The verdict in three sentences
In Charleston, a law firm website redesign comes to a 2026 ballpark of USD 18,500 to 71,500 when an agency adds up discovery, design, build, copywriting, migration, photography and accessibility, against a Kolonell fixed price of USD 2,900, 4,900 or 8,900. For a firm with offices Downtown, in Mount Pleasant or on Daniel Island, the main risk is losing the local and practice pages that drive inquiries in coastal real estate, maritime, business or personal injury work. The schedule depends mostly on the firm: content, approvals and review against South Carolina's lawyer advertising rules.
What should the budget cover?
Ask for an itemized quote: it is the only way to compare offers that do not include the same line items.
| Line item | 2026 local agency ballpark | At Kolonell |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery and sitemap | USD 2,000 to 6,000 | Included in the fixed price |
| Design (homepage and templates) | USD 4,000 to 15,000 | Included |
| Build and CMS | USD 6,000 to 25,000 | Included |
| Copywriting (practices, bios) | USD 3,000 to 12,000 | Native English or French copywriting included |
| Migration (URL inventory, 301 map) | USD 1,500 to 6,000 | 301 map built during the project; ongoing SEO on quote |
| Photography | USD 1,000 to 3,500 | Third-party cost (independent local photographer) |
| Accessibility testing | USD 1,000 to 4,000 | WCAG AA target checked during QA |
| Total | USD 18,500 to 71,500 | Starter 2,900, Growth 4,900, Premium 8,900 USD |
These ranges reflect typical quotes from Lowcountry and South Carolina agencies and carry no statistical weight. The Kolonell price also includes a project manager reachable in Eastern time and 3 months of support; maintenance after that is on quote. Details on the international offer page.
The schedule: who is waiting on whom?
Kolonell's 3 to 4 weeks of build only start once content is ready. This table shows the dependencies that make projects slip.
| Step | Depends on | Kolonell duration | Common delay |
|---|---|---|---|
| URL inventory and sitemap | Access to the site and Search Console | Week 1 | Access lost with the previous vendor |
| Bios and practice pages | Partner availability | Before build, 1 to 3 weeks | Repeated reviews between offices |
| Design and templates | Approved sitemap | Weeks 1 to 2 | Practice groups disagree on the homepage |
| Build and migration | Final content | Weeks 2 to 3 | Old articles with no author or date |
| Professional conduct review | Content in place | Weeks 3 to 4 | Responsible attorney unavailable |
| DNS cutover | QA approved | Week 4 | Registrar in a former partner's name |
A local agency usually quotes 10 to 18 weeks, brand discovery included.
Risk register
| Risk | Owner | When | Control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown and Mount Pleasant pages deindexed | Vendor | Before cutover | Full export, page-to-page 301 map, sitemap submitted in Search Console, 404 tracking for 8 weeks |
| Article archive lost (maritime, coastal real estate) | Vendor and firm | Migration | Date, author and category kept, short posts merged with redirects |
| Over-collecting intake form | Firm | Design | No lawyer-client relationship notice, minimal fields, party names for the conflict check |
| Non-compliant advertising | Responsible attorney | QA | No invented case results, no specialist label without a recognized basis, testimonials only where allowed |
| Booking or chat tool failure | Vendor | Staging | End-to-end test before cutover |
| Downtime | Vendor | Cutover | Quiet window, lowered TTL, rollback ready |
| Accessibility claim | Vendor and firm | QA | WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 AA, keyboard and screen reader testing |
Personal injury pages deserve extra care, as advertising in that area is tightly regulated in many states. Some jurisdictions also require filing or retaining copies of advertisements: check what South Carolina's rules provide. On data, there is no single federal privacy law; stay careful with forms and with email marketing, which falls under the CAN-SPAM Act. This is not legal advice.
On quote, questions to ask, and when to prefer a local agency
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
On quote: client portal, document exchange, booking connected to practice software, multilingual pages beyond Premium, ongoing SEO.
Five questions: is the quote itemized? Who delivers the 301 map? Are the domain and hosting in your name? How many feedback rounds? Who signs off accessibility, and how?
A Charleston agency remains the better choice if your partners want on-site workshops, if you want videos shot in your offices by the same vendor, or if the firm relies on a local events presence run by the agency.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: James Whitfield, managing partner of a 9-attorney firm with a Downtown office and a Mount Pleasant office, active in coastal real estate, maritime and personal injury. The site has 180 URLs.
- Local agency quote: USD 38,000, 16 weeks.
- Kolonell Growth: USD 4,900, plus an independent local photographer (third-party cost) at USD 1,500, for USD 6,400.
- Difference: 38,000 minus 6,400, or USD 31,600.
- Total duration: 3 weeks of content on the firm's side plus 4 weeks of build, so 7 weeks versus 16.
- 301 map: 180 rows, with the 2 office pages kept at the same URL.
FAQ
How much does a law firm website redesign cost in Charleston? As a 2026 ballpark, USD 18,500 to 71,500 with a local agency depending on the line items included. At Kolonell, USD 2,900, 4,900 or 8,900 depending on the tier.
Should we keep one page per office? Yes if Downtown, Mount Pleasant or Daniel Island already get visits. Keeping their URLs or redirecting them with a 301 protects local traffic built over several years.
Do personal injury pages raise special issues? They carry the most professional conduct risk. Plan 1 to 2 hours of review per page by a responsible attorney.
How long does the build take? 3 to 4 weeks with Kolonell once content is ready, versus 10 to 18 weeks quoted by local agencies.
What happens after the 3 months of support? Maintenance and hosting are then on quote. The project price does not change.
Let's scope your project. Send your offices, practice areas and current URLs, and we will price the redesign on the USD 2,900 to 8,900 grid with delivery in 3 to 4 weeks. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
