Website quotations differ because the scope differs. One provider is pricing the build. Another is pricing the build plus writing the copy, preparing the images, setting up the domain and hosting, and covering support afterwards. Functionality moves the number too: a site that displays information and a site that takes payments are not the same job. So do recurring costs, because domain renewal, hosting and any ongoing support sit outside the headline figure.
So compare the written deliverables before you decide which quotation offers better value. Two quotations only tell you something useful once you can see what each one covers, what each one leaves out, and what each one assumes you will do yourself.
This guide sets out that method: what to write down before you ask for quotations, how to read a quotation from any provider, and which terms quietly decide your real cost after launch. If you are still working out what a website should cost before requesting quotations, our guide to what a website costs in Ghana explains what moves a price. This article starts where that one stops: you have two or three numbers in front of you.
What you are actually comparing
Read a quotation as a description of work, not as a price attached to the word “website”. Each line describes a decision somebody made: whose job it is to write the copy, whether a contact form is a simple message box or a multi-step enquiry process, whether hosting is arranged for you, whether the price covers anything after launch.
Where two quotations describe different decisions, the totals are measuring different things. That is the normal situation, and it is why comparing the totals on their own tells you very little.
A shop owner in Kumasi who needs a product catalogue with prices, photographs and a way for customers to send an order enquiry is describing one job. A consultant in Accra who needs an enquiry form that captures the service needed and a budget range is describing a different one. If the first shop also wants to take card payments through a checkout, that is a further decision, and it changes the price. None of these businesses is asking for the wrong thing. They are asking for different websites.
Write one brief before you ask for quotations
Before prices become interesting, write one short brief and send the same version to everyone you are considering. Not a technical specification. One page covering what the site must do, who will provide the content, what you want to own at the end, and when you need it live.
- What your business does, who it serves, and the main action a visitor should take
- The pages you need, named one by one rather than counted
- Which of those pages need something different: a gallery, a price list, an application form, a booking view
- Whether you sell online, take payments, take bookings, or need a member login
- What content you already have ready, and who will write or supply the rest
- Whether there is an existing website, and which of its addresses must keep working
- What you need to own at the end, including the domain
- Your target launch date, and what is driving it
Sending an identical brief is the single most useful step in a comparison. It removes the need to guess what each provider assumed. It also gives you something concrete to compare the answers against.
Read every line as confirmed, unconfirmed, or excluded
Build your own list of what the project needs, without looking at the quotations. Then read each quotation once and mark every item on your list with one of three descriptions.
- Confirmed — the quotation states it is covered
- Excluded — the quotation states it is not covered
- Unconfirmed — the quotation does not mention it
Unconfirmed is neither. It does not mean included and it does not mean excluded; it means you do not know yet. Treat it as an open question to put in writing, and leave it unpriced until it is answered.
This matters because an unwritten assumption tends to resurface later as additional work, quoted after you have committed to a total. Finding out now costs an email.
Pages and page types
A page count on its own says very little. “Up to ten pages” could describe ten pages sharing one simple layout, or ten pages where four need a gallery, one needs a product price list and one needs an application form. The second group takes longer to design and build.
We recommend asking each provider to list the pages by name and to state how many distinct layouts are being designed. Then ask what one extra page costs, so you can see how the price behaves if you need more later.
Who prepares the content
For each quotation, establish who writes the words, who supplies or photographs the images, who enters them into the pages, and by when. “Content” on its own does not answer that. A quotation covering an interview with your team, the writing itself and image preparation is describing more work than one that loads files you have already prepared.
Functionality and connections to other systems
Taking payments, taking bookings, connecting a customer relationship system, or sending enquiries to a messaging service are all connections to another system. Each one brings its own questions:
- Which system sends and receives each kind of information
- Whether the connection works one way or both ways
- Who provides the test accounts and access needed to test it
- Who pays any transaction, licence or usage fees, and whether those fees are inside the price
- What happens to the cost and the timeline if that service changes
Naming a service is not the same as scoping it. If a quotation lists “payment integration”, it is reasonable to ask what sits behind that line.
Design, revisions and what a round means
Ask how many rounds of design changes are included and, more importantly, what counts as one round. A workable definition is that you send one consolidated list of changes from your side and it comes back revised. A definition where each separate message uses up a round runs out quickly.
We also recommend asking what happens to content corrections. Fixing a typo should not be treated the same as restructuring a page, and it is reasonable to ask for that to be stated.
Two further design questions are worth putting in writing, because the same phrase covers very different amounts of work. Is the design adapted from an established layout pattern, or built from scratch for your organisation? And are there reusable sections your team can rearrange later, or is each page built once?
