The costs of an online store vary from thousands to tens of thousands or in special cases even hundreds of thousands of euros. For entrepreneurs who have an online store built, it’s important to get a clear picture of the total costs in advance. This prevents surprises later in the process.
Determining the costs of an online store depends on multiple factors. Think of the e-commerce platform, the design, the functionalities, the complexity, and the maintenance. And of course, the scale of the shop. We’ll explain how all costs are structured and which choices you need to make for your specific situation.
What determines the cost of a web shop?
At Brthrs, we use three price categories for web shops. The first category is suitable for small webshops that need basic functionality. The second category contains more customization and is suitable for medium-sized webshops. Finally, there is the option to opt for full customization.
Small webshop: €10,000 to €20,000
For a small online store, you can expect an initial investment between €10,000 and €20,000. This category is ideal for entrepreneurs who are just starting with e-commerce. We often use online store software like a WooCommerce webshop and Shopify webshop. These are known for their user-friendliness and cost-efficiency.
All the basic functionalities
If you choose your own online store in this price range, you get a user-friendly and clear website that offers everything you need to get started. Think of the essential elements like product pages, a shopping cart, and various payment providers, such as Shopify Payments or Mollie.
Moreover, your shop is fully responsive. This means that the shop looks sleek and professional on mobile devices as well as desktops. This allows your customers to shop anytime and anywhere effortlessly, which is of course crucial in today’s mobile world.
The efficiency of an existing theme
Instead of having everything designed from scratch, in this price range we often opt for an existing theme. This means we start with a template that we customize to your brand’s colors and style.
Although you don’t have a completely unique design, it offers a quick and efficient solution that still looks professional and works well. In no time, your webshop will be online. Ready to sell!
Perfect for small businesses
This option is ideal for small businesses that do not have an immediate need for advanced features. For example, consider an artisan shop or a local store that wants to make their products available online as well.
It’s a perfect way to start your e-commerce adventure without investing big right away, while still maintaining a professional appearance. With a limited number of products or services, you can get off to a smooth start.
Medium-sized webshop: €30,000 to €75,000
For a medium-sized webshop with more customization and more extensive functionalities, the costs are between €30,000 and €75,000. In this segment, you can count on a webshop that is completely tailored to your specific needs.
Convenient links and integrations
With a medium-sized webshop, it all gets a lot smarter. Through convenient links and integrations, much of the management goes automatically. For example, you can think of seamless integrations with ERP systems, accounting software or CRM systems, keeping your stock, customer data and administration up to date automatically.
This not only saves time, but also reduces errors. In addition, an online store with a larger number of products often requires a solid web hosting infrastructure and smart filtering systems to optimize your customers’ experience.
Custom design
For a mid-sized webshop, we create a fully customized design that reflects your brand in every detail. Every detail, from the colors and typography to the layout and navigation, is fine-tuned to what your brand wants to convey and how you prefer to guide your customers through your webshop.
The result? A web shop that is not only functional, but also visually impressive. When customers visit your site, they are immediately captivated by the professional look. A customized shop lifts your brand to a higher level. This ensures more sales and customer satisfaction.
Suitable for growing shops
For companies that already have a strong online presence, a medium-sized webshop is the way to continue growing. It is an investment that not only meets today’s needs, but also anticipates the future. A webshop in this category is built to grow effortlessly with your business.
If you have an ever-expanding product range, or want to add new products to your assortment on a regular basis, this type of web shop offers all the flexibility you need. The infrastructure is designed to support larger quantities of products and number of transactions without sacrificing speed or ease of use.
Large and complex web shop: From €75,000
A large webshop or complex e-commerce site with multiple links and advanced features starts at €75,000. This category is especially suitable for companies that need a very specific and comprehensive online store with lots of customization and unique requirements.
Full customization
With a great webshop, you get a unique e-commerce platform that is completely tailored to the specific processes of your business and the needs of your customers. No standard solutions, but truly customized functionalities that ensure a perfect fit with your business operations.
Think of special integrations with suppliers or logistics partners, a comprehensive system for multiple users or branches and even a web shop set up for subscription services. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities.
Advanced features and AI
What really sets these web shops apart are the advanced features that help you serve your customers even better. Think of automated marketing campaigns that respond to customer behavior, dynamic pricing that adjusts based on customer profiles, or even the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for recommending customized products.
While these features may increase costs, they also offer significant long-term value. They enable you to optimize your sales strategy, strengthen customer relationships and take the customer experience to the next level.
Suitable for large companies
These customized web shops are perfect for large companies or enterprises looking to focus on large-scale e-commerce. Their robust and scalable solutions allow them to manage thousands of products and process hundreds of transactions per day without sacrificing speed or efficiency.
This makes them extremely suitable for companies that are growing and want to adapt to the ever-changing demands of the market. In short, with a unique webshop you are not only prepared for today’s challenges, but also for the future. Worldwide!
One-time costs versus recurring costs
The above costs are just an indication. The exact price tag of your webshop depends on a lot of factors. That’s why we always discuss this thoroughly first.
In addition to one-time costs, it is also wise to consider recurring, monthly costs. These costs are crucial to the proper functioning of your web shop.
Hosting and maintenance
A reliable hosting service is crucial. It ensures that your webshop is always online, loads quickly and offers your customers an optimal user experience. Depending on the scale of the webshop and the platform it runs on, the costs vary between a few hundred euros and €1,500 per month.
How is that possible? Well, a small shop with a limited assortment needs less powerful servers and fewer resources, while a larger shop with high traffic and products requires more sophisticated hosting solutions to keep everything running smoothly. That makes all the difference.
Updates and optimizations
Also important are the costs for updates and optimizations. These are essential to keep your webshop secure and up-to-date. Often companies choose a maintenance subscription, which includes technical updates, security updates and ongoing optimizations. This can range from €500 to a few thousand euros per month.
The amount depends on the complexity of the webshop and the specific services. These updates are of great importance: they ensure that your webshop keeps running smoothly, that you are protected against cyber attacks and that you can continue to use the latest features and improvements.
Webshop costs: what else should you consider?
By the way, don’t forget that there are a lot of small costs involved in starting a new webshop. To randomly list a few: consider a business bank account, a domain name and additional costs such as packaging materials.
Also important are marketing costs. Thanks to online marketing, for example, your webshop becomes more findable in search engines such as Google. A modern webshop nowadays cannot do without SEO (search engine optimization). It is therefore wise to set aside a budget for this as well.
Why choose Brthrs for your webshop?
At Brthrs, we understand that setting up a professional web shop is more than just a technical process. We offer customized solutions that fit the specific needs of your business. And as your webshop grows, we simply grow with you.
Whether you have a WooCommerce web shop, looking for a Magento shop or a fully customized solution, we’ll make sure you make the right choices to maximize your sales and provide a positive user experience. No matter how many products you have.
With years of experience in building high-quality webshops and a strong focus on search engine optimization, we not only help you launch your webshop, but also with the ongoing optimization and growth of your online business. Our web shops also meet the European guidelines for accessibility, making your shop future-proof.
Webshop building costs: choose Brthrs
Building an online store is a craft. A physical store involves a lot, but so does e-commerce. From small to large webshops and from average to unique webshops, at Brthrs we are here for you.
We are your trusted partner to help at every step of the process, from design and development to marketing and ongoing support. We build webshops that are not only functional, but also contribute to the growth of your business.
