IA Library · Page pattern · Reasoned, not built
Prices page
“What will it cost me, and what’s included?”
RequiredConditional on the briefCommon, not requiredLeft out for this briefYour content
Used by
Why this pattern works5 statements · 3 sourced · 0 untested or unknown
How sure we are
Worked out from research and real briefs. No site has been built from it yet, so treat it as reasoning to check, not a tested template.
What it answers
Its job Let someone answer “can I afford this?” before they contact anyone.
Its action: The site’s main action, unchanged: the prices page is where people decide, so the action sits on it.
Use it when
- Prices are public and there are more than fit beside each service.
- Rules or regulators require a findable price list. For UK vets, the CMA requires one at most one click from the home page without scrolling, with “price”, “pricing” or “fees” in the navigation.
- A café or restaurant: the menu is the price list, and it has to be HTML text, not only a PDF.
Not when
- Quote-only work where not even typical prices can be given. Otherwise, show sample prices for common jobs (NN/g).
- Three prices that fit beside the services. A separate page adds a click and nothing else.
Modes
| Fees | Advisers, clinics, vets: fee schedules, sometimes two (public and private). |
|---|---|
| Menu | Cafés and restaurants: items, prices, allergens as text, grouped by service time. |
| Rates | Trades: call-out, hourly and fixed-price jobs. |
| Plans | Software: tiers and what each includes. The built Software product pattern shows a single price today. |
What the research says
- A price list was the most-requested missing piece in the briefs we studied (38 of 118). BrightLocal 2026: 36% cite clear pricing.
- The CMA found vet prices were hard to find where they existed: at the end of long home pages or under unclear headings. Placement and label are the IA failure.
- Price is the information business customers most want; NN/g participants left sites that hid it.
Common mistakes
- Prices without tax, or with the call-out fee somewhere else.
- A menu that exists only as a PDF or an image.
What changes with the brief
| Can you publish prices? Only by quote | The page becomes “typical prices”: sample prices for common jobs and what moves them, rather than a list. |
|---|---|
| Do opening hours decide whether people come or call? Yes, set opening hours | Menu mode: grouped by service time, with today’s items when they change. |