How long does it take to build a website?

How long it takes to build a website depends less on the coding than most people expect. The biggest factors are usually the size of the site, the features it needs, and how quickly content and feedback come together. Here’s what happens at each stage, and how to keep your project moving.

The stages of a website project

1. 1Discovery. Understanding your business, customers and goals.
2. 2Planning. Deciding which pages you need, what goes on each one and how visitors move through the site.
3. 3Design. Creating the look and feel, usually starting with the home page.
4. 4Development. Building the website so it works on phones, tablets and desktops.
5. 5Content and testing. Adding final text and images, then checking forms, links and speed.
6. 6Launch. Connecting the domain, going live and making sure search engines can find the site.

What affects the timeline

• Size. A five-page site is quicker to plan, design and test than a twenty-page one.
• Features. Online bookings, e-commerce and integrations with other software add time.
• Content. Waiting on text, photos and product details is the most common cause of delays.
• Feedback. Projects move faster when feedback comes back promptly and in one batch.
• Third parties. Domain access, payment accounts and booking platforms all need setting up, and some take time to approve.

Small websites versus larger builds

A small business website with a handful of pages and content ready to go can come together much faster than a larger site with custom functionality. The best way to know for your project is to ask for an estimated timeline alongside your quote, based on what you actually need.

How to help your website launch sooner

• Get your content ready early. Our checklist of what to prepare covers everything.
• Have one person who can approve designs and content.
• Collect all your feedback into a single response rather than sending it bit by bit.
• Sort out domain and account access at the start, not the end.
• Decide on must-have features now, and keep nice-to-haves for a later update.

Have a launch date in mind? Add it when you request a quote, and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s realistic.