It's the first question every business owner asks: "how much does a website actually cost?" The honest answer: it depends on who builds it, what it contains, and above all on what people forget to count. Here are the real price ranges in 2026, the hidden costs, and an alternative that changes the game.
The real price ranges of a website
In France, in 2026, there are broadly three main options for a showcase website (presenting your business, a handful of pages):
Self-service (Wix, Squarespace, Shopify…)
Expect around €15 to €40/month in subscription fees. It's affordable, but you build and maintain everything yourself: design, copy, updates, and often a result that's close to a generic template. The time you spend on it is the real cost.
The freelancer
For a custom showcase website, the range generally runs from €500 to €2,000 to create, depending on the provider's experience and the number of pages. Quality and availability vary widely from one profile to the next.
The web agency
A professional showcase website from an agency most often sits between €1,000 and €3,000, and far more for an e-commerce site or specific features. You gain in support, but it's a substantial upfront investment.
The cost nobody mentions
The creation price is only the visible part. A website is alive. You also need to budget, every month or every year, for:
- Hosting (where the site is stored and served).
- The domain name (your address, e.g. yourcompany.com).
- The SSL certificate (the https padlock, essential).
- Maintenance and updates (security, fixes).
- Small edits (changing a piece of text, a photo, a price).
The result: a site "paid for once" actually comes to several hundred euros a year in upkeep — or worse, it's delivered and then left abandoned because no one looks after it.
Why "cheap" sometimes costs a lot
A website sold cheap at creation often hides the bill for later: a generic template that looks like thousands of others, slow loading, no technical SEO, and above all no follow-up. You pay twice: once for the site, once for the time lost trying to make it evolve. The real criterion isn't "the cheapest", it's the best balance between cost, quality and long-term support.
Our approach: €0 to create, then €20/month
At MAIA TECH, we've flipped the model for showcase websites: no creation fees, then €20/month with no commitment. And everything is included: custom design, hosting, domain name, SSL certificate, technical SEO, and your small content edits — you send them to us, we apply them.
The goal is simple: a website that reflects who you are, fast and well ranked, without tying up your cash flow at launch. The full details of the offer are on the Website creation page, and we explain how a website at €20/month is possible.
So, how much should you pay?
Ask yourself three questions: Do I have the time to build it (and maintain it) myself? Does my site really need to reflect who I am and stand out on Google? Do I need someone to talk to when something has to change? If the answer leans toward "I want something custom without having to manage it all or pay it all upfront", an all-inclusive monthly model is often the most rational choice.