Freelancer, agency or monthly plan: who'll still be there when your website needs changing in month six
When hiring someone to build a website, nearly every shop compares who's cheapest. But the day the site really needs changing usually comes in month six, and by then the question that matters is whether they're still around.
Key points
- Compare web builders on both the build and the period after handover, which lasts many times longer.
- Freelancers suit sites that rarely change and tight budgets, but everything depends on one person.
- As a typical market range, agencies charge around 15,000-50,000 baht up front, take 3-6 weeks, and usually bill changes after handover separately.
- Monthly plans start small and include maintenance, but you pay for as long as you use them. If your site barely changes, paying once may be cheaper.
- Whoever you hire, register the domain in the shop's name and agree in writing how changes after handover work.
Six months after launching its website, a small spa is about to start a Mother's Day promotion this Friday. The owner opens the LINE chat with the freelancer who built the site. The last message, from five months ago, reads: "All done, thanks for working with me."
She types that she'd like a promotion banner added and prices changed on three packages. The message shows as read at midnight. The reply comes the next morning: "I've taken a full-time job recently. I'll have a look one weekend when I'm free."
The promotion starts Friday.
When she hired him, she compared prices from three people and chose the cheapest. It wasn't a bad decision. The work was good and arrived on time. It's just that the question she compared them on was who was cheapest, not who would still be there when the site needed changing.
Ask who'll still be there in month six before asking who's cheapest
Everyone who builds websites does well in month one, because that's when both sides care the most. What separates the options is what comes after: when the shop needs new prices, a new service, a new address, or the site breaks at 8 pm.
And a shop's website always needs changing. Anyone who has run a business for a while knows there's hardly a month when nothing moves. If the site can't keep up, customers see old prices, expired promotions or a phone number nobody answers.
So when you compare a freelancer, an agency and a monthly plan, compare two periods: building the site, and everything after handover. The second one is usually many times longer.
Hiring a freelancer for your website: easy to talk to, flexible, and down to one person
A good freelancer can build a site as well as anyone. You talk directly to the person doing the work, it's easy to adjust things, and the price is usually lower than an agency. For a new business on a tight budget, it's a sensible route.
What you need to know is that everything sits with one person. The day they get ill, take a full-time job or change careers, nobody is looking after your site. And often the admin password, the domain account and the project files are with them too.
A freelancer suits a site that rarely changes, like a company profile updated once or twice a year, or a shop that knows someone reliable it has worked with for a long time. If you go this way, have the domain registered in the shop's name, keep your own copy of the admin login, and agree in writing how changes after handover are charged.
Hiring an agency: a proper process, with prices and timelines to match
An agency has a team: designers, developers, a project manager. The work is consistent and doesn't hinge on one person. As a typical market range, expect around 15,000-50,000 baht paid before starting and 3-6 weeks to deliver.
The trade-off is process. Changes after handover usually mean opening a new job, paying per request, or signing a separate yearly maintenance contract. Changing three lines of prices can end up waiting in the same queue as a big project.
An agency suits businesses where image is everything: a brand launching and wanting design made just for it, or a company with someone on staff who already manages agencies. If you genuinely want a site that looks like nobody else's, this route is worth the money.
A monthly plan: a small start, and payments that keep going
With a monthly plan you pay by the month or the year, a team builds your site and keeps looking after it for as long as you use it. The first payment is much smaller, and changes, maintenance and backups are included in what you pay. You know in advance what each month costs.
To be straight about it: it doesn't end. As long as the site exists, the fee keeps running. Over five years, the total may be more than a one-off build. And ask clearly at the start whether the domain stays with the shop if you stop one day.
It suits shops that change a lot: monthly promotions, many services and prices, and nobody in the shop who wants to be the website person. We break down every cost of running a website, with worked numbers, in how much a website really costs.
Freelancer, agency and monthly plan side by side
| Freelancer | Agency | Monthly plan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paid at the start | Agreed with them, usually below an agency | Around 15,000-50,000 baht | The first month or year |
| Site ready in | Depends on the person and the job | 3-6 weeks | Days to a few weeks, depending on size |
| Changes after launch | Ask, then wait until they're free | New job or maintenance contract | Included, small edits often done yourself |
| If the builder disappears | The shop finds someone new | The team is still there, with a contract | The team keeps looking after it while you subscribe |
| Best for | Sites that rarely change, tight budgets | Brands that want bespoke design | Shops that change often and want someone looking after it |
Figures in the table are typical market ranges, not any one provider's prices. Each row is a general picture, and individual builders may be better or simply different.
Choose by how often your shop changes, not by the price you're offered
Count what changed in your shop over the past year. How many price changes, new menu items or services, promotions, a move or a new branch? If you count one or two, a reliable freelancer or agency is probably better value. If you count a dozen, give more weight to who'll still be there than to the day-one price.
Then ask every option the same question: in month six, if we want to change prices and add a promotion, how does that work, how many days does it take, and what does it cost? The answer tells you more than any portfolio.
woowey works on a monthly plan. Our team builds your site and looks after it every month. Small things like text, photos or prices you can change yourself straight away, or ask our AI assistant in Thai. For anything bigger, tell the team. If you already have a site, we can move it over. Just tell us that much, and we'll handle the rest.
If the spa could go back, it might still choose the same freelancer, because his work really was good. It would just ask him one more thing on day one: in month six, when a promotion starts on Friday, will you still be here?
Frequently asked questions
Is it a good idea to hire a freelancer to build my website?
Yes, if your site won't change much and you know someone reliable. Register the domain in your shop's name, keep your own admin login, and agree in writing how changes after handover are charged.
How much does an agency charge for a website?
As a typical market range, around 15,000-50,000 baht paid up front, with 3-6 weeks to deliver. Changes after handover are usually billed separately.
Is a monthly website plan worth it?
It's worth it for shops that change prices, services or promotions often, because changes and maintenance are included. If your site will barely change for years, paying once may be cheaper.
What should I ask before hiring someone to build my website?
Ask whose name the domain is registered in, how changes after handover are charged and how long they take, and who to contact if the site has a problem.
The woowey team
We build websites and systems for businesses
We build websites, booking systems, online stores and back offices for Thai businesses, then look after them every month. What we write here comes from what we see working with real shops.
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