Pay monthly website or buy outright? An honest comparison
A website for £88 a month + £588 set-up fee with no minimum term, or bought from £2,999 in one go or 3 instalments: the real cost over 1, 3 and 5 years, and who owns it.
About this service
Renting your website (a pay monthly website, or website subscription) or buying it outright is not a question of fashion. It comes down to cash flow, how long the site needs to last, and what you want to own at the end. At Ultras-Sites you can do either, with the price written down before you sign, and what you keep if you stop is set out in the contract.
Pay monthly or buy outright, line by line
| Pay monthly | Buy outright | |
|---|---|---|
| To get started | 88/month + 588 set-up fee | From £2,999 (simple website), in one go or 3 instalments |
| Minimum term | None: stop whenever you like | No subscription for the site |
| Included | Hosting and upkeep: bug fixes and security | Help installing it, basic SEO set up on delivery |
| Cost after 1 year | 1,644 | £2,999 |
| Cost after 3 years | 3,756 | £2,999 |
| Cost after 5 years | 3,756 without care, or 4,212 with 24 months of care at 19 | £2,999 |
| Who owns the site | You after 36 paid instalments; domain and supplied content always yours | You, once fully paid: source code handed over |
| If you stop | Before transfer: website offline. Afterwards: you keep website, code and rights | Nothing stops: the site is yours |
| Later changes | New features and redesigns on quote | Tweaks and redesigns on quote |
Website-only costs, same numbers EUR/CHF/USD/GBP, excluding domain, SEO and tools. Showcase purchase: 2,999, or 3,227/3,683/4,139 over 1/3/5 years with optional care at 19/month. With basic SEO at 39/month for 36 months: subscription 5,160; purchase 4,403 without additional care. No duplicate care fee when included in SEO management.
What's included
Total cost and ownership
588 set-up fee + 88/month, with no minimum term. Hosting and upkeep included. The website becomes yours after 36 paid monthly instalments: 3,756 in total for the website alone.
Pay monthly: get started without spending £3,000
588 set-up fee + 88/month, with no minimum term. Hosting and upkeep included. The website becomes yours after 36 paid monthly instalments: 3,756 in total for the website alone.
Buy outright: an asset that is yours
Optional technical care: 19/month after purchase or transfer, with no minimum term. Hosting, backups, technical fixes and security; small updates to supplied text/photos up to 15 minutes a month, with no rollover. Ongoing SEO excluded. Redesigns, new features and additional work require an accepted quote.
Buying in 3 instalments
The price is split to the penny: for £2,999, you pay £999.68 on order, then two payments of £999.66, one and two months later. No added fees: the three instalments add up to exactly the price. The site is yours after the last one.
What you keep if you cancel the subscription
Cancelling the standard website subscription before transfer takes the website offline; the Client keeps their domain and content. After transfer, cancelling technical care ends only that service and the hosting provided, without affecting ownership; the site and files can be hosted elsewhere. SEO and tool fees do not automatically fall to 19/month.
The real trap, on both sides
New standard website contracts: ownership transfers once the set-up fee and 36 monthly instalments have been paid. The Client receives the site-specific source code and deliverables, with rights to reproduce, display and adapt them for their business, worldwide for the statutory copyright term. Reusable components and third-party assets retain their licences; tools and services remain separate. Purchased websites transfer after full payment. After transfer, the Client may change provider; technical care at 19/month is optional and cancelling it does not affect ownership. Earlier contracts retain their agreed terms.
Pricing
Pay monthly £88 with no minimum term · buy outright from £2,999, in one go or 3 instalments · basic SEO set up when you buy, managing it £39/month, 6-month minimum
Frequently asked questions
Which option costs less?
Website-only costs, same numbers EUR/CHF/USD/GBP, excluding domain, SEO and tools. Showcase purchase: 2,999, or 3,227/3,683/4,139 over 1/3/5 years with optional care at 19/month. With basic SEO at 39/month for 36 months: subscription 5,160; purchase 4,403 without additional care. No duplicate care fee when included in SEO management.
What happens if I cancel the subscription?
Cancelling the standard website subscription before transfer takes the website offline; the Client keeps their domain and content. After transfer, cancelling technical care ends only that service and the hosting provided, without affecting ownership; the site and files can be hosted elsewhere. SEO and tool fees do not automatically fall to 19/month.
Is SEO included?
When you buy, the site comes with basic SEO set up: nothing more to pay; if you want me to manage it afterwards, it is £39 a month, with a 6-month minimum. On a subscription, basic SEO is added at £39 a month, with a 6-month minimum. Local SEO is £199 a month; ultra SEO is priced after a conversation.
Does paying in 3 instalments cost more?
No: the three instalments add up to exactly the price. For £2,999, that is £999.68 on order, then £999.66 twice, one and two months later, taken automatically.
How quickly can the site go live?
From 3 days depending on the project, once the content is in and the first payment has been made.
What about an online shop or a premium site?
Same logic, different prices: on subscription, £888 to start and then £248 a month, with a 12-month minimum; to buy, from £3,699, with the final price set after a conversation, based on the project.
Read more on this topic
- SEO explained simply: what it is and what it changes for your business — SEO is what makes a customer who searches for what they need on Google land on you rather than someone else. Explained without jargon: what Google looks at, what moves you up, and what you should never believe.
- The quote that goes out before your competitor’s — On building work it is not always the cheapest who wins: it is often the first to answer. How an automated quote on your site prices the job while the customer is still reading, and what that changes.
- Changing a price on your website without asking permission — Waiting three days and paying a quarter of an hour of labour to fix a price is daily life for many businesses. What a content editor changes, and what it really costs.
- The appointments you lose while you are working — A customer who calls while your hands are busy rarely calls back: they call the next place. What an online booking calendar on your own site fixes, what it costs, and why the booking must belong to you.
- Ultra POS: till, kitchen and ordering in one system — Delivery platforms take up to 30% of the basket, and the till, the website and online ordering are usually three separate subscriptions. What Ultra POS brings together, and what it changes on the bottom line.
- Finally knowing which page actually works for your business — Most owners pay for a website without ever knowing what it does. What visitor tracking shows, what it lets you stop paying for, and why a Google position alone proves nothing.
