For architects the website is the portfolio, and it is judged with unusual severity — prospective clients reasonably assume that a practice with poor visual judgement online will bring poor visual judgement to their building. That raises the bar considerably compared to most professional services.
What architecture websites actually need
Design quality is table stakes here, but it is not sufficient on its own.
- Project pages with proper photography, plans and a description of the brief and constraints
- Clear positioning by project type — residential, commercial, heritage, multi-residential
- Fee structure and process explained, since most clients have never engaged an architect
- Practice philosophy, which genuinely influences who approaches you
- Fast loading despite image weight, which is the most common technical failure on architecture sites
The most common technical failure on architecture websites
Architecture sites are image-heavy by necessity, and a great many are painfully slow because images have been uploaded at full resolution. A beautiful site that takes eight seconds to load loses visitors before they see anything, and Google treats speed as a ranking factor. Proper image optimisation preserves the visual quality while removing most of the weight.
Common mistakes we see
These come up repeatedly when we audit sites in this sector. Most are inexpensive to fix and cost real enquiries while they remain.
- Full-resolution images making a beautiful site painfully slow
- Too many projects shown, so visitors judge you by the weakest one
- No fee structure, when most clients have never engaged an architect and cannot judge
- Project pages with no description of the brief, constraints or how they were solved
How we work
Fixed price agreed before anything starts. Conversion tracking configured before launch so you can see which pages produce enquiries. You own the domain, hosting and site outright, with no lock-in on anything ongoing.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an architect website cost?
Fixed price agreed before starting. Architecture sites usually warrant more attention to image handling and presentation than most professional services.
How many projects should I show?
Fewer, better. Ten strong projects with proper photography outperform thirty mixed ones. Prospective clients judge by the weakest thing you display.
Should I explain fees?
At least the structure — percentage, fixed or hourly, and what each stage covers. Most clients have never engaged an architect and the uncertainty prevents enquiries.
Why is my architecture site slow?
Almost always unoptimised images. Full-resolution photography loaded directly is the standard cause, and it is straightforward to fix without losing visible quality.
Related services
Get in touch
Tell us about your architecture business and what the website needs to produce. We will come back within one business day.