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In India, the demand for freelance web development has surged dramatically over the last decade. Entrepreneurs, startups, influencers, local businesses, and even medium-sized brands now prefer hiring freelancers instead of full-scale agencies. The key reasons are cost-effectiveness, flexible collaboration, and personalized attention that freelancers often bring to the table.
But the most common question people ask is:
“How much do freelancers charge for a website in India?”
The answer isn’t one-size-fits-all because website development pricing depends on several variables — including the type of website you need, the freelancer’s skill level, the tools or technologies used, and how custom or complex the design and features are.
To understand this thoroughly, we need to look at:
This Part 1 will focus primarily on market overview, cost influences, website categories, and foundational knowledge so that you can clearly understand why prices vary so much.
Indian businesses — from small retailers to large enterprise firms — increasingly understand the necessity of having an online presence. Even local shops today want an online catalog, ordering system, WhatsApp integration, or a Google Business profile.
But hiring a full-time developer or an agency is not always feasible for smaller budgets.
That’s where freelancers come in.
| Advantage | Description |
| Lower Costs | Freelancers have minimal overhead expenses, so they can offer affordable pricing. |
| Direct Communication | You work directly with the developer — no middlemen. |
| Flexible Engagement | Work can be broken into milestones, with no long-term commitments. |
| Talent Diversity | You can choose from thousands of specialists in UI/UX, WordPress, Shopify, PHP, React, etc. |
This market dynamic has led to a huge skill pool in India — ranging from beginner-level freshers to highly experienced senior developers who handle global brands.
India is home to one of the largest tech talent pools in the world. A number of Indian freelancers take projects not only locally but from countries like the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, UAE, and Singapore.
This global exposure has helped Indian freelancers develop:
However — not all freelancers are the same, and thus, pricing differs widely.
Before we talk numbers, it’s important to understand what determines the final cost. Because if you understand the components, you will know where your money is actually going.
The primary cost driver is the category of website you need:
| Website Type | Description |
| Basic Business Website | Informational site with home page + few content pages |
| Portfolio Website | Personal branding for creators, photographers, etc. |
| Blog+SEO Setup Website | Setup for professional blogging & ranking |
| E-Commerce Store | Product listings, checkout, payment, dashboard |
| Custom Application Website | Tailor-made functionality and system workflows |
The more complex the functionality → the higher the cost.
Freelancers may charge differently based on:
Design-heavy sites usually require UI/UX planning, which increases cost.
Some platforms are quicker and cheaper, others demand specialized coding skills.
| Platform / Tech | Cost Impact |
| WordPress / WIX | Low–Moderate Cost |
| Shopify / Webflow | Moderate–High Cost |
| Custom Code (React, Laravel, Node) | High Cost |
If your website is custom-coded, expect a higher development charge.
Experience matters. Indian freelancers generally fall into four categories:
| Level | Experience | Typical Charge Range |
| Beginner | 0–1 year | Very low pricing, limited capability |
| Intermediate | 1–3 years | Affordable, good quality |
| Professional | 3–7 years | Higher pricing, polished delivery |
| Expert / Specialist | 7+ years | Premium pricing, industry-standard results |
If your brand image matters, do not choose purely based on cheapest price.
Urgent and fast-track projects usually cost 20–50% more.
Website maintenance is often charged monthly or annually, and it’s an important cost to consider.
Understanding the type of website you need is essential before checking pricing.
Below are the major categories freelancers build today:
This is the most common request by local service providers, startups, and SMEs.
Key Pages:
Purpose → Brand Identity + Lead Generation
Ideal for:
Showcases:
Includes:
Used by:
Most complex among common website types.
Includes:
Example:
These require architectural planning + coding → high cost.
Your freelancer must know:
A skilled freelancer doesn’t just build your website —
They help shape your online brand identity.
If you later decide to work with a more professional team for upgrading or scaling your website, companies like Abbacus Technologies offer specialized website and web app development solutions but for now, we’ll stay focused on freelancing costs.
Detailed Pricing, Real Cost Scenarios, and Practical Decision Guidance
Now that we’ve understood how the Indian freelance market operates and what factors influence pricing, we can explore actual cost structures in depth. When someone approaches a freelance web developer in India, the pricing conversation usually revolves around three foundational elements:
There is no universal pricing formula like X pages = Y cost, because websites are not just pages — they represent workflows, user journeys, brand presence, and long-term business goals. But we can understand pricing by examining common website categories.
A basic business website is typically designed for small companies, consultants, tutors, shops, clinics, fitness trainers, or any service professionals who want to introduce their brand online.
Such websites usually include:
If you choose a freelancer who works with WordPress or WIX, the project becomes simpler because the framework already exists. The developer only configures, designs, edits, and optimizes according to your brand.
Typical Cost Range:
₹8,000 to ₹20,000 when handled by an intermediate-level freelancer.
However, a beginner may charge around ₹4,000 to ₹7,000 — but this often comes with compromises like weak design quality, slower performance, non-optimized pages, and little or no professional support. On the other hand, a highly experienced freelancer could charge ₹25,000 to ₹45,000 for the same type of website — but deliver a sharper brand feel, faster load times, better UI consistency, and future scalability.
So the variation here isn’t because the website is “small” or “big.”
The variation exists because quality and professionalism differ widely.
A portfolio website is focused on showcasing identity, capability, credibility, and personality. These websites are often built for:
Portfolio sites require visual balance, emotional tone, and brand narrative instead of just text. They rely more heavily on layout structure, whitespace, image placement, typography, subtle motion, and storytelling.
When done correctly, a portfolio website feels like a reflection of the person.
