)
- Professional Copywriting: R1k – R25k depending on website size. Many copywriters charge per word count / per hour.
- Professional Photography: R2k – R10k for a full shoot. Once again, this ranges depending on how many photos are required, and the price range and experience level of the photographer
4. Extra Features & Functionality
This is where costs can really change based on what your business needs:
- Contact Forms: Included in most packages
- Newsletter Signup: R500 – R1k extra if not included
- Online Booking System: R2k – R20k depending on complexity
- Payment Gateway: R500 – R3k for setup per payment gateway
- Membership Areas: R5k – R20k
- Process automation: R1k – R10k (per automation setup)
- External API integration: Rx (this is extremely variable and depends on the API and its functionality
When we built Cape Solace’s business website, we added custom automations that helped the internal teams communicate much faster, save files for quicker access, and created a central repository that could be accessed by many team members based on their roles. Those automation features cost nearly R15k to develop – but saved them countless hours in admin and repetitive tasks while reducing human error.
# Monthly vs Once-off Website Pricing: What's Best for You?
One thing I’ve noticed working with Cape Town businesses is confusion about pricing models and what the options are. Let me break it down:
Once-Off Payment Model
Pros:
- You own the website outright
- No ongoing monthly fees (except hosting & domain)
- Can be more affordable in the long run
- Bigger upfront investment
- It will take money from your cash flow that could have been used for other business priorities
- You’re responsible for updates & maintenance
- Support often costs extra
Monthly Subscription Model
How it works: You pay a smaller monthly fee (R799 – R1999/month) that includes everything.
Pros:
- Low startup cost
- Typically includes hosting, maintenance & updates
- Ongoing support included
- Easy to budget for
- Easy and feasible to upgrade features as business grows
Cons:
- Continues indefinitely (you’re essentially “renting” the website – unless they have an exit clause)
- May cost more long-term
- Typically not a good fit for customised solutions
- Might be locked into long-term contracts
Best for: Startups, small businesses, or anyone who prefers predictable monthly costs over large upfront investments.
I always tell my Cape Town clients to think about how long they plan to keep their website. If it’s more than 2-3 years (which it should be!), the once-off payment often works out more affordable.
You just need to see it as an investment in your business that will give you ridiculous ROI over the long run.
If you simply want to test new services and products in the market using paid ads (PPC), the better option would be to create landing pages that have shorter shelf lives unless the landing pages perform well – they would then be integrated into the bigger system as permanent pages.
When I built my first websites back in 2012, I got burned by hidden website costs that nobody mentioned upfront. Or, it was a lack of due diligence. Now at Yellow Byte, we’re 100% transparent about ALL the costs and run our financial models to ensure the investment makes sense:
1. Domain Registration
- R100 – R200 per year for your website address (like yellowbyte.co)
- Needed regardless of which pricing model you choose
2. Hosting
- R50 – R200/month for basic websites or landing pages
- R200 – R500/month for business websites (more traffic/bandwidth, more space, etc)
- R500 – R2k+/month for high-traffic e-commerce sites or high volume authority websites
3. SSL Certificate (Website Security)
- R100 – R2k/year (Nowadays you get a free SSL certificate with most hosting plans)
4. Ongoing Maintenance
- Security updates: R500 – R1k/month
- Content updates: R450 – R600/hour for changes
- Technical support: R450 – R900/hour for issues
5. Plugin/Extension Subscriptions
- Form builders: R500 – R1k/year
- Page builders/themes: R500 – R1k/year
- SEO tools: R1k – R25k/year (depends on the type of tool and the value it provides)
- Payment processors: 2% – 4% per transaction
When we built that advanced booking system for Wolf Shuttles, they were shocked by the high fees by one of the local, well-known payment gateway providers. We did some research and opted to go for a Yoco integration since they already had an ongoing relationship and would therefore decrease their transaction fees (to the lowest in the market). Always ask about these ongoing costs.
# Website Payment Options Explained
There are 4 main ways to pay for your website in Cape Town (and most other places):
1. Once-off Payment:
Example: R30k upfront (often with 50% deposit)
Best for: Established businesses with available cash
2. Monthly Package
Example: R799/month ongoing
Best for: Startups and small businesses with limited capital
3. Split Payments
Example: R6k/per month for 6 months
Best for: Businesses wanting middle ground between monthly and once-off
4. Hourly Rate
Example: R450 – R900/hour of development work
Best for: Fully custom builds for extremely unique needs, small updates or very specific customisations on existing websites
We’ve seen businesses in Cape Town waste thousands on the wrong payment model. It’s good to have a long discussion first about what exactly you need and what your budget is.
For larger or more complex projects, it’s a great idea to do a paid discovery call and a technical audit. This will provide the developer or agency with better information about the project, challenges, limitations, and best next steps.
Book a free consultation with us here if you’re interested in having a discussion about your project and to determine the best next step for your project.
# Real Website Cost Examples from Cape Town
Let me share some actual projects we’ve worked on (with names redacted for privacy):
Local Financial Advisory Firm
- 15-page website with menu, contact form, Calendly booking system, email integration, and map
- Custom design based on an international reference
- We wrote content using AI, reviewed by humans
- Compliant to financial industry standards
- Cost: R45k once-off
Solar SME
- 20+page business website
- Custom design and development
- Custom form development with webhooks
- Integration with existing CRM
- Multiple process automations built into website, Hubspot CRM, email, and communication platforms (Slack)
- Cost: R95k once-off
Local Shuttle Company
- 8-page E-commerce online experience
- Sales funnel with custom payment integration (Yoco), email templates, Google Maps API integration, HERE Toll Gates API integration, and much more.
