The short answer: renting a website means paying a monthly fee for as long as you want it online, and often you don't own anything at the end. Owning means you pay once for the build, the site and domain are in your name, and you only pay small running costs after that. Over a few years, owning usually costs less and leaves you with something you keep. Below are the sums, so you can check them against your own numbers.
What's the difference between owning and renting a website?
Renting is like renting a flat. You pay every month and someone else owns it. If you stop paying, the website can go with it.
Owning is like buying. You pay for the build once, and after that the site is yours. You still have running costs, a bit like household bills, but you can move it, change it or keep it for as long as you like.
Some agencies sell websites with little or nothing to pay up front, then charge every month for as long as the site is online. Some also register your domain in their own name, so leaving means losing your web address as well as your site. That's the model we built Tarquin & Gunn against: websites built to last, not to lease.
To be fair, not every monthly plan works like this. Some are clear about what you keep and let you leave with everything. The point is to know which kind you're signing up to, and to do the sums over a few years, not just the first month.
What does renting cost over 5 years?
The sum is simple: take the monthly fee, multiply it by 12 for one year, then by 5 for five years.
Illustrative figures only. These are not prices from any particular provider.
| If you pay... | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| £40 a month | £480 | £1,440 | £2,400 |
| £75 a month | £900 | £2,700 | £4,500 |
| £120 a month | £1,440 | £4,320 | £7,200 |
Now put in your own monthly fee. Check, too, whether there's a set-up fee, whether the price goes up after the first year, and whether hosting and your domain are included or charged on top.
What does owning cost over 5 years?
With us, you pay once for the build, at a price agreed in writing before work starts. Our website packages are Brochure at £550, Business at £1,150 and Bespoke at £1,950. An Online Shop starts from £2,950. Professional copy is included in every package.
You pay 50% to start and the balance at go-live. Once the final invoice is paid, the site and everything we made for it are yours.
After launch, every website has running costs:
- A domain name. Your web address, renewed each year.
- Hosting. Where your site lives online.
- Email on your domain, if you want it.
- Any booking or payment tool your site uses.
With us, these are paid straight to each provider, in accounts in your name, and we tell you the cost before you commit.
If you'd like us to look after the site after launch, there's an optional Care Plan at £30 a month. It covers backups, security and software updates, and fixing the site if it goes down. You can cancel any time by email, and you keep ownership of everything either way.
Here's how the build price looks over five years, with and without that plan. Your running costs come on top in both columns, paid to the providers.
| Package | Build (paid once) | 5 years, no Care Plan | 5 years, with the Care Plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brochure | £550 | £550 | £2,350 |
| Business | £1,150 | £1,150 | £2,950 |
| Bespoke | £1,950 | £1,950 | £3,750 |
So even with the Care Plan, the five-year cost sits in the same range as the rental examples above. The difference is what you hold at the end: a website, a domain and accounts that are all in your name.
For a wider look at what websites cost, read our guide on how much a business website costs in the UK.
What happens if you stop paying a monthly website plan?
It depends on the contract, so read yours or ask these questions before you sign:
- Do I own the design and the words? Or do they stay with the provider?
- Can I take my site with me? Some plans let you export it. Some don't.
- Whose name is the domain in? If it isn't yours, ask how you'd get it back.
- Is there a minimum term? Some contracts tie you in for a set period.
- What happens on the last day? Does the site go offline straight away?
If you can't get clear answers, that tells you something too. Our guide to choosing a web designer in London has more questions worth asking before you sign anything.
Not sure what your current setup leaves you with? Our website health check gives you a written report on your site from a person on our team.
When does renting make sense?
Renting isn't always the wrong choice. It can make sense when:
- You're testing an idea. You want to see whether something works before you pay for a build.
- You need a site for a short time. For example, a one-off event or a short project.
- You can't pay for a build right now, and you'd rather spread the cost, knowing it may add up to more over time.
If one of those fits, renting may suit you for now. Just know what you'll pay over time and what you'll keep.
How do you move from a rented site to one you own?
It's usually more straightforward than people expect. The main steps are:
- Check your contract. Look for notice periods and what you're allowed to take with you.
- Get your domain into your name. This is the most important step, because it keeps your web address yours.
- Save your content. Copy your words, photos and any customer reviews you're allowed to reuse.
- Have the new site built. It should be ready before you switch.
- Switch over and redirect old pages. Pointing each old page address to its new one helps visitors and Google find the right place.
If you'd like help with the move, see what's included in every business website we build, or our page on web design in London.
Frequently asked questions
Do Wix and Squarespace count as renting?
They're website builders you pay for monthly or yearly. You usually build the site yourself and pay to keep it live, so in that sense, yes. Check each one's own terms on moving your site elsewhere.
Will I lose my Google rankings if I switch?
Rankings can move around for a while after any switch, but a well-planned move keeps the risk low. Keep your domain, and redirect each old page address to its new one with a permanent (301) redirect. Google's own guidance on site moves says these redirects don't lose you link value, and recommends keeping them for at least a year.
Do I own my domain?
Strictly, nobody "owns" a .uk domain: Nominet, which runs the .uk register, records a registrant who holds the right to use it. What matters is that the registrant is you or your business, not your web designer. You can check with Nominet's domain lookup. With us, your domain, hosting and email are in your name from day one.
Do you charge monthly?
Not for the build. You pay for it once: a 50% deposit to start, and the balance at go-live. The only monthly cost from us is the optional £30 Care Plan, and cancelling it doesn't affect your ownership of the site.
Want to talk through your own numbers? Book a virtual meeting.