Understanding the Cost of Maintaining a WordPress Website: A Simple Guide
WordPress website expenses do not end with the site launch.
Then, you need to keep your web page running smoothly, manage its performance, and make sure it ranks well on search engines.
It all comes with a cost.
WordPress website maintenance fees depend on the size of your site, its complexity, and even the industry in which you operate.
Typically, web maintenance costs $20 to $5000 per month.
Annually, businesses invest $300 to $60,000 into website maintenance.
Check out this article to explore factors that affect website maintenance pricing and a handy WordPress maintenance checklist we’ve prepared.
How Much Does WordPress Website Maintenance Cost
WordPress maintenance costs start from $20 to $5000 per month.
By WordPress maintenance services we mean a set of activities aimed to help your website run smoothly and securely.
Here are four critical areas in WordPress maintenance:
Security
To maintain security, developers regularly check the web pages for vulnerabilities and conduct audits.
These are preliminary actions to keep your and users’ information safe and prevent data leaks and hacks.
Performance
A slow website means a poor user experience, a drop in rankings, and lost revenue.
Regular maintenance and performance checks optimize your site for speed, providing users with a good experience.
Updates
Every single page on the internet requires updates sooner or later.
WordPress, your themes, and plugins need updates to fix bugs and improve security.
Backups
Recurring website backups are crucial.
You can use an automated tool for backups.
These can cost anywhere from $0 to $50 per month.
Small businesses often choose free software.
If you need special features like off-site storage, real-time backups, and high-capacity storage, then opt for more expensive tools.
Here is a simple pricing breakdown.
How to Estimate Website Maintenance Cost for Your WordPress Website
First, we want to highlight that maintaining your website is a complex task.
It requires skills, regular input, time, and effort.
As web technologies evolve over time, your website should keep up and stay compatible.
When calculating your website maintenance cost, start off with its complexity.
For a basic website, maintenance can be as little as $100 per year.
If your website is more complex, with multiple features, integrations, and millions of visitors, the maintenance costs can reach hundreds of thousands and more per year.
These are rough estimates:
However, the final cost depends on a set of factors. Let’s explore them further.
7 Factors Affecting Website Maintenance Costs
There are many factors that affect website maintenance cost.
Here, we explore such as domain name, web hosting, SSL certificate, tech support, website design and development, plugins, marketing and SEO.
Let’s dive in.
Domain Name
Your domain name acts like your unique internet address, and you need it if you want your page to be accessible worldwide.
You can purchase one from popular registrars like Bluehost, GoDaddy, or HostGator.
A domain name usually costs from $12- $100 per year.
The price will depend on the extension you choose. For example, the .xyz extension is one of the cheapest, and the .net is more expensive.
