How to Estimate the Cost of Making a Website?
Very often in conversations with clients I receive the following questions: "What is the cost of making a website?" or "How much will a simple website cost?". The answer to these questions is relatively simple, as long as we know the time it takes to complete a given project. Then it is enough to multiply the number of hours x the rate of each contractor.
Who makes the website?
Specialists in each stage of its creation: Frontend Developer, Graphic Designer, Backend Developer, Copywriter. To estimate the cost of making a website, one would need to know the current hourly rates of the mentioned delicatessens. How to do it? We can search for several job listings and find the data we are interested in. And so, after analyzing a dozen job listings, one can average the rates for the following positions:
Frontend Developer
Who is a Frontend Developer? In a nutshell, it's a person who will handle the coding of your website. The ideal candidate should be familiar with HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The site made by the professional should be transferred to the designated server, optimized and adapted to mobile devices. In the job search, we can find three levels of expertise:
- Junior Frontend Developer - the rate for this position is about 35 PLN net/hour
- Frontend Developer - the rate for this position is approximately 60 PLN net/hour
- Senior Frontend Developer - the rate for this position is approximately 100 PLN net/hour
Graphic Designer
Graphic Designer is none other than a graphic designer who will design the look of your website. He or she should be familiar with the principles of UI (User Interface) and UE (User Experience) and use professional graphics programs (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator CorelDraw, Sketch). The rates for these positions depending on the level of expertise are as follows:
- Junior Graphic Designer - the rate for this position is about 30 PLN net/hour
- Graphic Designer - the rate for this position is about 50 PLN net/hour
- Senior Graphic Designer - the rate for this position is about 80 PLN net/hour
Backend Developer
This is the person who deals with the backend of the site, i.e. those aspects that are not visible at first glance. These include server configuration, making custom modules, integrations or booking systems. Here, too, for the purposes of the article, we have broken down by level of sophistication:
- Junior Backend Developer - the rate for this position is about 40 PLN net/hour
- Backend Developer - the rate for this position is approximately 60 PLN net/hour
- Senior Backend Developer - the rate for this position is approximately PLN 120 net/hour
Copywriter
This is a man whose study of the Polish language in school came in handy. This person is responsible for the text on the site: descriptions, slogans, advertising slogans and all kinds of content. The salary range of a copywriter is as follows:
- Junior Copywriter - the rate for this position is about 20 PLN net/hour
- Copywriter - the rate for this position is about 40 PLN net/hour
Of course, there are many more people who can work on your website, however, in order not to prolong the entry I have focused only on those who are essential. Recently, while working on an online store, I noticed that psychologists are also hired to work on advanced web projects, who are familiar with the workings of users' minds, and by introducing psychological tricks and treatments to the site, they increase interest in the presented product. Nevertheless, the pool of specialists working on web applications is respectable.
How long does it take to make a website?
Once we know what are the realities in the market of IT professionals, we can smoothly move to the process of creating a website itself. To do this, let's try to make a quote for an application with the following requirements: a few basic modules such as a slider, a modal, a gallery, an article system, a contact form and a few other custom ones, as well as a graphic design. The site should be fast and efficient, which should result in a high score in the PageSpeed Insight speed test. As an example, we can use the Business application, which meets all of the above requirements: Business page pricing.
Based on the presented website, we can make a preliminary estimate for an analogous project. However, I decided to underestimate the duration of the various stages, because it can always happen that someone will do it faster. So let's start from the beginning:
1. Concept
Concept is the entire process of developing all the client's requirements, the materials sent by the client, the layout of the site, color scheme, graphic style, content, advertising slogans, and modules. The coordination of all this work is most often handled by the Project Manager, but it can also be done successfully by one of the contractors. Most often, however, agencies appoint one person from the team to contact the client directly.
- Determining color scheme, grid, RWD model, graphic style: 1h x graphic designer's rate
- Number of modules and their type: 30 min x programmer's rate
- Content, advertising slogans, number of pages: 30 min x copywriter's rate
2. Artwork
This part of the process of creating the site is a field for the graphic designer. His role is to select the color scheme of the site in accordance with the assumptions and specifications of the site, make logos and create mock-ups (preliminary design of the site), on the basis of which the final design will be made. In addition, the graphic designer also deals with the design of the appearance of the site in accordance with the thresholds of screen width, that is, from Polish to ours: the appearance of the site on a monitor, tablet, mobile or other mobile device.
Graphic work we have done on our sample site:
- Development of homepage design: 10h
- Sub-page: 1h
- Documents subpage: 1h
- Articles subpage: 30 min
- Contact subpage: 30 min
- Design customization and RWD versions: 7h
3. Programming work
Once the client accepts the graphic design, it's time for the developers to prove themselves. It is very common for a Frontend Developer to perform simple Backend Developer duties. This was also the case with the site we discussed, as it has no custom modules that we would not have used before. The programming work consisted of:
- Homepage coding: 20h
- Adaptation of modules for the project: 1h
- RWD: 10h
- Optimization: 2h
- CMS system: 10h
Summary: The time and cost of making a website
Before quoting the cost of making a website, it should be noted that the time given for the implementation of individual implementations is an approximate calculation at the level of Senior, a person at a high level of sophistication, and refers to the implementation of this website. However, the implementation time may vary, as it depends on many factors, such as the use of off-the-shelf solutions. At Compsoul, however, we emphasize the optimization of the site, so we only use our own proprietary solutions.
So let's move on to a summary:
- Conceptual work: 2h
- Graphic work: 20h
- Programming works: 43h
The total time to complete a sample page is: 65h. We also already know what the rates of each specialist are, so only now can we try to answer the question of how much a website costs:
- Junior version of the site - written by people who are just learning to program or design. These people need much more time to make implementations, and the site itself may contain graphical as well as programming errors. The price of such implementation: 100zl (Conceptual work) + 600zl (Graphic design) + 1500zl (Programming work) = 2200zl.
- A page in the medium standard - a reliably made page, usually based on ready-made solutions: 100zl (Conceptual work) + 1000zl (Graphic design) + 2500zl (Programming work) = 3600zl
- A site of the highest standard - fully individual and uncompromising execution, unable to afford mistakes. Very well thought-out graphic design and optimization at the highest level. Overall grazing :) Such a page can cost you: 100zl (conceptual work) + 1600zl (graphic design) + 4200zl (programming work) = 5800zl.
Of course, you must take into account that the analyzed site was designed for the internal needs of the company, and the cost of its implementation coincides with the calculations I presented. Of course, there are quite a few ways to reduce the cost of making the site, for example: you can use a package of ready-made solutions, where you will get a similar site in the amount of PLN 800. How this is possible you will read here. But now I'll leave you with a rhetorical question: if your brother-in-law's buddy makes an individual site for under 1000zl, does he therefore pay extra to make you enjoy a super site?