Short answer: how long it takes to build a website depends mostly on size and on how quickly content arrives. A small business website with 5 to 15 pages usually takes 2 to 6 weeks in the UK. A larger or custom site can take 2 to 3 months. With a fixed process and your content ready, a simple site can be live in about a week. The design is rarely what slows things down. Waiting for content, decisions and feedback is.
We build small business websites for a living, and after “how much?” the question we hear most is “how long?”. Here’s an honest breakdown of where the time actually goes, and what you can do to speed it up.
How long does it take to build a website? Typical timescales
| Type of website | Typical UK timescale | What drives the time |
|---|---|---|
| One-page or landing page | 3 days to 2 weeks | Writing the copy and agreeing one clear call to action |
| Small business site (5–15 pages) | 1 to 6 weeks | Content, photos and how quickly you give feedback |
| Larger brochure site (15–60 pages) | 2 to 8 weeks | Page planning, copywriting and SEO for each service |
| Custom design or booking system | 6 to 12 weeks | Bespoke design rounds, integrations and testing |
| Online shop | 4 to 12 weeks | Products, photos, payments, delivery rules and legal pages |
These ranges are based on the timescales UK designers and agencies publish on their own sites. Productised services that use a fixed process tend to sit at the fast end. Agencies doing bespoke design sit at the slow end.
Where the time actually goes
Building the pages is usually the quickest part. Here’s how a typical 10-page project breaks down when things go smoothly.
1. Brief and planning (1 to 3 days)
Someone needs to understand your business, your customers and what the website has to do. Good designers also look at your competitors and at what people search for, so the page list matches real demand. If you can answer questions about your services, prices and ideal customers quickly, this stage takes a day or two.
2. Content (the part that slips)
Text, photos, logos, team bios, prices, testimonials. On most projects that run late, this is the reason. A business owner says “I’ll write the About page this weekend”, and three weekends later it still isn’t done.
There are two ways round it. Either you prepare everything before the project starts, or you hire someone who writes the copy for you from a short questionnaire. We write all the copy ourselves for exactly this reason. It takes us a few days, but it saves weeks of waiting.
3. Design and build (2 to 5 days for a small site)
With a modern page builder and a tried and tested set of layouts, a 10-page site can be designed and built in a few days. Fully bespoke design takes longer because each page goes through its own rounds of mock-ups before anything is built.
4. Review and changes (1 to 7 days)
You check the site and send a list of changes. Most small sites need two or three rounds. Sending all your changes in one list, rather than one email per thought, can easily save a week.
5. Launch (a few hours)
Connecting the domain, setting up SSL and email, redirecting old pages, submitting the sitemap to Google. If your domain is with another provider and nobody knows the login, this can drag on. Find your domain login before you start.
What makes a website project take longer
- No content. The single biggest cause of delay.
- Too many decision-makers. Every extra person who has to approve the design adds a round of feedback.
- Changing the brief halfway through. Adding an online shop to a brochure site is a different project.
- Integrations. Booking systems, CRMs and payment providers each need setting up and testing.
- Lost logins. Domain, hosting, Google Business Profile, old website. Collect them early.
- A big deposit, then silence. Once the deposit is paid, some providers have less reason to hurry. Ask how they schedule their work.
How to get your website live faster
- Write down your services and prices, even as rough notes. That’s most of the content right there.
- Pick two or three websites you like and say what you like about each one.
- Gather your logo, photos and testimonials in one folder.
- Find your domain and email logins.
- Choose one person to give feedback, and send changes in one list.
- Ask for a fixed delivery date in writing, and what happens if it’s missed.
How we build websites in 7 to 14 days
Our timescales are fixed by package: up to 15 pages in 7 days, up to 30 in 10 days and up to 60 in 14 days. The clock starts when we have your completed project brief.
Mostly it comes down to two things. We write the copy for you, so there’s no waiting for text. And we build on a private test address, so you review the real site rather than a mock-up, which keeps feedback rounds short. There’s no deposit: you pay once you’ve approved the finished site, and it goes live the same day. If you already have a website, we rebuild it alongside the old one, so your current site stays online until the new one is ready.
Frequently asked questions
Can a website really be built in a week?
Yes, for a small business site with a clear brief, when the designer writes the copy or you supply it on day one. It isn’t realistic for a large online shop or a fully bespoke design.
How long does it take for a new website to show up on Google?
Google often finds a new site within days once it’s submitted in Search Console, though it doesn’t promise a timescale. Ranking well for competitive searches takes much longer, often several months, and depends on your content, your competition and links from other sites.
How long does a website redesign take?
About the same as a new site of the same size. Moving and redirecting old pages adds a little time. The upside is that you usually have content you can reuse.
Does a faster website mean a worse website?
Not necessarily. Speed usually comes from a repeatable process and fewer delays, not from skipping steps. Ask what’s included: copywriting, SEO set-up, mobile testing, analytics and revision rounds.
Thinking about a new website? Read how much a website costs in the UK, or see what a small business website should include.