GUIDE · 2026
Nobody publishes prices in this industry, which is why every tradie thinks a website costs either $300 or $10,000. Here's the real range, what sits behind each number, and how to tell which one you're being sold.
Last updated: Sat Aug 08 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Short answer: a proper tradie website in New Zealand costs roughly NZ$2,000–$4,000 in 2026 if copywriting and local SEO are included. Under about NZ$1,500 you are usually buying design only. WFT is NZ$1,997 flat with everything included, which sits at the bottom of that range because we only build for one industry.
Ring five New Zealand web agencies and four will say "it depends" and try to book a discovery call. Some of that is genuine — scope really does vary. Most of it is that publishing a price invites comparison, and an agency whose main advantage is that you haven't compared them would rather you didn't.
It also makes the whole market harder to judge. If you've never bought a website, a $600 quote and a $6,000 quote look like the same product at different prices. They almost never are.
| Bracket | What you typically get | What's usually missing |
|---|---|---|
| DIY NZ$276–$780/yr |
A Wix, Squarespace or Shopify subscription and a template you fill in yourself. | Everything that takes skill: the copy, the SEO, the Google setup. Plus 10–40 hours of your time, which is the real cost. |
| Cheap freelancer NZ$500–$1,500 |
A designed site, usually 3–5 pages, built to a brief you supply. | Copywriting (you write it), local SEO, Google Business Profile, and often ongoing support once they get a full-time job. |
| Specialist NZ$2,000–$4,000 |
Design, copywriting, local SEO foundation, Google Business Profile setup, domain and launch. Built by someone who knows your industry. | Bespoke functionality. If you need a booking system or online payments, this bracket won't cover it. |
| Full agency NZ$3,000–$8,000+ |
Everything above plus brand work, custom design, and a longer strategic process. | Nothing much — but copywriting and SEO are frequently quoted as separate line items, so check. |
| Custom build NZ$10,000+ |
Bespoke development: e-commerce, job booking, customer portals, integrations. | Nothing. It's just far more than a trade business needs to get the phone ringing. |
"Is the copywriting included?"
Writing a five-page trade website properly — interviewing you, working out what your customers search for, writing headlines and service pages that convert — is typically 10 to 15 hours of skilled work. New Zealand agencies commonly charge NZ$800–$1,500 for it as a standalone service.
When a quote comes in at NZ$800 for a whole website, that work isn't in there. It's been quietly handed back to you. And most tradies who accept that quote never write the copy, so the site either launches with placeholder text or never launches at all.
Ask the question directly and a confusing set of quotes usually resolves itself.
| Cost | Typical NZ price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| .nz domain renewal | NZ$30–$50/yr | Make sure it's registered in your name, not the agency's. |
| Hosting | NZ$120–$400/yr | Cheap hosting is slow hosting, and speed affects ranking. |
| SSL certificate | Usually free | If someone charges you separately for this, ask why. |
| Content changes | NZ$80–$150/hr | Or included in a managed plan. Worth knowing before you need it. |
| Ongoing local SEO | NZ$150–$400/mo | Optional, but a site nobody maintains slides down the rankings. |
The one that catches people is the domain. If your web person registers it in their own name, leaving costs you either a fight or a fee. Always check whose name is on it.
Here's what a tradie in Hamilton typically ends up comparing:
None of those is a rip-off. They're different products. The mistake is comparing the numbers instead of the scope.
WFT is NZ$1,997, one time, with copywriting, local SEO foundation, .nz domain, the first month of hosting and Google Business Profile setup all included. Founding clients pay NZ$1,697.
That sits at the bottom of the specialist bracket, and the reason is narrowness rather than corner-cutting: we only build for New Zealand trade businesses. We're not learning a new industry on your invoice, we're not redesigning the process each time, and there's no CBD office in the price.
What that also means: if you need e-commerce, a booking platform or a custom integration, we're the wrong call and we'll say so. That's a real limit, not false modesty.
The full breakdown, including what it costs to do nothing, is on the pricing page.
Related: what WFT includes for NZ$1,997 · sourced NZ website statistics · our guarantees in full
Book a kickoff call. Thirty minutes, no hard sell, and we'll tell you honestly if a website won't help — including if you'd be better off spending the money elsewhere.