The quoted price is not the price paid
A website quote ranges from €1,500 to €50,000 for what looks, on paper, like the same deliverable. The gap isn't the supplier's margin: it's what is actually included, and above all what isn't.
What makes up an honest quote
Scoping (10–15%). Structure, content, features. Skip it and you pay for it in back-and-forth during development.
Design (25–30%). Mockups of every screen, desktop and mobile. A supplier who builds straight away with no mockups will have you sign off in production — exactly when changes cost the most.
Development (35–45%). The visible part. It depends mostly on the number of distinct page templates, not the number of pages.
The back office (10–15%). This is the line the cheapest quotes cut first. Without it, every text change goes back through the supplier — and gets invoiced.
Launch and migration (5–10%). Redirecting old URLs, checks, training. Forget it and it costs you the SEO position you built over years.
Why a €1,500 quote costs more
At that price, the supplier installs an existing theme and swaps the text. The site looks like thousands of others, it is slow because the theme ships unused features, and you can't change anything yourself. Eighteen months later it all has to be redone. The real cost isn't €1,500: it's €1,500 plus the rebuild.
Realistic ranges
- €9,000–15,000: five to ten pages, one language, simple back office
- €15,000–30,000: fifteen to thirty pages, three languages, full back office
- €30,000+: specific features, client portal, connections to your tools
Always ask for the itemised breakdown. A supplier who refuses to provide one is telling you something important.