Website builder or professional website? An honest comparison

Website builders have made it possible for almost anyone to put a site online in an afternoon, which raises a fair question for a new business: is it worth paying someone to build one? The honest answer depends on what the site needs to do, how much time you have, and how comfortable you are maintaining it yourself.

When a website builder is the right choice

• You are testing an idea and want something live this week, before you know whether the business will work.
• Your budget is tight and the site only needs to show who you are and how to reach you.
• You enjoy the work and have the time to learn the tool, write the content and keep it up to date.
• Your needs are simple, with no bookings, integrations or unusual features.

In those situations a builder is a sensible starting point, and plenty of successful businesses began that way.

When a professional site makes more sense

• The website is often the first thing a customer sees, and it needs to look established from the day it launches.
• Your time is better spent on paying work than on learning design tools and fixing layouts.
• You need the details that are easy to miss, such as page titles written for search, a privacy policy that fits Canadian law, accessible colour contrast and a contact form that reliably reaches you.
• You want someone to call when something stops working.

The costs that are easy to miss

A builder's monthly subscription is only part of the cost of running a site, and a few other costs tend to appear once the site is live.

• Many features, such as online booking or removing the builder's branding, sit on higher-priced plans or paid add-ons.
• Your own time has a value, and building, writing and maintaining a site can take many evenings.
• Templates are shared by thousands of businesses, so the site may look like many others in your industry.
• Some builders make it difficult to move your content elsewhere, which matters if you outgrow the platform.

What both options must get right

• The domain should be registered in your own name or your business's name, whichever route you choose.
• The site must work well on phones, since most visitors will arrive on one.
• If you collect names or email addresses, you need an accurate privacy policy, as PIPEDA applies to personal information that businesses collect in the course of commercial activity.
• Clear headings, readable contrast and descriptive image text help every visitor, even though Ontario's accessibility standard for websites applies by law only to organizations with 50 or more employees.
• Each page needs a descriptive title and summary so that it appears properly in Google's results.

A worked example

Consider two new cleaning businesses that launch in the same month. The first owner builds a site with a builder over three weekends, uses a template, and skips the privacy policy and page titles because they don't seem urgent. The site looks tidy, but it appears in Google with titles such as "Home" and collects enquiries without explaining how they are used.

The second owner pays for a five-page site that is live in two weeks, with titles that name the service and the city, a privacy policy and a form that has been tested. Both sites have a cost, one in time and the other in fees. Neither choice is wrong, and the first owner could close most of those gaps in an afternoon with the checklist below.

Questions to ask before hiring anyone

1. Will the domain, the hosting account and the site files all be in my name?
2. What exactly is included, and what would cost extra later?
3. How do I make small changes myself, such as updating opening hours or prices?
4. What happens after launch if something breaks?
5. Can I see sites you have built that are live today?

A self-check for any website

1. Open every page on your own phone.
2. Search for your business name and check how the title and description appear.
3. Submit your own contact form and confirm that the message arrives.
4. Check that the padlock appears in the address bar on every page.
5. Make sure your privacy policy is linked from every page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I start with a builder and switch later?

Many businesses start with a builder and move to a professional site later. Keep your domain registered separately in your own name so that moving to a new site later doesn't mean changing your web address.

Is a website builder bad for SEO?

A builder doesn't stop you from ranking, but it won't write good page titles or descriptions for you. The quality of your content and setup matters far more than the tool you use.

How much does a professional small business website cost?

Prices vary widely depending on the number of pages and features. Our Website product is $3,500 for five pages, including hosting, a security certificate and backups for the first year.

Key takeaways

• A website builder suits a simple site, a tight budget and an owner with time to spare.
• A professional site makes sense when first impressions, your time and the easily missed details matter.
• Whichever route you take, keep the domain in your own name and add a privacy policy if you collect any information.
• Run the five-point self-check on any site before you rely on it to bring in work.