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Not financial advice: this page is general information to help you understand your options. It is not financial, tax, legal or insurance advice, and we don’t offer or arrange credit or insurance. Check the linked official pages and speak to a qualified adviser about your situation.
A simple, clear website helps customers find you, trust you and get in touch. This page covers choosing a domain name, the main ways to build a site, and the legal information UK businesses need to put on it.
Do you need a website at all?
Not every business needs one on day one. A free Google Business Profile (see our marketing page and our Google Business Profile playbook) can bring local customers before you have a site. But a website you control is useful almost always: social media accounts can be suspended or change their rules, while your site and domain belong to you.
Choosing a domain name
- .co.uk or .uk tells UK customers you are local. .com is international. These UK domains are run by Nominet (the .uk domain registry), and you buy them through a registrar.
- Keep it short and easy to say over the phone. Avoid hyphens and numbers if you can.
- Match your business name, and check the name is free at Companies House and that you are not using someone else's trade mark. See GOV.UK: Choose a company name.
- Register it in your own or your company's name, not your web designer's, and keep the login yourself.
- Watch renewal prices. Many registrars offer a cheap first year. For example, 123 Reg's domain page advertised .co.uk at £3.99 a year for the first year when we checked 29 October 2026. The renewal price is usually higher. Check it before you buy: 123 Reg domain names.
Ways to build a website
| Option | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Website builder (for example Wix, Squarespace) | Service businesses, portfolios, simple booking and contact forms. Drag-and-drop, hosting included. | Monthly or annual plan; moving to another platform later can mean rebuilding. |
| Online shop platform (for example Shopify, Wix eCommerce, Squarespace Commerce) | Selling products online, with stock, delivery and payments. | Platform fees and payment fees on top of the plan; check app costs. |
| WordPress (self-hosted) | Lots of control and content; huge choice of themes and plugins. | You (or a developer) handle updates, security and backups. |
| Hire a web designer | A custom look, or if you have no time. | Agree in writing who owns the site, domain and logins, and what ongoing costs are. |
Website builder prices change often and depend on promotions and billing period, so we link to each provider's own pricing rather than repeat figures that may be out of date: Wix plans, Squarespace pricing, Shopify UK pricing, WordPress.org. These are plain links, not affiliate links.
What your website must show (UK law)
- Limited companies must show on their website the company's registered number, registered office address, where the company is registered (England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland), and that it is a limited company. Source: GOV.UK: Signs, stationery and promotional material.
- If you sell online, there are rules on the information you give before purchase, cancellation rights and delivery. Source: GOV.UK: Online and distance selling for businesses.
- Cookies and analytics: if your site uses cookies that aren't strictly necessary, such as most analytics and advertising cookies, you generally need consent. Source: ICO: Cookies and similar technologies.
- Privacy notice: if you collect personal data through forms, bookings or a mailing list, you need to tell people what you do with it. See our data protection and licences guide.
- Advertising rules apply to marketing claims on your own website: ASA: The CAP Code.
A first website in a weekend: checklist
- Home page: who you help, where, and how to contact you, all visible without scrolling.
- Services or products, with prices or "from" prices if you can.
- About: real photos of you and your work.
- Contact: phone, email, a simple form, and your service area or address.
- Legal: privacy notice, cookie banner if needed, company details if a limited company.
- Connect your domain, add the site to Google Search Console and your Google Business Profile.
- Test it on your phone. Most visitors will see it there first.
Keep it secure and yours
Use a strong, unique password and two-step verification on your domain and website accounts. Turn on domain auto-renew so the domain doesn't expire by accident. Keep a record of where everything is registered and when it renews.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Letting a designer register the domain in their own name, so you can't move it later.
- Forgetting the renewal date and losing the domain.
- A beautiful home page that doesn't say what you do or where.
- Contact forms that go to an inbox nobody checks.
- Copying text or photos from other websites. That can breach copyright, so use your own or properly licensed images.
Official sources
- GOV.UK: Choose a company name
- GOV.UK: Signs, stationery and promotional material
- GOV.UK: Online and distance selling for businesses
- ICO: Cookies and similar technologies
- ASA: The CAP Code
- Nominet (the .uk domain registry)
More tools & services
- Payments & card readers
- Business banking
- Accounting & bookkeeping
- Marketing
- Printing
- HR & payroll
- Insurance (info only)
← All tools & services Your first-year roadmap
Last checked 29 October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.