You ask three agencies for a quote on the same project and get back three documents that seem to describe different projects: one costs half as much as another, one is very long and the third fits in a paragraph. Comparing them by the bottom line is the easy way out, but it often leads to a poor decision, because a price only means something if you know exactly what you're buying.
This guide gives you an order for reading any quote, whether for a website, a campaign or a monthly marketing service, and for asking for whatever is missing before you decide.
The exact scope: what's in and what's out
First, translate every quote into the same terms. An "8-page website" may or may not include the copy, the photos, the mobile version, basic SEO, the connection to your email tool or the legal notices. "Social media management" can mean two posts a week or thirty, with or without design, with or without replying to comments.
Make a simple table with your own rows (pages, copy, images, forms, languages, training, included revisions) and check what each agency offers on each one. Where the quote doesn't say, don't assume it's included: ask.
Deliverables, timelines and who does what
A good quote describes concrete outcomes: "design in three proposals", "monthly report with these metrics", "site live on date X". A vague quote ("optimisation", "digital strategy") gives you no way to know whether it's been delivered.
Ask too who actually does the work and what you need to provide. Many delays don't come from the agency but from copy, photos or approvals that take weeks to arrive. A serious timeline explains what's needed from your side and when, and what happens if it slips.
Who owns the code, the domain and the logins
This is the part most often overlooked and the one that hurts most later. Before signing, clarify in writing:
- In whose name the domain, hosting and advertising, analytics and social accounts are registered. The reasonable answer is yours.
- Whether you receive the admin logins and a copy of the code and content when the work ends.
- What happens with paid theme or plugin licences: whether you hold them or they depend on the agency.
An agency that resists handing over the logins to your own project is telling you something important about how it sees the relationship.
Maintenance, support and payment terms
A website doesn't end the day it goes live: it needs updates, backups and someone who answers when something breaks. See whether maintenance is included, what it costs separately and what exactly it covers (content changes, incidents, response times). With monthly services, check the minimum term, the notice period for cancelling and what happens to your data when you leave.
Look at the payment schedule too. The usual approach is to split it into milestones tied to deliveries (for example, a percentage at the start, another when the design is approved and the rest at launch). Being asked for everything upfront, or a final payment that isn't tied to a delivery, is a reason to stop and ask questions.
Red flags and questions worth asking
Be wary of guaranteed-results promises ("number one on Google", "double your sales in three months"): no serious provider can assure them, because they depend on factors outside anyone's control. Also of pressure to decide today, a quote with no breakdown, no examples of similar work at all, and not being able to speak to the person who will actually carry out the project.
Some useful questions for any agency: What do you need from me, and by when? How many rounds of changes are included? What isn't included, and what would it cost? Who will be my point of contact? How will we measure whether it worked? What happens if I decide to leave?
Frequently asked questions
Is it a bad sign if a quote is much cheaper than the others?
Not necessarily, but it's worth understanding why. The scope may be smaller, a standard solution may be used instead of a custom one, or there may be costs that will show up later as extras. Ask them to detail what's included and compare it with the others point by point.
Should I always ask for three quotes?
There's no magic number. Two or three well-framed ones, all based on the same written brief, tell you more than five sent with different explanations. What matters is that they all answer the same question so you can compare them.
Can I negotiate the quote?
Yes, but it's more useful to negotiate scope than price: remove what you don't need right now, leave it for a second phase or provide the copy and photos yourself. Asking only for a discount without touching the work usually ends with the invisible parts being cut.