Website template for French SMEs: template, CMS or custom build — the real cost and accounting treatment

Updated: 25 May 2026 — By Samuel HAYOT, chartered accountant (expert-comptable).

When a business owner decides to create or redesign a company website, the first question is not "WordPress or Wix?" but "what will this actually cost, how should it be recorded in the accounts, and am I meeting my legal obligations?" These are the three angles this article addresses.

Quick answer: a website template is a pre-built technical and visual framework, sold for between €0 and €300 on marketplaces such as ThemeForest. For an SME, the real choice is between a template installed on a CMS (WordPress, Webflow), a no-code subscription platform (Wix, Squarespace) or a fully custom development. The total cost over three years ranges from €5,000 to over €100,000. The accounting treatment depends on the nature of the site and its total amount: either an operating expense or a capitalised intangible asset amortised under article 38 quinquies of Annexe III of the French Tax Code (CGI).

A template (or theme) is a set of files — CSS, HTML, JavaScript, sometimes PHP — that defines the visual appearance and structure of a website without determining its content. It sets the typography, colours, page layouts and navigation.

What a template does not do: it does not install your legal notices, configure your cookie consent banner, write your service pages or build your SEO strategy. The confusion between "ready-to-use website" and "installed template" is one of the most frequent causes of budget overruns in SME website projects.

Option 1 — Template on a CMS (WordPress, Webflow, Prestashop)#

You purchase or download a template and install it on an open-source CMS. The CMS manages content; the template manages appearance. WordPress accounts for approximately 43% of all websites globally in 2026 (source: W3Techs).

Advantages: full ownership of the code, portability, large plugin ecosystem, modest initial cost.

Disadvantages: technical maintenance to manage (updates, security), requires skills or an external provider, risk of plugin conflicts.

Option 2 — No-code subscription platform (Wix, Squarespace, Shopify)#

Hosting, editor and template are bundled into a monthly subscription (€15 to €150/month depending on the plan).

Advantages: fast time to launch, maintenance included, intuitive interface requiring no code.

Disadvantages: platform dependency (migration is costly), limited advanced customisation, a perpetual subscription that weighs on cash flow over the long term.

Option 3 — Custom development#

A development agency builds a site designed specifically for your business, with no pre-existing template or using a template as a heavily modified base.

Advantages: specific functionality, optimised performance, unique visual identity.

Disadvantages: high cost (€5,000 to €50,000 and above), long production timelines, dependence on the provider for future changes.

Indicative estimates for an SME with 5 to 50 employees. Lower bounds = simple brochure site; upper bounds = e-commerce or functionally advanced site.

This is the question business owners ask most often — and answer incorrectly most often.

The general principle: article 38 quinquies of Annexe III of the CGI#

Article 38 quinquies of Annexe III of the CGI and the French Plan Comptable Général (PCG article 611-2) establish the rule: an item is capitalised when it is intended to provide lasting benefit to the business. For websites, the professional accounting doctrine (CNCC opinion EC 2012-08 and the ANC position) clarifies that the costs of creating a website with a commercial function of its own — e-commerce, client portal, qualified lead generation — should in principle be capitalised (account 205 — Concessions et droits similaires), while the costs of a simple brochure site are expensed.

Accounting decision table#

Materiality threshold: most French chartered accountancy practices use €500 excl. VAT as the capitalisation threshold (a policy to be documented in the notes to the accounts). Below this threshold, costs are systematically expensed regardless of the expected period of use.

Amortisation period: between 3 and 5 years in practice, depending on the expected useful life of the site. An e-commerce site designed to evolve regularly is typically amortised over 3 years. The doctrine accepts 5 years for structurally stable sites.

In practice — what we see in SME client files#

In the SME files we work with, the most frequent situation is the following: the business owner has engaged a web agency for €8,000 excl. VAT to build a WordPress e-commerce site with WooCommerce, Stripe payment processing and a client account area. The total cost — including a premium template (€250 excl. VAT), integration (€5,000 excl. VAT) and content writing (€2,750 excl. VAT) — meets the capitalisation criteria. The entire project is therefore recorded in account 205 and amortised over 3 years, generating an annual depreciation charge of €2,667 that is tax-deductible each year. Content writing costs (€2,750) can, in some cases, be expensed separately if they are clearly dissociable and not incorporated into the site itself.

The opposite error also occurs: some directors capitalise a monthly Squarespace subscription at €35/month, which is incorrect. Subscriptions are always expensed, regardless of their amount.

Purchases from a supplier established outside France#

For B2B electronic services, the reverse charge mechanism applies (CGI article 283-2, BOI-TVA-CHAMP-20-50-30). The foreign supplier does not charge French VAT; the French business both collects and deducts the VAT in the same CA3 VAT return.

Practical examples:

• ThemeForest (Envato, Australia): reverse charge applies once the buyer's intra-community VAT number is registered in the account.
• Wix, Squarespace (Ireland): B2B invoice net of tax with "Reverse charge" notation if the VAT number is provided.
• Webflow (United States): electronic service, reverse charge at the French rate of 20%.

Failure to apply the reverse charge is the most frequent error identified in VAT audits covering SaaS purchases. It triggers late-payment interest and a 5% surcharge (CGI article 1788 A).

No template automatically complies with the LCEN (article 6) or RGPD. The company director remains personally responsible for implementing:

• Full publisher identity (company name, SIRET, RCS registration, registered address, share capital, legal representative);
• Hosting provider information (name, address, telephone or contact details);
• a privacy policy with the legal basis for each processing activity, data retention periods, data subject rights and DPO contact details where applicable;
• a cookie consent banner compliant with CNIL deliberations n° 2020-091 and 2020-092: opt-in consent for non-essential cookies, with refusal as straightforward as acceptance;
• for B2C e-commerce sites: the consumer mediation notice (Code de la consommation, article L. 616-1);
• for regulated professions (chartered accountant, lawyer, doctor): the notices specific to the relevant professional body.

Penalties: failure to include the required LCEN legal notices carries fines of up to €75,000 (€375,000 for a legal entity). Non-compliance with CNIL cookie rules can result in formal notice and sanctions of up to 4% of global annual turnover (RGPD article 83).

By commercial objective#

By planned useful life#

A site designed to last 5 years justifies a custom investment and capitalisation in the accounts. A site designed to test a market or launch a product in 3 months is better served by a low-cost no-code solution with immediate expense treatment.

The platform dependency question#

A Wix or Squarespace site cannot be migrated as-is to another hosting provider. If your business evolves, you start again from scratch — migration costs often exceed the original site cost. WordPress, by contrast, allows you to export all content and change hosting provider without rebuilding the site.

Three points deserve particular attention before approving a web agency quotation:

1. The exact nature of the services: the quotation must clearly distinguish graphic design, technical development, content writing, hosting and training. Each item may have a different accounting treatment.
2. The location of the provider: if the agency is established outside France (offshore, EU or non-EU), confirm at the time of ordering whether the invoice will be net of tax with a reverse charge or will include local VAT. An incorrectly worded invoice creates a VAT risk.
3. The service contract: it must specify who owns the source code on delivery (a condition for valid capitalisation), the terms of maintenance and the termination clauses.

For further reading on the accounting dimension of your digital presence, see our article on e-commerce accounting costs and our review of Pennylane, the financial management tool used in our practice.

This article is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute personalised advice. Each situation must be assessed against the specific facts, documents available and applicable law at the date of the decision. Current as at 25 May 2026.