Every file of the website, and help moving it. It’s custom-coded, so later changes need a developer.
What’s different
The differences that matter
What Hibu’s contract actually says, and what it means for you.
You’re buying a bundle, not just a website
Hibu One comes with a website, listings management, review requests, reputation monitoring, call tracking, lead scoring and a shared inbox. That’s a lot of software, and if you use it, it can be good value to have it in one place.
If you don’t use it, you still pay for it: Hibu’s terms say the monthly fee “is not subject to reduction” when you don’t use some of the included services.
The reverse is true too. I don’t run ads. If Google or Facebook ads bring in most of your work, switching your website to me means finding someone else for the ads.
Website plus listings, reviews and lead tools, in one fee.
Just the website, done properly. No ads.
The contract decides when you can leave
Hibu One has a 6-month minimum, and standalone Hibu websites, listings, reviews and SEO have 12. Inside that term, the terms are blunt: “you may not cancel the Services until the end of your Minimum Term.” After it, you cancel by phone at least 15 days before the month ends, or Hibu bills another month.
Two more lines worth reading before you sign: Hibu can change its prices after the minimum term with 14 days’ notice, and its sales reps “have no authority” to change the written agreement. A spoken promise doesn’t count unless it’s in writing.
Some customers have run into this. Dan Barrett wrote in August 2026 that Hibu refused to stop his 6-month, $2,000-a-month contract after 90 days, “citing the contract.” Josh Brink wrote in June 2026 that he was on hold 40 minutes trying to cancel, then told to try again later. That’s two people, not every customer, but it’s exactly what the contract allows.
6 to 12 months minimum. Cancel by phone, 15 days ahead.
No minimum. Cancel by email, any time.
Who owns the site, the domain and the phone number
Under Hibu’s terms, Hibu owns the content it creates for you, and a domain Hibu provides “will be registered to us”, though Hibu will help transfer it if you ask. When you cancel, you lose access, and you can reuse the text Hibu wrote only if you paid in full in advance. Nothing in the terms hands you the design or code.
Call-tracking numbers are part of Hibu’s setup too. If you stop paying, the terms let Hibu disconnect the number or forward its calls “to other advertisers in your market.” If that number is on your Google profile or your truck, change it before you leave.
With me, the website is yours from day one, every file. One honest trade-off: it’s custom-coded, so once you leave, bigger changes need a web developer.
Hibu owns what it builds. Your domain may be in Hibu’s name.
Yours from day one. Leave with every file.
Where your ad money goes
For search ads, Hibu’s terms say part of what you pay goes to Google and Bing, and Hibu keeps “a portion of the Fees paid by you” as its management fee. The split isn’t published, and Hibu’s own click counts are “the official, definitive measurement.”
That doesn’t make the ads bad. It means you can’t see the fee from outside. Deb Compson wrote in September 2026 that she believed much more of her roughly $3,500 monthly payment was going to Google ads than turned out to be the case. Whoever runs your ads, ask for the fee and the ad spend as two separate numbers, in writing.
One budget. The fee inside it isn’t published.
No ads, so nothing hidden in a budget.
Who you actually talk to
Hibu has a support team you can reach by phone, form or chat on weekdays and Saturday mornings. Some customers love their rep: one business that’s used Hibu since 2009 said what they like most is “having one person I can call when I need something.”
With me, that one person is always the one building your site. You text, email or call me, and routine edits have a 72-hour target. The flip side: I’m one person, not a department, so there’s no weekend call center.
A support team and an account rep.
Patrick, the person who built your site.
Cost
What each option costs
Hibu only quotes its monthly fee privately. Here’s every fee it does publish, next to mine.
Every company gets complaints, and Hibu holds 4.7 stars from 984 reviews on Trustpilot, most of them five stars. Still, these themes come up again and again in its one-star reviews, each linked to where it comes from.
Hard to cancel before the term ends
Several reviewers say they couldn’t get out when they wanted to. An excavating company says it emailed, called and texted its sales agent and still couldn’t cancel, someone who took over a family business says cancelling took months, and another reviewer says Hibu refused to stop a 6-month contract after 90 days. Hibu’s terms say you can’t cancel inside the minimum term, and after it you cancel by phone at least 15 days ahead. Hibu replied to each review, and asked one reviewer to email the details so it could look into it.
