--- title: "Why should I pay for a website when I can do it for free myself? - Light Bulb Web Design Blog - Light Bulb Web Design in Carlisle, Cumbria, and the UK - The UK Creative Agency who delivers" description: "The marketplace is flooded with companies offering you the chance to create a free website, a quick Google at the time of writing this post brought me..." url: "https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/why-should-i-pay-for-a-website-when-i-can-do-it-for-free-myself" date: "2026-06-06T00:28:01+00:00" language: "en-GB" --- ## Light Bulb Web Design Blog [ Categories ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories "Categories") [ Tags ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/tags "Tags") [ Archives ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/archive "Archives") [ Calendar ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/calendar "Calendar") [ Categories: All Categories ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0); "Categories") Search...Suggested keywords [ x ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) Font size: [ + ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) [ – ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) [ Print ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/why-should-i-pay-for-a-website-when-i-can-do-it-for-free-myself?tmpl=component&print=1&format=print "Print") # Why should I pay for a website when I can do it for free myself? [Website Design](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/website-design) [Chris Wilcox](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/blogger/chris) Tuesday, 12 August 2014 7743 Hits [ ![Why should I pay for a website when I can do it for free myself?](//www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/images/easyblog_images/940/b2ap3_thumbnail_why-pay-for-web-designer.png) ](//www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/images/easyblog_images/940/why-pay-for-web-designer.png "Why should I pay for a website when I can do it for free myself?") The marketplace is flooded with companies offering you the chance to create a free website, a quick Google at the time of writing this post brought me 4,630,000,000 results for 'free website'! It's certainly true, anyone can now sign up to one of these services and put their own website together, paying nothing but time for the pleasure, however you need to ask a few questions of yourself before committing to the process: 1. **Ownership** Let's start with the main point - who owns a free website? Usually not you! If you decide at any point to move your website to a professional service or even another free service you can't. Sometimes you may be able to keep your website address and move this, but the site itself will disappear once you close your free website account. If you can transfer the domain, there can often be a few too many hoops to jump through to get this done! 2. **Search engine optimisation** There is more to a website than just looks - the text content on the pages is very important, and a decent web designer should be offering advice on how best to write this in order to target your desired audience. On top of what you can see yourself, there are many behind-the-scenes design requirements which further improve how your site ranks in searches. Unless you are aware of these concepts, and keep up to date on changes in search engine behaviour over time, you could be losing out on significant amounts of visitors and therefore customers and income. 3. **Free is not always free!** Beware the 'Upgrade' options available from these free website providers. At the end of the day these people are out there to make money, so they will always be offering seemingly good value upgrades and options for you to improve your website or even have them design it for you. Let's take one example without mentioning any names: the free package is limited to 20MBytes of storage, 15 pages and has the providers branding on your website. Their premium packages start from £7.20 per month at the time I am writing this. That's £86 per year. This gets you a 50-product shop and the 'mobile website' and a limited amount of bandwidth. If you want full mobile compatibility for your store then you need the next package up at £13.50 per month - £162. You can further pay them to create your 'free' website...from £400 (apparently half price). Then it's £15 per month for hosting and support (I can't find out if this is from day one or applicable at the end of year one)...so that's £180 per annum. For life. *Does this include backups? How often is it backed up? How fast can it be restored if there is a problem?* Done well, a free website can work out great, but if you want to make sure your website performs and delivers the best for your business, it is really worth talking to some professional website designers before you take the plunge - once you work out the full costs for both options, it may work out much better value for money to get the work done properly! 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Your Name E-mail Address [ Creating great website navigation ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/creating-great-website-navigation) [ What to look for when choosing a website designer ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/what-to-look-for-when-choosing-a-website-designer) #### About the author [ ![Chris Wilcox](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/images/easyblog_avatar/940_webdesign-blog.jpg) ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/blogger/chris) ### [Chris Wilcox](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/blogger/chris) [ ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk) [ Subscribe to updates from author ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) [ Unsubscribe to updates from author ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) [ Chris Wilcox ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/blogger/chris) Chris is the founder and lead strategist at Light Bulb Web Design, a UK‑based creative agency specialising in psychology‑driven, AI‑ready websites for professional service businesses. From law firms and financial practices to property and consultancy brands, he helps organisations turn underperforming websites into high‑trust, high‑converting digital assets. With a background rooted in web design, technology, and human‑centred strategy, Chris writes about the real issues holding most websites back; unclear messaging, bloated builds, weak trust signals, and structures that search engines and AI simply can’t interpret. His work blends behavioural insight, technical precision, and a deep understanding of how people make decisions online. Chris speaks at industry events, sharing practical, no‑nonsense guidance on AI‑aware optimisation, digital trust, and the future of web strategy. When he’s not building or refining websites, he’s exploring the intersection of technology, psychology, and business growth - and helping service‑based brands show up online with clarity, confidence, and credibility. ##### Author's recent posts [More posts from author](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/blogger/chris) [ Thursday, 04 June 2026 Smart Generative Engine Optimisation: The Essential Guide ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/smart-generative-engine-optimisation-the-essential-guide) [ Wednesday, 27 May 2026 What are AI Markdown Pages, and why do they matter for your business? ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/what-are-ai-markdown-pages-and-why-do-they-matter-for-your-business) [ Friday, 22 May 2026 Strengthening School Website Support Across Northamptonshire ](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/strengthening-school-website-support-across-northamptonshire) #### Related Posts [](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/spotlight-on-kathie-fursse-from-t5-for-life)### [Spotlight on...Kathie Fursse from T5 for life](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/spotlight-on-kathie-fursse-from-t5-for-life) [Spotlight on...](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/spotlight-on) [](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/spotlight-on-sharon-howat-from-fm-cosmetics-world)### [Spotlight on...Sharon Howat from FM Cosmetics World](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/spotlight-on-sharon-howat-from-fm-cosmetics-world) [Spotlight on...](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/spotlight-on) [](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/happy-1st-birthday)### [Happy 1st Birthday!](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/happy-1st-birthday) [Website Design](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/website-design) [](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/why-do-i-need-ongoing-website-support)### [Why do I need ongoing website support?](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/why-do-i-need-ongoing-website-support) [Website Design](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/website-design) [](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/how-to-make-the-most-of-your-e-commerce-website)### [How to make the most of your e-commerce website](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/entry/how-to-make-the-most-of-your-e-commerce-website) [E-Commerce](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/website-design-blog/categories/e-commerce) - [Comments](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) - [Facebook Comments](https://www.lightbulbwebdesign.co.uk/javascript:void(0);) #### Comments No comments made yet. 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