You received a quote for CHF 30,000 for your new website and think that’s the total budget? Better calculate with CHF 40,000-45,000. This article shows the 12 most common hidden costs forgotten in website projects and how to budget correctly.

Why Hidden Costs Occur

The problem: Quotes usually only show design and development. What comes before, alongside, and after is often not communicated or forgotten.

The result:

  • Budget overruns of 20-50%
  • Delays at launch
  • Quality compromises
  • Stress and frustration

The solution: Plan all costs from the start.

The 12 Hidden Costs

1. Domain and SSL (CHF 50-700/year)

What’s often forgotten:

Domain costs:

  • .ch domain: CHF 15-25/year
  • .swiss domain: CHF 150/year
  • .com/.net: CHF 10-20/year
  • Premium domain (purchase): CHF 500-50,000+

SSL certificate:

  • Let’s Encrypt (free): CHF 0
  • Standard SSL: CHF 50-150/year
  • Extended validation: CHF 200-500/year
  • Wildcard (for subdomains): CHF 100-300/year

Why relevant: Without SSL, no secure website, no good Google rankings.

Budget tip: CHF 100-300/year for professional solution.

2. Content Migration (CHF 1,000-8,000)

What it includes:

Transfer content:

  • Copy and format texts
  • Download, optimise, upload images
  • Migrate PDFs and downloads
  • Update links

Effort:

  • 50 pages: 15-30 hours
  • 100 pages: 30-60 hours
  • 200+ pages: 60-120 hours

Costs:

  • Simple migration: CHF 1,000-3,000
  • Medium complexity: CHF 3,000-6,000
  • Complex (many PDFs, images): CHF 6,000-12,000

Often not in quote: Many agencies assume customer enters content themselves.

Budget tip: Clarify in quote: “Is content migration included?“

3. 301 Redirects and SEO Migration (CHF 1,000-5,000)

Why critical: Without correct redirects, you lose 40-60% of your traffic after relaunch.

What’s needed:

URL mapping:

  • Document all old URLs
  • Plan new URL structure
  • Create redirect list
  • Implement 301 redirects

SEO audit:

  • Document existing rankings
  • Migrate meta data
  • Adjust structured data
  • Update Search Console

Costs:

  • Small website (<50 URLs): CHF 1,000-2,000
  • Medium website (50-200 URLs): CHF 2,000-4,000
  • Large website (200+ URLs): CHF 4,000-8,000

Often not in quote: SEO specialists cost extra.

Budget tip: Minimum CHF 2,000 for professional SEO handling.

4. Content Creation (CHF 3,000-30,000)

Often underestimated: “We’ll do texts ourselves” often ends in: “We have no time, can you help?”

Realistic costs:

Texts:

  • Revise: CHF 200-500 per page
  • Rewrite: CHF 500-1,500 per page
  • 20 pages revised: CHF 4,000-10,000
  • 20 pages new: CHF 10,000-30,000

Translations:

  • Professional: CHF 0.30-0.50 per word
  • 20 pages (approx. 10,000 words): CHF 3,000-5,000 per language

Often not in quote: Content production is usually separate service.

Budget tip: Plan at least CHF 5,000-10,000 for content revision.

More on website costs →

5. Images and Media (CHF 2,000-15,000)

What you need:

Stock photos:

  • Single licence: CHF 20-100 per image
  • Subscription: CHF 300-1,000/year
  • 30-50 images: CHF 500-2,000

Photo shoot:

  • Half day (team photos): CHF 2,000-4,000
  • Full day (thorough): CHF 4,000-8,000
  • 2-3 days (location, products): CHF 10,000-20,000

Image editing:

  • Basic (crop, color): Included in shoot
  • Retouching: CHF 50-200 per image
  • Compositing: CHF 200-800 per image

Video:

  • Stock videos: CHF 500-1,500
  • Image film (2-3 min): CHF 8,000-20,000

Often not in quote: Photography is separate service.

Budget tip:

  • Minimum (stock): CHF 1,000-2,000
  • Professional (mix): CHF 4,000-8,000
  • High-end: CHF 10,000-25,000

6. External Integrations (CHF 2,000-25,000)

What’s often requested later:

Standard integrations:

  • Newsletter (Mailchimp, Brevo): CHF 1,000-2,000
  • Google Analytics, Tag Manager: CHF 500-1,500
  • Social media feeds: CHF 1,000-2,000
  • Appointment booking (Calendly): CHF 1,000-2,000

Business integrations:

  • CRM (HubSpot, Pipedrive): CHF 2,000-8,000
  • Payment (Stripe, PayPal): CHF 2,000-5,000
  • Marketing automation: CHF 3,000-10,000

Enterprise integrations:

  • ERP (Abacus, SAP): CHF 15,000-60,000
  • Custom APIs: CHF 5,000-30,000

Often not in quote: Base quote usually contains no integrations.

