Website Redesign Cost In Canada: What Should You Budget?

Website redesign costs in Canada can range from a few thousand dollars for a relatively simple visual refresh to $25,000–$50,000+ for a custom business website and $50,000–$150,000+ for larger ecommerce, enterprise, government, or highly customized projects. The final budget depends on how much of the existing website can be retained, the number of pages, design requirements, content, SEO, integrations, functionality, migration complexity, and what the redesigned website is expected to accomplish.

For Canadian businesses, the most important question is not simply:

“How much does a website redesign cost?”

It is:

“What does our website need to accomplish after we redesign it?”

A five-page brochure website should not have the same budget as a website expected to generate qualified leads, rank in Google, appear in AI-powered search results, integrate with a CRM, process ecommerce transactions, support multiple locations, or serve enterprise customers.

The right website redesign budget in Canada should reflect the business value and complexity of the project—not simply the number of pages being redesigned.

Website Redesign Cost In Canada: Quick Answer

The following ranges can be used as practical Canadian website redesign planning budgets. Actual quotes will vary by project, agency, technology, content requirements, and scope.

Website Redesign Type	Typical Budget (CAD)	Best Fit
Basic Website Refresh	$2,500–$7,500+	Small businesses keeping most existing content and structure
Professional Business Redesign	$7,500–$20,000+	Established businesses needing stronger design, content and conversion
Custom Growth Website	$20,000–$50,000+	Companies needing custom UX, SEO, stronger content and lead generation
Ecommerce Redesign	$20,000–$75,000+	Online stores requiring product, checkout, integrations and migration
Enterprise / Government Redesign	$50,000–$150,000+	Larger organizations with complex content, stakeholders and integrations
Custom Platform / Advanced Development	$75,000–$250,000+	Portals, memberships, advanced workflows, databases or custom systems

All figures are in Canadian dollars and should generally be treated as pre-tax planning ranges rather than fixed pricing.

The important point is that a redesign can mean very different things.

One company may only need new visuals.

Another may effectively need to rebuild its entire digital presence.

What Is A Website Redesign?

A website redesign is the process of improving an existing website’s design, structure, content, usability, performance, functionality, or marketing effectiveness.

A redesign can include:

✅ New visual design

✅ Improved homepage

✅ Better navigation

✅ Updated page layouts

✅ New service pages

✅ Improved mobile experience

✅ Stronger calls to action

✅ New copywriting

✅ SEO improvements

✅ AEO and AI-search optimization

✅ Better website speed

✅ New forms

✅ CRM integrations

✅ Ecommerce improvements

✅ Analytics and conversion tracking

✅ Content migration

✅ URL changes and redirects

✅ Hosting migration

✅ Accessibility improvements

✅ New functionality

Not every redesign needs all of these.

That is why website redesign pricing can vary so significantly.

Website Refresh vs Redesign vs Rebuild

Before setting a budget, determine what type of project you actually need.

Project Type	What Changes?	Typical Complexity
Website Refresh	Colours, typography, imagery, layout improvements and small content updates	Low
Website Redesign	Design, UX, content, navigation, SEO, conversion paths and page structure	Medium–High
Website Rebuild	Platform, code, architecture, functionality, database, integrations and often design	High
Complete Digital Replatform	Technology stack, content system, integrations, infrastructure and digital strategy	Very High

Website Refresh

A refresh makes an existing website look or feel better without changing its fundamental architecture.

A refresh may make sense when:

✓ The website platform is still reliable

✓ Existing URLs and structure work well

✓ The site already ranks well

✓ Most content is still useful

✓ Functionality is adequate

✓ Branding simply needs modernization

Website Redesign

A redesign goes deeper.

It may change:

• User experience
• Navigation
• Conversion paths
• Content
• Search structure
• Service pages
• Mobile layouts
• Branding
• Page templates
• Internal linking

This is the category most established businesses fall into.

Website Rebuild

A rebuild becomes necessary when the underlying website is creating limitations.

That may include:

❌ Outdated technology

❌ Unsupported plugins

❌ Security problems

❌ Slow performance

❌ Poor mobile responsiveness

❌ Difficult administration

❌ Weak code

❌ Inflexible templates

❌ Broken integrations

❌ Platform limitations

In these situations, putting new design on top of the old platform may only delay the real problem.

