One of the most important questions that interest potential clients considering the creation of an eCommerce website is its cost. And today, I've decided to tell you more about it.
The cost of an eCommerce website varies widely, and you can spend anywhere from $50 to tens of thousands of dollars. It all depends on the type, size, structure, and specialization of the online store you're planning to create.
You should also remember that this is not a one-time thing. On the contrary, eCommerce website projects usually entail both initial and ongoing expenses.
In this article, you will be able to understand the components involved in creating websites for eCommerce and have an approximate idea of their costs, in order to have an orientation of how much money you'll need to spend overall to get the online store.
Each component of the website should align with your business goals, and here are the key ones to consider when creating your own eCommerce website.
Now let's talk more about the approximate cost of these components.
What is the price of developing an eCommerce website?
- Software Expenses
The initial and pivotal decision you will need to make involves choosing between open-source software, such as WordPress, or proprietary software like CMS Hub. Now, what sets open-source and proprietary software apart? Open-source software is available for free download, but there are other expenses to consider. These include hosting, which you'll need to obtain from a third-party provider, and SSL certification. Additionally, there might be a necessity to purchase supplementary tools to enhance the security, updates, and maintenance of your site. In contrast, if you go with proprietary software, concerns about hosting, site security, performance, and uptime will be alleviated. You'll only have a single monthly payment for a fully managed service.
The costs associated with using proprietary software can vary widely. For instance, a proprietary website builder like Wix starts at $16 per month, while CMS Hub Professional begins at $360 per month. More intricate enterprise content management systems come with steeper price tags. For instance, CMS Hub Enterprise's starting price is $1200 per month.
If you're looking for a low-maintenance alternative, proprietary software will likely prove its value swiftly.
So it can be concluded that software costs, depending on your goals and needs, will range approximately from $0 to $25,000 per month.
Here it is also important to talk about the features of choosing software for small and medium-sized businesses and also for large projects.
1. Small and Medium-Sized Business
Meanwhile, small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) tend to lean towards comprehensive SaaS ecommerce platforms, encompassing a dynamic website builder, customizable ecommerce themes, and a comprehensive suite of store management functionalities.
Prominent options in this category include names like Shopify, Wix, BigCommerce, and Squarespace. These platforms can create, host, and empower ecommerce websites starting at a budget-friendly $30 per month. Building your online store involves fine-tuning a pre-designed template using an intuitive WYSIWYG editor, a process that may consume several hours.
Among the website templates available on these ecommerce platforms, some are free, while others packed with advanced features range from $60 to $200 each.
For medium-sized ecommerce ventures seeking enhanced adaptability, WooCommerce presents an alternative. Operating as a free, open-source ecommerce platform built on the WordPress framework, WooCommerce seamlessly integrates with drag-and-drop WordPress page builders. However, fully harnessing its potential might necessitate custom coding.
This could entail hiring a skilled web designer for tailor-made development tasks. Freelance professionals typically offer cost-effective solutions, with hourly rates averaging $30 to $45 for novices, $50 to $100 for intermediate expertise, and $125 or more for advanced WooCommerce developers.
Factoring in the cost of premium WooCommerce themes, an SSL certificate, and other essentials, the overall development expenditure for a medium-sized ecommerce store might fall within the range of $1,500 to $6,000.
2. Large enterprises
Given the complexity of enterprise-level business ecosystems, you can be sure that assembling and synchronizing each new ecommerce functionality demands even more extensive hours of custom development.
In many instances, these ecommerce enterprises find themselves compelled to construct bespoke applications from the ground up. These resultant creations are then seamlessly integrated into the underlying ecommerce platforms utilizing an Application Programming Interface (API).
In terms of expenses, crafting each custom plugin typically incurs a range of approximately $500 to $10,000. With this information, you can now begin to fathom the cumulative cost of constructing an ecommerce website and enhancing it with tailor-made Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) plugins
- SSL Certificate Cost
In the event that your hosting provider doesn't furnish SSL, you will need to procure one from an SSL certificate provider. While numerous providers offer complimentary SSL certificates, the majority typically span from $7 to $250 per year.
- Domain Registration Expenses
Irrespective of your chosen hosting method, securing a domain name is an essential step. As your website's virtual address, the domain plays a pivotal role in establishing your distinct online presence. Opting for a domain name that aligns with your company's name not only reinforces your brand identity but also lends an air of professionalism to your site. Nearly all hosted and self-hosted platforms include domain name registration as part of their sign-up process. Some platforms, such as Squarespace, and third-party hosting providers like Bluehost, even provide a free year of domain registration upon plan subscription. Other hosted platforms like CMS Hub and providers such as SiteGround require you to purchase a domain from a third-party domain registrar like GoDaddy or Namecheap, which can then be easily linked to your account. For assistance in selecting your domain name, refer to our comprehensive guide on domain name selection.
