Comparing website quotes in the UAE: what each one should include

You asked three studios to quote for your new website. The numbers came back far apart, and each quote is laid out differently, so you can’t tell which one is fair. Search for website prices in Dubai and it gets worse: the price guides published online don’t agree with each other either.

Here’s the thing most owners aren’t told. Quotes that look far apart are usually not pricing the same website. One includes the words, one assumes you’ll write them. One includes an Arabic version, one doesn’t mention it. One includes a year of hosting and support, one ends on launch day.

This article won’t tell you what a website should cost. It will help you find out what each quote actually includes, so you can compare them properly. If you haven’t asked for quotes yet, start with our checklist for planning a website.

Why quotes for the same website differ

A website quote is a guess about the work, based on what the studio thinks you asked for. If the brief is loose, each studio fills the gaps differently. The biggest differences usually come from a handful of things:

• The words. Writing a site’s words is real work. Some quotes include it, some expect you to supply them, and some don’t say.
• Languages. An Arabic version isn’t just translation. Pages that read right to left need their own layout and checking. If you need both languages, make sure every quote includes both.
• Template or made for you. A design adapted from a ready-made template costs less than one designed from scratch. Both can be fine. You should know which you’re getting.
• What the site does. A brochure site with a contact form is a different job from one that takes bookings, payments or connects to your other systems.
• What happens after launch. Hosting, support and changes are sometimes in the price, sometimes extra, and sometimes not mentioned at all.

What every quote should tell you

Go through each quote with this list. Mark each line as included, not included, or not stated. The “not stated” lines are where the surprises come from.

Pages and content

• How many pages, and which ones
• Who writes the words, and who supplies the photos
• Whether an Arabic version is included, and who writes or checks it

Design

• Whether the design is made for you or adapted from a template
• How many rounds of changes are included
• That every page is designed to work on phones

Building and editing

• What you’ll use to update the site yourself, and whether training is included
• Every feature you need: forms, bookings, payments, links to other systems
• Where enquiries from your forms are sent

Search and measurement

• The basics for Google: page titles, descriptions and a list of pages for search engines
• Google Analytics and Search Console set up, with enquiries counted. It’s easy to launch without this and not notice
• Redirects from your old site’s addresses, if you have one

Launch and after

• Hosting and the domain: who pays, how much, and in whose name
• Support after launch: for how long, and what it covers
• What changes cost once the site is live

The price itself

• Whether the price includes VAT, which is 5% in the UAE
• How payments are split across the project

The costs that come later

Some costs don’t appear in a build quote because they come after launch. Ask about each one, so you can compare the cost over a year or two, not just on day one.

• Hosting, renewed every year or every month
• Your domain name, renewed every year
• Paid themes, plugins, fonts or tools the site depends on
• Maintenance and security updates
• Changes and new pages after launch, and the rate for them

How to make quotes comparable

The best fix happens before the quotes arrive. Send every studio the same short brief:

• The pages you need
• Who will write the words
• Whether you need Arabic and English
• The features the site must have
• Your launch date

Then ask each studio to price that same list and to state plainly what isn’t included. You’ll get quotes you can lay side by side.

If the quotes are already in, send each studio the list above and ask them to fill in the gaps. A studio that answers clearly is showing you how the project will go.

A low quote isn’t wrong, and a high one isn’t either

A lower price can be fair when it covers less, or when the studio works from a template that suits you. A higher price can be fair when it includes the words, both languages and a year of support. The only unfair quote is the one that leaves you guessing.

Got quotes you can’t compare? Send them to us and we’ll tell you plainly what each one includes and what it leaves out.