Ask a few dealers what they pay for their website and you’ll hear answers from under $100 a month to well over $1,000. Ask a provider and you’ll often hear “let’s set up a demo.” That makes a simple question hard to answer.
This guide uses prices that providers publish on their own websites, with links, so you can check them yourself. We make one of these products, Dealer Shock, and our prices are included alongside the rest. Everything was checked in October 2026. Providers change their plans, so confirm the details before you sign anything.
The short answer
For an independent or used-car dealer, a car dealership website usually costs $99 to $1,200 a month from a dealer website provider, based on published prices. Where you land depends on what’s bundled in, how much of the work the provider does, and whether you need franchise features like OEM certification.
Two other routes sit outside that range:
- A do-it-yourself site builder like Wix or Squarespace costs less, roughly $17 to $160 a month, but it isn’t built to handle vehicle inventory.
- A custom build from an agency is a large upfront project. One agency estimates $16,000 to $23,000 for a complex dealership site with inventory, CRM, and financing tools, before ongoing maintenance.
Franchise-focused platforms such as Dealer.com and Dealer Inspire don’t publish their prices, so they aren’t part of the range above.
Published prices from dealer website providers
These are the dealer-focused providers we found that list prices on their own sites.
- Carsforsale.com: $99 a month for independent dealers, with no contracts and no setup fees. Dealers with 100 or more listings, and franchise dealers, start at $199 a month. The price covers a website builder plus Carsforsale’s CRM, DMS, marketplace listings, and other dealer software. (Pricing)
- DealerCenter: $99 or $125 a month for the Premium and Premium Pro websites. These are add-ons to DealerCenter’s other products, and its DMS is listed separately at $99 a month. The pricing page doesn’t mention setup fees or contract terms, so ask. (Pricing)
- Dealer Shock: $199 or $299 a month per website. There are no setup fees and no contracts, and you can ask for your most recent monthly payment back if you’re not satisfied. More on what each plan includes below. (Pricing)
- DealerOn: $599, $899, or $1,199 a month for its Core, Premier, and Elite plans for independent dealers. Higher tiers add lead tools, listings management, and payment features. (Independent dealer websites)
- Overfuel: no rate card, but its switch offer uses $950 a month as an example standard rate, with a 90-day minimum and then month-to-month terms. (Switch offer)
Many other providers, including Dealer Car Search, AutoRevo, Dealer.com, and Dealer Inspire, quote prices through a demo or a sales call. For a fuller look at what each provider offers beyond price, see our comparison of car dealer website providers.
The four ways to get a dealership website
1. Build it yourself with a general site builder
General website builders publish clear prices. Wix lists plans from $17.77 to $159.77 a month, billed yearly, and notes that its prices vary by location. (Wix plans) Squarespace lists plans from $19 to $99 a month billed annually, or $25 to $139 billed monthly. (Squarespace pricing) Both include a free domain for the first year on qualifying plans.
The catch is inventory. These builders aren’t designed to import vehicles from your DMS, decode VINs, update prices, or remove sold units automatically. You’d be adding and updating every vehicle by hand, or paying for a separate inventory tool and wiring it in. For a lot with a handful of vehicles that rarely change, that can work. For most dealers, the time it takes costs more than the subscription saves.
2. Use the website that comes with your DMS or marketplace
Several companies that sell dealer software or marketplace listings also offer websites. Carsforsale.com bundles its website with its marketplace and software for $99 a month, and DealerCenter offers websites as add-ons to its DMS.
This is often the lowest monthly price for a site that handles inventory. The tradeoff is that the website is one product among many for these companies. Add up everything you’d actually use, and check how easy it would be to move your website if you ever change your DMS.
3. Subscribe to a dedicated dealer website platform
Providers like Dealer Shock, DealerOn, and Overfuel focus on the website itself: design, inventory pages, lead forms, speed, and search. Published prices run from $199 to about $1,200 a month, and the gap mostly reflects how much each plan includes and how much work the provider does for you.
4. Hire an agency for a custom build
A custom site gives you full control over the design, and you pay for it up front. ColorWhistle, a web agency that publishes its estimates, puts a complex US dealership website with inventory, CRM, and financing features at $16,000 to $23,000 and 14 to 20 weeks of work, with monthly maintenance packages on top. (ColorWhistle estimate)
You’ll still need inventory feeds, hosting, security updates, and someone to fix things when they break. Ask who will own and maintain the site after launch, and what that costs each month.
The costs that don’t show up in the monthly price
The monthly number is only part of what you pay. Before you compare providers, ask about each of these:
- Setup or launch fees. Some providers charge to build the site, some don’t. Get it in writing.