How Much Does A Basic Website Redesign Cost In Canada?

A smaller Canadian business can often budget approximately $2,500–$7,500+ for a basic website refresh or limited redesign.

This may include:

✓ Updated visual design

✓ Five to ten pages

✓ Mobile responsiveness

✓ Improved navigation

✓ New imagery

✓ Contact forms

✓ Basic metadata updates

✓ Light content editing

✓ CMS updates

✓ Basic performance optimization

What it may not include:

❌ Extensive copywriting

❌ Custom integrations

❌ Advanced ecommerce

❌ Major SEO strategy

❌ Large-scale content migration

❌ Custom databases

❌ Custom application development

❌ Complex animations

❌ Advanced conversion research

For a relatively small company that simply needs its website modernized, this may be enough.

However, businesses should be careful not to expect a $5,000 refresh to deliver the same scope as a $25,000–$50,000 strategic website project.

What Does A $10,000–$20,000 Website Redesign Include?

This is often where a professional small-to-mid-sized business redesign begins to become more strategic.

At approximately $10,000–$20,000+, a redesign may include:

✅ Discovery and planning

✅ Sitemap review

✅ Custom or heavily customized design

✅ Homepage redesign

✅ Service page improvements

✅ Mobile optimization

✅ Conversion-focused calls to action

✅ Contact and lead-generation forms

✅ Content restructuring

✅ Basic SEO planning

✅ Metadata

✅ Internal linking

✅ Page-speed improvements

✅ Analytics

✅ Redirect planning

✅ Testing and QA

✅ Launch support

Businesses comparing website budgets may also want to review Web Design Toronto: Cost, Services, And Hiring Guide for a broader comparison of professional Canadian website development costs.

This budget range can work particularly well for established businesses that have an existing website but need a substantially more professional digital presence.

What Does A $25,000 Website Redesign Include?

At approximately $25,000, expectations should increase considerably.

A $25K redesign should generally be more than:

❌ New colours

❌ A new homepage

❌ A purchased template

❌ Stock imagery

❌ Minor copy changes

At this level, businesses should expect strategic consideration around:

✓ User experience

✓ Brand presentation

✓ Search visibility

✓ Conversion paths

✓ Service architecture

✓ Content

✓ mobile performance

✓ Technical quality

✓ Analytics

✓ scalability

✓ AI-search readiness

✓ long-term marketing use

Thought Media has explored this budget tier in more detail in The $25K Website: What Makes It Worth The Investment.

A business investing $25,000 into its website should expect the finished product to become a meaningful sales and marketing asset.

What Does A $50,000 Website Redesign Include?

A $50,000 website redesign should typically involve deeper strategy and more substantial execution.

Depending on scope, it may include:

✅ Research and discovery

✅ Competitor analysis

✅ Information architecture

✅ UX planning

✅ Custom website design

✅ Custom page layouts

✅ Copywriting

✅ SEO research

✅ Keyword mapping

✅ AEO-focused content structure

✅ Conversion planning

✅ Advanced lead forms

✅ CRM integration

✅ Analytics

✅ Marketing integrations

✅ Content migration

✅ Redirect planning

✅ Technical SEO

✅ Performance optimization

✅ Schema

✅ Accessibility considerations

✅ Advanced QA

✅ Post-launch monitoring

At this level, the business is not buying a collection of webpages.

It is investing in digital infrastructure.

For a more detailed breakdown, see What’s Included In A $50K Budget Website Design Project.

What Drives Website Redesign Cost In Canada?

The biggest cost drivers are usually not visual.

They involve strategy, content, technology, migration, and complexity.

1. Number Of Pages

A 10-page website requires less work than a 150-page corporate site.

More pages can mean more:

• Content planning
• Copywriting
• Design templates
• Data entry
• SEO work
• Quality assurance
• Redirects
• Internal linking
• Stakeholder approvals

However, page count should not be evaluated alone.

Ten highly customized landing pages can require more work than 50 simple article pages.

2. Custom Website Design

Custom design usually costs more than adapting an existing template.

A custom website may involve:

✓ UX planning

✓ Wireframes

✓ Custom interface design

✓ Custom mobile layouts

✓ Component systems

✓ Unique illustrations

✓ Interactive elements

✓ Custom development

A template may be perfectly suitable for a smaller business.

