How much does a custom website with an AI assistant for edits cost?
Guided by Otto, written by Something Clever Co., updated
It depends on what you need. At Something Clever Co., our team designs and builds your website, and we quote it after a Free AI Check. Add a care plan and you get the SCC Portal, where you text Otto, our AI assistant, to make small changes and fixes. The honest price depends on pages, features and integrations, so we look before we quote.
Coming soonOtto and the SCC Portal are coming soon. Until then, a real person on our team handles your website changes.
Why the price is hard to pin down
Ask five web designers what a website costs and you will get five different answers. That is not because they are dodging the question. “A website” can mean a single page with your phone number or a site with booking, payments, a customer portal and dozens of service pages. No two are the same size.
There is also the part most quotes skip: what happens after launch. A site that is hard to change costs you every time something at your business changes. That is where an AI assistant for edits earns its keep. Our team still designs and builds the site. Otto, the assistant in your SCC Portal, just makes the small changes and fixes easy once it is live.
Our price, plainly
We do not publish a price, on purpose. Every Something Clever Co. website is priced after a Free AI Check, where we look at what you actually need (pages, integrations, booking systems, custom features, migrations) before quoting. We would rather give you one honest number later than a misleading range now.
What drives the cost up or down
- Number of pages and how unique they are. Ten pages that share a layout cost less than ten pages that each need their own design.
- Content. If you have your copy and photos ready, things move faster. If everything needs writing, that is real work, even with AI helping.
- Integrations. Booking calendars, payment processing, CRMs like HubSpot, or a live availability feed (we built STRS’s direct booking site, for example) add scope.
- Migration. Moving from an old WordPress site means preserving URLs and redirects so you keep your search rankings.
- Custom features. Calculators, portals and areas behind a login are software, not just pages.
- Ongoing care. Who updates the site after launch, and how, is part of the real cost.
A quick comparison
| Option | Relative upfront cost | Who does the work | Ongoing editing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIY template (Wix, Squarespace) | Lowest | You | You, in the builder | Simple sites, owners who like doing it themselves |
| Freelancer | Low to moderate, varies widely | One person | Often ad hoc | Clear, small projects |
| Custom site with an AI assistant for edits (like ours) | Moderate, quoted after a Free AI Check | Our team designs and builds it | Text Otto in your SCC Portal for small changes, our team for bigger work | Owners who want custom without agency overhead |
| Traditional custom agency | Highest | A full team | Usually by request, often slower | Large, complex or heavily visited sites |
The costs people forget
The build is only part of it. Before you sign with anyone, ask about:
- Domain and hosting. Small, but recurring.
- Edits after launch. Is there a way to change things without paying for every small request?
- Analytics and tracking. Google Analytics 4 and Google Search Console should be set up properly from day one.
- Who owns the site. Make sure you can take your content and domain with you.
- Redesign risk. A site that is hard to update tends to get rebuilt sooner.
This is where an AI assistant changes the picture over the long run. In your SCC Portal, you text Otto a small change, see a preview, approve it and undo it if needed. Small edits stop being a line item.
When not to hire us
If you only need a single page, already like your website builder and change things a couple of times a year, a template is probably the smarter spend. And if you are a large company with a design team and complex compliance needs, a bigger agency may be a better fit. We are built for small and midsize businesses that want a good custom site they can actually keep up to date.
Common mistakes
- Comparing quotes that cover different scopes. Line up pages, integrations and care after launch before comparing prices.
- Ignoring ongoing costs. A cheap build that is expensive to change is not cheap.
- Skipping redirects in a migration. Losing old URLs can cost you search traffic you worked years to earn.
- Paying for features you will not use. Start with what brings in customers, then add.
- Not asking who owns the site. Get your domain and content in your name.
- Assuming “AI website” means no people. Ask who actually designs and builds the site. With us, our team does, and AI only helps with small edits after launch.
