This article is part of our Law Firm Marketing Guide: how clients find lawyers online, what the advertising rules allow, and how to choose the right help. Want to know where your firm's site stands? Get a free 20–30 page website audit within 24 hours.
A law firm website can cost very little or a great deal, and the price tag alone tells you almost nothing. What matters is what you get for it: how many pages, who writes them, how intake works, whether the site is accessible, and whether you own it at the end.
This guide explains the pricing models you will see, the factors that move a quote up or down, and the ongoing costs firms often forget. It does not list eSEOspace prices. Every firm's scope is different, so we quote per project, and you can see how we approach it on our pricing page.
This article is part of our Law Firm Marketing Guide.
Key Takeaways
- Quotes vary mainly with page count, content writing, custom design, intake features and accessibility work.
- Template sites cost less up front, while custom builds cost more but fit your practice and brand.
- Ongoing costs include hosting, security, updates, content and, in some states, bar filing for parts of the site.
- Make sure your firm owns the domain, the site files and the content, in writing.
- Compare quotes line by line on scope, not on the total alone.
Common pricing models
You will usually see one of four models.
| Model | How it works | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed project fee | One price for a defined scope | What counts as a change request |
| Monthly website subscription | Lower or no up-front fee, monthly payment for design, hosting and updates | Who owns the site if you cancel |
| Hourly | You pay for time spent | No cap on total cost |
| Bundled with marketing | Site built as part of an SEO or ads retainer | Long contracts tied to the site |
None of these is wrong. The risk is in the terms. A subscription site you cannot take with you can cost more over five years than a fixed-fee build you own. Our contract red flags guide covers what to look for.
Template vs custom
Template or theme-based sites
A template site starts from a pre-built design. It is faster and usually cheaper. Many firms use WordPress themes. WordPress itself is open source software licensed under the GPL, so the core software has no license fee. Premium themes, plugins and the work to set them up do cost money.
Templates work well for a solo or small firm with a few practice areas. The trade-off is that many firms may use the same look, and adding custom features can get awkward.
Custom-designed sites
A custom site is designed for your firm, then built on a content management system or a modern framework. It costs more because it includes research, original design and more development time.
Custom tends to make sense when you have many practice areas or offices, need bilingual pages, want a distinct brand, or need deeper intake integrations. For a fuller comparison of platforms, read WordPress vs Custom-Built Law Firm Websites.
The 8 biggest cost drivers
1. Number of pages
Each practice area page, attorney bio, location page and FAQ takes design, writing and review time. A firm with four practice areas in one city needs far fewer pages than a firm with twelve practice areas in five cities.
2. Who writes the content
Content is often the largest hidden cost. Options include attorney-written copy, agency drafts with attorney review, or reused copy from your old site. Legal content needs accuracy review, so budget attorney time either way. See How to Write Practice Area Pages That Rank and Convert.
3. Design depth
A refreshed template, a customized theme and a fully original design are three different price points. Custom photography and video add more.
4. Intake and integrations
Contact forms are standard. Costs rise with live chat, online scheduling, intake questionnaires, and connections to tools like Clio Grow or Lawmatics.
5. Accessibility
The Department of Justice's web accessibility guidance (March 2022) says it has consistently taken the position that the ADA applies to the goods and services of public accommodations offered on the web. It names the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) as helpful guidance. The W3C says WCAG 2.2 was published in October 2023, with an update in December 2024.
Building to WCAG 2.2 AA from the start costs less than fixing a finished site. It involves design choices (contrast, focus states), code (labels, headings) and testing. Ask every vendor how they test. Our law firm website accessibility guide explains the basics.
6. Multilingual pages
Spanish and English versions double much of the content work. Translation is cheaper than localization, but intake must work in both languages too.
7. Migration from an old site
Moving an existing site means mapping old URLs to new ones and setting redirects. Google's site move guidance recommends permanent server-side redirects from each old URL, kept for at least a year, and warns to expect temporary ranking fluctuation. Skipping this step is cheap now and expensive later.
8. Compliance review
Your site must follow your state's advertising rules. In some states, parts of it must be filed. For example, the Texas Center for Legal Ethics explains that in Texas only the homepage must be filed with the Advertising Review Committee, while the whole site must comply with Rules 7.01 and 7.02. The State Bar of Texas Advertising Review page lists a $100 application fee. In Florida, by contrast, the Bar says websites are exempt from filing. Rules vary by state, so confirm with your state bar.
Ongoing costs to budget for
The launch is not the last bill. Plan for:
- Domain renewal, usually yearly.
- Hosting, priced by speed, traffic and support level.
- Security and updates, including plugin and core updates, backups and monitoring.
- Content updates, such as new practice areas, attorney changes and law changes.
- Accessibility checks after new content goes live.
- SEO and marketing, which is usually priced separately. See How Much Does Law Firm SEO Cost?.
Ownership: the clause that matters most
Ask who owns four things: the domain, the site files and design, the content, and the accounts (hosting, analytics, Google Business Profile).
ICANN's registrant benefits and responsibilities explain that the domain registrant enters an agreement with the registrar and must keep accurate contact data in WHOIS. Make sure that registrant is your firm, not your vendor.
Do this, not that
- Do register the domain in the firm's name with an email the firm controls. Don't let a vendor register it for you in their account.
- Do get a written statement that the firm owns the content and design on full payment. Don't accept "license to use while subscribed" without knowing the exit terms.
- Do ask for admin access to the site and hosting. Don't rely on a vendor's login only.
How to compare quotes
When two quotes differ, it is usually scope. Ask each vendor to fill in the same list:
- How many pages are included, by type?
- Who writes the content, and how many revisions are included?
- Is the design original, customized or a stock template?
- Which intake features and integrations are included?
- What accessibility standard do you build and test to, and how?
- Do you handle redirects from our old site?
- What are the ongoing fees, and what do they cover?
- Who owns the domain, site and content, and what happens if we leave?
Next step
Once you know what drives cost, the next decision is who to hire. Read How to Choose a Law Firm Marketing Agency for the criteria. To see how eSEOspace designs and builds sites for firms, visit our law firm website and marketing services page.
Frequently asked questions
Why do law firm website quotes vary so much?
Quotes usually differ in scope: number of pages, who writes content, design depth, intake features and accessibility work. Ask vendors to price the same list of items so you can compare like with like.
Is a template website good enough for a law firm?
For many solo and small firms, yes, if it is fast, accessible, clear about practice areas and easy to contact. Firms with many practice areas, offices or languages often outgrow templates.
Do I need to file my law firm website with the bar?
It depends on your state. For example, Texas requires filing of the homepage only, while Florida exempts websites from filing. All pages must still follow your state's advertising rules.
Who should own my law firm's domain?
Your firm should. ICANN describes the registrant as the party bound by the registration agreement. Register the domain in the firm's name with an email address the firm controls.
Does accessibility add to website cost?
It adds some design, development and testing time. Building to WCAG from the start usually costs less than fixing a finished site, and the DOJ names WCAG as helpful guidance for web accessibility.
