Free vs Paid Website Design, What Is the Catch?

Free websites sound like the kind of offer that comes with a asterisk and several pages of small print. That scepticism is reasonable. Most "free" things in business have a cost somewhere, whether it is your data, a forced upsell, or a product so limited it does the job of nothing.

So here is a straight answer about how free website offers actually work, what the genuine catches are, and when a paid option makes more sense.

The two types of free website you will come across

Not all free website offers are the same thing.

Free website builders like Wix, Squarespace, or WordPress.com

These are free to start, with restrictions. You get a subdomain (yourbusiness.wix.com, not yourbusiness.co.uk), limited design options, and the platform's branding on your site. To get a real domain, remove the branding, or access anything useful, you upgrade to a paid plan. The free tier is a trial, not a product.

There is nothing wrong with this model. But it is worth being clear that "free" here means "free to start, paid to use properly." If you build something on Wix and then want to move it somewhere else later, you largely cannot. You are building on their platform, not your own.

Free websites from web designers

This is a different offer. A designer builds you a real, professionally built website at no cost, hosted on a proper domain, in exchange for something non-monetary. That could be a review, a referral, a case study, or simply the relationship with a potential future paying client.

This is the model behind the free one-page websites offered by Designed By Stu each month. Five local Stoke-on-Trent businesses get a properly built one-page site, live on their own domain, at no cost. The ask in return is a genuine Google review, a link back to Designed By Stu, and a referral if they are happy with the work. No monthly fee. No contract. No hidden upgrade path.

So what is the actual catch?

With the Designed By Stu free offer, the catches are these, and they are worth knowing upfront.

It is one page. Not five pages, not a blog, not a booking system. A single, well-built page covering the essentials. For many sole traders and small businesses, that is enough. For businesses that need more than that, it is a starting point, not the finished article.

There are only five available each month. It is not a permanent open offer. It goes to well-connected local businesses and people within the referral network first. When the five are gone, they are gone until the following month.

The review and referral ask is real. This is not a throwaway condition. A genuine Google review matters to a small business. A referral matters more. If you would not be comfortable recommending the work to someone you know, this is not the right arrangement.

That is the complete list. No ongoing fees that kick in after three months. No pressure to upgrade. No platform lock-in.

When a paid plan makes more sense

The free one-pager covers a specific need. A paid plan covers different ones.

If you want more than one page, you need the £99 monthly plan, which covers up to ten pages with hosting, domain, and SSL included. If you want blog content published regularly, local SEO work, Google Business Profile management, and someone actively working on your online visibility each month, the £199 plan covers all of that.

The free site is a door-opener. It gets you online, gives you something to point people to, and starts building your web presence from nothing. The paid plans are for businesses that want to grow beyond that.

If you are unsure which is right for where you are now, how much a small business website should cost breaks down the full pricing picture.

Is the free website right for your business?

One page, properly built, live on your domain, no monthly cost. If that matches what you need right now, get in touch and ask about the current availability. If you need more, we will tell you that too.