Typical Cost Range:
₹12,000 to ₹40,000 depending on design detail, animations, and visual polish.
Custom-designed portfolio websites (often done in Webflow, Figma + WordPress, or React) may cross ₹45,000 to ₹90,000 due to higher design craftsmanship and animation work.
A blog is more technical than it appears.
It’s not simply a list of articles — it requires architecture for:
If a freelancer is building a professional blogging setup that is intended for:
— the website must be structurally strong.
Typical Cost Range:
₹15,000 to ₹35,000 for a solid SEO-ready blog foundation.
More advanced blogs that require:
may cost anywhere between ₹40,000 to ₹1,20,000+ depending on complexity.
This is where pricing rises notably — because an online store is not just pages; it is a system.
An e-commerce website requires:
Even a small store needs a structured backend.
If the freelancer uses Shopify, the development is simpler but you pay recurring Shopify subscription fees. If the freelancer uses WooCommerce on WordPress, the development takes longer but long-term cost is lower. If the freelancer builds a custom ecommerce platform, cost rises significantly due to architecture and engineering depth.
Typical Cost Range for Freelancer-built Ecommerce Sites:
| Quality Level | Price Range | What You Get |
| Basic Small Store | ₹18,000 – ₹35,000 | Good for small businesses with <50 products |
| Mid-Scale Store | ₹40,000 – ₹1,50,000 | Better design, filters, review system, custom pages |
| Advanced / Custom Store | ₹1,50,000 – ₹6,00,000+ | Fully custom UI, product configurators, automation workflows |
If your website requires subscription billing, multi-vendor setup, or ERP integration, the cost moves into the professional development zone, where companies or specialized freelancers handle the architecture.
Custom websites are the highest tier of web development, because they require:
Examples include:
These projects cannot be rushed or template-based. They require experienced developers.
Typical Cost Range:
₹2,00,000 to ₹20,00,000+ depending on functionality and scale.
This is also the price category where businesses often shift from freelancers to established development companies because the project requires multiple roles: UI/UX designer, front-end engineer, back-end coder, QA tester, and deployment specialist. But many Indian expert-level freelancers also successfully deliver such projects when they collaborate as teams.
People sometimes choose the lowest quote they receive — and later end up paying much more for fixing poor work.
Common situations:
Cost-saving at the start can lead to:
Choosing correctly the first time often saves money and time.
A skilled freelancer:
Their pricing reflects their maturity, reliability, and ability to provide long-term support, not just build-and-vanish delivery.
Hiring Considerations, Cost Comparisons, and Final Conclusion
By this point, it is clear that the cost of hiring a freelancer to build a website in India is not fixed — it changes depending on experience, platform, design quality, and complexity. But even after knowing the price ranges, many business owners still feel confused when talking to freelancers, mainly because they don’t know how to evaluate the value behind each proposal.
A freelancer’s quote is not just a number. It represents:
Understanding how to evaluate these elements ensures that you choose someone who delivers not just a website, but an online presence that supports your business goals.
When talking to freelancers, two people may mention the same tasks but mean completely different things. One may say “I will set up WordPress,” while another will say “I will configure WordPress, secure it, optimize load speed, install essential plugins, configure caching, and train you on site management.” Both sentences sound similar to an uninformed buyer — but the difference in quality is dramatic.
What matters is not the price, but what the price includes.
If one freelancer charges ₹10,000 and another charges ₹25,000, the difference is usually due to:
A professional freelancer does not simply assemble a website — they craft an experience.
When brands invest in their online presence, they often start small, but they don’t want to restart later. A good website should not become outdated within six months. It should support scaling, content addition, and marketing strategies.
This is why the right freelancer will:
Cheap websites often “look right” on the surface, but fail silently where it matters: security, speed, indexing, conversion, credibility.
Long-term, that becomes costly.
Before finalizing a freelancer:
The ideal freelancer is not just a developer — they become a digital growth partner who supports your business continuously.
Freelancers are best when:
Agencies are best when:
Some businesses start with a freelancer but gradually scale and require more structured support. In such cases, moving to an experienced development company becomes beneficial. For example, companies like Abbacus Technologies provide professional web development, full-scale product development, UI/UX engineering, and dedicated support for brands looking to grow beyond the initial stage Abbacus Technologies
Choosing between a freelancer and an agency is not about “cheap vs expensive” — it is about matching the phase of your business with the right form of support.
If you want a simple, realistic cost expectation for a standard website built by a skilled freelancer in India:
| Website Type | Fair Price Range |
| Basic Business Website | ₹12,000 to ₹25,000 |
| Professional Portfolio | ₹18,000 to ₹45,000 |
| SEO-Ready Blog Setup | ₹15,000 to ₹40,000 |
| Small to Medium Ecommerce Store | ₹30,000 to ₹1,50,000 |
| Custom Web Application | ₹2,00,000+ (scales based on features) |
This range reflects a balance between:
If the quote falls far below these ranges, the quality will most likely be compromised.
If the quote falls far above these ranges, verify whether added features, brand strategy, or architectural design justify it.
So, how much do freelancers charge for a website in India?
There is no single flat price, because website development is not a product — it is a craft that translates your business identity into a meaningful digital experience. The cost depends on the type of website, the experience level of the freelancer, the complexity of features, and the quality of design and performance standards you expect.
However, the right way to look at website cost is not just in terms of how much you pay today — but what the website will do for your business tomorrow. A website is not only a digital brochure; it is a tool for customer acquisition, trust-building, credibility, and brand growth.
Choose a freelancer who understands this.
Because a well-built website doesn’t just look good —
It helps you grow.