"How much does a website cost?" is one of the first questions a club committee asks, and the honest answer is "anywhere from nothing to thousands." Here's a clear breakdown of the real costs in the UK, and what a typical club actually needs to pay.
Prices below are typical ranges and our own plan prices. Other providers change theirs, so check current pricing on their sites before you decide.
The options, from cheapest to dearest
Free club builders: £0
A handful of builders offer a genuine free plan. Natterio, for example, has a permanent free plan: a three-page site with no card required and no ads. You're limited to the basics and a platform subdomain, but for a small or new club it's a real, working website for nothing.
Club platform subscriptions: £5-£25/month
This is where most clubs land. For the price of a coffee or two a month you get a proper website on your own domain, with club features included. Natterio's paid plans are:
- Starter: £7/month. A complete website on your own custom domain.
- Community: £14/month. Adds a members' forum and member accounts.
- Pro: £24/month. Adds an online shop with 0% transaction fees and removes platform branding.
General website builders: £8-£30+/month
Wix, Squarespace, and similar charge a monthly subscription too, but club features like a members' area or forum often cost extra on top, and you build the site yourself. For a side-by-side look, see our Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy and Natterio comparison for clubs.
Custom-built websites: £500-£5,000+ one-off
A web designer will build you a bespoke site, but for most clubs it's overkill: you pay a large upfront fee, plus ongoing maintenance, and you depend on the designer for every change.
The same thing as a table
| Route | Typical cost | Who builds it | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free club builder | £0 | You (or AI) | New or small clubs, tight budgets |
| Club platform subscription | About £5-£25 a month | You (or AI) | Most clubs wanting their own domain and club features |
| General builder | About £8-£30+ a month | You, by hand | A volunteer who enjoys design |
| Custom build | £500-£5,000+ upfront, plus upkeep | A designer | Clubs with a specific, unusual brief and a budget |
What does a typical club actually need?
Most clubs need:
- A website on their own domain: around £7/month.
- A members' forum and events: a tier up, around £14/month.
- A shop for kit or subs: only if you sell things, around £24/month.
So a realistic budget for a well-equipped club website is £0 to start, then £7-£24 a month, far less than a one-off custom build, with no maintenance bills.
Worked example: three years of cost
Take a small club that wants its own domain and nothing else. On a £7/month plan that is £84 a year, so £252 over three years, plus a domain if it is not included (typically £10-£15 a year, so budget up to about £45 over the same period; check at your registrar). A custom build at the lower end of the range above would cost £500 upfront before any updates. A club that starts on the free plan and upgrades after a year spends £0 in year one, then £84 a year after. This is illustrative arithmetic, not a quote.
Hidden costs to watch for
- Transaction fees on shop sales (Natterio's Pro plan charges 0%).
- Add-on creep on general builders, where each feature is a separate paid app.
- Domain renewal (typically £10-£15/year), sometimes included, sometimes not.
- "Free" plans that secretly need a card, or that put ads on your site.
- Price rises at renewal. Look at the renewal price, not just the first-year price.
- Volunteer time. The cheapest tool that takes forty evenings is not cheap.
Checklist before you pay for anything
- Write down what the site must do on day one (usually: who we are, when we meet, how to join, contact).
- Start on a free plan and build the real site first.
- Only pay when you hit a real limit: your own domain, more pages, a forum, a shop.
- Check the renewal price and cancellation terms.
- Register any domain to a club email address, not a personal one. See our domain and email guide.
- Agree who pays and who is named on the account, so it survives committee changes. See handing over a club website.
- If you collect members' details, budget a little time for the GDPR basics.
Who should pay what
Stay on free if: you are new, small, or just need a few clear pages and a contact form.
Pay for a custom domain if: you are putting the address on flyers, kit and sponsor material and want it to look permanent.
Pay for a forum tier if: you are replacing a Facebook group or WhatsApp chat and want searchable discussion for members.
Pay for a shop tier if: you really sell kit, tickets or merchandise online.
Consider a custom build only if: you have a specific brief a builder cannot meet and a real budget for upkeep. That is rare for clubs.
Common mistakes
- Buying the biggest plan "just in case". You can upgrade when you need to.
- Paying a designer for a site only one person can edit. You become dependent on them for every change.
- Ignoring the domain. A free subdomain is fine to start, but decide early who owns your own address.
- Comparing sticker prices only. Compare what is included: domain, email, forum, ads, fees.
- Forgetting the upkeep. A site nobody updates costs nothing and delivers nothing.
The bottom line
A club website in the UK costs far less than most committees expect. You can start free, and a fully-featured club site (website, forum, and shop) tops out around £24 a month. Compare that to a £1,000+ custom build and the maths is easy. For more on the free route see our best free club website builder guide. See Natterio's pricing or build a site free.