Agency vs Freelancer vs DIY: Which Is Right for a Small Irish Business?

At a glance

These ranges are rough. Your quotes may fall outside them.

Hiring an agency

An agency has a team: a project manager, a designer, a developer and often a copywriter. That means more skills and a backup if someone is off sick.

It also means more cost. You pay for the team, the office and the sales process. For a sole trader who needs five pages and a phone number, that's often more than the job needs.

Agencies suit businesses that need a large site, custom features, an online shop with lots of products, or ongoing marketing work.

Hiring a freelancer

A freelancer is one person who designs and builds the site. Prices are usually lower, and you deal with the same person throughout.

Quality varies a lot. Some freelancers are excellent. Others use a cheap template and move on. The biggest risk is that they stop answering when you need a change a year later.

Freelancers suit small brochure sites, especially if you can see their recent work and speak to the person directly.

Doing it yourself

Website builders like Wix and Squarespace make DIY possible. You pay a monthly fee and drag things into place.

The cost is your time. Most people underestimate it. Writing the text, sourcing photos, setting up the domain, email and Google Business Profile, and getting it to look right on a phone can take 20 to 40 hours.

DIY suits people who enjoy it, have evenings free, and want to test a business idea before spending money.

Where we fit

We sit between a freelancer and an agency. We work to a fixed process and a proven design system, which keeps prices at freelancer level (from €599) while giving you a written scope, set turnaround times and a care plan if you want ongoing help.

Questions to ask whoever you choose

Ask these before you pay a deposit. Get the answers in writing.

• ✓Who owns the domain, the site files and the content?
• ✓What exactly is included in the price?
• ✓How many rounds of changes do I get?
• ✓When will it go live?
• ✓What does it cost each year after launch?
• ✓Who do I contact if something breaks, and how fast do you reply?
• ✓Can I see three sites you've built in the last year?

Red flags

Walk away if you see any of these.

• ✓The domain will be registered in their name, not yours
• ✓No written quote or scope
• ✓A large monthly fee with a long lock-in
• ✓No live examples of recent work
• ✓Promises of "page one on Google" by a set date

Local or remote?

You don't need a designer in your own town. Most small business websites are now built over phone and video calls, with photos sent by email or WhatsApp. What matters more is that they reply quickly and understand your customers.

How to compare quotes fairly

Quotes are hard to compare when each one covers different things. Line them up on the same points: number of pages, who writes the text, Google Business Profile set-up, hosting for year one, number of revisions, turnaround, and yearly costs after launch.

A quote that looks cheap may leave out hosting or copywriting. One that looks expensive may include a year of support. Once you put them side by side, the real difference is often smaller than it first seems.

The hidden cost of your own time

DIY looks cheapest on paper. But if you bill €50 an hour as a tradesperson or consultant, 30 hours spent building a site costs you €1,500 in lost work. For many small business owners, that's more than paying someone to build it.

There's also the cost of getting it wrong. A slow site, a broken form or a missing phone number can quietly cost you enquiries for months before you notice.

What to expect after launch, whoever builds it

Agencies often offer a monthly retainer for updates, SEO and reports. Freelancers usually charge by the hour for changes. DIY means you do it yourself, or it doesn't get done.

Ask about this before you sign. Find out how quickly small changes get made, what they cost, and whether you can make simple edits yourself. A site that can't be updated soon goes out of date: old prices, old hours, staff who've left.

Our care plan is €29 a month and covers hosting, backups, security updates and up to 30 minutes of edits. It's optional. You can also make simple changes yourself after a short training call.

A simple way to decide

Write down three numbers: your budget, how many hours you can give it, and how many pages you need. If the budget is under €300 and you have 30 hours, DIY. If the budget is €500 to €2,000 and you need under ten pages, a freelancer or a small fixed-price studio. If you need a large or complex site, get two or three agency quotes and compare them line by line.

So which should you pick?

If your budget is under €500 and you have time, try DIY. If you need a simple site and know a good freelancer, that's a solid choice. If you need a big or complex site, get agency quotes. If you want a professional build at a small business price, with a fixed quote and a set go-live date, talk to us.

Frequently asked questions