It genuinely does depend on requirements — so the way to get a fixed number is to supply the requirements yourself, in writing, and ask for a price against exactly that. Most vendors will quote a firm figure against a specific brief. Very few will quote against a sentence.
The moment it happens
“Price depends on requirements” — why every web company says this, and how to get a real number, is a frustration that starts on the first call. You asked what a website costs. You got a question back. Twenty minutes later you have no number and an appointment.
Two different things are happening behind that answer, and they deserve different responses.
The legitimate reason, and the other one
Legitimate: “a website” covers a one-page brochure and a multi-vendor marketplace. A vendor quoting blind either pads heavily to be safe or underquotes and asks for more later — the mid-project demand that appears so often in buyer complaints. Asking about scope first is professional.
Less legitimate: the conversation is being used to size up your budget before naming a price. If a vendor asks what you were planning to spend before telling you what things cost, that’s the version you’re dealing with.
You can tell them apart quickly. Ask: “What does a 5-page business website with contact form, mobile-ready, content supplied by me, typically cost with you?” A vendor pricing on scope answers with a range. A vendor pricing on you deflects again.
The brief that forces a number
Send this as one message. It removes every reason not to quote:
Business: [what you do]. Pages needed: [Home, About, Services, Contact, Gallery]. Features: [contact form / WhatsApp button / gallery — and payments or bookings if you need them]. Content: [I will supply text and photos / I need writing]. Logo: [have the file / need one]. Domain: [have one / need one, register in my name]. Timeline: [live by date]. Please send: fixed price including GST, what’s excluded, delivery date, and year-two costs.
Six lines. Any vendor who won’t quote against that is telling you something useful.
| What you send | What you’ll get back |
|---|---|
| “How much for a website?” | “Depends” — and a call request |
| “5-6 pages, small business” | A wide range or a package brochure |
| The six-line brief above | A fixed figure you can compare |
| The same brief to three vendors | Three comparable figures |
Reading the answer
- A single fixed number with exclusions listed is the most useful reply. It means they’ve read the brief.
- A range is fine if they say what moves it up or down.
- A package tier sheet is fine too, provided you can see which tier your brief lands in.
- A number with no exclusions stated needs one more question: “what will I be billed for that isn’t in this?”
- Still no number after a specific brief — treat that as your answer about how the project will be run.
On published pricing
Some vendors publish prices; most in this market don’t. Published pricing isn’t automatically better work, but it removes an entire negotiation layer and tells you the vendor has productised what they sell. If two vendors seem comparable and one publishes, the comparison takes minutes instead of days.
What published prices can’t cover is genuinely custom work. If your requirement is unusual, expect a quote — just insist it arrives as a fixed figure against a written scope rather than an hourly estimate that grows.
What to do this week
- Write the six-line brief once. Reuse it with every vendor.
- Ask the “typical cost for this exact scope” question on any call where the price is being avoided.
- Request the four items in writing: fixed price including GST, exclusions, delivery date, year-two cost.
- Note who answers in writing and how fast — it predicts the project.
- Don’t disclose your budget before receiving a scope-based quote.
If you want it done the certain way
We publish our prices, which means the number is available before you speak to anyone and the price on the page is the price on the bill. Send the brief and you’ll get a fixed figure and a delivery date in writing. WhatsApp us; we reply in about five minutes between 9am and 7pm.
Related reading
- Why one quote is ₹5,000 and another is ₹5 lakh
- The hidden costs of a website nobody mentions until later
- How to compare website quotes fairly
- What’s actually inside a ₹3,999 website offer?
FAQ
Why don’t web design companies publish their prices?
Some genuinely need scope first, since “a website” spans hugely different projects. Others prefer to assess your budget before quoting. A specific written brief separates the two quickly.
Should I tell a web developer my budget?
Not before you have a scope-based quote. Once you have one or two figures against the same brief, sharing a budget can be useful for adjusting scope rather than anchoring the price.
Is a fixed-price website quote better than hourly?
For a defined small project, yes — it puts the estimating risk on the vendor rather than you. Hourly makes sense for ongoing or genuinely open-ended work, not for a five-page business site.