But companies competing in crowded markets may need more differentiation.

Custom Design vs Template Redesign

Factor	Template Redesign	Custom Redesign
Cost	Lower	Higher
Launch Speed	Faster	Longer
Brand Differentiation	Limited–Moderate	High
Layout Flexibility	Moderate	High
Custom Functionality	Limited	High
Scalability	Depends	Usually stronger
Best For	Smaller businesses	Established and growth-focused organizations

Neither option is automatically right or wrong.

The decision should depend on business requirements.

3. Copywriting And Content

Content is frequently underestimated when businesses budget for a redesign.

A designer cannot fix unclear messaging with better colours.

Visitors still need to understand:

What do you do?

Who do you help?

Why should they choose you?

What should they do next?

Professional copywriting may include:

• Homepage messaging
• Service pages
• Location pages
• About content
• Product descriptions
• Case studies
• FAQs
• Calls to action
• Landing pages
• Search-focused content

A redesign with 30 pages of professionally rewritten content will naturally cost more than one where the client supplies finalized copy.

4. SEO Requirements

SEO should be considered before the redesign launches.

A website redesign can change:

• URLs
• headings
• content
• internal links
• navigation
• metadata
• page speed
• structured data
• indexability
• page hierarchy

Businesses investing in redesign work should therefore consider professional search engine optimization during planning rather than treating SEO as something to add later.

Can A Website Redesign Hurt SEO?

Yes. A website redesign can hurt SEO if high-value content, URLs, internal links, metadata, or technical signals are changed without a proper migration plan.

This is one of the biggest hidden risks in website redesign.

A poorly managed redesign can cause:

❌ Lost rankings

❌ Broken backlinks

❌ 404 errors

❌ Missing pages

❌ Reduced organic traffic

❌ Weak internal linking

❌ Accidental noindex tags

❌ Missing metadata

❌ Deleted content

❌ Redirect chains

❌ Duplicate content

A good redesign should protect existing search equity wherever possible.

SEO Redesign Checklist

Before launch:

✓ Crawl the existing website

✓ Identify ranking pages

✓ Document current URLs

✓ Identify backlinks

✓ Map old URLs to new URLs

✓ Prepare 301 redirects

✓ Preserve strong content

✓ Review title tags and metadata

✓ Maintain important internal links

✓ Check canonical tags

✓ Review XML sitemap

✓ Test robots.txt

✓ Confirm analytics

✓ Confirm Search Console

After launch:

✓ Test redirects

✓ Check for 404s

✓ Monitor indexing

✓ Watch rankings

✓ Monitor organic traffic

✓ Review Search Console errors

✓ Re-submit appropriate sitemaps

A website redesign should improve SEO—not accidentally erase years of search visibility.

Should AEO Be Included In A Website Redesign?

Increasingly, yes.

A redesign is an opportunity to improve how website content works across both traditional search and AI-powered discovery.

AEO, or Answer Engine Optimization, can influence the way content is structured for:

• Google AI Overviews
• Google AI Mode
• ChatGPT
• Gemini
• Perplexity
• Microsoft Copilot
• other AI-powered search experiences

An AEO-ready redesign can include:

✅ Direct answers to important questions

✅ Clear service descriptions

✅ Strong page headings

✅ Comparison tables

✅ Pricing guidance

✅ FAQs

✅ Entity clarity

✅ Detailed industry information

✅ Location information

✅ Internal linking

✅ Structured content

✅ Appropriate schema

A company redesigning its website in 2026 should be thinking beyond traditional rankings alone.

The website should also make it easy for search engines and AI systems to understand:

who the company is, what it provides, who it serves, and why it is relevant.

5. Ecommerce Functionality

Ecommerce redesigns are usually more complex.

Costs may increase because of:

• Product migration
• Product variants
• Inventory
• payment processing
• shipping rules
• taxes
• customer accounts
• subscriptions
• filtering
• search
• integrations
• checkout customization
• analytics
• email automation
• CRM connections

A small Shopify or WooCommerce store may be relatively straightforward.

A large retailer with thousands of SKUs can become a substantial migration project.

6. Custom Integrations

Many modern websites connect to outside systems.

