To build a website with Claude Code, you go through eight steps: write a short brief, set up Claude Code, create an empty project folder with fixed rules, and let Claude Code build a static website from it. Then you check copy and legal pages, upload the files to a host, connect your domain, and later make changes by instruction instead of by ticket. You don't need to code. You need a Claude plan from Pro (20 US dollars a month, as of November 2026), your own material, and the willingness to check before launch. The source code ends up in your folder, not locked in a website builder.
My view: the era of expensive websites is over. I like the idea of being in charge yourself, with no contractor needed. I'm a developer, and I still haven't written a single line of code myself in a year and a half. That includes my website: Ralf, my AI employee for websites, builds and maintains kevinwelter.com.
What you need to build a website with AI using Claude Code
How the plan compares with paying through the API is in Claude Code Pricing: Plan or API?.
How to build a website with Claude Code: eight steps
1. Goal and brief
Create an empty project folder and, inside it, a text file called briefing.md. You can use this template:
# Website brief
## Business
- Name, owner, location and service area:
- Services (one line each, with one sentence on what it includes):
- Phone, email, opening hours:
- Postal address (for the legal notice):
## Goal
Who should visit the site, and what should they do next (call, email, book)?
## Pages
- Home page (or a one-page site with sections)
- Legal notice, privacy policy
## Technical
- Static HTML and CSS, no framework
- No external resources: no embedded fonts, no CDN, no trackers
- Must look good on a phone and on a desktop
The more specific your service lines, the better the copy. "Wallpapering" alone turns into one thin sentence. Whether one page is enough is covered in One Page Website: When One Page Is Enough.
2. Set up Claude Code
On Mac and Linux, Anthropic's install is one command in the terminal:
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
On Windows, use irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex in PowerShell. Then run claude --version in a new terminal window to check it worked; you sign in on first start. Without a terminal, use the desktop app: it includes Claude Code under the "Code" tab. Commands for every system and seven common error messages are in Install Claude Code: Windows, Mac, Linux, the first steps in Claude Code: A Guide for Beginners.
3. Start the project: folder, rules, first instruction
Next to the brief, add a file called CLAUDE.md. Per Anthropic, Claude Code reads it at the start of every session, so it holds your project's house rules (CLAUDE.md: Claude Code's Memory). For a website, these rules are enough:
# Rules for this website project
- Don't invent anything: no addresses, prices, reviews, references
or years that are not in briefing.md.
- Mark anything missing visibly as [MISSING: …] and list it at the end.
- Mark legal wording as [CHECK: …].
- Don't load anything from the internet, install anything or publish anything.
Then run claude --permission-mode manual in the folder and give the first instruction: "Read briefing.md and build the website as described there. Follow CLAUDE.md. At the end, tell me which files you created and which details are missing."
Why Manual: new terminal sessions start in auto mode from version 2.1.283, where a second model reviews actions instead of you. In Manual mode, Claude Code asks before most actions that edit files, run shell commands or reach the network. Shift+Tab switches the mode; in plan mode, Claude Code only reads and proposes a plan, and edits stay blocked until you approve it. Anthropic states that you are responsible for reviewing proposed code and commands before approving them. More in Claude Code Security: Permissions and Sandbox.
4. Copy from your own material
Claude Code knows about your business only what is in the folder. Good copy comes from your material: old quotes, frequent customer questions, how you explain your work on the phone. Put those in the folder and have Claude Code write from them. Why copy, not design, is the real bottleneck is in Web Design for the Self-Employed: Worth It?. What belongs on the home, services and about pages is in How to Write Website Content, Page by Page.
5. Legal notice and privacy policy
This is not legal advice. What you need depends on where you do business. Two examples from Germany and the EU: § 5 of the German Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz (DDG) requires business sites to show name, address and an email address, easy to find and directly reachable. And once you collect personal data, for instance through a contact form, Article 13 GDPR requires you to tell people at the time of collection who processes it and why. Claude Code builds these pages as a scaffold; the content is your responsibility. The less your site loads from elsewhere (fonts, maps, trackers), the less your privacy policy has to cover.