Budget tip: List all desired integrations, calculate CHF 1,000-5,000 per integration.

7. Testing and QA (CHF 2,000-8,000)

What professional testing includes:

Browser testing:

  • Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge
  • Different versions
  • Find rendering problems

Device testing:

  • iPhone (various models)
  • Android (various manufacturers)
  • Tablets
  • Desktop (various resolutions)

Function testing:

  • Check all links
  • Test forms
  • Checkout process (e-commerce)
  • Performance tests

Accessibility testing:

  • Screen reader compatibility
  • Keyboard navigation
  • Contrasts
  • WCAG compliance

Effort: 15-40 hours for thorough testing

Costs: CHF 2,000-8,000

Often not in quote: Basic testing yes, but not thorough.

Budget tip: CHF 3,000-5,000 for professional testing.

8. Training and Documentation (CHF 1,000-5,000)

What you need:

CMS training:

  • Basic (2 hours): CHF 400-800
  • Standard (half day): CHF 1,000-2,000
  • Thorough (full day): CHF 2,000-4,000
  • Follow-up sessions: CHF 500-1,000

Documentation:

  • Standard CMS: Usually available
  • Custom features: CHF 1,000-3,000
  • Video tutorials: CHF 2,000-5,000
  • Thorough manual: CHF 3,000-8,000

Often not in quote: Basic training yes (1-2h), more is extra.

Budget tip: CHF 1,500-3,000 for proper training + documentation.

9. Launch Preparation (CHF 1,000-4,000)

What happens at launch:

Technical:

  • DNS changeover
  • SSL configuration
  • Activate redirects
  • Create backups
  • Monitoring setup

Content:

  • Final review of all pages
  • Last adjustments
  • Check metadata
  • Optimise images

Testing:

  • Final smoke tests
  • Performance check
  • Mobile check
  • Forms test

Communication:

  • Internal info
  • Prepare newsletter
  • Social media posts
  • PR (optional)

Effort: 8-20 hours

Costs: CHF 1,000-4,000

Often not in quote: Launch support only partially.

Budget tip: CHF 2,000 for clean launch process.

10. Unforeseen Changes (CHF 2,000-10,000)

What typically comes:

Scope creep:

  • “Can we quickly add…”
  • “Would it be possible that…”
  • “We imagined it differently…”

Common additional requests:

  • Additional pages
  • More forms
  • Design changes
  • Extra features
  • More integrations

Change requests:

  • Small change: CHF 500-1,500
  • Medium change: CHF 1,500-4,000
  • Large change: CHF 4,000-10,000

Budget tip: 15-20% buffer on total budget for unforeseen.

Example:

  • Quote: CHF 30,000
  • Buffer (20%): CHF 6,000
  • Realistic budget: CHF 36,000

11. Ongoing Maintenance (Year 1: CHF 1,500-12,000)

What costs ongoing:

Hosting:

  • Shared: CHF 200-600/year
  • Managed: CHF 1,000-3,000/year
  • Cloud: CHF 2,000-8,000/year
  • Dedicated: CHF 5,000-15,000/year

Maintenance contract:

  • Basic (updates, backups): CHF 100-200/month
  • Standard (+ content changes): CHF 200-500/month
  • Premium (+ optimisation): CHF 500-1,000/month

Software licences:

  • Premium plugins: CHF 200-1,000/year
  • Marketing tools: CHF 500-3,000/year
  • Analytics: CHF 0-2,000/year

Often forgotten: Ongoing costs not included in project budget.

Budget tip (Year 1):

  • Small: CHF 1,500-3,000
  • Medium: CHF 3,000-8,000
  • Large: CHF 8,000-20,000

More on timeline →

What you need:

revDSG compliance:

  • Cookie banner: CHF 500-1,500
  • Privacy policy: CHF 500-2,000
  • Documentation: CHF 1,000-3,000
  • Consulting: CHF 1,500-5,000

Terms and imprint:

  • Generator (risky): CHF 100-500
  • Lawyer: CHF 1,500-5,000

Accessibility:

  • WCAG AA: CHF 2,000-5,000
  • WCAG AAA: CHF 5,000-15,000
  • Audit: CHF 2,000-6,000

Often not in quote: Legal consulting is separate service.

Budget tip: CHF 2,000-4,000 for professional compliance.

The True Total Costs

Example: CHF 30,000 Quote

What’s in the quote:

  • Design: CHF 8,000
  • Development: CHF 18,000
  • Project management: CHF 4,000
  • Total quote: CHF 30,000

Hidden costs:

  1. Domain & SSL: CHF 200
  2. Content migration: CHF 2,500
  3. SEO migration: CHF 2,000
  4. Content revision: CHF 6,000
  5. Photo shoot: CHF 3,000
  6. Integrations (2): CHF 3,000
  7. Testing: CHF 3,000
  8. Training: CHF 1,500
  9. Launch: CHF 1,500
  10. Buffer (15%): CHF 6,200
  11. Maintenance (Year 1): CHF 4,000
  12. Legal: CHF 2,000

Total hidden costs: CHF 34,900

Real total costs (Year 1): CHF 64,900

That’s more than double the quote!

