How to Choose a Web Designer in South Africa (7 Questions That Expose the Cowboys)
The web design industry has no licensing board. Anyone with a laptop can call themselves an agency — and in South Africa, plenty do. These seven questions separate professionals from cowboys in one conversation.
1. "Can I see live websites you've built?"
Not mockups. Not screenshots. Live links you can browse on your phone. No live portfolio, no deal. (Ours is right here — browse away, every link is live.)
2. "Do I own the website and domain outright?"
The single most important question. Some operators register your domain in their name and hold it hostage when you leave. The right answer: you own the domain, the site and the content, full stop.
3. "What's the total cost — including year two?"
Get the once-off price AND the recurring reality: hosting, domain renewal, changes. "R499/month forever" quietly becomes R18,000 over three years — for a site you may not even own.
4. "When do I pay?"
Full payment upfront before seeing anything is a risk you don't need to take. We flipped it entirely: we build the site first, you pay when you love it. Any designer confident in their work can carry some of the risk.
5. "Will it work perfectly on mobile?"
70%+ of SA traffic is mobile. Test their own portfolio sites on your phone — if their work is clumsy on mobile, yours will be too.
6. "Is basic SEO included?"
Titles, descriptions, Google schema, sensible page structure — this should be built in, not a R5,000 add-on. Without it your beautiful site is invisible.
7. "How long, exactly?"
Simple business sites take days to a couple of weeks industry-wide — we deliver in about 24 hours. "Three to six months" for a 3-pager means you're in a queue behind bigger clients. Get the timeline in writing.
Score any designer out of 7 — including us. We're happy to answer all seven in writing before you spend a rand.
Recent work
Every one of these was designed in full before the business paid anything.
Related reading
- Freelancer vs Agency vs Website Builder Compared
- Do You Actually Own Your Website? 5 Questions to Ask
- How Much Does a Website Cost in South Africa? 2026
- See It Before You Pay: Why We Skip Deposits
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Frequently asked questions
What should I ask a web designer before hiring them?
Ask: Do I own the website outright? Can I see live sites you've built? What's included in the price — and what costs extra later? How long will it take? Is SEO included? Who owns the domain? What happens if I want to leave?
What are red flags when hiring a web designer?
No portfolio of live sites, monthly 'rental' pricing without ownership, registering the domain in their own name, vague timelines, and full payment demanded upfront before you've seen anything.
About the author. Andy Njiokwuemegi is the founder of Andritha Online (Pty) Ltd (reg. 2026/735468/07), which designs and builds websites, online stores, mobile apps and custom software for businesses in South Africa and abroad. Every website is built in full before the client pays.