Examples include:

✓ Salesforce

✓ HubSpot

✓ Mailchimp

✓ Klaviyo

✓ Microsoft Dynamics

✓ Stripe

✓ PayPal

✓ QuickBooks

✓ Calendly

✓ Booking systems

✓ ERP platforms

✓ Property management systems

✓ Inventory systems

✓ AI tools

✓ Custom APIs

Every integration creates additional development and testing requirements.

7. Content Migration

Migration sounds simple until a business has hundreds or thousands of pages.

Migration may involve:

• Articles
• products
• images
• PDFs
• case studies
• customer accounts
• databases
• media files
• metadata
• forms
• downloadable resources

Automated migration can help, but data often needs cleanup.

That increases the budget.

8. Website Platform

The technology platform can significantly affect cost.

Common options include:

• WordPress
• WooCommerce
• Shopify
• Webflow
• custom CMS platforms
• headless CMS architectures
• custom React applications
• enterprise CMS platforms

Thought Media provides professional website design and development services across business websites and more advanced digital projects.

The right platform should be chosen around future requirements rather than what happens to be easiest to build today.

9. Website Hosting

A redesign budget should also consider where the site will live after launch.

Hosting influences:

✓ Speed

✓ uptime

✓ backups

✓ security

✓ scalability

✓ technical support

✓ website maintenance

✓ disaster recovery

A fast new website can become slow again if it is moved onto weak infrastructure.

Canadian organizations comparing options can review Web Hosting Canada: How To Choose The Right Provider when planning the post-launch environment.

What Are The Hidden Costs Of A Website Redesign?

A proposal can look inexpensive because important items have been excluded.

Businesses should ask whether the quote includes:

Potential Cost	Frequently Overlooked?
Copywriting	✓
SEO migration	✓
Redirects	✓
Stock photography	✓
Custom photography	✓
Illustration	✓
Premium plugins	✓
CRM integration	✓
Ecommerce migration	✓
Hosting	✓
Maintenance	✓
Analytics	✓
Accessibility work	✓
Post-launch optimization	✓
Additional revisions	✓

A $12,000 quote can become a $25,000 project if half the real scope was not included.

That is why businesses should compare scope against scope, not simply price against price.

Why Is One Website Redesign Quote $5,000 And Another $50,000?

Because the companies may not be quoting the same project.

Consider two proposals.

$5,000 Redesign

May include:

✓ Template

✓ 8 pages

✓ Client-supplied content

✓ Basic mobile design

✓ Contact form

✓ Basic launch

$50,000 Redesign

May include:

✓ Strategy

✓ UX research

✓ Custom design

✓ 40 pages

✓ Professional copywriting

✓ SEO research

✓ AEO strategy

✓ CRM integrations

✓ Conversion optimization

✓ Custom functionality

✓ Analytics

✓ Migration

✓ Redirects

✓ Advanced QA

✓ Post-launch support

Calling both projects a website redesign does not make them equivalent.

Should You Redesign Or Build A Completely New Website?

A redesign is usually appropriate when much of the existing website is worth keeping.

A complete rebuild may make more sense when:

❌ The existing platform is obsolete

❌ The website is difficult to maintain

❌ Performance is consistently poor

❌ Security problems exist

❌ The site is not mobile-friendly

❌ The navigation is fundamentally broken

❌ Existing code creates limitations

❌ Major integrations are required

❌ The business model has changed

❌ The existing brand has changed substantially

❌ Nearly all content needs to be replaced

A useful rule:

If you are replacing the design, content, architecture, platform, and functionality, you are probably rebuilding—not merely redesigning.

When Should A Business Redesign Its Website?

There is no fixed number of years after which every website needs redesigning.

Performance matters more than age.

A redesign may be justified if:

✓ Your website looks significantly dated compared with competitors

✓ Mobile experience is poor

✓ Leads are difficult to generate

✓ Pages load slowly

✓ Your services have changed

✓ Your brand has changed

✓ Search visibility is weak

✓ Users struggle to navigate

✓ The CMS is difficult to maintain

✓ Your business has outgrown the site

✓ The website cannot support current marketing campaigns

✓ You need better integrations

✓ Content no longer reflects the company

✓ The website does not support AI-search visibility

A five-year-old website that performs extremely well may need less work than a one-year-old website built poorly.

How Long Does A Website Redesign Take?

Most professional website redesigns take approximately 4–16 weeks, although larger projects can require several months.

