A site is ordered once every few years, but they live with its consequences for a long time. A mistake in choosing a contractor costs not only money, but also months of time: rework, lost applications, “there’s a website, but there’s no point.” To avoid this, we have put together a checklist of 12 points by which you should evaluate a studio or agency before starting.
Checklist: 12 points
- Portfolio with live links. Not pictures in the presentation, but working sites that can be opened. Check that they are actually online and loading.
- Cases with results, not just “beautiful”. A good contractor doesn’t say “we did the design,” but “after the launch, conversion increased by X%.” See how it looks like in our cases.
- Experience in your niche or similar tasks. A website for dentistry, a hotel and an online store - three different logics. Ask about relevant experience.
- Transparent technical specifications and estimates. Before the start, it should be clear what is included in the price and what is “extra.” option". Vague technical specifications are a source of conflicts and additional payments.
- Clear stages and deadlines. Normal process: brief → prototype → design → layout → content → tests → launch. Each stage has a deadline.
- Who's on the team? One “generalist” for everything or a designer, developer and project manager. For a serious project, a team is important.
- Mobile version and default speed. In 2026, more than half of traffic will be mobile. Adaptability and fast loading should be included in the database, and not at an additional cost.
- SEO-ready. The site must be ready for promotion: correct structure, meta tags, micro markup, CNC addresses. Otherwise you will have to redo it later.
- Analytics from day one. Counters Metrics, goals for applications - so you can see whether the site is working or not.
- Who owns the domain, hosting and sources. Everything should be registered in your name. Otherwise, you risk being “hostage” by the contractor.
- Post-launch support. What happens if something breaks in a month? Check the terms of support in advance.
- Contract and guarantees. Fix the volume, timing, cost and warranty period in writing. “In words” does not count.
Alarm Signals
- “We’ll make a website in 3 days for 5,000 rubles.” Either the template is not adapted, or alterations will cost more later.
- There is not a single working example. Portfolio “in words” or other people’s work.
- Prepayment 100% without stages. Normal practice is to break it down into stages with intermediate payments.
- They ignore questions about SEO and analytics. This means they do it “just beautifully”, and not according to requests.
- The domain and hosting are arranged in your own name. Direct risk of losing control over the project.
How much does it cost and how long does it take
Guidelines for 2026:
- Landing (one-page): from 50,000 ₽, 2–3 weeks.
- Corporate website: from 120,000 ₽, 3–6 weeks.
- Online store or catalogue: from 250,000 ₽, 1.5–3 months.
The exact numbers depend on the volume and functionality - therefore, an adequate contractor first asks questions, and only then names the price.
Design decides, but not on its own
A beautiful website that doesn’t bring in applications is an expensive business card. The combination of “selling structure + clear design + technical basis for SEO” gives a strong result. If you want your website to look at the brand level, look towards contractors who have design and development are carried out in the same team.
Short conclusion
Choose not by the “lowest price”, but by transparency: clear technical specifications, a living portfolio, cases with results, SEO-readiness and a contract. Such a contractor will cost a little more at the start, but will save you months and hundreds of thousands on rework.
Do you need a site that brings in applications, and not just “there”? We design websites for business purposes - with a selling structure, SEO base and analytics from day one. Discuss the project →