“We emailed, called, left messages, texted our sales agent and they still wouldn’t cancel the service.”
Before you sign up:If you ordered by phone, Hibu’s terms give you 7 days after the Confirmation of Order to cancel for a full refund. After that, note each product’s end date and call at least 15 days before it.
Months of fees, few leads
Many one-star reviews describe paying for months without the calls. A one-person electrical shop had over 400 ad clicks and no real leads in about 4 months, a roofing company counted 32 website visitors in more than 4 months, and a longtime RevLocal client says its leads dwindled after Hibu took over. Hibu replied to each review, and its terms say it makes “no promises concerning the performance, results or success rates” of any service.
“It has now been close to 4 months, and I have not received a single legitimate lead or phone call.”
Before you sign up:Keep your own Google Analytics and Search Console, and compare them with any dashboard you’re shown. Ask how a lead is counted.
Promises from the sales call
Some reviewers say what they heard before signing didn’t match what came after. One was promised more search visibility in 2 weeks and still didn’t show up almost two months later, another says the promises changed once the six-month contract was signed, and an auto repair shop says its salesperson told it what she had to in order to get a signature. Hibu’s terms say its sales reps have “no authority” to change the written agreement.
“We were promised an increased presence on online searches in 2 weeks.”
Before you sign up:Get every promise, results and timelines included, written into the order. If it isn’t there, it isn’t part of the deal.
The website after you leave
A few reviewers were surprised by what happened to their site when they left. One says they had a verbal promise they’d own the website, and Hibu took it down after they didn’t renew. Another wrote, “You do not own your own website.” Hibu’s terms say Hibu owns the content it creates and isn’t responsible for keeping your content after you cancel. In its reply, Hibu asked the first reviewer to email a “Website ownership concern” so the right team could review it.
Before you sign up:Ask in writing who owns the design, the text and the domain, and save a copy of your pages and photos before you cancel.
Support that’s hard to reach
Some longtime customers say service slipped. One reviewer says customer service “has gone way down hill” in the past year, and a longtime RevLocal client says calls to its rep went unanswered after Hibu took over. Hibu’s support page lists phone, form and chat on weekdays and Saturday mornings. It replied to the review below that some owners prefer a local rep, and that it would share the feedback with its team.
“No small communication for small businesses and nobody locally to meet in person”
Your main need is a website that turns visitors into calls and form leads.
You want to own the website outright and leave with one email.
You want to talk to the person building your site, not a support queue.
You don’t run ads, or you already run them yourself or with someone you trust.
Neither of us may be the right fit if
You want a large team handling ads, content, social media and PR on one retainer. A full-service agency fits that better than either of us.
You want to design and edit every page yourself. A DIY builder costs less in cash, and my Weebly comparison shows what that trade looks like.
Switched from another web design firm
Rebuilt after another company’s website let them down
Our company website, which we had paid another web design firm to build, was not loading properly, and eventually crashed after only a few months of operation. We discovered the website was poorly constructed and needed to be rebuilt. After just paying a company to design our website, it was difficult to trust another company to do the same thing again, but Patrick was reliable, easy to work with, well priced, and delivered all that he promised!
The order matters more than the speed. You can’t cancel inside your minimum term anyway, so use that time to get your domain, email and accounts under your control, then launch before the Hibu site goes dark.
1
Find your end dates
Check your Confirmation of Order. Each Hibu product has its own minimum term, and you call at least 15 days before the one you want to end. I plan the launch around that date.
2
Get the domain into your name first
If Hibu registered your domain, it’s in Hibu’s name. Ask Hibu in writing to transfer it to you, well before you cancel. If you bought the domain yourself, you already control it and we only change where it points.
3
Protect your email
If your email runs on a Hibu-provided domain, set up mailboxes with a new provider first, because access ends when you cancel. Same addresses, new home, no gap.
4
Save your content
Hibu’s terms put backups on you and don’t hand over the design or code. Save your page text, photos and any reviews you want to keep. I rebuild the site and reuse text and photos you own.
5
Swap tracking numbers for your own
Hibu call-tracking numbers may be on your Google profile, listings and ads. Put your own number back everywhere before you leave, so no call goes to a number you don’t control.
6
Keep your addresses and set up analytics
Before launch, every page on your current site gets a permanent (301) redirect to its new address, your name, address and phone stay identical, and you get analytics you own.
