Compare your options
A DIY builder, an agency, or a custom site built by AI agents
| What you get | A DIY site builder | A typical agency | Website Design Exeter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who builds it | You do, from the builder's templates, in your own evenings | The agency's designers and developers | Our AI agents, briefed, checked and finished by a person at the studio |
| Design | Picked from a template library other businesses use too | Custom | Custom, designed and written for your business |
| Price | A monthly plan to the platform, plus your time | Quoted per project, depending on the agency | Fixed and published: £250 for five pages, £400 for ten, one-off |
| First version | As soon as you finish building it | When the project reaches the front of the agency's queue | A working preview in days, not weeks |
| SEO basics | Yours to set up | Depends on the package | Titles, descriptions, structured data, a sitemap, Search Console and Analytics, as standard |
| Ownership | Usually tied to the platform you built it on | Depends on the contract | Yours outright once it is paid for |
| After launch | You make every change yourself | Changes usually quoted, or a retainer | Optional care at £50 a month, with small edits handled by our AI agents |
Builders and agencies vary a great deal, so their columns describe the usual shape of each option rather than any one company.
When a DIY builder makes sense
If you enjoy that kind of work, have the evenings to spend on it and are happy with a template look, a site builder is a reasonable choice. The catch is time, the monthly plan that runs for as long as the site is live, and a site that is usually tied to the platform it was built on.
When an agency makes sense
A business that needs something large and fully bespoke, with a long list of integrations, is often better served by a full agency project, and the studio will say so rather than force it into a fixed-price box. For a small business that needs five or ten good pages, that process is usually more than the job needs.
Where we fit
Custom design and a studio finish, at a fixed price a small business can say yes to. Advanced AI agents do the groundwork that used to make custom sites expensive, a person at the studio does the craft, and the finished site is yours.
Still weighing it up
Questions before you choose
Is it a template?
No. Every site is designed and written for one business, the one described in the brief, never a theme with the name changed. Our AI agents do the groundwork and a person at the studio designs the look, checks every page and finishes it, so each site has its own character.
Is it really £250?
Yes. A five-page site is £250 and a ten-page site is £400, both one-off. That includes the custom build, a working contact form, the SEO basics, a standard domain for the first year (or a transfer of yours) and one full round of changes. What is not included is written down on the pricing page: shops, bookings and logins are quoted separately, and care is optional.
Who owns the site?
You do, outright, once the build is paid for in full. The care plan is there if you want the site looked after, but it is never required to keep using a site you own.
How can a custom site cost this little?
Because advanced AI agents now do the hours of groundwork that used to make a custom site expensive: page structure, layouts, responsive code, the SEO basics and the checks. The studio's time goes where it shows: the brief, the design, the detail and the final review.
What if I do not like the preview?
You see a working preview before the site goes live and send one full list of changes, which gets built in. Scope, price and payment are agreed in writing before work starts, and cancelling before work starts costs nothing.
Do I have to pay every month?
No. The build is a one-off price. Website care at £50 a month is optional, for anyone who wants hosting, updates and small edits handled for them.
Let’s make your business look the business.
Tell us about the business in a couple of minutes. The studio comes back with the right option, the price and a plan to get it live.
Rather text? Send a message to 07360 495182