If you run an English-speaking business in the Quebec City area, you have one extra thing to think about: your site will almost always need French too. Keep that in mind as you read. The figures below are ranges seen on the local market, not guaranteed prices.
The 4 main options and what they cost
1. Do it yourself (Wix, Squarespace, Shopify)
Website builders give you ready-made templates for a monthly subscription, often in the range of $20 to $60 a month for a basic site, and more once you add online sales, booking or paid apps. The real cost is your time: writing, photos, settings and SEO. Good if your budget is tight and the site is mostly a business card. The catch: stop paying and the site goes away.
2. A freelancer
A freelancer will usually build a simple site for a few hundred dollars up to around $3,000. Some do excellent work. The risk is availability: a year later, when something breaks, they may have moved on.
3. An independent developer
A full-time independent developer, like JobeLabs, sits between the freelancer and the agency. A custom 5-page site often lands around $1,500 to $5,000, more with online booking or automation. You deal directly with the person writing the code, timelines are short and overhead is low.
4. A web agency
An agency brings a full team: strategy, design, copywriting, development and project management. Small business projects often run $5,000 to $15,000, and e-commerce or custom platforms regularly go past $20,000. Hourly rates for agencies in the Quebec City region are often around $100 to $150. Worth it for large projects or a brand built from scratch.
| Option | Upfront cost (rough range) | Ongoing costs | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Do it yourself | Almost nothing | Subscription, often $20 to $60 a month or more | Tight budget, free time |
| Freelancer | A few hundred to $3,000 | Hosting, updates often on you | Simple site, little change planned |
| Independent developer | About $1,500 to $6,000 | Domain, optional maintenance | Local business wanting custom work |
| Web agency | $5,000 to $15,000 and up | Maintenance contract is common | Larger SMB, big project, branding |
Ongoing website costs
- Domain name: usually $15 to $30 a year for a .com or .ca.
- Hosting: from $0 on some modern platforms to about $30 a month for classic shared hosting.
- Subscriptions: platform, premium theme, plugins, booking tool. They add up fast.
- Text messages: if your site sends SMS reminders, each one costs a few cents.
- Maintenance: security updates, backups, small edits, often $50 to $200 a month depending on what is included.
What drives the price up
- Number of pages: 5 pages and 25 pages are not the same job.
- Online booking: availability, staff selection and SMS reminders make it real software, not just a page.
- E-commerce: products, taxes, shipping and payments.
- Copywriting: supplying your own text lowers the price.
- Photos: your own, stock images or a professional photographer.
- Two languages: in Quebec, a French and English site is close to twice the content to write and maintain.
- Integrations: connecting accounting, inventory or a CRM takes custom development.
Hidden costs to watch for
- The domain is registered in the provider's name, not yours.
- Every small change is billed by the hour because you have no simple admin.
- Hosting is "included the first year", then billed at full price.
- A mandatory maintenance contract that runs for years.
- You are renting a template you cannot move elsewhere.
Questions to ask before you sign
- Is the price fixed and in writing, and what is excluded?
- Who owns the domain, the site and my customer data?
- What are all the monthly and yearly fees after launch?
- Can I update my own text, photos and hours?
- What happens if a bug shows up 2 months after launch?
- Does the site comply with Quebec's Law 25 on personal information?
- Can I see a similar site or a working demo?
Where JobeLabs fits
JobeLabs is an independent developer based in Boischatel, serving businesses in the Quebec City area. Our packages are fixed price, paid once, taxes extra. Hosting is included and you own your site, domain and data, with no mandatory contract. Full details are on our pricing page.
| Package | Price | Typical timeline | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Showcase | $1,499 | 1 week | Up to 5 custom pages, admin section, contact form, local SEO |
| Booking | $3,299 | 2 to 3 weeks | Everything in Showcase, plus online booking, SMS reminders 24 h before, team calendar |
| Complete management | $5,999 | 2 to 4 weeks | Everything in Booking, plus dashboard, automated emails and texts, PDF quotes |
| Custom | On quote | Depends on project | Mobile app, API, integrations, internal platform |
The optional Tranquillité plan is $49 a month for 24 months: monitoring, security updates, 1 hour of changes a month and a review every 3 months. SMS reminders are billed at actual cost. To be fair: if you only need a page with your phone number and hours, a website builder may be enough. If you need a large online store, an agency is better equipped. We are a good fit for local businesses that want a custom site that is easy to manage, often with online booking they actually own. Try our live demos to judge for yourself.
A fixed price for your project in 48 hours
Tell us about your business and what your site needs to do. You get a written fixed-price quote within 48 hours, after a free 20-minute discovery call if you want one.
Get a quoteFrequently asked questions
How much does a small business website cost in Quebec City?
For a professionally built site of a few pages, plan on roughly $1,500 to $5,000. Sites with online booking or automation usually cost more. Agency projects for small and mid-sized businesses often start around $5,000.
Does my Quebec business website have to be in French?
Quebec's Charter of the French Language generally requires commercial information, including websites, to be available in French. English can be offered as well. If you serve both communities, plan for a bilingual site from the start, since it affects the price.
Is Wix or Squarespace cheaper than hiring someone?
Upfront, yes. But the monthly subscription never stops, and features like booking or online sales often cost extra. Over 3 to 5 years, counting your own time, the gap with a custom site paid once is often smaller than expected.
What are the yearly costs of a website?
At minimum, a domain (about $15 to $30 a year) and hosting. Maintenance plans often run $50 to $200 a month. With JobeLabs, hosting is included and the $49 a month plan is optional.
How long does it take to build a website?
A simple site can go live in 1 to 2 weeks if the text and photos are ready. With online booking, plan on 2 to 4 weeks. Large agency projects often take several months.
About the author
Jonathan Beaupré is the founder of JobeLabs inc., based in Boischatel. He builds websites, online booking systems and apps for businesses in the Quebec City area, including the RinkLog app.