7
Launch, check, then cancel
You review the new site before it goes live. Once it’s live on your domain and the forms, calls and email check out, you call Hibu to cancel at the end of your term.
Pricing
Everything in one plan
No build fee, no contract, no upsells. Here’s every feature the monthly price covers.
The Everything Plan
One plan, because you should not have to study a comparison table to buy a website. Every feature below is included from day one.
$95/month
$0 to build. No contract. Cancel anytime.
Your website is yours from day one.
A site built for you, not from a template
Imagine what you could accomplish with more than just a Home, About and Contact page.
Built for speed
Hand-coded and served from data centers around the world, not a page builder dragging its own weight around. Fast on any phone, on any connection.
Custom illustrations
No junky stock photos or cookie cutter icons here.
Copywriting
Great copywriting is the difference between a website that sells and one that doesn't.
On-page SEO
Essentially this means making it as easy as possible for Google and AI to find you.
Custom lead forms
Forms that actually convert visitors into leads.
Easy analytics
Plain, simple, straightforward, valuable analytics anyone can read.
100's of local SEO pages
Local SEO requires hyper-local intent targeting. Almost every service-based business needs this!
Blog
Blogs are awesome if they are used authentically. The age of purely info-based content is over.
Social media integration
We can integrate your social media content directly into your website. Strategically, of course. We don't want visitors getting distracted!
Automated reviews management
Automatically add new reviews from review platforms (Google, Yelp, etc) directly into your website.
Online calendar bookings
Let visitors book meetings, sessions and appointments directly through your site.
Email newsletter integration
Email newsletters help turn your visitors into subscribers.
Automated legal policies
Your Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions are generated by a specialist legal-policy service and update automatically as privacy laws change. Included, with nothing for you to maintain.
CRM integrations
We connect your forms to the CRM you already use: HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho and most other software that connects with outside apps. A custom system gets its own scope.
Advanced integrations
Automations that send each new lead to the right person, log it in your spreadsheets and handle the follow-up.
Hosting
Not all hosting is created equal. If you want the Taco Bell of web hosting, Bluehost is waiting for you.
Unlimited Updates
Changes to hours, photos, text and services are included. Routine edits have a 72-hour target; larger requests get an agreed scope and completion date.
1-on-1 VIP support, direct with Patrick
No call centers, no offshoring, just your friendly neighborhood Patrick. Based in North America, native English speaker, and fluent in Spanish if that is easier for you.
Not inside your minimum term. Hibu’s contract doesn’t allow it. After it, you cancel by phone at least 15 days before the month ends. The practical move is to build the new site during your remaining term and launch it just before the Hibu term ends.
Will I lose my domain name?
Not if you move it before you cancel. A domain Hibu provided is registered in Hibu’s name, and Hibu says it will help you transfer it when you ask. Ask early and in writing. If you registered the domain yourself, it’s already yours.
Can you move my Hibu website over as it is?
No. Hibu’s terms don’t hand over the site’s design or code, so I rebuild it. I reuse text and photos you own, and the new site is written, designed and built as part of the plan.
Do you run Google or Facebook ads like Hibu?
No, I don’t run ads. If ads bring in most of your work, keep an ad specialist or run them yourself, and make sure the ad account is in your name. My plan covers the website those ads send people to.
Is RapidWebLaunch cheaper than Hibu?
For the website alone, compare your Hibu invoice with $95 a month. I can’t give you an exact Hibu number because Hibu only quotes privately. If part of your Hibu bill is ads, it isn’t a like-for-like comparison.
Will my Google rankings drop when I switch?
Nobody can promise they won’t move at all. What I do: every old page gets a permanent (301) redirect, your business name, address and phone stay identical, and I submit the new sitemap and watch Search Console after launch.
Hibu One 
Hibu 
+100 business owners like you 
Patrick
Agency 
What you’re buying The work that’s included 
Price What the monthly bill says 
Setup fee Before anything is built 
Contract How long you’re committed 
How you cancel When you want out 
Paid ads Google, Facebook, display 
SEO Getting found on Google 
Who you talk to When you need something 
Who owns the site Design, content, files 
If you leave What you walk away with 
Quote × 12 + $299 Hibu doesn’t publish the quote. 
Getting started 
Changes after launch 
Checking results 
