San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA · BLS May 2025

Web Design Rates in San Francisco, CA

The median web developer wage in the San Francisco area is $73.29 an hour, 65% above the US figure. A freelancer there should charge about $90–$145 an hour — $1,600–$2,600 for a five-page site.

Pages

5
What the site needs

What to charge

$1,600–$2,600

About 18 hours at $90–$145 an hour, the freelance rate in San Francisco. Plus $65–$165 a month for hosting and updates.

Web designer pay in San Francisco

Median web developer wage
$73.29/hr
$152,400 a year
Freelance rate
$90–$145
an hour, estimated
Rank among metros
2 of 191
with published data
San Francisco areaMedian hourlyAverage hourlyEmployed
Web developers$73.29$72.811,420
Web and digital interface designers$78.76$77.756,630

BLS area: San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. A dash is a figure BLS did not publish for it.

San Francisco against California and the US

AreaMedian web developer wageFreelance rate
San Francisco area$73.29$90–$145
California$57.48$70–$115
United States$44.54$55–$90

What to charge for a website in San Francisco

At $90–$145 an hour. Quote the project, not the hours; use these to check the quote pays at least what a local employee earns.

SitePriceMonthly
One-page site$650–$1,000$65–$165
Five-page business site$1,600–$2,600$65–$165
Five pages with online booking$2,000–$3,200$65–$165
Eight pages, copy written for them$3,500–$5,650$65–$165
Small online shop$2,800–$4,500$65–$165

For a particular kind of business, see website cost by business.

Find clients in San Francisco

See the businesses without websites in San Francisco, counted trade by trade, or search any neighbourhood with the free finder.

Other metro areas in California

Questions

How much do web designers make in San Francisco?+

The median web developer wage in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area is $73.29 an hour, about $152,400 a year (BLS, May 2025). That is 28% above the California figure.

How much do freelance web designers charge in San Francisco?+

About $90–$145 an hour: 1.25 to 2 times the employee wage, which covers self-employment tax, insurance, software and the hours nobody pays for.

How much does a website cost in San Francisco?+

A five-page small-business website built by a freelancer in the San Francisco area costs about $1,600–$2,600, plus $65–$165 a month for hosting and updates.

How many web developers work in San Francisco?+

BLS counts 1,420 employed web developers and 6,630 web and digital interface designers in the San Francisco metro area. Freelancers are not included.

Selling websites in San Francisco?

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Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates, for web developers (15-1254) and web and digital interface designers (15-1255). Those are employees' wages; freelance rates and prices here are estimates built from them, not BLS figures.