Cost, DIY & tools
What a website should cost, whether to build it yourself, and how to keep it updated without touching code.
Cheapest pro-looking website
The cheapest route depends on your time. The lowest cash cost is a free or low-cost builder like Google Sites or Wix, which runs $0 to about $200 a year plus many hours of your own work. The cheapest route that still looks professional and gets built for you is a flat monthly service like Blank Theory at $199/month, with no setup fee and a free preview first.
ReadDo you need website maintenance?
Yes, a website needs ongoing maintenance, but you should not have to think about it. Maintenance covers security updates, backups, broken-link fixes, and content edits when your hours or prices change. A neglected site gets slow, hacked, or outdated and loses you calls. Standalone plans run $25 to $150 a month, or it's already included in Blank Theory's flat $199/month.
ReadFreelancer vs website service
A freelancer is best when you want a one-off custom build and can manage the project. A monthly website service is best when you want it built, hosted, and maintained without the upfront cost or the chasing. Freelancers run $1,500 to $5,000 once, plus ongoing fees. Blank Theory is a flat $199/month done-for-you option with no setup fee.
ReadHidden costs of a cheap site
A cheap website rarely stays cheap. The hidden costs are renewal price hikes, paid plugins and add-ons, per-edit fees, security and backup gaps, and the lost jobs from a slow site nobody maintains. Add them up and a $5/month builder can cost more than a flat all-in plan. Blank Theory bundles everything into $199/month with no surprises.
ReadIs a monthly website worth it?
A monthly website is worth it when the fee covers the things a one-time build doesn't: hosting, security, and ongoing updates handled for you. It's a bad deal when it's just a payment plan for a static site you still have to maintain. The honest test is simple — does the monthly fee buy you a real person who keeps the site online and current, or just spread-out costs?
ReadOnline tools a trade needs
Far fewer than the internet wants to sell you. A small trade business needs five things online: a fast website, a Google Business Profile, a business email, a way to take calls and messages, and a simple way to get paid. That's it. You can run the rest from your phone. Blank Theory covers the website, hosting, domain, and email in one flat $199/month.
ReadUpdate your website without code
You almost never need to touch code to update a modern website. Most sites are built on a content editor where you click the text or photo you want to change, type the new version, and hit save. For the common trade updates — hours, phone number, services, photos, reviews — it's no harder than editing a Word document, or you can have a managed service make the change for you.
ReadWhat a domain name costs
A standard .com domain costs about $10 to $20 a year from a normal registrar. You're paying to register and own that address, not to host the website on it. Avoid premium resale domains that run hundreds or thousands, and watch the renewal price. With Blank Theory, your domain is set up and managed as part of the flat $199/month.
ReadWhat a small business website costs
For a local trade business, expect three honest ranges in 2026: a DIY builder runs about $15 to $50 a month plus your time; a freelancer or agency build runs roughly $2,000 to $8,000 upfront plus hosting and update fees; and a done-for-you monthly service runs about $100 to $300 a month all-in. The right number depends less on looks and more on who keeps it updated after launch.
ReadWhat website hosting costs
Basic shared hosting for a small business runs about $5 to $30 a month, or $60 to $360 a year. Cheap plans get slow and pile on renewal price hikes, while managed hosting costs more but stays fast and secure. With a done-for-you service like Blank Theory, hosting is already bundled into the flat $199/month, so you never buy or manage it separately.
ReadWix vs a custom trade site
Wix (and similar builders) is cheap and fast if you enjoy building and maintaining it yourself — it's a real, capable tool. A custom or done-for-you site costs more but saves your time and stays current without you. For most busy tradespeople the deciding factor isn't features; it's whether you'll actually keep a DIY site updated, or whether you'd rather have someone handle it.
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