Project	Typical Timeline
Basic Refresh	2–4 weeks
Small Business Redesign	4–6 weeks
Professional Business Redesign	6–10 weeks
Custom Website	8–16 weeks
Ecommerce Redesign	10–20+ weeks
Enterprise Website	3–6+ months

Timeline depends heavily on:

• Content
• approvals
• client feedback
• integrations
• custom development
• stakeholder count
• migration complexity
• revisions
• testing

One of the biggest causes of delay is not development.

It is waiting for decisions, content, and approvals.

How Should You Set A Website Redesign Budget?

Start with the business objective.

If The Goal Is Simply To Look Better

Budget primarily for:

• visual design
• mobile improvement
• imagery
• basic content cleanup

If The Goal Is To Generate More Leads

Add budget for:

• service pages
• copywriting
• SEO
• conversion design
• landing pages
• analytics
• calls to action

If The Goal Is To Grow Organic Traffic

Add:

• keyword research
• technical SEO
• content strategy
• redirects
• internal linking
• new pages
• AEO optimization

If The Goal Is Ecommerce Growth

Add:

• product UX
• checkout
• filtering
• integrations
• email automation
• conversion optimization
• product migration

If The Goal Is Enterprise Transformation

Add:

• stakeholder research
• custom architecture
• security
• integrations
• accessibility
• permissions
• advanced analytics
• governance
• workflows

The redesign budget should match the goal.

What Should You Spend More On?

When budgets are limited, certain areas usually deserve priority.

Spend More On:

✅ Clear messaging

✅ Strong service pages

✅ Mobile UX

✅ Website speed

✅ SEO architecture

✅ Conversion paths

✅ Quality development

✅ Migration planning

✅ Analytics

✅ Security

Be Careful Overspending On:

❌ Decorative animation that does not improve communication

❌ Complicated effects that slow the website

❌ Features nobody requested

❌ Excessive design trends

❌ Technology chosen primarily because it is fashionable

A website should feel modern without sacrificing clarity.

What Should Be In A Website Redesign Proposal?

Before signing, make sure the proposal clearly defines:

✓ Number of pages

✓ Design process

✓ Custom vs template approach

✓ Copywriting responsibilities

✓ SEO responsibilities

✓ Content migration

✓ Redirects

✓ Mobile optimization

✓ Development platform

✓ Integrations

✓ Forms

✓ Analytics

✓ Testing

✓ Hosting

✓ Maintenance

✓ Revision limits

✓ Timeline

✓ Payment schedule

✓ Ownership

✓ Post-launch support

If the scope only says:

“Website redesign — $15,000”

ask for more detail.

Questions To Ask A Website Redesign Company

Before hiring an agency, ask:

Strategy

• How will you determine what should change?
• Will you review our current website analytics?
• Will you evaluate competitors?
• How will you determine which pages we need?

Design

• Is the website custom designed?
• Do we see designs before development?
• How many revisions are included?
• How will mobile layouts be handled?

Content

• Who writes the copy?
• Will existing content be reviewed?
• Will you help structure service pages?
• Are new landing pages included?

SEO

• How will existing rankings be protected?
• Will you create a redirect map?
• Will technical SEO be reviewed?
• Will metadata be migrated?
• Will internal links be maintained?

AEO

• Will content be structured for direct answers?
• Will FAQs and comparison content be considered?
• Will services and entities be clearly defined?
• Is appropriate schema included?

Development

• Which platform will you use?
• Can our team update the site?
• What integrations are included?
• How is performance tested?

Launch

• Who manages deployment?
• What happens if something breaks?
• How long is post-launch support?
• Who monitors indexing and analytics?

A good agency should be comfortable answering these questions.

How Can You Reduce Website Redesign Costs?

There are legitimate ways to control cost without sacrificing quality.

Prepare Content Early

Finalized content reduces delays.

Assign One Decision-Maker

Too many approval layers increase revision cycles.

Prioritize Features

Separate:

Need now

from

Nice to have later

Reuse What Still Works

Not every existing page needs to be replaced.

Use A Phased Approach

Phase 1 might include:

• core website
• primary services
• SEO migration
• launch

Phase 2 may add:

• resource centre
• new integrations
• advanced animation
• calculators
• portals
• additional locations

This can be especially useful for companies that want to scale the project responsibly.

