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How long does it take to build a website?

About two weeks for a small business site once we have your content, and closer to three for a larger one. The delay in almost every late project is the same thing: waiting on text and photographs from the client.

How long does it take to build a website? — illustration of a website layout in a browser window
Content, not development, is what delays roughly eight late website projects out of ten.

A realistic timeline

  1. Days 1–2 · Brief

    A half-hour call plus a short questionnaire. We agree the page list and confirm the fixed price.

  2. Days 3–7 · Content and structure

    We write the copy and lay out the pages. This is the step that slips when the client is writing it.

  3. Days 8–11 · Build

    The site gets built on a staging link you can look at whenever you like.

  4. Days 12–13 · Your review

    You go through it and send changes in one batch. We make them.

  5. Day 14 · Launch

    Domain pointed, SSL on, forms tested, Google Business Profile connected, Search Console verified.

Illustration of a website made up of several linked pages

What actually causes delays

Content, in about eight projects out of ten. A client agrees to write their own text to save money, and three weeks later has written one page. This is so predictable that we include copywriting from the Business package up — the saving was never worth the delay.

Scattered feedback. Changes arriving one at a time over ten days, each requiring a rebuild and re-check. One consolidated list takes a fraction of the time.

Domain access. Nobody can find the registrar login. Start looking for it at brief stage, not on launch day — recovery can take a week on its own.

Payment gateway approval on stores, which is out of everyone's hands and can take two weeks.

Can it be done faster?

Yes — a one-page site can go live in about a week, and if you genuinely need something urgently, say so on the enquiry and we will tell you honestly whether the date is achievable rather than agreeing and missing it.

What we will not do is skip the review step or launch without testing forms and redirects. Those are the steps that cause the problems you find out about a month later.

The step-by-step version of all of this is in our web design process. If you are weighing up doing it yourself, the six steps and what each costs are in how to make a website for your business.

Two weeks, at a fixed price. See what is included in each website design package, or tell us your deadline and we will confirm whether it is realistic.

Illustration of a content page laid out in a browser window

Where we build websites

Every build is done remotely, so the whole country is covered at the same price. We keep dedicated pages for the metros most enquiries come from: Cape Town · Johannesburg · Pretoria · Durban · Sandton · Port Elizabeth · Bloemfontein · Polokwane · Centurion · East London · Nelspruit · Pietermaritzburg · Vanderbijlpark · Somerset West · George · Stellenbosch · Paarl. The full picture — packages, prices, industries — starts on the homepage.

Common questions

How long does a simple website take?

About two weeks for three to seven pages, once content is ready. A one-page site can be about a week.

What do you need from me to start?

Your logo if you have one, access to your domain, a rough idea of your services, and half an hour on a call. From the Business package up we write everything else.

How long before it ranks on Google?

Different question, much longer answer. Indexing takes days to weeks; competing for meaningful local searches takes months and depends on your trade and town. Be sceptical of anyone giving you a date.

Get a fixed price for your website

Tell us what you need and we will send a fixed quote, usually the same working day.

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