You know something’s wrong when visitors leave your site quickly and sales just aren’t picking up. You can have an absolute gem of a SaaS product, but if your website isn’t just as good, you risk stagnation.
According to the web credibility research report by Standford University, 75% of users judge a company’s credibility based on its website’s design.
If your website hasn’t evolved with your product, it’s high time you consider a website redesign. But before diving into the design process, there’s one thing you absolutely must get right: your budget.
Just as technical planning sets the direction for your website's features, layout, and functionality, budgeting lays the foundation for what you can realistically achieve within your resources.
Website redesigns can be an expensive undertaking, and not properly budgeting can easily lead to overspending or missed opportunities.
In this article, we’ll walk you through the key elements that will help you accurately calculate the cost of your website redesign—so you can plan effectively and avoid unpleasant surprises.
Factors That Influence the Cost of Website Redesign
One of the biggest challenges in calculating the cost of a website redesign is keeping track of the numerous variables that influence the final price.
From design complexity to functionality requirements, every decision can impact your overall budget. Let’s break down the key factors that affect the cost of website redesign:
1. CMS and Migration Cost
The platform you choose for your website redesign should be the first thing to consider when allocating the budget. Whether you're updating the front-end, back-end, or both, each decision impacts the overall complexity and expense.
If you’re going for something simple, platforms like WordPress or Wix are budget-friendly and easy to manage.
They come with a lot of pre-built themes and plugins that can save you time and money. However, if your site needs advanced features or if you want a custom solution, the costs will rise.
For B2B SaaS website design, in particular, we prefer Webflow because it strikes a balance between design flexibility and functionality. On Webflow, you can ensure brand alignment at every touchpoint with colors, logos, and design elements.
If you're migrating from one CMS to another, or moving from a custom-coded site to a CMS-based site, data migration can add to your costs.
This process involves transferring content, setting up redirects, and ensuring compatibility, which all require extra time and resources. Plus, recurring subscription fees for themes, plugins, and added features should be factored into your long-term budget.
2. Design and Customization
One popular study on user behavior says 94% of the first impressions are web design-related. If your current website is plagued by a confusing layout and overcrowding of design elements, it’s time to change that.
Simple, clean designs with minimal functionality are generally cheaper to implement. But if your site requires custom features, like user dashboards or integrations with third-party tools, you’ll need to set aside a few extra bucks for such additional development.
Before we redesign a website, we like to assess the business goals of our clients first. If branding is critical, we take the full customization route. If time or budget is tight, we opt for a high-quality template with slight customizations that still give the site a unique touch.
For example, animations, custom form fields, interactive elements, advanced search capabilities, and personalized user experiences all add to the complexity. The more intricate your design, the more it will cost.
3. Functionality Requirements
What do you need your website to do? Basic websites may only need standard features such as contact forms, blogs, or simple e-commerce functionalities.
However, if you need more complex features like membership systems, advanced e-commerce solutions, booking systems, or integrations with third-party services, the costs can escalate.
Custom development work and specialized tools also add to the price. Integrating customer relationship management (CRM) systems, payment gateways, or enterprise resource planning (ERP) software requires additional development and expertise. This can also add up to the cost of redesign.
4. The Size of Your Website
Larger websites, with more pages and content, take more time to build and maintain. Each additional page means more design work, more content, and more functionality to implement.
If your site needs to support multiple product lines or regions, you’ll need a more complex structure, which drives the cost up.
We've worked with many SaaS clients who started with a small site and then needed to scale. As their business grew, so did their website, and so did the costs. That’s why you should factor in the potential for future growth when you map out your redesign budget.
Additionally, if you have large amounts of content that need to be migrated or restructured, this will add to both time and expenses.
5. Development and Maintenance Costs
The work isn’t over once your website redesign is complete. You’ll need to plan for regular updates to keep things running smoothly.
Routine maintenance—think security updates, bug fixes, and minor improvements—can quickly add up. If your site requires frequent updates or new features, expect those costs to climb.
For custom-built websites or ones with complex features, you'll likely need ongoing support from developers to ensure everything works as expected. This means budgeting for ongoing development and technical upkeep, which can become a recurring cost.
6. SEO and Content Optimization
A successful website redesign isn’t just about aesthetics. A website redesign isn’t just about how it looks. To truly make an impact, your website needs to perform well on search engines. SEO is an integral part of the process.
As you update your site, focus on things like improving page load speed, fixing meta tags, and ensuring mobile-friendliness. These changes help your site rank better on Google and give users a better experience.
