Most business websites take 4 to 8 weeks from discovery to launch. The range depends mainly on two things: the number of pages, and how quickly the content is ready. Government portals and custom systems are scoped per project, with a timeline agreed before design starts.
Here is what fills those weeks, and what you can do to stay at the short end of the range.
What happens during those weeks?
Our website projects run in four stages, and each one is agreed before the next begins.
- Discovery. We learn what the site has to achieve, who it is for and what already exists.
- Structure. We agree the pages, the navigation and what goes on each page, before any visual design.
- Design. We design the pages in your brand, and you review them.
- Build and launch. We build the site, load the content, test it and put it live.
The order matters. Structure agreed before design, and design agreed before build, means changes happen when they are cheap to make.
What makes a website take longer?
Five things, in rough order of how often we see them:
- Content that is not ready. Text, photos, staff details, prices. This is the most common delay by a wide margin.
- More pages. Every page needs content, design attention and checking.
- Many people approving. One decision maker is quick. A committee is not.
- Special features. Online payment, bookings, member logins or links to other systems each add work and testing.
- Changing the brief midway. New pages or a new direction after design has started pushes everything back.
What makes it faster?
- Prepare your content early. Even rough text is enough to start. It can be polished while design is under way.
- Name one person to approve. Collect opinions internally, then send one consolidated reply.
- Give examples. Two or three websites you like, and what you like about them, save a round of design.
- Reply to reviews quickly. A project with three review rounds that each wait a week for feedback has lost three weeks.
How long do different types of website take?
Timelines follow scope. As a guide to how the main types compare:
| Type of website | What drives the timeline |
|---|---|
| Landing page | One page and one goal. The quickest to deliver once content is ready. |
| Corporate website | The number of pages and how many people review them. |
| E-commerce store | The number of products, plus payment and delivery set-up and testing. |
| Custom system or portal | The process being built. Scoped per project after a discovery session. |
Most business websites, across the first three types, land in the 4 to 8 week range.
Does launch mean the work is finished?
The build is finished, but a website needs looking after. Software updates, backups, security checks and small content changes continue for as long as the site is live. Plan for that from the start, whether your own team does it or a care plan does.
What should you ask a vendor about timing?
Ask three things before you sign:
- What do you need from us, and by when? A good answer lists the content and decisions required at each stage.
- What happens if we are late with content? The timeline should say how the schedule moves.
- What is agreed in writing? The scope, the stages and the timeline should all be in the quotation.
A vendor who promises a date without asking about your content is guessing.
FAQ
Can a website be built in one week?
A simple landing page can be, if the content and images are ready on day one. A full business website usually cannot, because structure, design and content each need a round of review.
What is the most common cause of delay?
Content. Projects wait far longer for text, photos and approvals than for design or development. Having your content ready before the build starts is the single biggest time saver.
Does a redesign take less time than a new website?
Often, because the content and structure already exist. It still depends on how much is being rewritten and whether old pages need to be moved across and redirected.
When do we pay?
We start with a 50% deposit and the balance follows agreed milestones. You get a written quotation with the scope and timeline before any work starts.
