In most markets nobody reads the code. Here somebody will, which changes how the work has to be done from the first commit.
Web development in San Francisco costs $7,000 to $60,000 depending on whether you need a build, a migration, integration work or performance engineering. The difference in this market is that your client frequently has engineers, so the code has to survive a review, follow conventions the team already uses, and be documented well enough to hand over.
Your engineers will read this. Conventions matching theirs, tests where they expect tests, and architecture decisions written down rather than explained on a call. Work that fails the first review costs more to fix than to have done properly.
Your repository, your CI, your review workflow, your branching model. Most Bay Area engagements are adding capacity rather than delivering an artefact, and the delivery model has to reflect that.
Core Web Vitals before and after, on your URLs, verifiable by anyone. In a market that will check your claims, publishing numbers is easier than defending adjectives.
Moving platforms is the highest-risk work we do, and the risk lives in redirect mapping. Every old URL mapped before cutover, parity tested, monitored after. Anyone not raising this unprompted has not done many.
Connecting two systems is straightforward. Deciding what happens when one is slow, down, rate limited or returns something unexpected is the actual engineering, and it is what separates quotes.
Architecture, setup, deployment, in writing. Undocumented work is a liability handed to whoever inherits it, and in a market where teams turn over quickly that is sooner than you think.
| Project | Range (USD) | Timeline | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conventional build on a platform | $7,000 to $16,000 | 4 to 8 weeks | Custom theme, templates, integrations, performance budget, documentation |
| Custom front end | $16,000 to $38,000 | 8 to 15 weeks | Bespoke build, component system, deeper integrations, tests |
| Platform migration | $9,000 to $32,000 | 5 to 12 weeks | Content migration, redirect mapping, parity testing, monitored cutover |
| Integration project | $3,000 to $22,000 | 2 to 8 weeks | Scoped connection, failure handling, retries, monitoring |
| Performance engineering | $3,000 to $10,000 | 2 to 5 weeks | Audit, fixes, before and after Core Web Vitals |
| Retained development | $2,000 to $9,000 per month | Ongoing | Named hours, roadmap, releases, monitoring |
Integration count and test coverage move these numbers more than page count does. Two systems describing the same customer differently is a bigger job than thirty pages.
| Ask them | A good answer sounds like | Walk away if |
|---|---|---|
| What does this actually cost? | A range, and what moves it, before a call | You must book a call to learn the ballpark |
| Who owns the code and the repository? | You do, in your own account, from day one | Ownership depends on staying on a retainer |
| Can I see Core Web Vitals on three live sites? | URLs, and an honest word about the slowest | They show you portfolio shots |
| Who maintains this after launch? | A named arrangement and response time | Not discussed until it breaks |
In a market where your buyer is frequently technical, an agency that will not answer these in writing has told you something.
| You need | When | Where to go |
|---|---|---|
| Design and development | New site, new direction, full rebuild | See web design in San Francisco |
| Development only | You have designs or an in-house design team | This page |
| Migration only | The site is fine, the platform is the problem | This page |
| Performance only | Speed is costing rankings and conversion | This page |
| Custom software | Internal users, workflow, rules and roles | See software development in San Francisco |
| A mobile app | Repeat use, device access, offline | See app development in San Francisco |
| What people search | What it usually means | What you probably want |
|---|---|---|
| Web development company | A firm that builds sites and applications | This, for a full build |
| Website development company | The same thing, phrased differently | No meaningful difference |
| Web development agency | Often the same, sometimes with strategy attached | Ask what is actually included |
| Website development agency | The same again, used interchangeably | Judge on the work, not the label |
| Web development service | Individual pieces bought separately | This, for migration or performance only |
| Website developers | Individual engineers rather than a firm | Fine for scoped work, harder for a whole build |
| Web developer | One engineer, usually freelance or contract | Yes, if you need capacity rather than a project |
Website developers, agencies and companies describe the same work. The questions that separate them are who owns the repository, what happens to your rankings in a migration and who maintains it in month twelve.
A conventional platform build runs $7,000 to $16,000. A custom front end runs $16,000 to $38,000. Migrations run $9,000 to $32,000 depending on content volume and how complicated the redirect mapping is.
Yes, and in the Bay Area it is the normal arrangement. Your repo, your CI, your review process and your conventions, so what we ship is maintainable by your engineers rather than a black box they inherit.
That is the standard we build to. Conventions matching yours, tests where your team expects them and architecture decisions documented in writing rather than explained on a call you will not remember.
Yes, and it is common where there is an in-house design team. We need the system rather than flat images: states, breakpoints, type scale and spacing rules. Where those are missing we will tell you what to decide.
It can, and the cause is almost always redirect mapping done late or badly. Every old URL maps to a new one before cutover, with parity testing and monitoring after.
Yes, scoped separately with before and after Core Web Vitals on your own URLs. Image delivery, render-blocking resources, third-party scripts and server response time are usually where the numbers are.
Whatever your team can hire for and maintain. Popular and well-documented beats clever, because the constraint that matters is who picks this up in two years rather than what is interesting to write.
No. We work with Bay Area companies remotely on overlapping Pacific hours and would rather say that than imply otherwise. Not carrying Bay Area overheads is a real part of the cost difference.
Send us what you are trying to fix and we will tell you what it takes, what it costs, and whether we are the right people for it. If we are not, we will say so.