Guides & buyer benchmarks
Practical buyer guides for websites, brand and search.
Geeklab’s guides set out real South African and international pricing, platform trade-offs, technical checklists and agency shortlists so marketing leaders and founders can scope digital work with clear numbers before requesting quotes.
01 / Websites and platforms
Scope, cost and choose the right stack.
Most website overruns happen before design begins: unclear hourly rates, unmapped URL migrations or choosing a platform around a demo rather than day-to-day operations.
These four guides break down real build budgets, redesign safeguards and total cost of ownership across WordPress, Webflow, WooCommerce and Shopify.
Website cost guide in South Africa and internationally (2027)
Hourly rates (R1,000 to R1,250 at Geeklab), realistic total budgets from brochure sites to custom B2B builds and ongoing care.
Read cost guideWebsite redesign guide: scope, SEO migration and B2B checklist
How to overhaul an established website without losing organic rankings, structured data, analytics history or conversion paths.
Read redesign guideWordPress vs Webflow: which platform fits your business?
An honest look at editorial workflow, multilingual scale, plugin governance, hosting costs and seat licensing over three years.
Compare platformsWooCommerce vs Shopify: costs, ownership and operations compared
South African payment gateways, courier integrations, ERP sync, transaction fees and three-year store ownership costs.
Compare store stacks02 / South African agency shortlists
Compare South African agencies with clear criteria.
Choosing an agency from directory badges alone tells you very little about who will actually work on your account, how rates are structured or whether the team builds the websites and landing pages behind their campaigns.
Each shortlist below compares Geeklab alongside respected South African peers using public positioning, office footprint, core strengths and fit.
Best branding and graphic design agencies in South Africa (2027)
Corporate identity, brand refreshes, packaging design and digital rollout studios compared across Cape Town and Johannesburg.
Compare brand studiosBest SEO agencies in South Africa (2027)
Technical SEO, content architecture, link earning and B2B search specialists, with audit and monthly retainer benchmarks.
Compare SEO agenciesBest digital marketing agencies in South Africa (2027)
Full-service and performance agencies across Google Ads, paid social, content, HubSpot and web conversion.
Compare marketing agenciesBest AI search, AEO and GEO agencies in South Africa (2027)
Specialists working across generative engine optimisation (GEO), answer engine optimisation (AEO), entity schema and ChatGPT ads.
Compare AI search agencies03 / How these guides are written
Published rates, named evidence and no filler.
Every guide on geeklab.co is written and maintained by the Geeklab studio team in Somerset West and Loulé. When we quote Geeklab prices, they match our live Pricing page in rand excluding VAT, and adjust automatically if you browse in another currency.
Published numbers
We show our own hourly rates (R1,000 and R1,250 an hour), audit fees (from R10,000) and monthly retainers rather than hiding behind custom-quote walls.
Like-for-like proof
Where we cite client outcomes, such as ISTQB’s 936,208 organic search clicks or Fibon’s 311 Google Ads finance enquiries, each figure links to the full case study and period.
Fair peer comparisons
On agency shortlists we disclose our authorship at the top and include South African agencies we respect, noting when a competitor is a better fit for enterprise broadcast or massive headcount.
Questions
Common questions answered directly.
Straight answers on scope, budgets, timelines and platform trade-offs.
Are the prices in Geeklab’s guides South African or international?
Base figures are published in South African rand (ZAR) excluding VAT, matching our Pricing page. If you view geeklab.co from Europe, the UK or North America, our local pricing layer displays approximate converted equivalents alongside the scope.
How often are these benchmarks updated?
We review platform fees, South African agency benchmarks and Geeklab’s own rate cards whenever our published pricing or core platform partnerships change. The current edition was reviewed in November 2026 for 2027 planning budgets.
Can we ask Geeklab to review an existing quote or specification?
Yes. Send us your current website URL, brief or platform shortlist via Let’s talk and we will tell you plainly whether the scope, hours and platform fit what you need.
Next step
Have a brief on your desk?
Share what you are planning, the dates that matter and your current site URL. We reply within one business day with straight answers and a clear way to scope the work.
Rated 5 stars on Clutch. Offices in Somerset West, Cape Town and Loulé, Portugal.