- Custom design (as far as WordPress and WooCommerce lets you go)
- Human copywriting only and approval by client
- Additional services: Monthly PPC ads
- Cost: R150k once-off
International Author Landing Page
- 1-pager – also called a landing page
- Custom design and development
- Integrated with external retail company API
- Gallery with no extra bloat
- Conversion-focused for lead capture
- Advanced analytics integration
- Cost: R15k once-off
# Choosing the Right Web Developer or Web Agency in Cape Town
After building websites for businesses across Somerset West, Strand, Paarl, Stellenbosch, and Cape Town areas for years, here’s my honest advice on choosing the right developer or agency:
Agency vs. Freelancer
Web Design Agency (like Yellow Byte)
- More reliable and accountable
- Team of specialists (design, development, content)
- Higher rates (R600 – R2500 p/h)
- More formal processes
Freelancer
- Often cheaper (R150 – R800 p/h)
- More personal relationship
- May have limited skills in some areas
- Less formal, potentially higher risk
- Could have poor communication
- Lack of business insight due to narrow scope of skill and experience
I’ve been on both sides! As a freelancer, I built great sites but sometimes struggled with complex features and knowing exactly what businesses need. Now with Yellow Byte, we have specialists for everything from design, to SEO, to PPC, and E-commerce.
Red Flags to Watch For
- No clear pricing or vague quotes
- No portfolio or case studies
- Not willing to sit down and understand your business
- No clear timelines of estimated completion
- No service agreements, scope of work documents, or NDAs
- Unwilling to explain technical decisions
- Pushing expensive features you don’t need
I’ll say it again, sit down with your developer or agency and have a good, long, thorough discussion about everything in your business to create a solution that makes sense and that will actually have a positive impact on your business over the long run.
# Common Questions About Website Costs in Cape Town
How much does it cost to create a website in South Africa?
With a DIY option, it’s almost free if you exclude web hosting and the domain.
With a developer or agency, the cost to create a website in South Africa ranges from R5k – R25k for a basic site to R100k+ for complex e-commerce sites or custom applications. Monthly options for a decent website typically start from R599+/month depending on complexity and features.
How much does a simple, 5-page website cost in Cape Town?
This is a very typical starter website, and so a standard 5-page website costs between R15k – R25k as a once-off payment OR R599 – R1399 per month on a subscription plan.
The exact price depends on design complexity, features needed, experience of the developer/agency, and value provided.
Is it worth paying someone to build your website?
While DIY tools exist, a professional website can dramatically increase your leads and sales – that is the whole point of a business website, is it not?
What's the cheapest way to start a website?
For a professional website with minimal upfront cost, monthly package models are probably your best bet. Alternatively, create a landing page and test whether your service/product is working with the market and then scale your solutions based on the market feedback.
How much does website maintenance cost in South Africa?
Website maintenance in South Africa (and Cape Town) typically costs between R500 – R3k per month depending on the size and complexity of your site and the support needed on a month-to-month basis.
At Yellow Byte, we include maintenance, tech support, security checks, backups, content updates, and more, in our monthly care packages starting from R800 per month and we charge R450/hour for specific front-end updates and R950/hour for backend support and maintenance.
# What's the Right Website Cost for YOUR Business?
After building hundreds of websites for Cape Town businesses, here’s my honest take on what different businesses should budget:
Startups & Small Businesses (under R1M annual revenue)
- Budget: R15k – R35k
- Recommendation: Have a discussion with your developer agency and decide whether a website is actually a good fit or not. Perhaps you need to make more money first and then expand your reach and impact with a website
Growing Businesses (R1M - R5M annual revenue)
- Budget: R25k – R250k
- Recommendation: Get down to the nitty gritty and discuss your goals with your developer or agency to determine what will bring you more cash and really build your brand.
You can opt to start out on the lower end of the price range and then upgrade the website feature list and functionality as your business grows.
Established Businesses (R5M+ annual revenue)
- Budget: R150k+
- Recommendation: Custom development with the necessary features and elements to help scale your business.
Remember: your website is an investment, not an expense! When we built the Solar SME’s website, the R95k development cost seemed high initially – but it helped them double their revenue year after year and expand across Africa. The brand keeps building on its success and the website keeps being referenced due to its ongoing success. The website is also utilised for ongoing PPC ads and SEO which will provide a very ROI in the long run.
Get a Free Website Quote from Yellow Byte
Not sure what your website should cost? I get it! Every business is different, and cookie-cutter pricing rarely works for serious businesses.
At Yellow Byte, we offer free, no-obligation website consultations where we:
- Discuss your specific business goals
- Recommend the right website solution (or advise you on not creating a website right now)
- Provide transparent pricing (no hidden costs!)
- Share relevant case studies of similar businesses
- Answer all your questions honestly because we treat your business as our own
Whether you’re a small business in Stellenbosch or a growing company in Cape Town CBD, we’d love to help you understand exactly what you need and what it should cost.
About the Author
Christopher founded Yellow Byte after freelancing for years. He then went on to build his own successful businesses, including two fitness franchises (that grew 10x in 2 years) and Cape Solace, a local solar company (now operating throughout Africa). Based in Somerset West, Cape Town, Yellow Byte specialises in creating websites that don’t just look good but actually generate leads and sales for local businesses.