When a website starts to feel old, the instinct is to start again from nothing. Sometimes that is right. Often it throws away things that still work, such as pages that rank, URLs other sites link to, and copy that converts. The way to decide is to measure first.
Three different jobs
| Job | What changes | When it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Refresh | Type, colour, images, a few templates | The structure works and the site is fast; it just looks dated. |
| Redesign | Layout, navigation, page templates, content structure | Visitors get lost or leave; the platform is fine. |
| Rebuild | Platform, code, often hosting | The site is slow at its core, hard to edit or insecure. |
Measure before you decide
Four checks tell you most of what you need:
- Speed on a phone. Run Google PageSpeed on the mobile version. If the main cause is the theme or the platform, a refresh will not fix it.
- Where visitors leave. Your analytics show which pages people land on and leave from. Those pages are the brief.
- What ranks. Search Console lists the pages and queries that bring visitors. Those URLs must survive whatever you do.
- Who edits it. If your team avoids updating the site because it breaks, the platform or theme is part of the problem.
Keep what works
Whatever you choose, list every URL on the current site and decide what happens to each one: kept, merged or redirected. A page that moves without a permanent 301 redirect loses the search value it had built, and every link to it breaks. Carry over page titles, descriptions and structured data for the pages that rank.
Change the smallest thing that fixes the real problem
If the site is fast and well structured but looks tired, a refresh is cheaper and safer. If the structure is the problem, redesign the templates on the platform you have. Rebuild when the foundation itself is what holds the site back. In every case, run the same tests after launch and compare them with the ones before.
Start with a free check of your site’s mobile speed, then ask us for the full review. If you are weighing the budget, read what sets the cost of a website redesign, or see how we approach a website redesign.