By Younes El. · Published on · 8 min read
How much does a business showcase website cost: market ranges and what moves them
You ask for a price and get answers ranging from a few hundred to several thousand euros for what looks like the same site. These gaps are not always bluff: they reflect very different work. Here is what two public sources say, with their limits, to give you benchmarks before you ask for a quote.
The short answer, with its sources
France Num, the French public portal for the digital transformation of businesses, publishes a grid of creation prices, drawn from the estimates of two France Num Activators (excluding recurring costs): from €500 to €2,000 for a one-page “business card” site, from €900 to €5,000 for a basic site, from €3,000 to €10,000 for an online shop, from €5,000 to €10,000 for a platform. The article was published on 6 May 2021 and updated on 20 June 2025.
La Fabrique du Net, a directory of web agencies, publishes for its part a barometer based on 1,312 real project budgets reported by 175 agencies, with data cut off in early July 2026. For showcase sites, it reports a median of €3,500 across 380 projects, the middle half of budgets falling between €2,000 and €8,000 (first to third quartile).
What these figures are, and what they are not
These two sources do not measure the same thing, and they should be neither added nor set against each other. France Num’s grid is built from estimates supplied by two providers from the France Num network of Activators, and it warns itself that it is hard to say what a website costs, since the price varies with the number of pages and features. La Fabrique du Net’s barometer compiles budgets reported by agencies listed on its platform, as medians and quartiles.
A median is not an average price: half the projects cost less, half cost more. And a directory of agencies reflects what agencies charge, not what all providers charge, freelancers included. Take these figures as benchmarks for placing a quote, never as a guaranteed price.
What moves the price
In La Fabrique du Net’s barometer, several factors clearly shift the median. They give an idea of where you sit.
- The type of site: median of €3,500 for a showcase, €10,000 for an online shop, €18,000 for a custom or application-type site
- The technology: about €2,500 for a site on Wix, €5,000 for WordPress
- Company size: median of €4,000 for a very small business, €6,000 for an SME
- The sector: €4,000 for tourism, hospitality and catering, €4,500 for real estate and construction
- The region: €7,500 for a project run by an Île-de-France company, €5,000 in the rest of France
What comes on top after creation
The creation price is only part of the spend, and the most visible one. France Num details the recurring costs. A domain name is generally between €5 and €50 excluding tax per year depending on the extension. Hosting ranges from €5 to €500 excluding tax per month depending on the size of the site and its traffic: for a basic site with fixed content, options start at about €5 excluding tax per month. For a showcase site on an online platform, Afnic, cited by France Num, estimates hosting at €20 excluding tax per month at most.
Then comes maintenance: preventive (installing security updates), corrective (fixing an outage) and evolutionary (adapting the site to your needs). France Num notes that these costs are often underestimated, although they determine whether the site keeps working. You can choose a monthly contract or pay per intervention. Sometimes tools and licences come on top: audience measurement, email sending, paid extensions.
Monthly subscription or purchase: the ownership question
An all-inclusive monthly subscription can look cheaper, and sometimes is, to get started. La Fabrique du Net warns, however, that it can hide a site you do not own, impossible to migrate if you change provider, and recommends checking who owns the code and the content. France Num says the same: when you entrust your site to a professional, make sure you own it, and the domain name too.
France Num adds a point on the free plans of site-building platforms: they do not give you a domain name of your own, only a subdomain of the platform, which the portal calls very bad for visibility and search ranking. For a professional activity, it recommends a paid plan.
Comparing quotes without being fooled
France Num advises writing a brief, sending it to several professionals, looking at their past work and contacting one or two of their clients in the same sector as you, then comparing the proposals. The portal suggests paying only a deposit at signing and the balance after launch, once you have checked that every function works.
La Fabrique du Net lists warning signs. A “complete professional” site for a few hundred euros almost always rests, it says, on a non-customised template, with no support. A quote with no brief, without a single question about your needs (number of pages, features, content), is a reason for caution. A lump-sum quote with no breakdown prevents comparison and often hides gaps.
And for a redesign?
La Fabrique du Net observes that a redesign costs more than a simple creation: about 40% more in its text (€7,000 against €5,000 as a median), and a median of €8,000 for projects that mention a redesign in its feature table. The two figures do not match: take an order of magnitude of €7,000 to €8,000. Its explanation: a redesign adds to the design work the handling of what already exists, meaning the content, search history, redirects and sometimes data migration. The redesign guide details these steps.
Setting a budget from what the site has to do
The ranges do not tell you what your budget is. That decision starts from function: what must this site do for your business? Reassure someone who has heard of you, get you found by a customer who is searching, take bookings, show past work. Each function adds work, and so does each page to write or photograph.
A simple method: write down the three things the site must achieve, list the pages needed, then ask several professionals for the same quote on that basis. You will get comparable prices, and you will quickly see who has understood your business. Do not build your budget on financial aid before you have it in writing: schemes change and close.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average price of a showcase website in France?
There is no single price. France Num gives €900 to €5,000 for a basic site (June 2025 update), and La Fabrique du Net reports a median of €3,500 for showcase sites, between €2,000 and €8,000 for the middle half of projects (barometer cut off early July 2026). These are benchmarks, not price lists.
What costs should I plan for after launch?
The domain name (generally €5 to €50 excluding tax per year), hosting (from about €5 excluding tax per month for a basic site, more depending on size) and maintenance, preventive, corrective and evolutionary. These figures come from France Num.
Can a site costing a few hundred euros be enough?
For a simple presentation page, sometimes yes: France Num puts a one-page site between €500 and €2,000. But La Fabrique du Net warns against a “complete professional” site for a few hundred euros, which almost always rests on a non-customised template; for a showcase site, it puts the entry level at around €2,000. Check what the price includes, and who will own the site and the domain.
Is a monthly subscription or a purchase better?
It depends on what you end up with. The essential thing is whether you own the site, its code, its content and its domain name, and whether you can leave with them. La Fabrique du Net and France Num both recommend checking before signing.
How do I compare two very different quotes?
By giving them the same brief. Without a common basis, you are comparing different work. France Num advises sending it to several professionals, looking at their past work and contacting one or two of their clients in the same sector as yours.
Sources
- Combien payer pour un site web ou un site e-commerce ? · France Num (publié le 6 mai 2021, mis à jour le 20 juin 2025) · accessed
Creation price grid by type of site, additional costs (domain, hosting, maintenance), advice on quotes and site ownership. - Tarifs des agences de création de sites web : baromètre 2026 · La Fabrique du Net (annuaire d’agences ; guide daté du 30 janvier 2026, données arrêtées début juillet 2026) · accessed
Medians and quartiles by site type, technology, company size, sector and region; gap between creation and redesign; warning signs on low prices.