Let's be straight with you. Most agencies won't give you a real answer to this question because the moment they do, you'll know whether you're being overcharged. We're not most agencies. Here's what a website actually costs for a UK trade business, and what you should be getting for your money.
The Real Options
There are three routes most trade businesses go down.
DIY Builders: £15 to £30/month
Wix or Squarespace will cost around £15 to £30 per month and you'll spend a weekend trying to build something yourself. The problem isn't the price — it's that most trade businesses don't set these up correctly for local SEO. Your site might look fine and rank for absolutely nothing. You end up with a digital business card that brings in no work.
Cheap Freelancers: £300 to £800
This is where most people go first. You might get something that looks decent, but SEO usually isn't included, the structure is often wrong, and communication tends to disappear once the invoice is paid. We speak to trade businesses regularly who've already paid for one of these sites and need it rebuilt properly. Cheap ends up expensive.
Agencies: £800 to £5,000+
This is where pricing varies a lot. Large agencies charge more and frequently outsource the work overseas while keeping the margin. A specialist agency that understands trade businesses and local search will build something designed to actually generate enquiries rather than just look good in a portfolio. At Sitement, our websites start from £500, built entirely in the UK with no outsourcing and no disappearing acts after handover.
What Actually Makes a Trade Website Work
Most trade websites fail not because of how they look, but because of what's missing underneath. Here's what actually turns a website into something that brings in work.
Separate pages for each service
If you offer boiler installs, boiler repairs, and central heating, those need to be three separate pages. Each one targets a different search. Bundling everything onto a single services page means you're competing for nothing in particular and ranking for nothing specific. This is one of the most common mistakes we see and one of the easiest to fix.
Clear service areas written throughout the site
Google needs to see where you operate. If the towns and areas you cover aren't on your site, you won't rank in them. Location pages and area mentions aren't just good practice — they're what separates businesses that show up in local search from the ones that don't. We build dedicated location pages for trade businesses across London, Bristol, Birmingham, and beyond.
Real photos of your work
People can spot stock images immediately and they reduce trust just as fast. Your own photos, even taken on a phone, show that you're real, that you do the work, and that you're proud of it. That matters to someone deciding whether to call you or the next result.
A click-to-call button that works on mobile
The majority of your traffic will be on mobile. If someone has to think for even a second about how to contact you, they're gone. One tap to call is non-negotiable for any trade website that wants to convert visitors into enquiries.
Reviews displayed on the site
Showing genuine reviews directly on your website builds trust before someone even picks up the phone. Combined with a strong Google Business Profile, this is one of the highest leverage things a trade business can do. We've seen businesses go from sporadic enquiries to consistent weekly calls simply by fixing their review presence and making it visible on their site.
The Ongoing Costs
The build is a one-off cost, but there are ongoing expenses to factor in. Hosting typically runs between £5 and £30 per month depending on your provider. A domain costs around £10 to £15 per year. If you want someone managing updates and keeping the site current, that's usually between £50 and £150 per month.
SEO is separate and worth understanding properly before you budget for it. Getting your site to rank in your local area requires ongoing work including Google Business Profile management, content, citations, and review generation. Genuine local SEO for a trade business in the UK starts at around £300 to £500 per month from an agency doing it properly. Anything significantly cheaper and you're paying for a monthly report, not actual results.
The Part Most People Miss
A website alone will not get your phone ringing. What drives consistent enquiries is being visible in local search, showing up in the Google Map Pack, and having enough reviews and trust signals that people choose you over the business above or below you. The website is the foundation. Without the SEO strategy built around it, it just sits there.
This is what most agencies don't mention when they sell you a web build, because they'd rather take the fee and move on. The businesses winning in their local area are treating their website as an ongoing asset, not a one-time job.
The Straight Answer
A properly built website for a UK trade business — one that's structured correctly and designed to rank — will cost between £500 and £2,000. Spend less and you'll likely need to rebuild within a year. Spend significantly more with a large agency and you're often paying for overhead and margins rather than better output.
If you want to know exactly what's holding your current site back, or what a new one would need to actually generate work, we offer a free website audit for trade businesses across the UK. No obligation, no sales pitch. Just a clear breakdown of what's missing and what it would take to fix it.
FAQ: Website Costs for UK Trade Businesses
How much does a website cost for a trade business in the UK?
A professionally built site typically costs between £500 and £2,000 depending on the number of pages and whether SEO is included.
Do I need SEO alongside my website?
Yes. Without it your site won't rank on Google and won't generate consistent enquiries. The website and the SEO strategy need to work together.
Can I use Wix or Squarespace?
You can, but most trade businesses don't structure them correctly for local SEO, which means they don't rank or convert. It's a fine starting point and a poor long-term solution.
How long does a trade website take to build?
Most take between one and three weeks depending on the size and detail required.
What pages should a trade website include?
At minimum: a homepage, individual service pages, service area pages, and a contact page. The more specific each page is to a service or location, the better it tends to rank.
How do I get more leads from my website?
The main drivers are local SEO, Google Maps visibility, a well-structured site, and a consistent flow of genuine reviews.
Want a free audit of your trade website?
We'll tell you exactly what's missing and what it would take to fix it. No obligation, no sales pitch.
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