How much does it cost to maintain a WordPress website?

June 24. 2019

It’s safe to say that one of the vital issues for everyone owning their own business is how to keep everything cost-effective. And you may or may not be aware that owning a website can be a bit steep. This is why people try to maintain their own websites, thinking it will save them a pretty penny. However, you’ll soon realize what a mistake that can end up being. So, if you want your website properly maintained, you’ll need to find someone reliable to take care of that for you. Naturally, this implies paying for their services. And how much does it cost to maintain a WordPress website? Don’t worry, sometimes useful services don’t cost an arm and a leg. You might be surprised how affordable it really is to let experienced professionals take care of your WordPress website.

Why maintaining a WordPress website yourself is not a good idea

Sure, there are people who successfully manage their own websites. Nevertheless, you might want to think twice before making the bold decision to do this on your own. Why? The most practical reason of them all is definitely something you want to remember at all times – everything will work better in the hands of professionals. But, there are some more specific reasons why you might want to seek out experienced developers. Even though you may not enjoy finding out the cost to maintain a WordPress website, you have to remember one thing. Regardless of the price, you’d have to pay for professionals, a single slip you could make while doing it on your own could easily end up costing you your entire website. Let’s have a look at the most prominent reasons not to maintain a WordPress website on your own:

• It’s time-consuming. Chances are you have better things to do. Taking care of your business, for instance. There are people who can dedicate their time to handling your website issues.
• You are probably not an expert in the matter. You may end up making quite a mess, even though you feel like you have some knowledge of maintaining a website.
• Staying up-to-date matters. And you most likely can’t catch up with it all. Luckily, there are people who can.

Is paying for maintenance going to pay off?

Let’s be clear right from the start – yes, it is. Yes, you’ll be giving a certain amount of money on a regular basis. But there are ways to save some cash all the while paying the cost to maintain a WordPress website. For instance, most reliable and experienced developers will offer you a discount if you opt for paying yearly instead of a monthly fee. Also, you’ll probably be offered various types of professional maintenance packages. They will have different prices as well as different sets of services they include. So as you can see, there are ways to pay less if the cost of maintenance has you worried.

What do maintenance packages typically include?

Of course, you want to know what exactly you’ll be paying for. This is actually the only way to know if hiring professionals to maintain your WordPress website pays off. Since most companies dealing with WordPress maintenance frequently offer three levels of services, here’s what you might expect.

Basic maintenance: $60 – $74

You don’t want to spend a significant amount of money, but still, want professionals to handle your WordPress website? Here’s what you can expect:

• Daily Backup
• Malware Scan & Removal
• Website Firewall
• Uptime Monitoring
• WordPress Core, Plugin & Theme Updates

Also, you’ll be able to get one hour of personalized support, as well as a monthly report. When you take all things into consideration, $74 a month is certainly not a lot for a set of services such as this one. Remember, if you agree to pay for a whole year, you can expect an even lower price, less than $60!

Mid-level maintenance: $75 – $140

Should you decide to set aside some more money to pay the cost to maintain a WordPress website, you can expect to get all of the abovementioned services. And more, naturally. You’ll be able to receive a bi-weekly report, as well as a 60-days backup archive, whereas basic WordPress care could only get you a 30-days backup archive. A vital upgrade would also be speed optimization. Curious about the price? You’ll get all of these services for a little under $140. Even less than that, should you pay yearly.

Advanced maintenance: $141 – $200

Think about it. A team of professionals with enough experience and skill to handle any WordPress issue. Real-time backup. Priority support. Offsite backup system. Yes, it might cost nearly $200 a month, but you could never manage all of these tasks successfully on your own. This way, you’ll get a top-notch service that may end up costing you less than $160 a month. All you need to do is commit to a yearly fee.

A word to the wise

It may seem at times like the cost to maintain a WordPress website is money that can easily be saved. After all, how hard can it seriously be to handle a website by yourself? But be extra careful here. This is a trap you don’t want to fall into. A single simple mistake or a mere lack of time may end up costing you more than a yearly professional maintenance fee. So take no chances and try to make a budget plan accordingly. You may pay a few dollars more, but it will definitely pay off eventually.