Predicting the exact time you’ll need to develop a website may be tough. The thing is that websites are different, hence the resources and time for building them will vary from project to project. On this page, we take a closer look at the key milestones of website development, noting the factors that affect the project timeline.
What Impacts the Website Development Timeline?⏳
The size and complexity of the website as well as the scope of work are among the most significant factors that determine the resources required for website development. The scope and logic difficulty can make all the difference when it comes to the timeline. If the website has many complicated features and needs a huge list of integrations, the process will get extended.
Another point is the development approach. Custom coding takes longer than using website builders (there are many to choose from, Wix, WordPress, or Squarespace, to name a few). While website builders may seem like a quicker solution, they come with downsides like limited customization and potential security gaps.
The size of the development team and how experienced these people are also matters. For instance, if you hire a larger team that has ample previous experience in website development, you can expect to get tasks completed faster and with fewer mistakes.
What’s the Average Time to Build a Website? ⏱️
Let’s put it this way: are you building a website or a web application? It’s very common for people to confuse them. Websites are usually simpler solutions for information-sharing purposes, whereas web apps are often used to develop various SaaS products, e-learning platforms, e-commerce stores, etc. Here are a few estimates:
➡️ If you’re building a simple landing page website, it may take around 2 weeks to launch.
➡️ If you need something bigger like a corporate website, count on about at least 3 or 4 weeks.
➡️ You’ll need a month and a half minimum for building the MVP version for a small and simple web application.
➡️ On the other hand, an MVP version of a complex web application can take up to 3 months or more.
Overall, on average, the process takes at least a month (or even a minimum of a month and a half). Of course, the actual time frame will depend on how you carry out the project and what you’ll build. Keep reading to learn the duration estimates of the key design and development milestones as well as which other factors can affect the timeline 👇