Keep in mind that advanced SEO optimizations take extra time and expertise. So, the more thorough your SEO efforts are, the more your redesign will cost.
7. Unforeseen Circumstances
According to the rule of the cosmos, things don’t always go according to plan. The same rule applies to your website redesign project plan as well.
Even with a solid plan, unexpected problems can come up during a website redesign. Roadblocks like technical glitches, scope changes, or issues with integration can crop up at any time and run up the budget.
From our experience, we’ve seen issues such as problems with third-party tools or hidden tech problems that weren’t obvious at the start. These can add unexpected costs to the project.
What You Can Do:
- Plan for extra costs: Include some buffer in your budget for surprises. It’s better to have a little extra set aside.
- Be realistic with your timelines: Build in extra time for unexpected delays, like needing more revisions or testing.
- Spot potential risks early: Think ahead about things that might cause problems, like technical issues or changes in your needs.
Pro Tip: Err on the side of caution by adding a little extra to your budget and timeline, just in case things take longer or cost more than expected.
Now that we've covered the main factors influencing website redesign costs, let's take a quick look at the most common types of website redesigns.
Types of Website Redesigns
The type of redesign you need depends on your business goals, the current state of your website, and how much change you want to make. Let’s explore the most common types of redesigns to help you decide what’s best for you.
1. Complete Revamp
A complete overhaul is the "big-ticket" redesign where you start from scratch. Every part of the website, from design to development, is rethought and rebuilt. You’ll not only refresh the look and feel, but you’ll also update the underlying code, database, and functionality.
This type of redesign is often necessary if your website is outdated, not mobile-friendly, or doesn’t align with your current business needs.
While it’s an expensive and time-consuming process, a complete overhaul can completely transform the way your website works and feels. If your website no longer serves its purpose or is hindering your business, this all-in-one approach is often the best solution.
At Beetle Beetle, we can re-build your SaaS website from scratch with narrative-led design, buttery-smooth visuals, brand-aligned visuals, and powerful copy.
We are a team of passionate SaaS website designers who can transform your website into a lead-generation machine in 4-12 weeks, depending on your website size and the level of customization you are looking for.
For more details, book a demo call today.
2. Mobile-first Redesign
A mobile-first redesign means prioritizing mobile devices when designing your website. Over 60% of global web traffic comes from mobile, and Google’s mobile-first indexing ranks sites based on their mobile versions.
This design approach focuses on speed, ease of navigation, and responsiveness on smaller screens. You should opt for it because if your site isn’t optimized for mobile, you risk losing visitors and hurting your SEO.
A mobile-first design ensures users have a seamless experience, which can boost engagement, reduce bounce rates, and ultimately increase conversions.
3. User Interface (UI) Redesign
A cosmetic redesign focuses primarily on updating the visual elements of your website. You’ll change colors, fonts, images, and layouts to give your site a fresh, modern feel.
While it may seem purely aesthetic, this type of redesign can have a significant impact on user perception. For example, studies have shown that using the right color schemes can increase readership by up to 40% and improve comprehension by 73%.
If your website feels outdated or visually unappealing, this type of redesign will breathe new life into your site without changing its functionality. You should opt for it if you want to create a better first impression and improve visual consistency.
4. User Experience (UX) Redesign
A UX redesign focuses on improving how users interact with your website. Instead of just updating visuals, this type of redesign looks at user behavior, navigation flow, and overall satisfaction.
The goal is to reduce friction points that may cause visitors to leave your site. For example, you may streamline your site's navigation or improve its information structure to make it easier for users to find what they need.
Optimizing UX ensures your website is intuitive, responsive, and user-friendly, leading to higher engagement, longer visit durations, and better conversion rates.
If you want to make your website not only look good but also work better for your users, consider upgrading your website’s UX design.
Up next, we will provide website redesign cost estimations based on the size of your website, scope of work, and the expertise required.
The Cost for Website Redesign (Approximate Values)
Website redesign plans involve numerous variables, as you may have already assumed. So, coming up with an accurate estimate is next to impossible without a complete website audit and knowing your conversion goals.
But just to give you an idea of what you might expect, we will break down the general price ranges of website redesign.
P.S. If you need an accurate quote to plan your budget, get your SaaS website audited for free by Beetle Beetle.
The next part of the puzzle is to figure out how to implement the redesign. You have three options here - give it a shot by yourself, hire a freelance web designer, or hire an agency.
Website Redesign Implementation Options
In the penultimate section of this guide, we will explore how each option impacts both your budget and the final outcome.
1. Do-It-Yourself (DIY)
The most economical option for the lot for obvious reasons. Opting for a DIY website redesign means you take the reins of the project yourself. Instead of hiring professionals, you design and build your website using platforms like Webflow, WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace.