One comparison table
Copy this into a document with one column per quotation and work through it before looking at any total. Every question in the last column is one to send in writing.
| Line item | What to write down | Question to ask before accepting |
|---|---|---|
| Pages and page types | Pages named individually, and how many distinct layouts are designed | Which pages are included by name, and what does one additional page cost? |
| Content | Who writes, who supplies images, who enters them, and by when | Who is responsible for the words and the images, and what do you supply? |
| Design approach | Adapted from an existing pattern, or built from scratch | Is the design adapted or custom, and will we get reusable sections? |
| Revisions | How many rounds, and what counts as one round | How many rounds, and what counts as one round? |
| Functionality | What each form, payment, booking or login actually does | What does each enquiry or payment step do, and what does it connect to? |
| Search setup | Which tasks are covered: page titles, meta descriptions, heading structure, image alt text, sitemap | Which specific search-setup tasks are included, and how will I see them done? |
| Existing website | Content migration, whether current addresses keep working, and redirects | What happens to my current page addresses, and is that included? |
| Domain | Who the domain is registered to | Will the domain be registered in my name or my organisation’s account? |
| Hosting | Who arranges it, whose account it sits in, and the running cost | Who holds the hosting account, what access is provided, and what are the renewal dates? |
| Payment stages | What each payment is tied to | What does each payment confirm, and what happens if the project pauses? |
| Ownership and handover | What you receive at the end and who can edit the site afterwards | What do I receive at handover, and can my own staff update the site? |
| Support and maintenance | What is covered, for how long, through which channel | What does support cover after launch, for how long, and how do I reach it? |
| Additional work | How new work is quoted and approved | How is work requested after the original scope is agreed, and at what rate? |
A quotation that uses a broad phrase such as “SEO setup”, “performance work” or “custom development” without saying what is delivered has left the item unconfirmed. That is common in a first draft and is a reasonable thing to ask about.
Add up what is confirmed, and keep going
Once the unconfirmed items are answered, you can total what you know:
- The build or setup price, with any deposit counted as part of that price rather than on top of it
- Anything a quotation confirmed as excluded that you now need, added at the provider’s own quoted rate for that work
- Recurring costs over the period you care about: domain renewal, hosting, and any third-party fees the provider confirmed apply
- Changes you expect to need each year, priced at the stated rate for additional work
Our advice is to add only what has been confirmed. If a fee is still unconfirmed, leave it out of the total and keep it on the question list, rather than putting an estimate in and treating the total as settled.
A quotation that looks cheapest may cover work you cannot operate without. Comparing the confirmed totals alongside the table shows which differences are settled and which are still open.
The domain, hosting and handover
These are three separate questions that often get treated as one. It helps to keep them apart.
The domain is a registration you hold. If it is registered in your name or your organisation’s account, you control it and can transfer it. If it is registered in a provider’s name, moving it involves dealing with them first. Registration is normally quick and inexpensive, and it is worth arranging early rather than leaving it to handover.
Hosting is where the site is served from, and it is a separate arrangement. Ask who holds the hosting account, what access you are given, whether access is shared or individual, what the renewal dates and running costs are, and what happens to your access if the relationship ends. Ask specifically rather than assuming, because arrangements differ and some hosting is provided as part of a service rather than as an account in your name.
Handover is what you can actually do afterwards. Ask what you receive, who can reach the domain and the site, and whether someone on your team can add a page or publish an update without raising a request. Ask what documentation you get. If editing is not practical for your team, every small change becomes someone else’s task.
Licences and software accounts vary between projects, so ask about each one that applies rather than assuming. Some can be transferred, some are tied to the provider or the platform, and some third-party accounts are opened by the provider and must be moved to you deliberately. The point is to find out which category each one falls into before you need it.
What to tie each payment to
A final payment that falls due before launch or handover means the last part of the money is released when there is a finished website in front of you. It also means you are approving something you have seen.
Worth asking: what each payment confirms, whether a written scope is attached to the first one, what happens if the project pauses partway, and how long the quotation stays valid.
Our own arrangement works that way. Sobiaonline offers flexible payment options through bank cards and mobile money across various networks. Pay 60% to begin your project and the remaining 40% before launch or handover.
Two quotations for the same brief
The example below is illustrative only. Both providers answered the identical brief above: the same eight named pages, no online payments, one enquiry form, an existing three-page site to replace. The figures are invented, are not Sobiaonline package prices, and are not quotations from any provider.
| Point in the brief | Quotation A | Quotation B |
|---|---|---|
| Headline price | GHS 4,150 | GHS 6,900 |
| Deposit | 50% at the start, counted within the GHS 4,150 | 60% at the start, counted within the GHS 6,900 |
| The eight pages, named | All eight listed, four distinct layouts | All eight listed, four distinct layouts |
| Copywriting | Included: one draft per page, revised once | Excluded: client supplies final text |
| Images | Excluded: client supplies photography | Included: one shoot day, edited for the web |
| Enquiry form | Name, email, message | Name, email, service needed, budget range |
| Search setup | Confirmed: page titles, meta descriptions, heading structure, alt text | Confirmed: page titles, meta descriptions, heading structure, alt text, sitemap |
| Existing three-page site | Unconfirmed | Confirmed: copy carried across, redirects for the old three addresses |
| Domain | Confirmed: registered in client name | Confirmed: registered in client name |
| Hosting | Unconfirmed | Arranged by provider, first year included, renewal from year two |
| Revisions | Two rounds, one consolidated list per round | Two rounds, one consolidated list per round |
| After launch | Three months of technical maintenance | Six months of technical maintenance |
| Quotation valid for | 30 days | 30 days |
On the headline figures, Quotation A is lower by GHS 2,750. Now apply the confirmed items. Quotation A excludes photography and you still need it; Quotation B includes a shoot day. If A also charges for that work, the gap narrows by whatever A’s stated rate for it turns out to be. A leaves the existing-site work unconfirmed, so that line stays open rather than being guessed at. B adds hosting from year two, which is a confirmed recurring cost and belongs in your total.