Cheap Website Redesign vs Professional Website Redesign

Area	Cheap Redesign	Professional Redesign
Strategy	Minimal	Business-focused
Design	Template-driven	Customized
Mobile UX	Basic	Carefully planned
Content	Client supplied	Strategically reviewed
SEO	Limited	Built into structure
AEO	Usually ignored	Can be planned
Conversion	Basic forms	Intentional journey
Migration	Basic	Structured
Redirects	Often overlooked	Planned
Analytics	Sometimes missing	Integrated
QA	Limited	Detailed
Scalability	Limited	Planned
Support	Minimal	Defined

The cheapest option can work for a very small business.

The problem arises when an established company buys the cheapest redesign and expects enterprise-level results.

Is A Website Redesign Worth The Investment?

A redesign can be worthwhile when the current website is limiting business performance.

The return may come from:

✅ More qualified leads

✅ Better conversion rates

✅ Improved credibility

✅ Stronger search visibility

✅ Higher-quality sales conversations

✅ Improved mobile experience

✅ Better advertising landing pages

✅ Easier content management

✅ Better AI-search visibility

✅ Stronger recruiting

✅ Increased ecommerce sales

✅ Reduced technical problems

The website often interacts with nearly every other marketing activity.

Google Ads sends visitors there.

Social campaigns send visitors there.

SEO sends visitors there.

AI search may reference it.

Salespeople send prospects there.

Customers use it to evaluate credibility.

A better website can therefore improve more than one marketing channel at once.

Where Thought Media Fits

Thought Media™ provides website design and development, ecommerce development, SEO, AEO, digital marketing, animation, managed hosting, IT services, hardware solutions, and custom AI development for Canadian businesses and organizations.

Since 2009, Thought Media has worked with businesses that need websites to do more than simply look professional.

A redesign can be planned around:

✓ Brand credibility

✓ Lead generation

✓ SEO

✓ AEO and AI search

✓ Ecommerce

✓ Conversion

✓ Mobile performance

✓ Website speed

✓ Hosting

✓ Integrations

✓ Long-term scalability

That integrated approach can be particularly valuable when the redesign is part of a broader digital strategy rather than a standalone visual project.

Final Thoughts: Website Redesign Cost In Canada

The cost of a website redesign in Canada can range from a few thousand dollars to well over $100,000 depending on what the business needs.

A smaller company may only need a $2,500–$7,500 refresh.

An established business may need a $10,000–$25,000 redesign.

A company using its website heavily for SEO, lead generation, ecommerce, or sales may reasonably move into the $25,000–$50,000+ range.

Larger enterprise, government, ecommerce, and custom-development projects may cost $50,000–$150,000+.

The most important lesson is simple:

Do not set your website redesign budget based only on what you want the website to look like. Set it based on what you need the website to do.

The right redesign should make your company:

easier to find, easier to understand, easier to trust, and easier to do business with.

That is where the real value of the investment comes from.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a website redesign cost in Canada?

A website redesign in Canada can cost approximately $2,500–$7,500+ for a basic refresh, $7,500–$20,000+ for a professional business redesign, $20,000–$50,000+ for a custom growth-focused website, and $50,000–$150,000+ for larger enterprise, government, ecommerce, or complex projects. Pricing depends on scope, content, design, SEO, integrations and functionality.

Is it cheaper to redesign or build a new website?

A redesign can be cheaper when the existing platform, content, structure, and functionality are still useful. If the technology is outdated or nearly every part of the site needs to change, rebuilding the website may be more efficient than trying to redesign the existing system.

Can redesigning a website hurt SEO?

Yes. A redesign can reduce SEO performance if important URLs, content, internal links, metadata, redirects, or technical settings are handled incorrectly. A proper redesign should include SEO migration planning, 301 redirects, content preservation, crawl testing, indexing checks and post-launch monitoring.

How long does a website redesign take?

A smaller website redesign may take approximately four to six weeks, while a professional custom redesign may require eight to sixteen weeks. Ecommerce, enterprise, government, and highly customized projects can require several months depending on integrations, content, approvals and technical complexity.

How much should a Canadian business budget for a professional website redesign?

An established Canadian business that needs custom design, improved content, SEO, stronger conversion paths, mobile optimization, analytics, migration and professional development should often plan for approximately $10,000–$50,000+. Larger or more technically complex projects may require significantly higher budgets.