The short answer: DIY builders genuinely work — budget $25–$55 a month for the tool, about $25–$50 a year for a domain, and a realistic 15–30 hours to build plus upkeep forever. Done-for-you services in NZ run $95–$299 a month; our LaunchPad plan is $1 a day ($365 + GST a year, $419.75 incl. GST), everything included. The right answer depends on whether you have more spare time or more spare patience.
The honest case for DIY
Let’s start where most comparisons won’t: you could build it yourself, and it could be good. Wix, Squarespace and the rest have had years of polish and a wave of AI features. If you’re comfortable with software, have a clear idea of your message, and — this is the big one — actually enjoy this kind of work, DIY gives you total control and the lowest cash cost on the table.
Some owners find building their site genuinely satisfying. If that’s you, go for it. Everything below is for the other 90%.
What DIY really costs
| Cost | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Builder plan | $25–$55/mo | Business-grade tiers; most bill in USD, and GST applies to overseas digital services |
| .co.nz domain | $25–$50/yr | Register it in your own name, always |
| Business email | ~$10/mo | Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 |
| Build time | 15–30 hours realistic | Design, writing, photos, setup, Google tools |
| Upkeep | Ongoing evenings | Edits, renewals, “why does it look weird on my phone?” |
The subscription is the small line. The real spend is the hours — and unlike the subscription, they don’t cancel. Value them at whatever your time earns and the “free” option gets expensive quickly.
The other cost is harder to see on an invoice: the half-built site. Every web person in the country has met the business owner with a builder subscription in month eight and a website at 80% done. 80% done never launches, and it bills monthly the whole time.
What done-for-you buys
Paying someone doesn’t buy pixels — builders give those away. It buys:
- Design judgement — knowing what to leave out
- Writing — turning “we do everything, really” into words a customer and a search engine understand
- Setup — domain, email, SSL, Google Business Profile connection, analytics, and the AI-search plumbing most DIY sites never get
- A person to email — the difference between “I’ll fix that tonight” and it staying broken until Christmas
In NZ, the done-for-you market runs $95–$299 a month, with most established pay-monthly services at $199–$250. Check what’s metered: edits are commonly capped at 15 minutes or one change a month, and SEO is often a separate bill. One-off agency builds start around $650–$4,000 for something simple — our full cost guide breaks all of it down.
The three-year maths
| Route | Cash over 3 years | Your hours |
|---|---|---|
| DIY builder | ~$1,100–$2,200 (tool + domain + email) | 15–30 to build, plus ongoing |
| Pay-monthly service | ~$3,400–$10,800 | Near zero |
| Agency build + care plan | ~$2,500–$11,000+ | Low |
| LaunchPad | $1,259.25 (incl. GST, at $419.75/yr) | About two minutes of brief |
Every route can be right for somebody. The mistake isn’t picking any of these — it’s picking DIY for the price while quietly being someone who’ll never finish it, or paying agency money for a template job a smaller service would’ve done.
Decide in five minutes
Answer honestly:
- Did setting up your last phone feel fun or like a chore? Chore → don’t DIY.
- Can you write 300 clear words about your business tonight? No → you’re paying someone for writing either way.
- Is your evening hour worth more than $30? Yes → the DIY “saving” is likely negative.
- Do you need bookings, a store, or many pages? Yes → that’s a bigger build; talk to an agency (or GoDigital).
- Do you mainly need to be findable, credible and contactable? Yes → a done-for-you one-pager covers it. You can see yours free before paying anything.