>cat ./pricing/menu.md

Investment Menu

Own the build, choose the upkeep.

You pay once for the site to be built. After that you decide whether you look after it or I do. Everything beyond the build is chosen line by line, so you are never paying for a feature you did not ask for.

Treat these as ballpark figures. They cover the general shape of a project, but every scope is different, and the honest number comes out of a conversation about what you actually need.

Pick a starting point

One-time build prices. Every package includes connecting your domain and setting up your business email, and none of them carry a required monthly, because hosting a straightforward site genuinely costs nothing to run.

Package
Starter
A real presence, quickly
Build
$1,400one-time
Includes
  • One to three pages, built to your content
  • Contact form submissions sent straight to your email
  • Set up so search engines can crawl and understand your site
  • Your domain connected and a business email address set up
  • No monthly cost at all if you take the keys
Package
FoundationMost chosen
The one most businesses want
Build
$2,400one-time
Includes
  • Up to five pages, built to your content
  • Terms of Service and Privacy Policy written for your site, included
  • Photo and content layouts shaped around your business
  • Everything in Starter
Package
Growth
For owners who'd rather publish it themselves
Build
$4,200one-time
Includes
  • Private admin area, one owner account
  • Write and format content like a word processor
  • Upload large photos and video without slowing the site
  • Everything in Foundation

Then decide who maintains it

This is the part most quotes hide. A finished site still needs someone to keep it current and keep an eye on it. That someone can be me, or it can be you.

I maintain it

$150 - $500/mo

I stay on as an administrator, watching your email and site for problems, applying updates, and keeping things healthy so you don't have to. The rate is set per project against what I am actually responsible for: $150 covers a straightforward site, and it climbs from there as that list grows. You see the list, agreed in writing, before you agree to a number. It costs less than hiring a freelancer for the same work, and far less than handing it to an employee once you count the hours pulled off their real job.

  • Content and copy changes handled as they come up
  • Security patches and dependency updates applied for you
  • Uptime monitoring, so I know when your site goes down or has issues
  • Backups with 1 click restoration
  • Debugging when something stops behaving the way it should

You maintain it

$0/mo to me

I set up every account in your name, hand you the login details, and walk you through them. The site is yours outright, with nothing tying you to me.

  • Accounts are in your name from day one, not mine
  • You keep the logins whether or not we work together again
  • Platform costs go straight to you, and for a straightforward site those are $0
  • You can bring me back later as an administrator whenever you want

The add-ons.

Add any of these to any package. Each row names what it costs and what I am on the hook for, grouped by category and then ordered by how much is riding on it. A monthly appears only where the feature genuinely consumes an outside service, billed on top of whichever upkeep option you chose. Anything under "Needs" has to be in place first, and its cost is listed there so you can see the real total.

Level 1 · Nice to have

Polish and presentation. If it breaks, nothing is lost.

Level 2 · Brings in business

Leads, content, visibility. If it breaks, you miss opportunities.

Level 3 · Business-critical

Money, bookings, identity, access. If it breaks, you lose revenue or trust.

Connections & Email

Getting your own domain and inbox working the way visitors expect.

Add-on
Vendor Integration (each)Connects your site to an outside system you already use, such as a point of sale, a booking tool, or a supplier. Priced per system, since each one stores credentials, maps data, and gets tested separately.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$300
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Domain connection / move from an old hostEvery build already includes connecting a domain that's ready to point at the new site. This is the harder case: moving a domain that is registered or hosted somewhere else, with its existing DNS and email records carried over as part of the work.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$300
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Business Email Setup & AuthenticationEvery build already includes setting up a business email address on your own domain. This is the harder case: connecting your email provider and adding the records that prove mail really comes from your business (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), plus send/receive testing.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$400
Monthly
-
Needs
-

Get Found & Get Leads

Turning visitors into people you can actually follow up with.

Add-on
Reviews & TestimonialsYour customer reviews pulled in and displayed properly, so the proof that you are good at your job is on your own site instead of only on someone else's platform.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$150
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Countdown Timers & TimelinesLive countdowns to an opening, a deadline, or an event, plus timeline layouts for telling a story in order.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$400
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Interactive Media GalleryA browsable photo or video gallery, laid out around how you want the work shown. Files uploaded through the site have a size ceiling set by the host, so full-length or high-resolution video is better kept on a video platform and pulled into the gallery from there.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$550
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Live Leaderboards & RankingsStandings that update as results come in, for competitions, fundraising drives, or sales targets.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$900
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Mailing List & Lead CaptureSign-up forms that screen out bots before they reach you, so your list stays real people. The monthly covers the sending service: $10 up to 3,000 emails a month, $60 above that.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$400
Monthly
$10 - $60/mo
Needs
-
Add-on
Custom Inquiry & Estimator FormsMulti-step forms that ask the right follow-up questions and can return a live estimate, so the inquiries reaching you are already qualified.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$700
Monthly
-
Needs
-
Add-on
Local SEO & Search VisibilityEverything on the website side of being found locally: your site marked up so search engines understand where you are and what you do, your details made consistent, and the standard practices applied at launch. Done once, at build. I do not claim or verify your Google Business Profile, because Google requires a video walkthrough of your premises that only you can record, and I do not post to it either. The optional monthly buys three hours of ongoing competitor checks, auditing, and verification.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$700
Monthly
$300/mo optional
Needs
-

Publishing Your Own Content

Updating the site yourself, without calling me first.

