In short: a website development contract should cover five essentials — the scope of work, the deadlines, the price and payment terms, the handover and acceptance procedure, and who owns the code, design, domain and access after the project. The rest — the warranty, change requests, personal data — protects both parties when something does not go to plan.
CREATING.LV signs a contract for every project — even for a single-page Onepage website. Not because we expect disputes, but because a “simple website” means two different things to two people. The contract is where that difference is found in good time, not a week before launch.
Why even a small project needs a contract
The most common problems in website projects do not come from bad programming. They come from things that were not discussed: who writes the texts, how many design options are included, whether the multilingual version is part of the price, who pays for plugin licences. If this is not written down, each party remembers the conversation the way that suits it — and usually both do so honestly.
In our experience, the contract above all helps work start without delay. Both parties feel secure: the client that the work will be done in the agreed scope and timeframe, and we that it will be paid for. There is no need to waste time on correspondence about whether we are really starting and on what terms.
What to include in a website development contract
1. Scope of work
The most useful thing is to attach the proposal or technical specification to the contract as an annex: which pages, which features, how many languages, which integrations. It is just as important to write down what is not included — for example, copywriting, photography or entering content beyond a set amount.
2. Deadlines and stages
A deadline without stages is just a date. It is better to divide the project into stages (structure, design, development, testing, launch) and state for each what the client has to provide — content, feedback, access. If the client’s materials are late, the deadline moves by the same amount — and it is worth writing that down clearly.
3. Price and payment terms
- the total price and whether it includes or excludes VAT;
- the advance payment and payments by stage;
- how additional work outside the scope is estimated (an hourly rate or a separate proposal);
- the recurring costs after launch — hosting, domain, maintenance, paid plugin licences.
4. Change requests
Ideas change during a project, and that is normal. One paragraph in the contract is enough: changes that go beyond the agreed scope are estimated first, the client approves them in writing, and only then are they carried out. This saves both the budget and the deadline.
5. Handover and acceptance
How is the work checked, and when is it considered accepted? Usually — a testing period in which the client reports the errors found, and a handover certificate. It also helps to agree what counts as an error (the site does not work as described) and what counts as a new request.
6. Copyright, domain and access
This is the point most often remembered too late. The contract should clearly state:
- that the economic rights to the design and code developed pass to the client after full payment;
- that third-party themes and plugins are used in accordance with their licences — they cannot be “sold” as property;
- that the domain and hosting account are registered in the client’s name or have been handed over to the client;
- that the client receives administrator access and that it is not withheld in the event of a dispute.
7. Warranty and maintenance
During the warranty period, the developer fixes errors in their own work free of charge. With us, the warranty is 6 months, on condition that a maintenance contract has been signed for the website. This is not a formal restriction: without regular WordPress core and plugin updates, it is not possible to guarantee that the site will work — an update or a security vulnerability can affect it through no fault of the developer. Maintenance — updates, backups, security monitoring — is a separate service with its own price; with us, these are maintenance packages with a fixed monthly fee.
8. Personal data
If the developer accesses customer data — for example, online store orders or contact form submissions — Article 28 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires a data processing agreement to be signed or appropriate terms to be included in the main contract.
How it works with us
- we understand the task and the goal;
- we prepare a proposal with the scope, timeline and price;
- we sign a contract, and the proposal becomes its annex;
- if the project needs it — wireframes and design with testing;
- development and testing;
- handover, launch and, if you wish, maintenance.
The starting prices for all services are collected on the Prices page, and for a specific project you can get in touch here — we reply the same day.
This article is not legal advice. For complex or large projects, it is advisable to have the contract text reviewed by a lawyer.