Build an AI website in 60 seconds

Creating a website for your business used to mean spending thousands of dollars ($3,000 to $15,000+) and waiting weeks or even months while a developer or agency built it for you. AI website builders change the game, letting you get online fast and affordably, often for just a fraction of the traditional cost, without sacrificing a professional look.

But does cheaper always mean better? It’s not just about the upfront price. You also have to think about how much you can customize your site, how much time you’ll spend keeping it updated, and the long-term payoff. In 2026, choosing a website solution is about finding one that fits your business goals, tech comfort level, and plans to grow.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how AI website builder pricing compares to hiring a developer, what each option gives you, and how to figure out which one really makes sense for your business and budget.

Create website for business: Cost comparison breakdown

Getting your website live can take days or months – and cost a little or a lot – depending on your approach. Let’s break down the options.

Looking at the numbers, it’s clear that:

• AI site builders are the fastest and cheapest way to get online, especially if you don’t want to fuss with updates or technical headaches. 
• Freelancers are cheaper than agencies and let you adjust things here and there, but you’ll still be juggling deadlines and updates yourself.
• Agencies give you the full-service experience, but it comes at a premium and can take a while before your professional website is live. 

The choice really comes down to how much time, money, and hands-on involvement you’re comfortable with.

What you get with AI-powered free website builders

AI website builders are about streamlining the whole process of creating a website for your business. Instead of starting from scratch or spending weeks coordinating with a developer, these tools handle many of the repetitive tasks, giving you a functioning site faster and often without the big price tag that comes with custom development.

Here’s what makes AI builders so effective:

AI-generated layouts, copy, and SEO setup

The AI figures out the page structure for you. For a professional service, that could mean ready-made sections for what you offer, customer reviews, and ways for clients to get in touch.

On top of layouts, AI can draft your page content and sort out SEO basics like metadata. This upfront work cuts days or even weeks off the traditional process and ensures your site isn’t just visually appealing but built with search visibility in mind. Data shows that AI-assisted builders can reduce initial site creation time by up to 70%.

Drag-and-drop customization

Even with AI website templates, you can make the site truly yours. Move sections, swap images, adjust colors, and connect your custom domain, all with a few simple clicks. This makes it easy to keep your site looking unique and on-brand. Ideal for small businesses that want a polished site without needing a web designer for every tweak.

Built-in conversion tools

With features like forms, pop-ups, and CTAs already built in, AI website builders make it easy to capture leads without touching code. They also help guide visitors toward actions that actually matter, like booking a meeting or signing up for updates.

Ongoing updates with minimal cost

With custom-built sites, even minor updates can turn into a project. You’ll often need a developer just to swap an image or tweak your SEO.

AI builders keep your site current and secure, suggesting small content improvements along the way, so you don’t have to worry about the usual maintenance headaches.

All in all, AI website builders are quick, automated, and simple, perfect for getting a site up and running fast. While they can’t fully replace a developer for highly custom projects, most small and medium businesses get everything they need from the built-in tools.

What you get with developers or agencies

If you go with a developer or agency, you’re getting a fully custom website and personal support. The downside? It takes more time and effort. AI builders are quick and simple, but devs can handle complex projects tailored to exactly what your business needs.

Here’s what you can generally expect:

Full customization for complex sites 

Developers can take an empty business website and add exactly what you want: custom navigation, special tools, integrations, or a look that matches your brand. Advanced features like booking systems, multilingual content, or specialized e-commerce? They can handle those too.

Hands-on strategy and design support 

Agencies don’t just code; they advise. From wireframes to final launch, you get guidance on UX, branding, SEO strategy, and content structure. This human touch can help your own website or online store not just look good, but actually perform in search engines and convert website visitors into customers.

Higher ongoing costs and longer timelines 

Custom doesn’t come cheap. Expect to pay a freelancer a few thousand dollars for a small site, but agencies start higher ($1,000 to $5,000), and costs can shoot up for bigger, fancier projects.

In terms of timelines, AI builders can launch a website fast, but with a developer, it’s often a drawn-out process. You’ll likely pay extra for updates and security.

