How to set up a business website in the UK, step by step

Step 1: decide what the website must do

Write down the one or two jobs your site has to do. Most small business sites do one of these:

• Get the phone ringing or the enquiry form filled in (trades, local services, consultants)
• Take bookings (salons, therapists, tutors, coaches)
• Sell products online (makers, retailers)
• Show credibility and a portfolio (freelancers, agencies, creatives)

Your answer decides whether you need ecommerce, bookings or just a few well-written pages, and that shapes every choice below.

Step 2: choose and register a domain name

• .co.uk or .uk signals a UK business and is managed by Nominet. A .com is fine too; if you can, register both and redirect one to the other.
• Keep it short, easy to spell and free of hyphens. Say it out loud: would someone type it correctly after hearing it once?
• Check that the name does not clash with an existing trade mark. You can search the UK register for free on the Intellectual Property Office's website.
• Register the domain in your business's name and switch on auto-renew. Losing a domain because a card expired is more common than you would think.

Step 3: pick a website builder or hosting

Compare the options in our guides to the best website builders for UK small businesses and the best web hosting in the UK. To estimate running costs, use the hosting cost calculator.

Step 4: set up business email on your domain

An address like hello@yourbusiness.co.uk looks far more trustworthy than a free webmail address. Most hosting plans include mailboxes, and website builders usually partner with Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. Whatever you choose, set up the SPF, DKIM and DMARC records your provider gives you so your emails are less likely to land in spam and harder for others to spoof.

Step 5: plan your pages

A typical small business site needs only a handful of pages:

• Home: what you do, who for, where, and how to get in touch, in the first screen.
• Services or products: one page per main service is better for search than one long page.
• About: who is behind the business and why customers can trust you.
• Contact: phone, email, contact form, opening hours and the area you cover.
• Reviews or case studies: real customer feedback with permission.
• Legal pages: privacy notice, cookie information and terms (see step 6).

Step 6: cover the UK legal basics

• Company details: limited companies must show their registered name, company number, registered office address and place of registration on their website. Sole traders using a business name must show their own name and an address where documents can be served on business letters and, in practice, many show these on their website. See GOV.UK's guidance on business names and company information.
• Privacy notice: if you collect any personal data, such as through a contact form, UK GDPR requires a clear privacy notice explaining what you collect, why and people's rights.
• Data protection fee: most organisations that process personal data must pay a data protection fee to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) unless they are exempt. The ICO has a short self-assessment to check.
• Cookies: under PECR you need consent before setting non-essential cookies, such as most analytics and advertising cookies. Rejecting must be as easy as accepting. The simplest approach is to avoid non-essential cookies altogether.
• Selling online: consumer law gives buyers rights such as a 14-day cancellation period for most online purchases. Your terms and checkout need to reflect this.
• Accessibility: make text readable, add alt text to images and make sure the site works with a keyboard. It is good practice and helps everyone.

Step 7: get found on Google

1. Create a free Google Business Profile if you serve customers locally. It often matters more than the website itself for "near me" searches.
2. Verify your site in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools and submit your sitemap.
3. Give every page a clear, unique title and description that matches what customers search for, such as "Emergency plumber in Leicester".
4. Ask happy customers for reviews and reply to them.
5. If you want to go further, see our guide to the best SEO tools for UK small businesses.

Step 8: secure it before launch

• Make sure the site loads over HTTPS (all good hosts and builders include free SSL).
• Use a unique password and two-factor authentication on your domain, hosting and website logins. A password manager makes this painless.
• Check that backups are running and that you know how to restore one.

Our small business cyber security checklist covers the rest.

Step 9: launch checklist

• Test every page on a phone
• Send a test enquiry through every form and check it arrives
• Check spelling, phone numbers and opening hours
• Make sure the domain without www (or with it) redirects to one version
• Set up a simple, cookie-free way to see visitor numbers

After launch

Once the site is live, connect the tools that help you grow: an email marketing tool to keep in touch with customers, a free CRM to track enquiries and a business bank account to keep the money side tidy.

Sources we checked

All checked on 1 November 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm on the provider's site before you buy.

• GOV.UK: company information on websites and stationery
• ICO: data protection fee
• ICO: cookies and similar technologies
• GOV.UK: search for a trade mark

Frequently asked questions