Realistic Budget Framework

Quote (design + dev): 100% Hidden costs: +30-50% Ongoing costs (Year 1): +15-25%

Realistic total: 145-175% of quote

Examples:

Quote CHF 20,000:

  • Hidden costs: +CHF 6,000-10,000
  • Ongoing (Year 1): +CHF 3,000-5,000
  • Total: CHF 29,000-35,000

Quote CHF 50,000:

  • Hidden costs: +CHF 15,000-25,000
  • Ongoing (Year 1): +CHF 7,500-12,500
  • Total: CHF 72,500-87,500

Quote CHF 100,000:

  • Hidden costs: +CHF 30,000-50,000
  • Ongoing (Year 1): +CHF 15,000-25,000
  • Total: CHF 145,000-175,000

How to Avoid Unpleasant Surprises

1. Request Detailed Quote

Demand breakdown:

  • What’s included?
  • What’s NOT included?
  • What assumptions exist?

Ask explicitly:

  • “Is content migration included?”
  • “Are integrations included?”
  • “Is SEO migration included?”
  • “How many feedback rounds?”
  • “What costs extra?“

2. List Hidden Costs

Create a list:

  1. Domain & SSL
  2. Hosting (Year 1)
  3. Content migration
  4. SEO migration
  5. Content creation
  6. Images/media
  7. Integrations (which?)
  8. Testing
  9. Training
  10. Launch support
  11. Maintenance (Year 1)
  12. Legal
  13. Buffer (15-20%)

Calculate each item.

3. Phased Budget

Instead of everything at once:

Phase 1 (launch):

  • Design & development: CHF 30,000
  • Unavoidable additional costs: CHF 8,000
  • Total Phase 1: CHF 38,000

Phase 2 (post-launch, months 2-6):

  • Content optimisation: CHF 4,000
  • Additional features: CHF 5,000
  • Total Phase 2: CHF 9,000

Year 1 ongoing:

  • Hosting & maintenance: CHF 4,000

Total Year 1: CHF 51,000

4. Involve All Stakeholders

Who must agree:

  • Management (budget)
  • Marketing (content, strategy)
  • IT (hosting, integrations)
  • Legal (compliance)

Clarify early:

  • What’s really needed?
  • Who delivers what?
  • What must be purchased externally?

5. Define Contract Clearly

What belongs in contract:

Included services:

  • Exactly define what’s included
  • Number of feedback rounds
  • Testing scope
  • Training

Excluded services:

  • What’s NOT included
  • What costs extra
  • Hourly rate for changes

Change request process:

  • How are changes handled?
  • How calculated?
  • How approved?

Web developer selection →

6. Plan Buffer

15-20% buffer for:

  • Unforeseen requirements
  • Scope creep
  • More testing
  • Content refinements
  • Launch delays

Never without buffer: Experience shows it’s needed.

Checklist: All Costs Captured?

Project costs:

  • Design & development (quote)
  • Project management
  • Content migration
  • SEO migration (301 redirects)
  • Content creation/revision
  • Translations (if multilingual)
  • Photo shoot or stock photos
  • Video production (if relevant)
  • Integrations (list created)
  • Testing & QA
  • Training & documentation
  • Launch preparation
  • Legal consulting (revDSG, terms)

Ongoing costs (Year 1):

  • Domain registration
  • SSL certificate
  • Hosting
  • Maintenance contract
  • Software licences
  • Backup & security

Buffer:

  • 15-20% for unforeseen

Total budget calculated: CHF _______

Conclusion: Know the True Costs

The most important insights:

  1. Quote ≠ total costs Calculate with 145-175% of quote for Year 1.

  2. The 5 most expensive “hidden” costs:

  • Content creation: CHF 5,000-15,000
  • Photography: CHF 3,000-8,000
  • Integrations: CHF 3,000-15,000
  • Testing: CHF 2,000-5,000
  • Maintenance (Year 1): CHF 3,000-8,000

  1. Buffer is not a nice-to-have 15-20% is typically needed based on experience.

  2. Don’t forget ongoing costs Website doesn’t just cost once, but annually 10-20% of investment.

  3. Clarify early saves stress Request detailed quote, list all costs, align budget with stakeholders.

The best investment is transparency: Better budget realistically from the start than find out after 3 months the money isn’t enough.

A professional project quote should transparently show these hidden costs. If it doesn’t, ask.

Back to complete relaunch guide →

Transparency Note: Alpine Excellence only lists verified providers. When seal holders are mentioned in this article, it serves to illustrate quality standards concretely, not as advertising.