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How long does it take to build a website, and what slows it down
The building of a website is rarely what makes it late. Texts, photos and decisions are. This guide gives illustrative time spans by kind of site, shows where the weeks go, and lists what you can do to shorten them.
Photo: bluedigitalist, public domain (CC0)
In this guide
Short answer
As an illustrative guide, a one-page site takes one to three weeks, a company website four to eight weeks, a multilingual site six to twelve and an online shop eight to sixteen, from the first conversation to launch. Content and decisions decide the time, far more than programming.
How long does it take to build a website?
It takes between one and sixteen weeks, depending on the kind of site and on how ready your content is. The spans below are illustrative, not promises: they assume that texts and photos arrive on time and that one person decides.
The lower figure of each bar is a project where the content exists at the start. The upper figure is one where texts are written, photos are taken or products are cleaned up during the project. A site that replaces an existing one also needs time to move the old content and to set redirects from the old addresses, described under redesign and migration.
Where does the time go?
Most of the time goes into content and decisions, not into programming. Design and build are work the supplier can plan. Texts, photos, approvals and answers depend on people in your company who also have their normal work.
| Phase | What happens | Waits for |
|---|---|---|
| First conversation | Purpose, scope, examples you like | You: an hour of time |
| Structure and texts | Page list, what each page says | You: facts, or finished texts |
| Design | Look of the page types | You: one round of clear feedback |
| Build | Pages, forms, functions | The supplier |
| Content and checks | Final texts, photos, translations, tests | You and the supplier |
| Launch | Domain pointed to the new site, last checks | You: access to the domain |
Four of the six phases wait for the client at some point. That is not a criticism: nobody else knows the company’s services, prices and people. It does mean that the launch date is set as much by your diary as by the supplier’s.
What slows a website project down?
Four things slow a project down, and all four can be seen coming. None of them is technical.
| Delay | What happens | Prevention |
|---|---|---|
| Texts are not ready | Pages stay empty while the design is finished | Send facts and bullet points; let the supplier write |
| Many people decide | Each round of feedback contradicts the last | Name one person who collects opinions and decides |
| Late changes | A new page type or function after the design is approved | Agree the scope in writing before the design starts |
| No access to the domain | Nobody knows where the domain is registered or has the login | Find the login in the first week, not the last |
Here is an illustrative example of how delays add up. A company website is planned for 6 weeks. The texts arrive 3 weeks late, a second round of design feedback from another manager adds 1 week, and a new page type requested after approval adds 1 week. The project takes 6 + 3 + 1 + 1 = 11 weeks, almost twice the plan, and the supplier worked no more days than planned for the original scope.
Illustrative example: a 6-week plan that took 11 weeks
The domain is the delay that surprises people most. A site cannot go live until the domain is pointed to it, and that needs the login of the company where the domain is registered. If a former supplier or a former employee registered it, finding that login can take days. Our article on who owns your domain shows how to check.
How can you speed up a website project?
You speed it up by preparing before the project starts, not by asking the supplier to work faster. Each point below removes a waiting period.
If nobody has time to write, content and copywriting can be part of the project. A site also does not have to be complete to go live. Launching with the pages that are ready and adding the rest afterwards is often quicker than waiting for the last text.
How do we plan a website project?
We plan it in six phases with a date for each, and we name at the start what we need from you and by when. This is how we do it: after your first message a person answers within one working day, and the plan you receive shows the phases below. Our way of working is described on the page about our approach.
- First conversationWhat the site is for, what exists, who decides. We ask; you answer.
- Structure and textsWe propose the page list. You send facts, or we write the pages from them.
- DesignYou see the page types with real content and give one round of feedback.
- BuildWe build the pages, forms and functions on a test address you can open.
- Content and checksFinal texts, photos and translations go in. We test on phones and computers.
- LaunchThe domain is pointed to the new site, and we check forms, addresses and speed.
Questions we hear often
Want this sorted without doing it yourself?
Tell us what you are working on. A person replies within one working day.