Comparing totals tells you almost nothing — line the quotes up on five axes instead: final price including GST, what’s excluded, year-two cost, domain ownership, and the delivery date in writing. A cheaper quote that fails three of those is not cheaper.
The moment it happens
Per-page, package, or custom quote — which website pricing can you actually compare? You have three quotes on your phone. One is a per-page rate, one is a tier with a list of features, one is a single figure with a paragraph of description. Nothing lines up, and the only number you can compare is the one that matters least.
Why the formats differ
Per-page pricing is easy to check and rewards the wrong thing — it makes fifteen thin pages look better value than five that sell. It also invites scope creep charges later, per page.
Package tiers are the most comparable format if you can see which tier your requirement lands in. The trap is a tier that covers most of what you need with the missing piece priced separately.
A single custom figure may reflect real thought about your project, or may be a number chosen after guessing your budget. You can’t tell without asking what’s inside it.
None of these is dishonest. They’re different ways of packaging the same work, which is precisely why the total is not the comparison.
The five axes
Put these in a table and fill it in for each vendor. The gaps you can’t fill are themselves the finding.
| Vendor A | Vendor B | Vendor C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final price incl. GST | |||
| What’s excluded (ask directly) | |||
| Year-two cost in ₹ (domain, hosting, maintenance) | |||
| Domain registered in whose name | |||
| Delivery date, in writing | |||
| Who writes the page text | |||
| Revision rounds included |
Seven rows in practice, because content and revisions are where mid-project charges cluster.
Two of these do most of the work. Year-two cost is where a cheap first year quietly becomes expensive. Domain ownership is the one that determines how much a failure can cost you — it’s a yes/no answer and it’s free to get right at the start.
Making the quotes comparable in the first place
The fix happens before the quotes arrive: send every vendor the identical written brief — pages, features, whether you supply content, whether you have a logo file, your timeline. Different inputs produce incomparable outputs, and no amount of analysis afterwards fixes that.
If you’ve already collected mismatched quotes, you don’t need to start over. Send one follow-up message to each: “Could you confirm the final price including GST, what’s excluded, year-two costs, whose name the domain is registered in, and the delivery date?” Whoever answers all five in writing has effectively shortlisted themselves.
What not to weight heavily
- Star ratings. In NCR, web design companies cluster at 4.4–4.9, so the number can’t separate vendors.
- The volume of features listed. Long feature lists often describe the same standard build in more words.
- Design shown in the pitch. You’re being shown their best work, which may or may not be what your budget buys.
- Speed of the first reply. It reflects sales process, not delivery. The reply that matters is the written one to your five questions.
What to do this week
- Write the brief once and send it unchanged to every vendor.
- Build the seven-row table before any calls.
- Send the five-question follow-up to any vendor whose quote is already in.
- Ask your final two for four live client URLs.
- Decide on the table, not the total.
If you want it done the certain way
Because our prices are published, filling that table for us takes about a minute — including year-two costs and the domain ownership line, which we state before you buy rather than after. If a vendor’s table looks better than ours for what you need, take it. 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
- “Price depends on requirements”: how to get a real number
- The hidden costs of a website nobody mentions until later
- How to verify a web developer before you pay
FAQ
What should I compare instead of the total price on a website quote?
Final price including GST, exclusions, year-two costs, domain ownership, delivery date in writing, who writes the content, and revision rounds. A lower total that fails on ownership or year-two costs usually isn’t lower.
Is per-page website pricing a good deal?
It’s easy to understand but it rewards page count over usefulness, and it invites per-page charges for later additions. Five well-built pages usually outperform fifteen thin ones.
How many quotes do I need to make a fair comparison?
Three, all against the same written brief. Comparability matters more than volume — the identical brief is what makes the exercise meaningful.