Neither column is a winner on these figures. What the pair shows is where each quotation has answered and where it has not, and that the deposits are not extra costs on top of the prices. Once A confirms the two open items, the comparison becomes something you can decide on.
A short checklist
- Everyone answered the same written brief
- Pages are listed by name, and layouts are counted
- Writing, images and content entry are each assigned to somebody
- Revision rounds are stated, and what counts as a round is stated
- Every unconfirmed item has been turned into a written question
- The domain will be registered in your name or organisation’s account
- Hosting account holder, access and renewal dates are known
- You know what you receive at handover and who can edit the site after
- The final payment is tied to something you have seen
- Scope, deliverables and timeline are confirmed in writing before work starts
How a Sobiaonline quotation is set out
If you are comparing us alongside other providers, it is fair to set out our terms in the same detail we would ask of anyone else. At Sobiaonline we set out scope, deliverables and timeline in writing before any work begins.
A Starter website starts at GHS 2,300 and covers one to five structured pages, a design that works across devices, a contact or enquiry form, basic on-page search setup and six months of technical maintenance. A Business website starts at GHS 3,500 and covers up to ten structured pages, sections shaped around your goals, blog or news capability, a lead-generation enquiry form and six months of technical maintenance. An Ecommerce website starts from GHS 6,500 and covers online store setup, product catalogue structure, cart and secure checkout, payment gateway configuration and six months of technical maintenance.
Corporate sites, membership platforms and specialised builds are quoted on the scope you need rather than forced into a package. The full detail is on our web design services page.
The commercial terms we work to are these:
- Scope, deliverables and timelines are confirmed in writing before work begins
- Sobiaonline offers flexible payment options through bank cards and mobile money across various networks. Pay 60% to begin your project and the remaining 40% before launch or handover
- Six months of technical maintenance is included, covering software updates within the agreed scope, routine backups, security monitoring and correction of technical faults within the agreed scope
- That maintenance is not unlimited redesign and not ongoing content entry. Ongoing content support is arranged separately and we tell you what it costs
- Domain and hosting are registered in your name so you keep ownership and control. They are not sold to you as a separate package, and renewal dates and recurring costs are explained before work begins
- You work directly with the person responsible for understanding and delivering your website
- Every website is designed to work on desktop, tablet and mobile
These are the terms we publish, and they are what we confirm in writing for your project. Anything specific to your brief — the pages, the functionality, revision rounds, who prepares the content and the handover you want — goes into the written scope rather than being assumed. If you would rather see finished work first, our portfolio shows a range of Ghanaian business and organisation websites.
One note on search. No designer controls where your site ranks, because search engines decide the order. What can reasonably be expected is sensible on-page setup: page titles, meta descriptions, a clear heading structure, image alt text, and a site that works on a phone. Ask which of those are included and how you will see them done.
Frequently asked questions
Why do website quotations differ so much?
Because the scope differs. One quotation may price the build only, while another includes writing the copy and preparing images. Functionality changes the work, so a site that takes payments differs from one that displays information. Recurring costs such as domain renewal and hosting sit outside the headline figure. Compare the written deliverables before deciding which quotation offers better value.
Is the lowest quotation always the worst value?
Not always. A lower price can reflect a genuinely smaller scope, which may suit your needs. It becomes a problem when necessary work is unconfirmed rather than stated as excluded, because you may end up arranging and paying for it separately. Ask every provider for their inclusions and exclusions in writing, and add only the confirmed items to your total.
What should be in writing before work begins?
The scope, the deliverables, the timeline, the price, the payment stages, what is excluded, and who is responsible for content. For a Sobiaonline project these are confirmed in writing before work starts, and we would encourage you to ask for the same from any provider.
Who should own the domain name?
You should. The domain should be registered in your name or your organisation’s account. Registration is separate from hosting: hosting is where your site is served from, and you should ask who holds that account, what access you receive and what the renewal dates and costs are. At Sobiaonline the domain and hosting are registered in your name so you keep ownership and control.
If you would like a quotation with the scope written down before any work begins, tell us what your business does, what the website needs to achieve, and which pages and functions you know you need. You can send that through our contact page.
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