Web agency: what do website design and development cost?
A web agency typically charges DKK 35,000–90,000 excluding VAT to design and develop a five-page website for a small business, then DKK 9,000–34,000 a year for running costs and a service agreement. The price comes from hours: agencies charge about DKK 900–1,400 an hour. Here is what you get for the money, how the process runs, and when an agency is the wrong choice.
What does a web agency do?
A web agency plans, designs and builds your website, and often runs it afterwards. A typical quote covers six things:
- Strategy: who the site is for, which pages it needs, and what visitors should do.
- Design: colours, type and layout, often as mock-ups you approve before anything is built.
- Development: the build itself, in WordPress, Webflow or code they write themselves.
- Copy: some agencies write it, others expect you to supply it.
- SEO: titles, descriptions and a structure Google can read.
- Integrations: booking, a shop, a newsletter or a link to your own systems.
Many agencies also sell a service agreement with hosting, updates and a number of hours for changes each month or year.
What does a web agency cost for a small business?
A web agency costs DKK 35,000–90,000 for a five-page website, plus DKK 9,000–34,000 a year to run it. Over three years that is DKK 62,000–192,000, against DKK 26,000–77,000 with a freelancer. The spread comes mostly from how much design is made from scratch, and whether the agency writes the texts.
| Freelancer | Web agency | Striive (you build it) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Build | DKK 12,000–30,000 | DKK 35,000–90,000 | No build fee |
| Running per year, from year 2 | DKK 4,500–15,500 | DKK 9,000–34,000 | DKK 2,000–3,000 |
| First year in total | DKK 16,000–46,000 | DKK 44,000–124,000 | DKK 1,500–2,500 |
| Three years in total | DKK 26,000–77,000 | DKK 62,000–192,000 | DKK 5,500–7,500 |
All amounts exclude VAT and come from our website cost calculator, built on Danish hourly rates: about DKK 500–900 an hour for freelancers and DKK 900–1,400 for agencies. Running costs are hosting, a domain, licences and a service agreement. Striive is DKK 99 a month incl. VAT for the first 4 months, then DKK 249 a month incl. VAT, plus your domain.
How does a project with a web agency run?
A project almost always follows the same phases, from the first meeting to a website that is live:
- Discovery: a meeting about your business, your customers and your budget.
- Quote: a fixed price or an estimate of hours, with a list of what is included.
- Structure: an outline of pages and menu for you to approve.
- Design: mock-ups of the front page and one inner page, usually with a set number of revision rounds.
- Development: the agency builds the pages and sets up integrations.
- Content: texts and photos go in, added by the agency or by you.
- Testing and launch: the site is checked on phone and computer, the domain is moved, and the site goes live.
- Running: hosting, updates and changes under the service agreement.
A project takes from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. What most often delays it is waiting for texts, photos and approvals from the customer.
How do you compare quotes from web agencies?
Compare quotes on what they contain, not just the bottom line. Two quotes for the same amount can cover very different things:
| Ask about | Why it matters | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed price or hours | A fixed price moves the risk of overruns to the agency. | Only an estimate of hours, with no cap. |
| Revision rounds | Extra rounds are often billed by the hour. | The quote doesn’t say. |
| Who writes the texts | Copy is often the biggest hidden item. | “Client supplies content”, with no mention in the price. |
| Platform | It decides who can take the site over later. | A closed system only the agency can edit. |
| Running costs a year | Running costs come every year, even when nothing changes. | A service agreement with a long lock-in. |
| Ownership | The domain, texts, photos and design should be yours. | The domain is registered in the agency’s name. |
| Editing yourself | Small changes shouldn’t come with an invoice. | You don’t get a login. |
Should the agency build in WordPress, Webflow or its own code?
For a small business, what matters most is that you can edit the site yourself and that someone else can take over if the relationship ends. The platforms differ on exactly those two points:
| Platform | Can you edit it? | Ongoing costs | If the agency stops |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress | Yes, in an admin panel. | Hosting, paid plugins and updates to the theme and plugins. | Many freelancers and agencies can take over. |
| Webflow | Yes, in Webflow’s editor. | A Webflow site plan, billed in US dollars, on top of the agency’s own price. | Others with Webflow experience can take over, if you get access to the project. |
| The agency’s own code | Often only through the agency. | Hosting and hours for every change. | Hard. Usually the site has to be rebuilt. |
Whatever the platform, always ask whether you get administrator access in your own name.
When is a web agency worth it, and when not?
An agency is worth it when the website is a big, complicated job you can’t or won’t manage yourself:
- When the site has to connect to your own systems, such as stock, ERP or a membership system.
- When you’re getting a new visual identity, and the website is part of it.
- When there are many pages, several languages or many editors.
- Not when you need five pages with services, prices and contact details. Then you pay for hours you could spend yourself, or that AI can do for you.
- Not when you want to edit often yourself. Then the service agreement is a cost you don’t use.
Work out your own case in our website cost calculator, or see what a website costs in all three models.
Who owns the domain and the content once the agency has built the site?
You should own the domain, the texts and the photos, and the agreement should say so. The domain should be registered with your business as the owner, not the agency. The design and the code are often owned by the agency, which gives you the right to use them, so ask whether you can take them with you if you switch.
If you’re stuck with a website you can’t get into, Striive can rebuild it from its public address with site import. It’s a rebuild, not a copy, so blog posts, shops and booking systems don’t come along.
Frequently asked questions
Typically DKK 900–1,400 an hour excluding VAT. Larger agencies sit at the top end. A freelancer usually charges DKK 500–900.
An agency has more specialists and can take on bigger jobs, but costs two to three times as much. For a small website you rarely get more for the money. See freelance web designer.
From a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on the scope and how quickly you deliver texts and approve mock-ups. The process is in get a website made.
That depends on the platform and the agreement. Ask before you sign, and get a login in your own name.
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