If you own a shop, a trade business or a clinic in Tyler, Longview, Athens or anywhere else in East Texas, you have probably heard two wildly different prices for a website. One friend paid a few thousand dollars up front. Another spent a weekend on a do-it-yourself builder and still is not happy with how it looks on a phone. Both stories can be true, because website cost depends on who does the work and what happens after launch, not on a single national sticker price.
This guide walks through what published 2026 surveys actually show, what it costs to keep a site running, and what a local service business in East Texas really needs. If you already know you want a site built for you, start with the $39 Website or compare both plans on the pricing page.
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Why website prices vary so much
A website quote is really a labor quote. The same five-page site can be a Saturday project on a builder, a freelancer's two-week job, or an agency project with strategy meetings and custom code. GoodFirms' 2026 survey found that development work typically takes 50 to 70 percent of a project budget, so extra pages, booking tools or an online store move the price more than a new color palette does.
There is also a second bill that many first quotes leave out: hosting, security, small copy changes and the person who keeps the site from going stale. A cheap build that nobody maintains often costs more in lost calls than a clearer monthly plan.
What published 2026 surveys say
No survey audits every invoice, and the ranges below come from firms and buyers describing typical work, not from a promise about your project. Taken together, they paint a consistent picture for a standard small-business site.
- A basic site from a firm most often costs $1,000 to $3,000. That was the range about 60 percent of firms gave in GoodFirms' 2026 survey of more than 300 web development firms in 31 countries.
- A mid-sized business website more often costs $5,000 to $20,000 in the same survey. Across all fixed-price quotes, 63 percent of firms landed between $1,000 and $15,000.
- Reviewed projects on Clutch, in figures summarized in September 2026, most often cost less than $10,000, even though the full marketplace range runs much higher.
- Buyers report a wide spread. A WebFX survey of 250 U.S. marketing professionals put company web-design spend at $1,000 to $30,000 or more.
- Doing it yourself is cheaper in cash. Hosted website builders often charge in the teens to about $40 a month when billed yearly. You also spend your own hours on design, writing and updates.
U.S. firms in the GoodFirms survey typically billed $50 to $100 an hour, so a quote from an American shop for the same scope often sits toward the top of each range. That is useful context when you compare a local East Texas builder with a large out-of-state agency.
Monthly cost versus a one-time build
Ask every quote for the first-year total, not just the launch price. WebFX found that most businesses spend $501 to $5,000 each year on ongoing web design. In GoodFirms' survey, about 58 percent of firms priced a monthly retainer between $500 and $3,000, often covering maintenance, content updates and small feature work.
For a local plumber, salon or contractor, a retainer at that level is usually more than the site itself needs. What you do need is someone who can change your hours, add a photo or update a service without a new project invoice. That is the gap a simple monthly website is meant to fill.
ETX Websites charges $39 a month for the website itself. The optional Growth plan is $200 a month total and adds weekly SEO updates and weekly Google Business Profile updates. Both figures include the site; they are not stacked on top of a separate build invoice. CRM, AI automation, graphic design and Facebook and Instagram ads are quoted separately.
What an East Texas business actually needs
Most owners who call us do not need a custom web app or a large online store. They need a site that looks professional on a phone, names the towns they serve, and makes it easy to call. Around Tyler, Longview, Athens, Jacksonville and the rest of East Texas, that usually means:
- Your real business name, phone number and service area, written the same way as your Google Business Profile
- A tap-to-call button and a short contact form on every page
- Fast, mobile-first pages with your own photos, not generic stock pictures
- Plain-language pages for your main services and the cities you actually cover
- Room to grow into reviews, weekly updates and lead follow-up
We cover the local search side in more detail in our guide to Google Business Profile and local SEO in East Texas, and town-by-town pages such as web design in Tyler and web design in Longview. For a walkthrough of exactly what is included at $39, read what a $39 website gets you.
What you get with the $39 Website
The $39 Website is built for you by a real designer in Brownsboro, not handed over as a blank template. Every site includes a custom design in your colors, mobile-first layout, hosting and SSL, local SEO setup, click-to-call buttons, a lead form, a link to your Google Business Profile, and small monthly updates when your information changes.
A published example is our Red Rooster Tattoo Supply site in Longview: a mobile-friendly shop site with the company's story, categories and store information, built so working tattoo artists could find what they needed quickly.
If you want help climbing in local search after the site is live, the SEO plan adds weekly website updates and weekly Google Business Profile posts and cleanup for $200 a month total. When calls start coming in, EasyCRM can text missed callers back and an AI chatbot can answer common questions after hours.
How long a website takes
In GoodFirms' 2026 survey, 71 percent of firms said a basic website takes two to four weeks. Half said a mid-sized site takes four to eight weeks. Our process is straightforward: you tell us about the business, we build a draft, you request changes, and we launch and submit the site to Google. Timelines depend on how quickly photos, services and feedback come back.
Common questions about website cost
How much does it cost to create a website for a small business?
In GoodFirms' 2026 survey of more than 300 web development firms, about 60 percent quoted $1,000 to $3,000 for a basic website. Mid-sized projects more often landed between $5,000 and $20,000. ETX Websites builds a custom, mobile-friendly site for $39 a month, with no hidden fees, no website build cost and no artwork fee.
Is $1,500 a good price for a website?
It can be, if that price covers a complete, mobile-friendly site and you know who will update it afterward. $1,500 sits inside the $1,000 to $3,000 range that most firms in GoodFirms' 2026 survey quoted for a basic site. Compare what is included: number of pages, your own photos and copy, local search setup, hosting, and whether small changes after launch cost extra.
How much does a small business website cost per month?
If you build it yourself, hosted website builders often charge in the teens to about $40 a month when billed yearly, and you still do the design and updates. Firm maintenance retainers in the same GoodFirms survey commonly ran $500 to $3,000 a month. ETX Websites is $39 a month for the website, or $200 a month total if you add weekly SEO and weekly Google Business Profile updates.
How much does it cost to host and maintain a website?
Hosting is only one piece. A WebFX survey of marketing professionals found most businesses spend $501 to $5,000 a year on ongoing web design. The $39 Website includes hosting, SSL security and small monthly updates, so you are not paying a separate host or hiring someone every time your hours or photos change.
Will a Facebook page work instead of a website?
A Facebook page or Google Business Profile helps, and many East Texas customers will find you there first. A website is still the place you control: your services, photos, city names and contact form stay online even if a social platform changes its rules or hides your posts. Google also uses your website to confirm what you do and where you do it.
Do you need an LLC to have a website?
You do not need an LLC just to publish a website. Whether you should form one is a legal and tax question for your accountant or attorney. Your domain name also does not have to match your legal entity name, but the public name, phone number and service area on your site should match your Google Business Profile.
How much does a website cost if you sell products online?
A site that sells products costs more than a brochure site because it needs checkout, product pages and shipping rules. In GoodFirms' 2026 survey, about 74 percent of firms quoted $5,000 to $50,000 for an ecommerce website. ETX Websites' $39 and $200 plans are built for service and local businesses that need calls and form leads, not a full online store.
What to do next
If a firm quoted you a few thousand dollars for a basic brochure site, that can be a normal 2026 price, especially when you add a year of updates. If you want the same outcome for a local East Texas business without a large up-front build bill, start with the $39 Website, browse web design across East Texas, or contact Aaron at (214) 415-9849.