Guide · Maintenance pricing
WordPress maintenance pricing: what makes the cost vary
The work depends on what there is to maintain and on what you will ask for. Here are the six factors that actually weigh on the invoice, and why this page gives no price range.
What makes the price vary
There is no single price for maintaining a site, and that is normal: the work depends on what there is to maintain and on what you will ask for. An eight-page brochure site with ten plugins does not take the same time as a thirty-page site that handles bookings.
The type of site
A brochure site presents a company and changes little. A catalogue site shows products or services that evolve. A site that takes payments or bookings is a more demanding environment: an outage costs money immediately, and every intervention needs more care.
How many plugins, and how good they are
Every plugin is one more piece of software to follow. Twenty-five plugins means twenty-five vendors shipping on their own schedules. Quality counts as much as number: a plugin maintained by an active team updates without incident, while one abandoned two years ago becomes a problem at every major version.
How complex the build is
A site put together with an off-the-shelf theme and a few settings behaves predictably. A site with custom code, unusual templates or integrations with other tools takes more attention at every intervention, because there are more places where something can shift.
How often upkeep runs
Coming by once a month, twice, or every week is not the same amount of work. The right frequency depends on how much the site moves, not on the size of the company. We explain how it gets chosen in the upkeep guide.
How many changes you will ask for
This is the most underestimated factor. A company that changes three pieces of text a quarter does not have the same need as one that publishes every week. The included change time is chosen on that basis: thirty minutes, two hours or five hours a month, depending on the plan.
The level of service
Hearing back within three business days, within one, or the same day on weekdays does not get reserved the same way. A short response time means holding availability, and that availability costs something even on the days nobody writes.
Worth remembering
Two of the six factors depend on you rather than on the site: how often you ask for changes, and how fast you want an answer. They are often what moves a quote the most, and the two people forget to specify when asking for a price.
Monthly plan or block of hours
Two different logics, and they complement each other rather than replace each other.
The monthly plan covers routine upkeep and an included amount of change time. It is paid every month whether you ask for something or not, because the upkeep happens either way. The included time does not roll over from one month to the next.
A block of hours is for changes that go beyond that included time: a page to rework, a section to add, a form to build. It is bought once, used as needs come up, and stays valid for twelve months.
In short, the plan maintains the site and the block moves it forward. If your requests regularly exceed the included time, that is usually a sign a higher plan would cost less than a block burned through too fast. We will tell you before you get there.
When a request risks going past the included time, we tell you before we start, never after. You then decide whether to wait for next month or open a block. See the three plans.
Find out which one fits
The simplest thing is still to show us the site. We will tell you what is reasonable.
Request coverageWhat becomes a separate project
A redesign, a new version of the site, developing a feature that does not exist yet: this work is quoted separately, with its own schedule.
That is not a way to bill more, it is what keeps the plan predictable. A plan that absorbed any amount of work would eventually cost the price of the largest possible job, paid monthly by everyone. We set out exactly where the line falls.
Why the prices you find online vary so much
Looking for a price, you will see wide gaps from one offer to the next. It is not only a matter of positioning: mostly, they are different scopes.
Some plans include hosting, which moves a cost you already had somewhere else. Others include backup infrastructure, automated monitoring, security, sometimes SEO. Others again sell essentially intervention time, as we do.
So comparing two monthly amounts without looking at what they cover leads to false conclusions. A more expensive plan that includes hosting can cost less overall; a cheap plan with no change time included can turn out costly at the first request.
The useful question is not “how much”, but “how much for what”. Our scope is written down: upkeep, fixes, changes, follow-up. What is not in it is stated just as plainly.
How we set yours
We look at the site: how many pages, which plugins are in place, how it was built, and what you expect to change. Twenty minutes of conversation is usually enough to pin down the six factors above.
You then receive a written proposal, with the recommended plan and what it covers. The price is set with you before we start, and it does not move afterwards. If something needs to go beyond, we tell you before, never after.
Common questions
Why are your rates not published?
Because a published number would be wrong for most sites. The six factors above move the real work by a wide margin. We would rather look at your site for twenty minutes and give you an accurate price than post a headline figure the first conversation would contradict.
Can the price go up along the way?
The agreed plan does not change on its own. If your needs evolve, say because your requests regularly exceed the included time, we talk about it and you decide. Nothing is added without your agreement.
Is there a setup fee?
Coverage starts with a review of where the site stands and a catch-up pass. Depending on the condition of the site, that initial work can be larger or smaller. It is quoted in the proposal, before you commit.
A price for your site,
not an average.
Tell us what you have. One conversation, then a written proposal.
Request coverage