We rent out websites, so we have an obvious interest in what you choose. That is exactly why we have tried to count honestly. If buying is cheaper for you, you will find out anyway. Better that you hear it from us.
Four ways to count
We compare four realistic paths over five years. The purchase prices are midpoints from the ranges in our run-through of what a website costs:
- Renting from us: nothing up front, from NOK 1,490 a month. Hosting, monitoring and ordinary changes are included.
- Buying, hosting only: a standard agency site for NOK 25,000, and hosting at NOK 600 a month. You make the changes yourself, or pay for them when you need them.
- Buying with maintenance: the same site, with a maintenance agreement of NOK 1,000 a month on top of hosting.
- Bespoke with maintenance: a more polished agency site for NOK 60,000, with hosting and maintenance.
| After | Rent from us | Buy, hosting only | Buy + maintenance | Bespoke + maint. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | NOK 17,880 | NOK 32,200 | NOK 44,200 | NOK 79,200 |
| 3 years | NOK 53,640 | NOK 46,600 | NOK 82,600 | NOK 117,600 |
| 5 years | NOK 89,400 | NOK 61,000 | NOK 121,000 | NOK 156,000 |
What the numbers say
The cheapest option over five years is buying a simple site and hardly ever changing it. After about 29 months the purchase has caught up with renting, and after five years you have paid around NOK 28,400 less than with us. That is a real argument, and it suits you if your site rarely needs new text or photos, or if someone in the business takes care of it.
With maintenance, it flips. If you want someone else to make the changes and be responsible for keeping the site working, renting is cheaper throughout the period, both against the standard site and the bespoke one.
In the first years renting is always cheapest, because you pay nothing at the start. For a new business, or one that does not want to tie up money, that can matter more than the total after five years.
What the numbers do not show
When the site gets old
A purchased site is finished on the day it is delivered, and starts ageing from there. Design trends, new requirements and new technology mean many people rebuild after a few years, and then there is a new bill. When you rent, keeping the site in order is our job, and it is part of the monthly price.
Your own time
Buying with hosting only assumes you make the changes yourself or pay by the hour when you need something. If you spend an hour a month on the site, that is 60 hours over five years. You know best what that is worth.
The risk of buying the wrong thing
If you pay NOK 25,000 up front and are not happy, the money is spent. With us you pay nothing until you have seen the finished site and approved it, and you can cancel at any time afterwards.
Buying is not always owning
Many people assume that buying means full control. It depends on the agreement. Before you buy, check whether you get the source code, whether you have admin access, whether the domain is in your name, and whether you can move the site to another provider without starting over. The answer is not always yes.
With us, we would rather say it plainly: we own the source code, and you have the right to use the site for as long as the agreement runs. The domain, text and photos are yours, and you can ask for a copy of the content at any time. If you cancel, the site stays up until the end of the period you have paid for, and is then taken down. That is the price of us taking full responsibility while you are a customer.
So what should you choose?
Buy if you have the money now, want to own the code, have a site that rarely changes, or have someone who can keep it up to date.
Rent if you do not want to tie up money, want a site made for you without becoming a web editor, and want someone else to be responsible for keeping it working. Read more about how renting works with us.
Sources (retrieved October 2026):
- Hjemmesidehelten: Nettside pris 2026 (in Norwegian; ranges for agency prices, hosting and maintenance)
The amounts in the calculation are midpoints we chose for illustration. Your quote from an agency may be higher or lower. For renting we use our starting price. If your site needs more, the agreed price will be higher, and the calculation has to be redone with it.