Every week a Duluth business owner asks some version of the same question: "Why would I pay you when Wix is $30 a month?" It is a fair question. Here is the honest comparison.
The short answer
A template builder is the right call when you need a page up this week, you have no budget, and the site is not how customers find or book you. A custom site is the right call when your work is visual, your customers vet you on their phone before they call, and you want the site to actually bring in jobs.
What the builder really costs
| Wix / Squarespace | Custom site (us) | |
|---|---|---|
| Up front | $0 to $500 (or your weekend) | $1,500 to $5,000, most land at $2,000 to $3,500 |
| Monthly | $30 to $50 forever, more with booking and ecommerce apps | About $15 hosting, or a care plan if you want us to handle it |
| Three-year cost | $1,100 to $1,800 plus apps, plus your time | $2,500 to $4,000 all in |
| Who owns it | Them. Leave and the site is gone. | You. Domain, code, accounts, data. |
| Mobile speed | Usually 40 to 70 on Google PageSpeed | Built to 100 |
| Looks like | The same template as three other shops in town | Your business |
The three-year math is closer than people expect. The real difference is what the site does during those three years.
Where builders fall down
Speed on a phone. Most template sites we test in Duluth score between 40 and 70 on Google's mobile speed test. Google uses that score to rank you, and customers on a weak signal in a parking lot give up at about three seconds. Our own site scores 100 on all four categories and you can run the test yourself at pagespeed.web.dev.
Booking. Builders bolt on booking apps that cost extra and live in someone else's system. When a detailer or a lash tech wants a customer to pick a package, a vehicle, and a time, and get a text the second it happens, that is custom work.
Ownership. If you cancel Squarespace, your site is gone. If you leave us, you take the domain, the code, and the customer list with you. That is the whole arrangement.
Sameness. Your customers have seen the template. They may not know why the site feels like a template, but they feel it, and trust drops.
When the builder is right
- You need a one-page site by Friday and have no budget yet.
- The site is a formality: a landing page for a business that gets all its work from referrals.
- You enjoy building it and will keep it updated yourself.
No shame in any of those. Start there, and come to us when the site needs to earn its keep.
When custom is right
- Your work is visual and customers look at it before they call: detailing, tint, salons, tattoo, landscaping, contractors.
- You want online booking or quotes that land in your inbox and your phone.
- You are running ads and need the page to convert, not just exist.
- You are tired of paying rent on something you do not own.
What we do differently
Fixed price in writing within 24 hours of a short call. Most sites launch in 1 to 3 weeks. Built to score 100 on Google PageSpeed and meet accessibility standards. You own everything. If you want a second opinion on your current site, send it over and we will send back an honest review, free.