Key facts
- Wix's cheapest UK plan, Light, is £9 a month billed yearly, per ExpertSure's July 2026 check of Wix's UK pricing page.
- Squarespace's Basic plan is £12 a month on annual billing (Squarespace pricing page, October 2026).
- A builder plan covers hosting and software, not the writing, photography, structure or SEO work.
- Wix's Help Center says you cannot switch an existing site to a different template, so early design choices stick.
- Google's Core Web Vitals targets are LCP within 2.5 seconds, INP within 200 ms and CLS under 0.1 (web.dev); a designer should test against them.
- Hiring a designer does not have to mean leaving the builder: many designers, including us, build on Wix and Squarespace.
The short answer
Website builders such as Wix and Squarespace have made it possible for anyone to publish a decent-looking site in a weekend. The software is not the hard part any more. The hard part is deciding what goes on each page, writing copy that makes people call, choosing the right pages to rank for, and making the phone number and enquiry form impossible to miss on a phone.
If you have the time and enjoy that work, a builder is a sensible, low-cost start. If you do not, or if your first attempt gets visits but no enquiries, a designer earns their fee by getting those decisions right.
Builder or designer at a glance
| DIY website builder | Web designer | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | Nothing beyond the plan | Design and build fee; ours starts from £250 + VAT |
| Monthly cost | Plan fee, for example Wix Light £9 or Squarespace Basic £12 billed yearly | Hosting or platform plan, plus an optional care plan |
| Your time | Learning the tool, writing every page, sourcing images; often several weekends | A few hours for briefing, content and feedback |
| Design | Template-led; hard to make distinct | Designed around your brand and customers |
| Copywriting | Yours to write | Often included or offered |
| SEO groundwork | Tools provided; you decide what to do | Page structure, titles, schema and local setup done for you |
| Support | Platform help desk | A named person who knows your site |
| Speed to launch | As fast as you can work | Typically 3 to 6 weeks with us |
What a builder does not do for you
A builder gives you a canvas and a set of tools. It does not tell you that your homepage needs your town and main service in the first heading, that each service deserves its own page if you want to rank for it, or that your contact form asks for too much and puts people off. It will not set up your Google Business Profile, check your site against Core Web Vitals, or spot that your logo file is 4 MB and slowing every page.
That is where most DIY sites fall short. Not in how they look, but in what they say and how they lead a visitor to call or enquire. Common signs: the site looks fine but the phone never rings from it, nobody can find it without typing the business name, or the mobile version hides the phone number below three screens of images.
When the other option is better
We are web designers, so you might expect us to always say hire one. We do not. A website builder is the better choice when:
- You are testing an idea and do not know yet if the business will last six months.
- Almost all your work comes from word of mouth, and the site only needs to confirm you are real.
- You enjoy writing and design, and have the time to learn the builder properly.
- Your budget truly cannot stretch to a professional build this year. A tidy DIY site beats no site.
A designer is the better choice when the site needs to bring in new customers through search, when you compete with established local firms, when you need specific features such as bookings or a shop, or when your time is worth more spent on paying work.
What to have ready, whichever you choose
The same groundwork decides how well a builder site or a designed site performs. Before you start, write down:
- Every service you offer, in the words customers use to search for it.
- The towns and areas you cover.
- Three to five questions customers always ask before they book.
- Your best reviews and any accreditations you can show.
- Real photos of your work, team or premises, even if taken on a phone.
With that list, a builder site will be far better than average. Hand it to a designer and the project moves faster and costs you less time.
The middle route
You do not have to choose between doing it all yourself and handing everything over. We can design and build your site on Wix or Squarespace, so you keep the editor you are comfortable with, or improve a DIY site you have already started with a website refresh. Small changes are charged at £45 an hour + VAT, so you only pay for what you need.
Frequently asked questions
Is it cheaper to build my own website?
In cash, yes. A builder plan costs from around £9 a month on Wix's UK pricing, per ExpertSure's 2026 check. But count your hours, and the cost of a site that does not bring in enquiries. Many owners spend several weekends on a site, then pay a designer to redo it anyway.
Can a website builder rank on Google?
Yes. Wix and Squarespace sites rank for local searches when the content is right. Ranking depends on having a page for each service, clear titles and headings, a Google Business Profile, reviews and a fast mobile site. The builder does not stop you doing those things, but it will not do them for you.
What does a web designer do that I can't?
Mostly, they make decisions you might not know to make: which pages to create, what to say on them, how to structure headings for search, where to place calls to action, and how to keep the site fast. They also handle the technical setup, such as analytics, Search Console, schema and redirects.
Can you take over a site I built myself?
Yes. We often start from a DIY site, keep what works and rebuild the rest. On Wix or Squarespace we can work inside your existing account. If moving to another platform makes more sense, we will explain why and set up redirects so you do not lose rankings.
How long does a professionally designed site take?
With us, a Starter site of up to five pages is typically live in 3 to 4 weeks, and a Business site of up to 15 pages in 5 to 6 weeks. The main thing that slows projects is waiting for content and photos, so having those ready helps.
Do I still need to pay for a builder plan if you design my site?
If we build on Wix, Squarespace or Webflow, yes, you pay the platform plan directly. If we build on WordPress, you pay for hosting instead; ours starts from £1 a day + VAT. Either way, the account and domain are in your name.
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