How much does it cost to develop a custom website or web application?

Similar to web design costs discussed earlier, development costs depend on complexity and scope:

• A simple website developement (e.g., taking a straightforward design into a CMS like Webflow or WordPress) might cost in the lower five-figures if design is already done – say $5,000 to $50,000 for development, testing, and deployment.
• Standard business websites (moderate custom development, interactive components,  a bit of custom integrations often end up $40,000 - $100,000 range for design+development together. If you already have designs, pure development could be $40,000 - $80,000.
• Complex websites or web applications will be more. A custom web app or a site with heavy functionality (user accounts, database operations, integrations) could cost $100,000 to $250,000+.

Website projects typically run $30K–$100K for comprehensive builds at a quality-focused firm  . If your project is essentially building a piece of software (for example, a startup’s product that lives on the web), it’s not unusual for costs to go into the high six figures, similar to what you’d budget for developing a mobile app or enterprise software.

Also consider ongoing costs: if you engage the agency for continuous development (adding features over time), you might move to a monthly retainer or agile sprint billing. Some agencies will estimate a large app in phases, e.g., MVP (minimum viable product) for $80K, then additional modules in subsequent contracts.

When planning budget, remember that investing in solid development pays off by avoiding technical development debt. A cheaper quote might cut corners, leading to bugs or scalability issues that cost you more later. Reputable agencies will be transparent about costs and what’s included (e.g., testing, project management, post-launch support). They often adhere to either fixed pricing for well-defined projects or time-and-materials for evolving scopes. At SVZ, we provide detailed estimates and have tackled projects from <$50K websites to large-scale governement contract builds over $500K+. Regardless of budget, our ethos is to maximize value: we utilize efficient tools (like Webflow or modern frameworks) to deliver robust solutions cost-effectively when needed, and we prioritize features that yield the highest business impact to make every dollar count.