How to create a physician website

Seven steps

1. Pick the main reader. Patients, referring clinicians, employers or program committees. The main reader decides what the home page shows first.
2. Gather approved materials. A current CV, a bio (see the bio examples), a headshot you have permission to use, links to your profiles and publications, and your practice's booking page if patients will visit.
3. Check your employer's policy. Some employers have rules on personal websites, media and use of the institution's name or logo.
4. Register a domain. See domain basics below.
5. Choose who builds it. Compare a builder, an agency and a managed service below.
6. Write the pages. Home, about, clinical or research focus, selected work, speaking if relevant, and contact. The portfolio guide covers each section.
7. Review, launch and maintain. Check credentials, links, photo permissions, phone layout and accessibility before launch, then update the site whenever your role or contact route changes.

DIY builder, agency or managed service

Wix also publishes its plans; its free domain voucher applies to selected yearly plans, not monthly billing.

What to include

• Introduction. Name, earned credentials, specialty, current role and a headshot.
• Biography and focus. What you treat or study, in plain language.
• Training and certification. Completed degrees, residency, fellowship and current board certification.
• Selected work. Publications, research, teaching, leadership and talks, with your role.
• The right contact route. A business contact for professional inquiries and the practice's booking page for patients.
• Accessible pages. WCAG 2.2 is the current W3C accessibility standard. If your practice receives federal financial assistance from HHS, its Section 504 rule requires WCAG 2.1 Level AA; an interim final rule published May 11, 2026 moved compliance to May 11, 2027 for recipients with 15 or more employees and May 10, 2028 for smaller ones. Ask your compliance office whether it covers your site.

What to keep off a public site

• Patient information. Federal rules define protected health information as individually identifiable health information. Do not publish patient photos, images, case details or reviews that identify patients, and do not use a website form to collect symptoms or records; send patients to the practice's approved portal or phone line.
• Unverified claims. AMA Opinion 9.6.1 rules out false or misleading statements in physician publicity. Leave out success rates you cannot document, superlatives and credentials you no longer hold.
• Fake or bought testimonials. The FTC finalized a rule in August 2024 that bans fake reviews and testimonials.
• Private contact details. Home address and personal phone number.

Domain basics

• Use your name and earned credentials. Common patterns are firstnamelastnamemd.com, lastnamemd.com and firstinitiallastnamemd.com. A DO uses DO (lastnamedo.com), and a student uses their name alone.
• Expect a small yearly fee. ICANN's .com fee schedule effective September 1, 2024 lists a registry fee of $10.26 per year; registrars set retail prices above it, and Cloudflare says its registrar charges no markup.
• Register it in your own name. Under ICANN's registrant responsibilities you must give accurate contact information and keep payment details current. Turn on automatic renewal.
• Ask about privacy. Registration contact data can appear in directories such as WHOIS; ask your registrar about its privacy or proxy service.
• Keep the domain separate from the builder. A domain you hold at a registrar can point to a new host if you change how the site is built.

Common questions

How much does a physician website cost?

At minimum, a builder plan, a domain and your time. Squarespace lists annual-billing plans from $19 to $99 per month as of October 2026, and the .com registry fee is $10.26 per year before registrar pricing. Agencies quote per project; managed services charge a setup fee plus a monthly or yearly fee.

Does a physician website need to be HIPAA compliant?

HIPAA applies to covered entities and their business associates. A site with no patient forms, booking or chat collects no patient health information; if patients could send health details through it, link to the practice's approved portal instead and involve its privacy officer.

Can I build a physician website myself?

Yes. A builder supplies hosting and templates; you supply the writing, structure, domain setup, accessibility checks and every later update.

Should I use my hospital's name or logo?

Only with your employer's permission. Many institutions control how their name and logo appear; name your appointment in text instead.

Sources

1. Squarespace, Pricing
2. Wix Help Center, About your free domain voucher
3. ICANN, .COM fee schedule effective September 1, 2024
4. Cloudflare Registrar
5. ICANN, Registrants' Benefits and Responsibilities
6. W3C, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2
7. Federal Register, HHS extension of Section 504 web accessibility compliance dates (May 11, 2026)
8. 45 CFR 160.103, definition of protected health information
9. AMA Code of Medical Ethics Opinion 9.6.1, Advertising and Publicity
10. Federal Trade Commission, final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials (August 14, 2024)

Sources checked October 11, 2026. Policies and prices change; confirm current terms with each source.