A website with no monthly fees.

A small business website doesn't need a monthly fee. When you pay one every month, it's usually how the deal was set up, not what it actually costs to keep a simple website online.

Here's how our websites work without a monthly fee, the one cost that does keep coming, and when paying monthly genuinely makes sense.

Where monthly website fees come from

Most monthly website bills fall into one of three types:

• Website builder subscriptions. The plan is the product. Your site lives inside the platform, so the fee never ends, and on most platforms leaving means starting again.
• Paid hosting. A monthly charge to keep your files on a server, often added by whoever built the site.
• Care or maintenance plans. A monthly fee for updates and support, charged whether or not anything changed that month.

None of these are a scam. But for a small business whose website changes a few times a year, they often add up to more than the website cost to build. A NZ$79 a month plan is NZ$4,740 over five years.

How our websites work

You pay once to build it

A one-page website is NZ$1,500 + GST and a five-page website is NZ$2,950 + GST. Both include design and copywriting from your basic business information. You get a fixed price before we start.

It's hosted free, in your name

We build small business websites so they can be hosted for free, and we set up the hosting account in your name. There's no plan behind it and no card on file with us.

You only pay us again when you want a change

Quick updates taking up to 30 minutes are NZ$50 + GST. Bigger changes get a fixed quote first. If nothing changes this year, it costs you nothing.

You hold the keys

Your website files, domain and hosting account are yours. If you ever want to work with someone else, any web developer can take it over without asking us for anything.

The one cost that is real

Your domain name, the address people type in, renews every year. A .nz or .co.nz name usually costs between NZ$20 and NZ$65 a year, paid to a registrar of your choice. Every website in the country needs one, whoever builds it. What matters most is that it's registered in your business's name, not your web designer's.

Some features also come with their own fees. An online shop or booking system may charge monthly or per booking. We explain those costs before you decide.

When paying monthly makes sense

A monthly arrangement can be the right call if:

• your website takes orders or bookings every day and needs someone on call
• you want to edit the site yourself every week from your phone, which website builders are good at
• you need regular new content, campaigns or features built for you

Most small businesses aren't in that position. Their website changes a handful of times a year, and the monthly fee keeps running regardless.

Questions to ask about any "no monthly fees" offer

1. Whose name are the domain and hosting in?
2. Is hosting free after the first year, or only for the first year?
3. What does a small change cost, and how fast is it done?
4. Is the copywriting included?
5. If I leave, what do I take with me?

Our answers: yours, free with no year-two price, NZ$50 for up to 30 minutes, yes, and everything. For the full picture of build prices across New Zealand, read our website cost guide.