James
Two goals guide effective web design. Websites should be intuitive for visitors. They should also stay maintainable for the team responsible for them past launch.
That makes the agency decision bigger than visual design.
A better comparison is between what the full working relationships on offer are like, not just each portfolio’s homepage. Web design and hosting services can include content management, integrations, maintenance, search, hosting and technical support after the build is complete.
These four Perth agencies all offer web design, but they differ in the services they provide around it.
What We Cover
- How to choose a Perth web design agency
- Lilo
- PWD
- Humaan
- Dilate Digital
- Quick comparison
- Final recommendation
How To Choose A Perth Web Design Agency
Start with what the website has to do after it launches.
An ecommerce site, brochure-style service site and an integrated digital platform can all look sleek and professional. But the technology decisions that underpin each are vastly different. When creating a shortlist it’s important to consider how the website will operate as well as how it will look.
Before choosing an agency, clarify four points:
- Internal update capabilities: Are the internal team able to update routine pages/products/content without developer assistance?
- Hosting and support: Post-launch, where will your site live and who will do backups, maintenance, and troubleshoot tech issues?
- Platform fit: Does the CMS/platform/technology fit this project as opposed to defaulting to the agency’s preference?
- Handover: What access, documentation and post-launch support are included?
The third point is easy to forget. Even if a site is easy for customers, it can still create wasted work internally.
1. Lilo: Best Overall For Flexible Custom Websites
Lilo is a web design and development agency based in Perth that works with Australian businesses, schools and organisations. They currently offer custom web design, WordPress, Shopify, Magento, UX Design, digital marketing and website support.
If your organisation is searching for web design in Perth, Lilo’s strength is apparent from the get go: the balance between bespoke work and daily manageability. Its process is designed around the client, beginning with the business, audience and objectives, through to structure, content, design, development, testing and launch.
The practical advantage is flexibility, without making the finished website unnecessarily hard to run.
Which means it could suit your service business with clearer enquiry paths, your school which has lots of information to sort out, or your ecommerce brand that wants a custom shopping experience without ditching their trusted CMS.
WordPress and Shopify sites are currently in production at Lilo, though its development capabilities extend to Magento as well. According to the agency, each site is architected with the right structure and platform to suit the brief, rather than working from a set template. Maintenance is available as an ongoing service, and Lilo can assist with hosting and domains where required.
Best suited to: businesses looking for a bespoke website with well-defined user journeys, flexible development and an agency that won’t disappear after go-live.
2. PWD: Best For SEO And Managed Hosting Together
PWD specialises in web design and development, SEO, digital marketing and managed hosting. They are based in West Leederville.
PWD plans for search from the first wireframe of the website build. PWD also boasts ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification. Features of its managed hosting package include SSL, daily backups, caching at the server level and proactive monitoring.
Why does that matter? If you have a business that intends to pay for organic search efforts after launching, you may want to use one provider to build your website, host and SEO vs. having multiple providers performing those separate tasks.
PWD also provides maintenance and digital marketing post go-live allowing the relationship to extend past build.
That positions it pretty well in this comparison: this agency makes the most sense when search considerations and managed infrastructure are included in your website brief upfront.
Best suited to: businesses looking for web design, SEO and managed hosting from the same provider.
3. Humaan: Best For Complex Digital Experiences
Humaan specialise in websites however, they are also a Perth digital agency with skills in software, ecommerce and digital-products.
Its web site service consolidates UI development, interaction design, CMS configuration and technical development. Humaan claims its approach is technology neutral and enables secure API integrations with other business systems.
This becomes more relevant as a project moves beyond a conventional marketing website.
Humaan also offers focused headless development expertise. It has worked with a variety of headless content-management systems. That puts it in a good position to play a role in this grouping if you’re working with complex integrations, content architectures or digital experiences.
One benefit is having depth in design and breadth in tech. A more extensive organisation redesigning a content-rich site, connected ecosystem or digital product could care more about that scale rather than picking a cookie-cutter website solution.
If you’re a small company wanting only a simple brochure site, that depth might be more than you need.
Best suited to: established organisations with complex UX, integration or digital-product requirements.
4. Dilate Digital: Best For Website And Marketing Under One Team
Dilate Digital offer website design and SEO along with pay per click advertising, content, branding and other digital marketing services. The agency is located in Perth.
Dilate’s website offer includes both fully custom and pre-built projects. Platforms primarily used are WordPress and Shopify. Dilate provides hosting, maintenance and after launch support too.
There’s appeal in having breadth around the website itself. If a business knows it’s going to redesign at the time of a wider acquisition or branding campaign, they can keep those workstreams within one agency.
The website creation process with Dilate takes marketing factors into consideration as well, like keyword research and content/conversion planning. Helpful if you need something more than just design and development.
Think of it as a trade-off of fit vs. capability. If you’re a buyer specifically seeking a specialist product-design studio, you may opt for a tighter niche agency model. If you’re a business interested in both design and marketing working together, Dilate’s broader service offering will be attractive.
Ideal for: companies looking for a new website that will be fully integrated with SEO, paid advertising, content and other digital marketing initiatives.
Quick Comparison
| Agency | Best for | Website approach | Ongoing services |
| Lilo | Flexible custom business websites | Custom design with WordPress, Shopify and broader development options | Maintenance, hosting, domains, SEO and marketing available |
| PWD | SEO and managed hosting together | Performance-led web design and development | Managed hosting, maintenance, SEO and digital marketing |
| Humaan | Complex digital experiences | Full-stack websites, headless builds and system integrations | Infrastructure and wider digital-product capability |
| Dilate Digital | Website plus broader marketing | Custom or pre-built WordPress and Shopify projects | Hosting, maintenance, SEO, paid media and content |
The relevant distinction isn’t whether agencies can build a website. They all can. It’s which agency has the surrounding capabilities that fit how the site will be managed, marketed and developed post-launch.
Final Recommendation
Start with the future operating model, then work backwards to the agency.
If SEO and managed hosting are key components of the brief, consider PWD. Humaan is more appropriate for intricate digital experiences and integrations. Dilate Digital can come into play when websites need to integrate into broader marketing programmes.
Lilo is the strongest all-round starting point in this comparison if your organisation is looking for a clean, fully custom website that is flexible, easy to manage content-wise and supported by a company that can stay involved with you beyond launch.
This combination allows you to focus on both sides of the project: a website that works for your visitors and a website your organisation can maintain.
