A DIY website for a tradie in Australia is five jobs, not one: the domain, the build, the words and photos, local SEO with Google Business Profile, and upkeep. The builder plan is the cheap part. Your time is the real cost. Scalesites does all five for $750 (5-page, most popular) or $500 (3-page), live in 2 weeks.
The five jobs in a DIY tradie website
A builder like Wix or Squarespace gives you the tools. It does not do the work. A finished tradie site needs five jobs done, and every one of them lands on you.
| Job | What you do | Where it tends to stall |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Domain | Register a .com.au in your own name, then set up email on it. | Renewals nobody tracks, or a domain held in someone else's account. |
| 2. Build | Pick a template, build the pages, check them on a phone. | Pages left half-filled, with placeholder text. |
| 3. Words and photos | Write what you do and where you do it. Photograph finished jobs. | Stock photos and generic text that could be any tradie's. |
| 4. Local SEO and Google Business Profile | Name your services and suburbs on the page, set page titles, then verify your Google profile and connect it to the site. | Skipped. The site goes live and nobody finds it. |
| 5. Upkeep | Renew the domain and plan, fix what breaks, keep your phone number and licence details current. | The site goes stale and nobody notices. |
The five jobs behind a DIY tradie website.
Our guide to the best website builder for tradies in Australia compares the builders themselves. This page covers the work around them.
What Australia adds to the list
Three things catch DIY tradies out. All three are easy once you know them.
A .com.au needs an Australian presence
auDA, the regulator for .au domains, requires anyone who registers a .au domain to show a validated connection to Australia. The most common ways are a valid ABN or ACN, or being an Australian citizen or permanent resident. Your domain provider checks it when you register, renew or transfer. The detail is on auDA's Australian Presence requirement page. Register the domain under your own ABN, not a mate's.
Some trades must show a licence or registration number
In Victoria, a registered building practitioner who advertises domestic building work must state the name they are registered under and their registration number (Building Act 1993, section 169H). Energy Safe Victoria says a registered electrical contractor must display their REC number on any advertisement that says they do, or will do, electrical contracting work (ESV on registered electrical contractors). Treat your website as advertising and put the number in the footer and on the contact page. Other trades and other states have their own rules, so check with your regulator. This is general information, not legal advice.
Google Business Profile verification has steps
Google decides which verification methods you get, and you can't change them. Depending on your business, the options include phone or text, email, a live video call, a video recording or a postcard. Where video is offered, Google recommends it, and it works for service-area businesses, such as a tradie who works out of a van. The recording must be unedited, filmed live on your phone and at least 30 seconds long, and Google says the review can take up to 5 business days. See Google's verify your business page and its video verification page. Our Google Business Profile guide for tradies covers what to put on the profile once it's verified.
What DIY costs in cash and in time
On cash, DIY wins the first month. Builder plans run roughly $0 to $40 a month, plus the domain fee (indicative ranges from our website cost guide, competitor prices checked live 17 Aug 2026). Wix has a free tier, but you pay to remove its ads and to use your own domain. A Wix site also doesn't transfer cleanly to another platform, so moving later usually means a rebuild.
Done-for-you is a one-off price: $500 for 3 pages, $750 for 5 pages (most popular) or $1,190 for 10 pages. You see a free preview before you pay. The site is live 2 weeks after payment. You own the site and domain outright. Hosting and management is optional at $99/month, cancel anytime.
Every Scalesites build includes on-page local SEO setup and a Google Business Profile connection. Full Google Business Profile setup, plus Google Analytics 4, Search Console, Tag Manager and Microsoft Clarity in your name, is the optional $299 Google & Tracking Setup.
On time, there is no reliable average for a DIY build, so we won't invent one. Do this instead. List the five jobs, then write down the evening you'll do each one. If you can't name the evenings, you have your answer.
When DIY is the right call
- You enjoy building things and have evenings free to do it.
- You need a simple page up now and will improve it later.
- A $500 one-off isn't possible right now and a low monthly plan is.
- You will actually finish it. A half-built site does nothing for you.
If two or more of those fit, start with Wix and budget real time for job 4, the local SEO and Google profile. That's the job that decides whether anyone finds you.
An 8-step checklist if you build it yourself
Do these eight things so the site has a fair chance of showing up in local searches.
- Register your .com.au in your own name, with your own ABN, and keep the login details somewhere safe.
- Put your business name, phone number and service suburbs in the page text, not only inside images.
- Build one page per main service, plus a contact page.
- Use your own photos of finished jobs.
- Show your licence or registration number if your trade requires it.
- Make the phone number tap to call on mobile.
- Verify your Google Business Profile and link it to the site. Keep the name, address and phone number identical everywhere.
- Test the whole site on your phone before you tell anyone about it.
When done-for-you is the cheaper option
If your hours are paid hours, add up what the five jobs cost you in work you didn't quote. Then compare that with $750. The full decision, with the table, is in DIY website vs done-for-you for tradies. To see what done-for-you looks like for your trade, start with websites for electricians, websites for plumbers or websites for builders.
See it before you pay
A 5-page Scalesites site is $750 (most popular) or a 3-page is $500, live in 2 weeks, no lock-in. Get a free preview, see the pricing or read how it works.
Summary
A DIY tradie website is five jobs: domain, build, words and photos, local SEO with Google Business Profile, and upkeep. The builder plan is cheap, but the time and the local SEO setup are on you, and Australia adds a domain rule, trade licence rules and Google verification. Scalesites does all five for $750 (5-page, most popular) or $500 (3-page), live in 2 weeks.
Frequently asked questions
Can I build my own website for free in Australia?
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You can start for free, but a free builder plan puts the builder's ads on your site and doesn't let you use your own .com.au domain. Most tradies end up paying for a plan and a domain. The bigger cost is the time to build it and set up local SEO.
Do I need an ABN to get a .com.au domain?
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You need an Australian presence. The most common ways are a valid ABN or ACN, or being an Australian citizen or permanent resident, according to auDA, the .au regulator. Your domain provider validates it when you register, renew or transfer.
Do I have to show my licence number on my website?
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In Victoria, registered building practitioners must show their name and registration number when advertising domestic building work, and registered electrical contractors must display their REC number on advertisements. Other trades and states have their own rules. Check with your regulator. This is general information, not legal advice.
How long does it take to build my own tradie website?
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There is no reliable average, because it depends on your skills and how many evenings you can spare. List the five jobs (domain, build, words and photos, local SEO, upkeep) and schedule each one. A done-for-you Scalesites site is live 2 weeks after payment.
Can a DIY website rank on Google?
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Yes, if the local SEO is done: services and suburbs named on the page, sensible page titles and a verified Google Business Profile linked to the site. The builder doesn't do that part for you, and it's the part that's easiest to skip.
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