A website builder fits if you want to build and maintain the website yourself, have the time for it and are happy with a template. An agency fits if the website should get finished without you learning a tool, if you need features such as your own booking system or several languages, or if it should grow later. At SIMPLY CODE SOLUTIONS a website starts at CHF 300 for a business card site, and a small website with up to 5 pages is CHF 600 – 950. A website builder costs a monthly subscription plus your working time.
We earn our living building websites, and we still recommend the builder to some businesses. A dog trainer who likes sitting at the computer and enters his classes himself in the evening does well with one. An accounting firm with no spare hour for technology is better off having the website made.
What is a website builder?
A website builder is a subscription service that lets you assemble a website in the browser from ready-made blocks, without programming. The provider handles hosting, updates and operations.
When the builder is the better choice
- You enjoy building it yourself and have time to keep the website up to date.
- A few pages, contact details and perhaps a gallery are enough, and a template suits your image.
- Your offer changes often, and you want to make every change yourself straight away.
- The budget does not stretch to CHF 300 – 500 today, or you do not yet know whether the idea will become a business.
In these cases an agency adds little. You would be paying for work you would happily do yourself.
When an agency is the better choice
- You want a finished result to check and sign off, without learning a tool.
- You need features a builder offers only awkwardly, such as your own booking system with your own rules.
- You are replacing an existing website. We redirect old addresses so existing links and Google entries do not lead nowhere.
- The website should grow later, for example with a shop or a login area for members.
- You want a contact person when something does not work or needs to change.
What does the builder cost, what does the agency cost?
With a builder you pay the provider a monthly subscription, usually plus the domain. How much depends on the provider and the plan. Your own working time comes on top, and that is easily forgotten. Count the hours for building, writing and later changes at your hourly rate.
With us you pay once for the build. A business card site costs CHF 300 – 500, a small website CHF 600 – 950, a company website CHF 1'500 – 2'300. The price moves mainly with the number of pages and the add-ons at fixed amounts, such as CHF 100 – 170 for embedding an existing booking tool or CHF 200 – 340 for editing the content yourself. All amounts are in our overview of website prices. These are guide prices, and the binding quote follows after we talk.
Hosting and the domain carry on afterwards and are not in the package. Subscriptions for third-party services and with online payment the payment provider's fees apply either way. Updates, backups and monitoring you handle yourself or hand to us as website care for CHF 30 – 50 per month. More in the article Website maintenance: what it covers and costs.
The difference at a glance
- Building: with a builder you build it yourself. With us we build to your brief and you sign off.
- Design: with a builder a template from the provider. With us a template with your logo and colours, or a custom design.
- Switching: with a builder the website stays tied to the provider, and switching usually means rebuilding. We hand over the result with documentation.
Three model cases
These are model cases, none of them a client project.
- A dog trainer wants to show classes and contact details and enjoys maintaining both. The builder fits here.
- A hairdresser wants five pages and online appointments but no evenings at the computer. The small website at CHF 600 – 950 with an embedded booking tool at CHF 100 – 170 fits here.
- An accounting firm needs twelve pages, two languages and redirects from the old website. The company website at CHF 1'500 – 2'300 fits here, plus the additional language as a share of the package price.
Five questions for your decision
- Do you have time in the coming weeks to build the website and write the texts yourself?
- Is a template from the provider enough for you?
- Can you manage with pages, a form and a gallery?
- Is one language enough?
- Can you solve small problems yourself later or sort them out with the provider's support?
If you answer yes throughout, take the builder. With two or more no answers, a conversation with us is worthwhile.
When something else fits better
For several products with a cart and shipping, see the article What does an online shop cost in Switzerland?. If people need to sign in and work with their own data every day, you need a web app, as the comparison website or web app shows.
Moving from a builder to an agency
Starting with a builder and switching later is a sensible path. You bring your texts and images with you, we rebuild the structure, and we redirect the old addresses. The article How much does a website cost in Switzerland? shows which package fits then.
The next step
If you lean towards an agency, the project assistant for your website gives you an estimate straight away, with a price range for package and add-ons. We usually reply within 1 to 2 working days. What we deliver is on the page website development. If it turns out when we talk that the builder is enough, we will tell you.