For a web presence you will, at a minimum, need an ISP or Internet Service Provider, which, if you are reading this, you probably already have. An ISP will generally run you about $20/month. For most people, the ISP is considered a regular utility expense, right up there with the telephone and electric bills.

You will then need to register your domain name . Depending on where and how you do this you can expect to pay between $8 and $50 per year for your domain name.

Once you have a domain name, you need to "park" it somewhere where the Internet can find it. This is called "hosting." Hosting services range from "free" (the host will put ads on your site in exchange for giving you "free" space on their servers) to $10/month for a html based site , to a pretty much universal $20/month for a site compatible with Microsoft's FrontPage. Sites can also be updated through php powered web interfaces , right through your web browser. Php sites are easily upgraded into e-commerce sites, and start at $40/month.

Designing and building the web can run from a few hundred dollars into tens of thousands, depending on the complexity and frankly, depending on how organized you are. Provide a designer with all the information they need to create your web up front, and you'll pay considerably less than if you make the designer chase after you for each piece of the puzzle.

Which is why we encourage you to begin at the beginning to get your thoughts in order. It isn't pretty, but it is a good place to start.

Registering the site on the search engines is above and beyond the cost of the site. Managing your search engine placement is a topic covered by entire web sites... but you'll find an overview here. OrbWeaver customers receive a rollover banner ad on any of our Gateway of topic sites if applicable free for one season. For more marketing ideas, visit our Marketing Center.

The bottom line? On a monthly basis a site without e-commerce, with FrontPage server extensions:

ISP service	$ 20
The domain name	$ 3.75
Hosting	$20.00
Total	$43.75

Rules of thumb for estimating the cost of building a web:

index page	$100-200 depending on art
Top Level pages	$50-100 each depending on complexity
Sub Level pages	$50-100 depending on complexity
links, interior	free (included with site)
links, exterior	free-$5 each
e-mail collector	free (included with site)
contact links	free (included with site)
forms	simple (5 lines) $50 complex: subject to bid
e-commerce	$10 setup for Merchant acct plus site building
advertising on OrbWeaver's Gateway site	free for the first (6 month) season, $100/season, discounts available for multiple seasons.
training	$50/hr (no limit on students)
marketing tips	free on our website
registering with search engines	see our discussion of Search Engine Listings

Additional Articles:

Ecommerce: selling online without inventory (or tears)
Ecommerce: The Powerful Hosting Retail Store: full ecommerce at a bargain price

Enhancing an existing site