Get more clients · Every business
Should You Show Prices on Your Website? How to Do It Without Scaring People Off
For most owner-run service businesses the answer is yes, as a starting price or a typical range for the services people book most, written as the full amount a customer will pay and paired with a plain note on what changes it.
Yes, most service businesses should show prices, because price is one of the first things a customer weighs and people who cannot find it tend to keep looking at other businesses instead of calling to ask. You do not need a full menu of every job; a "starting at" price or a typical range for your five most-booked services, with the main things that move the price, answers the question without boxing you in.
The price section to copy
1. Pick the services people actually book. Use your last three months of bookings or invoices and list the five services that make up most of them.
2. Show a starting price or a typical range for each. Use the price most customers actually pay, not a teaser that almost nobody qualifies for.
3. Include every mandatory fee in the number. Trip charges, booking fees and service fees that every customer pays belong inside the advertised price, not added at checkout.
4. Say what moves the price. Name two or three drivers, such as hair length, square footage, the number of units or after-hours work.
5. Say how the customer gets an exact price. A free estimate, a consultation, a photo sent by text or an online quote form.
6. Date it and review it. Add "Prices updated [month, year]" and check the page whenever you raise prices.
| Service | Starting at or typical range | What changes the price | What's included |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Most-booked service] | From [price] | [Driver 1], [driver 2] | [What the customer gets] |
| [Second service] | [price] to [price] | [Driver 1] | [What the customer gets] |
| [Larger job] | Most customers pay [price] to [price] | [Driver 1], [driver 2] | Free written estimate before any work |
| [Membership or package] | [price] per month | Number of visits | [Visits and perks included] |
What to do if your prices really vary
Jobs that vary widely, such as remodeling, legal matters or large repairs, can still show a range from recent work ("Most bathroom refreshes we completed last year cost [price] to [price]"), an hourly or day rate, or the price of the first step, such as a paid assessment that is credited toward the job. Any of these tells a customer whether they are in the right place, which is the question behind the price search.
Why it works
Customers rank price near the top of their choice and then rarely find it online. In a 2019 YouGov tracker survey of 3,589 users of legal services in England and Wales, published by the Legal Ombudsman, 72% named price as a factor in choosing a provider, yet only 7% found the price on the provider's own website and 62% had to ask a provider directly. The cost of making people ask shows up in how widely they shop: in BrightLocal's 2026 survey of 1,227 U.S. consumers, 80% of people checking a business they already knew stopped at three or fewer businesses, while only 53% of people researching costs did.
Including mandatory fees is also becoming a legal expectation. California has required advertised prices to include all mandatory fees for most consumer goods and services since July 1, 2024, and a Federal Trade Commission rule in effect since May 12, 2025 requires total-price display for live-event tickets and short-term lodging, with other industries handled case by case.
General information, not legal/tax/financial advice; talk to a licensed professional about your situation.
Sources
- Legal Ombudsman. How Consumers Are Choosing Legal Services. Tracker Survey briefing, 2019. 3,589 legal service users surveyed by YouGov.
- BrightLocal. Consumer Search Behavior: How Fast Consumers Decide. 2026. 1,227 U.S. consumers.
- California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General. Hidden Fees (SB 478). 2024.
- Federal Trade Commission. Federal Trade Commission Announces Bipartisan Rule Banning Junk Ticket and Hotel Fees. December 2024.
Related reading: How to Raise Prices Without Losing Customers, Based on the Research · Good, Better, Best: How to Present Three Options in a Quote · How Many Businesses Customers Compare Before They Book
Work with osNOVA on showing prices clearly
We help owner-run service businesses write a price page that brings in more first visits from people who already know what to expect. Email hello@osnovaops.com about your business
Not ready to talk? osNOVA runs free live events for owners.