“Build your website for free.” It’s the promise behind almost every free website builder, and it’s tempting when you’re starting a business, watching every dollar and just want to get something online.
And to be fair, a free website builder can be a perfectly good place to start. But “free” usually describes the first step, not the whole journey. Here’s where the costs tend to show up, so you can go in with your eyes open.
Free website builder plans and add-ons
Monthly plans that add up
Most free website builders work on a simple model: the basic version is free, and the version a business actually needs is on a paid plan.
The free tier often comes with limits like the builder’s own branding on your site, a web address that includes the builder’s name, or restrictions on storage and features. To remove those, you upgrade to a monthly or yearly plan.
A monthly fee on its own doesn’t sound like much. The thing to remember is that it never stops. For as long as your website is online, you’re paying that plan, and prices can change over time. It’s worth working out what you’d pay over three or five years, not just the first month.
Paid add-ons for the features you need
Once you’re on a plan, you may find the features you assumed were included are extras. Depending on the builder, that might include:
- online booking or appointment scheduling
- contact forms with more than a few fields
- a shop, or selling more than a handful of products
- marketing tools, pop-ups or email sign-ups
- apps or plugins from the builder’s marketplace, many with their own subscription
Each add-on might be reasonable on its own. Stack a few together and the monthly total can look very different from the price on the homepage.
A good habit is to write down every feature your business needs before you choose a builder, then check which plan actually includes all of them. That number, not the “free” one, is the real starting price.
Transaction fees if you sell online
If you plan to sell products or take payments, read the fine print carefully. Some builders charge a fee on each sale on top of the normal payment processing fees, especially on lower-tier plans.
When sales are small, you might barely notice. As your shop grows, those fees grow with it. That’s money coming out of every order, for as long as you use that platform.
If online sales are a big part of your plans, it’s worth comparing that ongoing cost with a site you own outright. Inversit builds eCommerce websites from $2,950 + GST, and our website pricing guide explains what goes into the cost.
Your own domain and email cost extra
A professional web address (yourbusiness.com.au) and a matching email address ([email protected]) make a real difference to how customers see you. A free builder usually doesn’t include these on the free tier.
Connecting your own domain often requires a paid plan. Business email is frequently a separate subscription again, sometimes per mailbox. Then there’s the question of who manages the domain’s settings when something needs changing.
We look after domains, managed DNS and business email hosting for our clients, so it all sits in one place with people you can call. You can read more about our hosting, email and domain services.
Lock-in and hard migrations
This is the cost most people only discover later. Many website builders keep your site inside their own system. Your design, pages and settings are built in a way that only works on their platform.
That’s fine while you’re happy. But if prices go up, you outgrow the features, or you want a designer to take over, moving can be hard. In many cases, there’s no simple way to take the site with you, which means rebuilding from scratch.
Before you commit to any platform, ask: “If I leave, what can I take with me?”
At Inversit, clients own their website and there are no lock-in contracts. We build on WordPress, the free open-source platform, and if you ever decide to move on, the site goes with you.
The time it takes you
The biggest hidden cost isn’t on any invoice. It’s your time.
Learning a builder, choosing a template, writing pages, editing photos, fixing layouts on mobile and working out why a form isn’t sending can easily take many evenings. For a business owner, those are hours you could have spent with customers, on the tools or simply having a night off.
There’s also the ongoing time: keeping content up to date, learning new features when the builder changes its editor, and troubleshooting when something breaks.
When free really is fine
We don’t want to put anyone off having a go. A free builder can be the right choice if:
- it’s a hobby, a community group or a personal project
- you’re testing an idea and just need a simple page to point people to
- you have more time than budget right now, and that’s okay
The key is knowing what you’re signing up for. If the website needs to bring in customers for years to come, it’s worth comparing the long-term cost of a “free” builder with a professionally built site you own. Our web design service starts from $1,595 + GST, with a clear written quote before any work starts.
Want to know what your current site is really costing you?
If you’re already on a website builder, we can give your site a free website health check. It takes about 30 minutes, it’s in plain English and there’s no obligation. Call us on 02 6610 9202, Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 4:30pm, and we’ll take a look.
