Cheap web designers in London often sit next to each other in the same search results, with prices that look close and promises that look identical. The useful comparison is not the adjective in the headline. It is a short sheet: pages, ownership, the second-year cost, and whether a stranger can call the business from the example site.
This sits beside what to ask a budget web designer. That piece is the question list. This one is how to hold two quotes next to each other without getting lost in presentations.
Why the adverts look the same
Everyone can write “mobile friendly” and “SEO”. Those phrases do not say whether each service has its own page, whether the titles are written, or whether the form is connected. Two quotes at a similar number can be a finished five-page site and a deposit on a larger project. Until you see the page list, you do not have two prices for the same thing.
London adds another copy of the same problem. “Web design London” is on almost every homepage in this search. It does not mean the designer knows your borough or your trade. You still have to supply the services and the area. A good cheap designer will ask for that before they show you a colour.
A comparison you can do in one sitting
Make two columns. Rows: number of pages, who writes the words, who supplies photos, domain ownership, hosting in year one, hosting in year two, whether old URLs redirect, whether you can edit text, where form messages arrive, and what is excluded. Fill the blanks with “not stated” rather than with a kind assumption.
Then look at our published rows so you have a third column that is not an advert. Starter £150 for up to five pages. Business £295 for up to fifteen. Growth £495 for up to thirty, including a small shop or bookings when that is the brief. First year of domain, hosting, and SSL included. Year two typically about £60 to the providers. The reasoning is in the cost guide. If another column cannot be filled, that quote is not ready to accept.
The phone test
Open each example on your phone, not on the designer’s laptop. Time how long the first screen takes to show the offer. Tap the phone number. If nothing happens, the number is not a link. Try the menu. If you cannot find the service you would buy, the structure is the problem, and a lower price will not fix a structure you are about to copy.
Read one inner page. If it is the homepage with a different title, the designer is selling one page several times. That pattern shows up in both expensive and cheap work. It is discussed in affordable website design. You want pages that can be understood on their own.
What happens after launch
Ask who you email when a price changes. If the answer is a ticket system you have never seen, ask what a one-line edit costs. Some cheap builds are cheap because every later change is billed as a project. That can still be fine if you are happy to edit the site yourself. It is a poor deal if you were told the monthly fee included unlimited changes and the monthly fee is the only way to log in.
Optional care is a cleaner split. The site stays yours. You pay for edits when you want them. That is how website care is offered here. It is not required to keep the domain working.
How to pick
Pick the quote you can explain back in one paragraph: these pages, this price, this renewal, this owner. If you cannot explain it, you do not have a decision yet. Send us the two quotes if you want a plain reading of the gaps, or send the page list and we will price that instead. Bring the services you want calls for. Leave the mood board until the sheet is full.
Frequently asked questions
Should I choose the London designer with the most pages in the portfolio?
Choose the one whose examples are usable on a phone and whose quote states ownership. A large portfolio can still be the wrong structure.
Is a very low deposit a good sign?
Only if the rest of the price is written down. A small deposit with an unstated remainder is not a cheap site.
Can I compare you with another quote?
Yes. Use the rows above. We would rather lose a mismatched job than win one with a hidden second year.
