WordPress

WordPress Website Design & Development in South Africa

WordPress powers over 40% of the web for good reason: it's flexible, well-supported, and easy to update. We build custom WordPress sites for SA small businesses that are fast, secure, and search-optimised — without the bloat of page builders.

Custom Gutenberg themes

No bloated page builders. Clean, fast, purpose-built themes.

Speed-optimised

Core Web Vitals green scores through caching, image optimisation, and clean code.

SEO-ready

Yoast or RankMath setup, schema, sitemaps, GSC integration.

Secure and maintained

Wordfence, automated backups, weekly updates on our care plans.

What we build with WordPress in South Africa

  • Brochure sites, blogs, and content-heavy publications
  • WooCommerce online stores with SA payment gateways
  • Membership sites and gated content (MemberPress, Paid Memberships Pro)
  • Custom post types (property listings, events, portfolios, directories)
  • Migrations from Wix, Squarespace, or older WordPress builds
  • Speed optimisation and Core Web Vitals fixes for slow existing sites

Should you use WordPress for your South African business?

WordPress is a great fit if you want to update content often, need a blog, plan to scale into e-commerce, or want the flexibility of thousands of plugins. If you just need a 5-page brochure site, a modern static build (like the rest of our site) is faster and cheaper to run — around R400/month versus R800+ for hosted WordPress. We'll tell you honestly which fits.

Our step-by-step process

  1. 1

    Requirements and platform decision

    We confirm WordPress is the right fit vs a static build, then choose hosting and theme approach.

  2. 2

    Design and theme development

    Custom Gutenberg block theme built on Underscores or a lightweight starter — no bloated page builders.

  3. 3

    Content migration or entry

    Migrate existing content with 301 redirects, or enter fresh SEO copy into your new CMS.

  4. 4

    Speed and security hardening

    Caching, image optimisation, Wordfence, 2FA, automated backups, and CDN setup.

  5. 5

    SEO plugin configuration

    Yoast or RankMath configured, XML sitemap submitted to Search Console, schema markup verified.

  6. 6

    Training and handover

    Two-hour training session on writing posts, editing pages, and managing plugins safely.

  7. 7

    Ongoing care plan

    Weekly updates, monthly backups verified, security monitoring, and content support.

Pricing guide (South Africa, ZAR)

WordPress brochure

R10 000 – R18 000

5-8 page custom theme, no page builder bloat.

  • Custom Gutenberg theme
  • Yoast SEO setup
  • Contact form
  • 1 hour training

WordPress business

R18 000 – R30 000

Content-heavy sites with custom post types.

  • Custom post types
  • Advanced Custom Fields
  • Blog + newsletter
  • Care plan first month free

WooCommerce store

R30 000 – R70 000

Full e-commerce on WordPress with SA gateways.

  • PayFast + Yoco + Stripe
  • Courier integrations
  • Product upload (50 SKUs)
  • Email flows

Care plan: R950/month covers hosting recommendations, weekly updates, backups, Wordfence, and 1 hour of content edits.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a WordPress website cost in South Africa?

R10 000 – R30 000 for a custom WordPress build with a purpose-built theme. R30 000 – R70 000 for WooCommerce stores. Migrations from Wix, Squarespace, or older WordPress builds start at R6 000.

Do you host WordPress websites?

We recommend Cloudways, WP Engine, or SiteGround depending on traffic and budget. Hosting is R300 – R800/month for most SMBs and is included in our WordPress care plans.

What about page builders like Elementor or Divi?

We can use them if you insist, but they slow down sites, bloat the database, and lock you in. We prefer clean custom themes built on the native WordPress block editor (Gutenberg) — much faster and cheaper to maintain.

Can you speed up my slow WordPress site?

Yes — this is one of our most-requested services. Typical speed audit + fix package is R5 000 and includes caching, image optimisation, database cleanup, JS/CSS minification, and a CDN. Most sites see LCP drop from 5-8s down to under 2.5s.

Is WordPress secure?

Yes, when properly maintained. Our care plans include Wordfence security scanning, automated daily backups, weekly plugin/core updates, and 2FA for admin accounts. Most WordPress hacks are caused by outdated plugins — we prevent that.

Can you migrate from Wix or Squarespace to WordPress?

Yes. We preserve URL structure with 301 redirects, migrate all content, images, and meta data, and keep your Google rankings intact. Migrations take 1-2 weeks and start at R6 000.

Do I need WordPress at all?

Only if you plan to blog often, need dozens of plugins, or want the flexibility of the world's biggest CMS ecosystem. For 5-page brochure sites, a modern static build is faster, cheaper to host, and more secure. We'll tell you honestly which fits your business.

Related services

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