Many developers also now use AI tools themselves. Agencies might generate a site’s layout or content in just a few clicks, then customize it to fit your brand. This approach speeds things up and keeps costs lower without losing that personal touch.

Custom sites might start out expensive for small business owners. But when they work as intended, they can boost performance, generate more leads, and cut down on future issues.

Note that simple business sites don’t always need a developer. AI-built options can now handle the important stuff like SEO, responsive design, and essential integrations, saving time and money. For simpler businesses, AI-built sites cover the must-haves like SEO, mobile-friendly design, and basic integrations.

The bottom line: Want a one-of-a-kind site? A developer can make it happen, but it’ll cost more and take longer. For small businesses, AI builders with some human edits often hit the sweet spot of fast, professional results.

ROI: Time, scalability, and upkeep

When it comes to building a website for your business, the real value isn’t just in the upfront cost. It’s in how fast your site can start generating leads, how easily it can grow with your business, and how much ongoing effort it demands. For SMBs, these factors can make a huge difference in overall ROI.

Faster setup means faster leads

Every day your site isn’t set up to attract the right audience is a day that potential clients slip away. If you go the freelancer or agency route, don’t expect your site overnight. It can take weeks or months to get it polished and launch-ready.

AI builders like B12 let you get online fast, so you don’t have to wait months to start collecting leads, answering client questions, or adjusting your offerings.

For SMBs juggling small teams and tight budgets, launching a website quickly means you can hit the ground running. You can start connecting with clients, testing promotions, and adjusting your site on the fly instead of being stuck waiting for a developer.

Scalability without the headache

With most traditional websites, growing or tweaking your site isn’t simple. You’ll likely pay a developer every time, and those costs stack up quickly.

AI website builders make growing your site simple. You can adjust pages, plug in payment or booking tools, and improve your SEO anytime, all without hiring a developer.

Take TaxStudio, for example. They tried Wix to keep costs down, but they ran into issues. Making edits was clunky, tracking traffic was tricky, and capturing leads was inconsistent.

After switching to B12, TaxStudio not only got a professional, custom website up in just three weeks, but the team could also manage updates and optimize content without hiring a separate marketing team or using additional marketing tools.

Brett Packard, head of operations at TaxStudio, explained:

“Every December, we send out new contracts, and by January, clients are signing them. We wanted them to have something to look at that was an upgrade from our previous site before they signed a new contract with us. We want to say to someone: Here’s all of our information, take it and design based on our vision. That definitely came to fruition with B12.”

The firm now serves over 300 clients across multiple countries, and the site scales to support international pages, ITIN forms for Australian clients, and direct notifications to the appropriate team members. All without adding new staff. That’s the kind of scalability that directly impacts ROI: you’re growing your business without proportionally growing costs.

Upkeep that saves time and money

Manual updates, plugin checks, and security fixes on older or custom-built websites can take a lot of time and skill, whereas AI tools take care of these behind the scenes.

Instead of juggling updates, security patches, and SEO tweaks yourself, B12 takes care of it all and gives you all the tools to keep your site organized and efficient. This matters because time is money. AI website builders also create opportunities to reinvest your time and resources where they matter most. 

With AI builders, SMBs gain:

• Faster website launches to start generating leads immediately
• The ability to scale sites or add new features – even go global – without bringing on extra team members
• SEO, security, and analytics updates that are handled automatically
• Smoother client experience with simple forms, instant notifications, and content tailored to each location

Ultimately, the ROI of a website isn’t just the dollars spent. It’s the business growth enabled, the hours saved, and the leads captured that wouldn’t exist otherwise. AI-powered websites can provide all this without the extended timelines or recurring costs associated with traditional web development.

When your site’s quick to launch, simple to expand, and hassle-free to maintain, the payoff often outweighs any extra cost at the start.

Conclusion

Picking between a developer and an AI builder is about three things: what you’re willing to spend, how quickly you need your site, and how involved you want to be in the process. B12 saves time and money, and if you need extra help, our experts can jump in to refine the look, write copy that clicks with your audience, and make sure your site keeps converting visitors.

For those looking to create a website for business purposes, this means you get more done in less time, with predictable pricing and fewer headaches over updates or maintenance. 

Save time and money: build your business website with B12’s AI builder today.