6. Check, then hosting and launch
Before launch, open every page on desktop and phone, click every link, and search for [MISSING and [CHECK. My rule: whoever creates something does not correct it; a second role that didn't write the code does the check (Claude Code Review: Cost, Setup, Limits). After launch, check certificate and headers with Check Your Website Security Online, accessibility with Accessibility Checker: Free Tools, Real Test.
You have three ways to host a static site:
Claude Code can prepare the upload. Credentials never go into the chat, and nothing is uploaded until you approve.
7. Connect your domain
Register the domain in your own name, not your contractor's, so it moves with you wherever the site lives. Your host gives you the DNS records; Claude Code explains what each does, you enter them in your domain provider's account. What to watch for when buying is in How to Buy a Domain Name Forever and Keep It.
8. Upkeep: changes by instruction
This is where Claude Code shines. New opening hours, another service, a photo: describe the change in one sentence, then look at which files changed. Everything else after launch is in Website Maintenance: Tasks, Checklist, Cost. A self-built site doesn't get found on its own; start with How Do I Get Found on Google? Local SEO and Optimizing Your Website for AI Search.
The test run behind this guide
For this article, Sebastian, my AI employee for SEO and blogging, ran the process on November 7, 2026, with Claude Code 2.1.319 on a Mac, using a German brief and rules like the ones above for an invented painting business. The run was non-interactive (claude -p): Claude Code could write files without asking, while commands and web access were blocked. The address was left out on purpose.
- Build: after about 97 seconds there were four files: a one-page site, legal notice, privacy policy, CSS. No JavaScript, no external resources.
- Nothing invented: a red "missing" marker appeared 13 times, including address and legal form. Ten passages in the legal pages were marked "check".
- Thin copy: service descriptions were as short as the brief. The copy remains your job.
- Checking is still needed: Claude Code said itself it had not looked at the page in a browser. Screenshots at 1,280 and 375 pixels wide then showed the layout was right.
- Upkeep: new opening hours in one sentence; after about 17 seconds exactly the two reported files had changed, confirmed by a before-and-after comparison.
Nothing was published. The test shows how Claude Code behaves with clear rules, not that every site goes this smoothly.
What you can do yourself and where you need help
Buy the right column on purpose: as a review, not a dependency. Small tools such as a calculator on your site are covered in Build an App with AI (Without Coding); what's behind building by instruction is in What Is Vibe Coding? A Plain Guide. For your specific case, we'll look at it together.
How Ralf builds kevinwelter.com
Ralf follows a fixed process: understand the material, decide the concept, build the website, check and hand over. The build uses Node.js and Next.js, the pre-launch screenshots and click test run through Playwright, and the rollout goes to my own Kubernetes cluster on Hetzner. Approval stays with me. How rebuilding an existing site works is in Modernizing a Website With AI: How To. Every route to your own website, with or without Claude Code, is collected in Build Your Own Website: A Guide With AI.
Frequently asked questions
Can I build a website with Claude without knowing how to code?
Yes. You describe what you want in plain language and Claude Code writes the code. What you need is to say what you offer and check the result. The desktop app works if you'd rather skip the terminal.
How much does a website built with Claude Code cost?
Claude Code starts with the Pro plan at 20 US dollars a month, excluding tax (as of November 2026). Domain and hosting come on top; figures are in What Does a Website or Landing Page Cost?.
Can Claude Code build a WordPress site?
Yes, Claude Code can write WordPress code such as a custom theme. For a small business site, a static site is usually simpler: no plugins, no CMS to maintain. When you no longer need a CMS is in WordPress Alternatives: 5 Options Compared.
How is this different from AI website builders like Lovable?
Builders work in the browser and often host the site. Claude Code works in your folder; the files run on any host. See AI Website Generators Compared. What Lovable does and what else is out there is in Lovable Alternatives: 6 Options Compared.
Where to go from here
Start with the brief today, not the tool. Once it's done, the build is the smaller part. To hand the work to an AI employee and keep the approval, see how Ralf works. Ralf is a ready-made template in the Premium tier of my community at 149 US dollars a month; in the Standard tier at 5 US dollars a month you build him yourself (as of October 29, 2026, according to his page). Both are in the AI Employee Framework.
