SEO setup for a new website: what it should cost

Key takeaways

SEO set-up for a new UK small business website typically costs £300 to £2,000 as a one-off. Basic set-up covers page titles, descriptions, headings, Search Console, a sitemap and redirects. Fuller set-up adds keyword research, structured data and local search. Ongoing SEO is separate and usually costs £300 to £1,500 a month.

• Basic SEO set-up: about £300 to £800.
• Fuller set-up with research: about £800 to £2,000.
• Ongoing SEO: about £300 to £1,500 a month.
• Redirects from an old site: essential.

How much does SEO set-up for a new website cost?

SEO set-up for a new website costs about £300 to £800 for the basics and £800 to £2,000 for fuller set-up including keyword research and structured data, based on typical UK quotes. Some web designers include basics in the build; check the quote rather than assuming.

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What should basic SEO set-up include?

Basic SEO set-up should include unique page titles and descriptions, a clear heading on each page, readable URLs, image alt text, an XML sitemap, Google Search Console, and redirects from any old site. These follow Google's own SEO starter guidance.

• Titles, descriptions and headings.
• Clean URLs and alt text.
• Sitemap and Search Console.
• Redirects from old URLs.

• Google Search Console for small businesses

What does fuller set-up add?

Fuller set-up adds keyword research to match pages to real searches, structured data so search engines understand your business, local search set-up including a Google Business Profile, and a content plan. It suits businesses that want to grow search enquiries soon after launch.

Is ongoing SEO necessary?

Ongoing SEO is not essential for every business, but set-up alone rarely moves rankings much in competitive markets. Ongoing work adds content, earns links and fixes issues. UK small business SEO retainers commonly run £300 to £1,500 a month.

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When can you skip paid SEO set-up?

You can skip paid set-up if your web designer includes the basics and you are comfortable setting up Search Console yourself. Check that titles, headings and redirects are handled, because those are hardest to fix after launch.

What does this look like in practice?

At Global Bridge Labs (GBL), a UK roofing firm relaunched its site without redirects from old pages. Search enquiries fell by half in a month. Mapping and redirecting 60 old URLs cost about £500 and traffic recovered over the following weeks. Including it in the original set-up would have avoided the dip.

• See client work
• Website Design & Development for UK businesses

SEO set-up checklist

• Confirm what SEO the build includes.
• Write unique titles and descriptions.
• Set up Search Console and a sitemap.
• Redirect every old URL.
• Add structured data for your business.
• Decide whether ongoing SEO is needed.

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Next step

Ask your web designer which SEO tasks are in the quote. Price any gaps before launch, especially redirects.