On a maintenance plan, updates are included. These are only for owners who'd rather do it themselves.

Add-on
Rich Text EditorFormat your content the way you would in a word processor, with headings, links, images, and lists, and no code to learn. Included in Growth.
Level
L1 · Nice to have
Up front
$800
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Single-User Admin Portal ($1,200)
Add-on
Media UploaderLarge photo and video uploads go straight to secure storage rather than through the website, which keeps your pages fast and your upload limits generous. The monthly is the storage bill and it grows with how much you keep there, so it starts at $10 and rises as the library does. Included in Growth.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$800
Monthly
from $10/mo
Needs
  • Single-User Admin Portal ($1,200)
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Blog / Article PublishingWrite, edit, schedule, and publish posts yourself. Because a post lives in your database rather than in the site's code, each published article also gets a plain readable copy built out at the same web address your visitors use, so search engines have something to read and list.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$900
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Single-User Admin Portal ($1,200)
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)

Bookings & Sales

Taking money and reservations, with the funds landing directly in your account.

Add-on
Product Catalog & CartThe shop front that sits on top of checkout: a browsable product range, grouped the way you actually sell, with a cart that holds several items and hands the total over to be paid. This is the shopping half, not the paying half, which is why it is priced separately.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$1,200
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Secure Checkout ($2,400 + $30/mo)
Add-on
Crowdfunding & Goal TrackerCollect contributions against a public target, with a progress display that updates as donations arrive.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$1,200
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Secure Checkout ($2,400 + $30/mo)
Add-on
Booking & SchedulingLive availability that accounts for what is already reserved, blocks out holidays and time off, and sends confirmation and change notices automatically.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$1,800
Monthly
$50/mo
Needs
  • Single-User Admin Portal ($1,200)
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Digital TicketingSomeone buys a ticket and automatically receives a unique digital pass by email, ready to be checked at the door.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$1,800
Monthly
$30/mo
Needs
  • Secure Checkout ($2,400 + $30/mo)
  • Single-User Admin Portal ($1,200)
Add-on
Secure CheckoutThe payment machinery itself, and on its own it is enough to charge for an invoice, a deposit, or a donation with no product range in sight. It handles the card form, the receipt, the record of who has paid and who has not, and the payout landing in your bank. Money never sits with me. Everything else in this category is built on top of it.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$2,400
Monthly
$30/mo
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)

Accounts & Security

Letting people sign in, and controlling what they can reach.

Add-on
Usage Limits & Abuse ProtectionCaps how often one person can submit or request something, with allowances resetting at their local midnight rather than yours.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$600
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Single-User Admin PortalA private area where you add, edit, and remove your own content. One owner account, straightforward by design, and protected by multi-factor authentication so a stolen password on its own is not enough to get in. Included in Growth.
Level
L2 · Brings in business
Up front
$1,200
Monthly
-
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
ID VerificationConfirms a customer is who they claim to be. The sensitive ID documents are handled by the verification provider and are never stored on your site.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$1,800
Monthly
$50/mo + usage
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Passwordless LoginUsers sign in with a one-time code instead of a password, so there is nothing to forget, reset, or leak. Email codes run on the same tiers as the mailing list. Codes by text message are available too, but they need a Twilio account opened in your name, and Twilio bills you directly for the messages.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$2,200
Monthly
$10 - $60/mo
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)
Add-on
Multi-User Admin PortalMultiple staff accounts with different permission levels, where each person sees only their own data and only the areas you have granted them. Multi-factor authentication on every account.
Level
L3 · Business-critical
Up front
$4,200
Monthly
$200/mo
Needs
  • Needs: database (usage billed $30 - $200/mo)

Custom Solution

Anything not on this menu, including the specialised pieces some industries need such as age or content gating. Bring me the problem and I will scope it honestly, naming the build price and any monthly it carries before you commit, including telling you when it is not worth building.

Before you budget

The site belongs to you

Whichever option you choose, the accounts are set up in your name and you can ask for the login details at any time. There is no version of this where leaving means losing your website.

Cheaper than hiring for it

A year of upkeep costs less than a handful of hours from a freelance developer, and a fraction of what an in-house hire runs once you count the salary, taxes, and the months they are not busy.

These prices move with scope

Everything here is negotiable against the real shape of the work: how deep the integrations run, how much content there is, and whether we are working together long-term.

Ongoing partners keep their rate

While a maintenance agreement is active, your pricing stays where it started, even as these numbers rise. Ending that agreement ends the locked rate, and returning later means coming back at current pricing.

I build websites, not marketing

My work stops at the edge of the website. I do not write your posts, run your ad accounts, or manage the profiles that need you to verify them in person. Where a job needs one of those, I will say so rather than quietly leave it out of scope.

Regulated health and social data

I do not build systems that hold medical, social services, or restricted government records directly. What I can do is connect your site to an established platform that is already certified to hold that data, so it stays with them and out of your website.

Not sure what you actually need?

Most people do not arrive knowing which line items apply to them, and that is fine. Tell me what you want your site to do and I will map it back to this menu, including the parts you can safely skip for now.

Talk through your project