How to choose a web designer (without getting burned)

The ownership question

Almost every genuinely bad outcome we've been asked to clean up traces back to ownership. A business pays for a website, falls out with the person who built it, and discovers the domain is registered to that person, the hosting is in their account, and the Google Business Profile is on a Gmail address they set up. Years of work, held by someone who isn't returning calls.

Before you commit, get plain answers to all four:

• Whose name is the domain registered in? Yours. Always. Buy it yourself if you have to — it costs about £12.
• Whose account is the hosting under? Yours, with you holding the login.
• Who owns the code and content? You, on final payment, in writing.
• Who controls the Google Business Profile and analytics? You, as primary owner. They can have access; they shouldn't have ownership.

Questions worth asking before you sign

1. Can I see three sites you've built that are still live? Then actually check them on your phone.
2. Who writes the content? The most common reason projects stall for months. If it's you, be honest with yourself about whether you'll do it.
3. What's included on SEO? "SEO-friendly" means nothing. Ask specifically about page titles, structure, service and area pages, sitemap submission and Google Business Profile setup.
4. How many revision rounds, and what then?
5. What happens after launch? How long is support, what does it cover, and what does ongoing maintenance cost if you want it?
6. How do you handle small changes later? Hourly, bundled, or included?
7. What's the timeline, and what delays it? An honest answer usually starts with "waiting on your photos".
8. Can I edit it myself? If no, everything becomes a support ticket forever.

Warning signs

• Guaranteed number one rankings. Nobody can guarantee this. Google doesn't sell positions and your competitors get a vote.
• A price quoted before any questions. If they haven't asked what you do or who your customers are, they're selling a template.
• "Unlimited pages, unlimited revisions." Nothing is unlimited. It means the scope is undefined, which is how projects die.
• Pressure and expiring discounts. A website is not a timeshare.
• No written scope. If it isn't written down, it isn't included.
• Vagueness about ownership. The single biggest red flag on this list.
• A portfolio of sites that no longer exist. Check a few. It tells you a lot about how long their clients stay.

What a fair arrangement looks like

A written scope listing every page and deliverable. A fixed price, or clearly explained day rates. A deposit of 25–50%, balance on completion. A stated number of revision rounds. Everything registered in your name from the start. A defined support period after launch, with any ongoing plan optional rather than assumed.

None of that is unusual to ask for, and anyone reasonable will already be offering most of it. If you want to sanity-check the number itself, our guide to UK website costs breaks down what each bracket genuinely buys.

And one last thing

The best designers will occasionally tell you not to buy a website. If your Google Business Profile is empty and you have no reviews, that's the higher-return work and it costs a fraction as much. Anyone who takes your money without mentioning that is telling you something about how they operate.

For what we include and how we work, see our web design service.