Buying a website outright costs less if you can afford the upfront payment. Website as a service spreads the cost into a monthly fee that usually includes hosting and support, which suits businesses that want to keep cash free or prefer a predictable monthly cost. With ExIQ Web, twelve monthly payments come to about 5% more than paying upfront plus a year of hosting.
How each works
The website can be identical. What changes is how you pay:
- Buying outright: you pay for the design and build upfront, then pay hosting and any care plan separately.
- Website as a service: you pay a monthly fee that covers the design, build and hosting, usually with a minimum term.
When buying outright makes sense
Paying upfront usually suits you if:
- You have the budget and want the lowest total cost
- You plan to keep the site for several years
- You want to choose hosting and care options separately
When website as a service makes sense
Paying monthly usually suits you if:
- You are starting out or protecting cash flow
- You want one predictable monthly cost with hosting included
- You would rather spend capital on stock, staff or equipment
Questions to ask any provider
Whoever you choose, get clear answers to these:
- Is there a minimum term, and does it renew automatically?
- What exactly is included each month: hosting, updates, changes, support?
- Who owns the website and the content?
- What happens if I want to move to another provider?
- How does the total over two or three years compare with buying outright?
How ExIQ Web does it
Our monthly plans start at A$195 a month plus GST, with nothing upfront. They run for 12 months and renew for another 12 unless you cancel. Your website and content are yours; because we tightly integrate each site with our hosting for maximum performance, it often can’t be copied directly to another host without some rework. Our website-as-a-service page shows the upfront and monthly totals side by side.
Whether a monthly fee or an upfront purchase suits you better for tax purposes is a question for your accountant.