This option allows you to have full control over the creative direction, but it requires time, effort, and a basic understanding of web design principles. It’s an ideal choice if you have the technical skills and want to keep costs low.
Pros:
- Low Cost: Since you’re doing the work yourself, you only pay for the platform or software. There are no labor costs involved.
- Full Control: You can design the website exactly how you want it, making real-time adjustments whenever necessary.
- Great Learning Experience: Redesigning your site yourself can be a great learning experience, expanding your skills in web design and digital marketing.
Cons:
- Time-Consuming: DIY takes a lot of time. If you’re not already experienced, the learning curve can be steep, leading to delays and frustration.
- Limited Design Quality: Unless you’re an experienced designer, your site might lack the professional polish that a skilled designer could bring. This can affect both aesthetics and functionality.
- Technical Limitations: Certain advanced features, like custom integrations or complex animations, might be beyond your technical skillset. This can limit your site’s functionality or require extra investment in plugins or additional tools.
2. Hire a Freelance Web Designer
When you hire a freelancer for your website redesign, you work with an independent professional who specializes in web design. Freelancers can be found through platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, or personal referrals.
This option allows you to collaborate directly with someone who understands your vision while keeping costs more affordable compared to agencies.
Pros:
- Cost-Effective: Freelancers typically charge less than agencies because they have fewer overhead costs. This makes them a more budget-friendly option for small to medium projects.
- Personalized Attention: You’ll work directly with the designer, ensuring your ideas and needs are understood and implemented without the middleman.
- Flexibility: Freelancers offer more flexibility in terms of timelines and project scope. They can adapt to changes quickly, which is great for evolving projects.
Cons:
- Limited Resources: Freelancers usually work alone, so they may struggle with larger or more complex projects. If you need expertise beyond design, like development or SEO, you may need to hire additional help.
- Risk of Inconsistent Quality: The quality of work can vary depending on the freelancer’s skill level and experience. Without a team backing them, there may be gaps in areas like project management or quality assurance.
3. Hire a Website Redesign Agency
A web design agency is a full-service team that brings together designers, developers, content strategists, and project managers - all working together to build your website from the ground up.
This option is ideal for B2B SaaS businesses who want to leave a mark in this immensely competitive industry through story-driven websites.
B2B SaaS website redesign agencies can offer a lot more than just a design refresh. They can help refine your messaging angle, position your product more effectively, and ensure your site works as a tactical tool to attract and convert leads.
Pros:
- Comprehensive Expertise: Agencies bring a range of skills to the table. They have teams that can handle design, development, content strategy, SEO, and marketing—all under one roof.
- Strategic Approach: Agencies take a strategic approach to redesigning your websites. They don’t just focus on the aesthetics. They analyze your business, competitors, and target market to create a website that meets both your needs and the needs of your customers.
- End-to-End Management: With an agency, you get a dedicated project manager who oversees the entire redesign process. They handle timelines, ensure clear communication, and keep everything running smoothly so you don’t have to manage it all yourself.
Cons:
- Higher Cost: Agencies are more expensive than the above-mentioned alternatives. With the level of expertise and the full range of services they offer, expect to pay more for a comprehensive website redesign.
- Longer Timelines: Because agencies often juggle multiple clients and projects, the timeline for your redesign may be longer. You may need to plan for several weeks or months, depending on the complexity of your site.
- Less Control: Working with an agency means you’re handing over much of the decision-making. While they’ll involve you in key stages, you may have less flexibility in terms of making immediate changes during the process.
Of course, it all comes down to your budget. If you have the technical know-how and time for DIY, go for it. Hiring a freelancer can be hit or miss, depending on their experience.
Since a website redesign is a one-time investment that practically pays for itself in the long run, your best bet is to hire a SaaS website redesign agency.
Revamp Your SaaS Website With Beetle Beetle
Website redesign cost estimates should never be taken at face value. The cost depends on various factors, such as the complexity of your site, the experience of the team, and the specific features you need.
Customization, branding, functionality, and even content strategy all play a role in the final price. Always assess your project’s unique requirements before setting a budget.
If you believe your product deserves nothing but the best, hire Beetle Beetle for a website redesign.
We’re obsessed with building high-impact SaaS websites. With a narrative-driven approach, clean layouts, and smooth navigation, we can help you achieve your conversion targets more easily.
We also offer complete website revamp services, including B2B copywriting and full website development.
Let us do justice to your revolutionary product. Hire Beetle Beetle today for website redesign.