What does it cost to update an old small business website?

The cost of updating an old small business website depends mostly on how much of the current site you keep. Rebuilding around your existing pages and content is the smaller job. Starting from a blank page, with new copy, new photos and a custom design, is the bigger one. At Localmade, a premade rebuild starts at $500, and custom work runs $2,000–$5,000.

Those are our numbers. Below is how to think about the price before you ask anyone for a quote.

What actually drives the price

Four things move the cost more than anything else.

1. How much you keep. If your services, hours, photos and story are still right, the work is reorganizing and rebuilding them. If most of it has to be written again, that’s a bigger project.
2. How custom the design is. A ready-made structure adjusted to your business is a different job from a design made around a detailed brand brief.
3. What’s wrong underneath. Slow pages, missing page titles and descriptions, broken mobile layouts and old hosting all take time to fix.
4. What happens after launch. A site that nobody updates slips back to where it started. Ongoing care is a real cost, so ask about it up front.

Localmade’s published prices

We put these on our pricing page so you can see them before you talk to anyone.

• Premade website: from $500. We rebuild your site from what you already have.
• Maintenance: $100 a month, optional. It covers SEO, AI search, security and a weekly report. You can cancel anytime.
• Custom work: $2,000–$5,000.
• Hourly work: $50–$125 an hour, with a $750 minimum.

There is also a 90-day build-fee refund. The pricing page has the details.

Who a $500 rebuild fits, and who it doesn’t

A rebuild from your existing site fits an established local business whose website is dated, slow or hard to use on a phone.

It doesn’t fit a large online store or a custom web app. It also isn’t for anyone who wants a guaranteed #1 ranking. Nobody honest can promise that.

Not sure which side you’re on? Our post on what website refurbishment is, and when it beats a redesign walks through the signs.

Questions to ask before you agree to any quote

• What exactly do I keep, and what gets rewritten?
• Is hosting included, and what does it cost after the first year?
• What does ongoing care cost, and can I cancel it?
• Who checks the site before it goes live?
• What happens if I’m not happy with it?

A clear quote answers all five without you having to chase.

The short version

Decide first how much of your current site is worth keeping. The more you keep, the smaller the job. Then ask for prices in writing, including what happens after launch.

If you’d like to see what a rebuild could look like for your business, send us your website and we’ll take a look.