- Contract length and cancellation terms. A low monthly price with a long contract can cost more than a higher price you can cancel. Ask what happens if you leave early.
- Add-ons. Credit applications, trade-in tools, payment calculators, chat, and extra pages are sometimes included and sometimes extra. A bundle that looks cheap can grow quickly.
- Inventory feeds and syndication. Getting vehicles from your DMS onto your site, and from your site to listing sites like Cars.com or CarGurus, may involve fees from the provider, your DMS, or a feed company.
- Your domain. Registering your web address is a small yearly cost. More important is making sure the domain is registered in your dealership’s name, not your provider’s.
- Photos, logos, and design work. Some plans use only what you supply. Others include design help. If your logo is a blurry file from 2009, that matters.
- Advertising. A website doesn’t bring traffic on its own. If you plan to run ads, budget for them separately, and ask whether the provider’s ad management is included or extra.
- Leaving. Ask whether you keep your domain, your content, and your lead history if you switch.
How to make a car dealership website
If you’re starting from scratch, the steps are the same whichever route you choose:
- Register your domain in the dealership’s name. Keep the login somewhere your business controls.
- Pick your route: a DIY builder, your DMS or marketplace’s website, a dealer website platform, or a custom build.
- Connect your inventory. Make sure vehicles flow in from the system you use to manage them, with photos, prices, and details, and that sold vehicles come off automatically.
- Set up your lead forms: vehicle inquiries, test drive requests, trade-ins, and a credit application if you offer financing. Make sure leads go to someone who answers them quickly.
- Add the pages shoppers look for: about your dealership, financing, hours and directions, and contact information.
- Connect your Google Business Profile and make sure your name, address, and phone number match everywhere. Our Google Business Profile guide for car dealers walks through it.
- Check it on your phone before launch. Most of your shoppers will see it there first.
Our car dealership SEO guide covers what to do after launch so the site shows up in local searches.
What Dealer Shock costs, and what’s included
Dealer Shock has two website plans, priced per website, with full details on our pricing page:
- Starter, $199 a month: a professionally built, mobile-friendly website using the logos, photos, and videos you supply, with hosting and site management, inventory management and syncing, lead management, general website analytics, and tools for posting to social media yourself.
- Performance, $299 a month: everything in Starter, plus custom branding and website media (including logo creation or cleanup, custom imagery and short videos, and branded vehicle photo overlays), vehicle and contact insights, unfinished application recovery, AI vehicle descriptions, automatic social posts, and Local Reach pages. The AI Customer Assistant is coming soon.
On both plans:
- No setup fees. We build and launch your site with no upfront charge.
- No contracts. Every plan is month to month. If you cancel, your site stays up through the month you’ve already paid for.
- A money-back guarantee. If you’re not satisfied, ask for a refund and we’ll return your most recent monthly payment. It applies every month you’re subscribed, not just the first.
A few things aren’t included. Dealer Shock isn’t a DMS, so you’ll keep your current system for deals and accounting. Managed Advertising is a separate service with custom pricing based on your goals and budget, and the money-back guarantee doesn’t cover it. Dealer groups that want a group-level site can get custom pricing for an AI Group Site.
Questions to ask any provider before you sign
- What will I pay each month, all in, for the features I need?
- Is there a setup fee? Is there a contract, and what does it cost to cancel?
- Which features are included, and which are add-ons?
- How does my inventory get onto the site, and does it cost extra?
- Who owns my domain and content, and can I take them with me?
- Can I see an example of a site you’ve built for a dealership like mine?
Frequently asked questions
How much does a car dealership website cost per month?
Based on published prices, a dealer website from a dealer-focused provider costs about $99 to $1,200 a month. Bundled options from marketplace and DMS companies sit at the low end, and full-featured website platforms sit higher. Franchise-focused providers generally quote prices individually.
Is a $99 dealer website worth it?
It can be, especially if you already use that company’s DMS or marketplace. Check what’s included, what the contract terms are, and whether the site looks and performs well on a phone. The cheapest site isn’t a bargain if shoppers leave it before they contact you.
Can I build a car dealership website for free?
You can build a basic site on a free or low-cost builder, but you’ll still pay for a domain, and you’ll have to manage your inventory by hand. Most dealers find a site that syncs inventory automatically worth the monthly cost.
See your dealership’s site before you pay anything
The easiest way to judge a website’s value is to see it with your own inventory and branding. We’ll build a free preview of your new website within 24 hours. No credit card, no contract. Or book a demo and we’ll walk you through the plans.