Now, let's explore the average cost of obtaining a domain name below. Average Cost of a Domain Name Typically, the registration and renewal of a personalized domain name carry an approximate cost of $12 per year. However, this price can vary based on multiple factors. Here is an overview of the costs related to your domain name management:
- Domain Registrar: The pricing of domain registrars varies, contingent on the available domain names, privacy options, reputation, and renewal charges they provide. For instance, Domain.com offers domain registration starting at $2.99 annually, with most .com domains priced at $9.99 annually. This makes it one of the most budget-friendly choices. Other reputable domain registrars include Namecheap, Name.com, and BlueHost.
- Domain Extensions: The choice of domain extension impacts the total cost of your custom domain. The ubiquitous .com extension, for instance, being the most sought-after, comes with a higher price tag, usually ranging between $12 and $15. Lesser-used extensions like .site and .biz tend to be more economical, typically ranging from $7 to $11. GoDaddy offers a breakdown of prices for various extensions.
- Website Design Pricing
Numerous website builders and content management system (CMS) platforms provide complimentary templates that can be tailored using a user-friendly drag-and-drop editor. These intuitive editors empower you to swiftly modify your site's appearance without necessitating an entirely new design—minus the requirement to delve into coding. The array of available templates can differ in extent from one platform to another. If faced with a more restricted assortment, acquiring a premium template might be necessary to achieve your desired aesthetic.
Consider Shopify as an illustration. While it offers nine free themes, opting for a premium theme can grant your ecommerce enterprise a distinctive visual identity that sets it apart. Premium themes on Shopify range in cost from $200 to $350.
- Web hosting Cost
is a part of proprietary software packages, effectively eliminating the need to account for hosting expenses. However, in scenarios where you opt for an open-source solution or construct your site from scratch, hosting costs must be considered. A multitude of providers offer a diverse array of hosting services, encompassing shared, managed, VPS, and dedicated hosting. These services boast distinct features and span a cost range from approximately $3 to $400 per month.
Of these, shared hosting emerges as the most economical choice, as it involves sharing a server with multiple websites. Conversely, dedicated hosting commands a higher price due to the provision of an exclusive server for your use. Alternatively, CMS Hub hosting presents a starting point, available at no cost.
- Extensions Cost
The versatility of most platforms goes beyond their out-of-the-box features. Extensions can be downloaded or purchased to augment your site's functionality. As discussed earlier, the array of available extensions significantly varies from platform to platform. Take WordPress, for instance, boasting an impressive collection of over 60,000 free plugins within its official directory. This means there's a WordPress plugin to cater to virtually any conceivable need, whether it involves integrating forms and live chat, enhancing blog SEO, or directly embedding event listings into your site.
In contrast, Joomla offers around 5,900 extensions, while Magento's extensions number in the thousands. Within Magento's marketplace, an additional 2,500 extensions span a price range from $25 to a staggering $15,000! Although the majority of extensions fall within more reasonable price ranges, their cumulative expenses can accumulate swiftly.
Consider this scenario: If your chosen platform lacks inherent SEO or social media tools, you might choose to invest in premium resources. For example, signing up for a premium keyword research tool like Semrush, with plans commencing at $119.95 per month, could be an option. Additionally, employing Hootsuite to schedule social media posts across platforms such as Facebook and Twitter would incur a cost of $49 per month for a single-user account.
Already, the combined expenses exceed $165 per month, without even accounting for other essential features that might be required, such as lead generation tools, analytics and reporting functionalities, and more.
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Cost of Maintaining a Website
When estimating the costs associated with maintaining a website, it's valuable to organize your expenses into monthly, annual, and one-time charges. For instance, domain renewal and SSL certification fees are recurring on an annual basis. Similarly, when it comes to software or hosting plans, you often have the choice of paying for the entire year upfront or breaking it into monthly installments. Many providers extend a discounted rate for yearly payments, which, although requiring a higher initial investment, ultimately leads to long-term savings.
Additionally, budgeting for website maintenance encompasses certain one-time fees. Among these, the most substantial is related to website redesign. If you're considering a straightforward rebranding, an update to your existing theme might suffice. However, more comprehensive overhauls might be necessary in certain situations. Certain website-building platforms offer the flexibility to incorporate custom CSS and HTML into templates or even construct pages from scratch. In cases where your chosen platform lacks this flexibility, you might need to obtain another theme, collaborate with a freelancer, or engage an agency. Such endeavors can come with a considerable price tag, ranging from hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars.
Recognize that your website will eventually require a redesign. As a general guideline, consider revamping your site every two to three years. When selecting a site-building platform, factor in its ease of modification to mitigate redesign costs
Overall, the total expenditure for website maintenance typically ranges from $400 to $60,000 per year.
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Summary
So, I hope that after reading this article, you have a better understanding of how the cost of creating an eCommerce website is formed. If you need a more individual calculation of your project, leave your contacts and our experts will contact you.
