Why do two quotes differ so much?
Because they almost never describe the same work. The phrase “corporate site” covers everything from an adapted template with your logo to a custom build with integrations and an admin designed for your team.
When a quote is noticeably cheaper, the usual reason is not that it is more efficient: it is that it excludes something. And what it excludes is usually what has to be done anyway: content, migration, or support.
Which variables really move the price?
| Variable | Why it weighs |
|---|---|
| Unique templates | Every distinct design is new work; pages that reuse a template barely add. |
| Content production | Copy, photos, translations. The most underestimated line and the one that delays launches most. |
| Integrations | CRM, billing, gateways: work independent of the design. |
| Admin autonomy | How much your team can change without hiring again. |
| Migration | Bringing content over and preserving rankings with redirects. |
| Support afterwards | Updates, backups, and security. Recurring, not one-off. |
Why is the page count misleading?
Because the cost is in the templates, not the pages. A twenty-page site built on five templates costs about the same as an eight-page one on those same five. An eight-page site where every page has its own design costs considerably more.
Which is why the question we recommend asking a vendor is not “how much for ten pages?” but “how many unique designs does it include, and what happens if I need one more?”
What gets forgotten at budgeting time?
- The content. Plenty of projects stall for months waiting on copy nobody was assigned to write.
- The internal team's time. Reviews, approvals, and sign-offs eat real hours.
- The redirects. If there is a previous site, skipping them costs rankings that take months to recover.
- Maintenance. A site without updates accumulates vulnerabilities; the saving lasts until the first incident.
How do you compare two proposals?
By scope, never by total. Four questions almost always reveal where the difference comes from:
- How many unique designs does it include, and what does an extra one cost?
- Who produces the copy and the images?
- Does it include migration with redirects if there is a previous site?
- What happens after launch, and what does it cost?
With those four answers, two quotes that looked incomparable usually turn out to be one including twice the work. We break those lines out in our proposals for exactly that reason: so they can be compared.