A vague word that hides both problems
“Website maintenance” can mean anything from a competent caretaker to an invoice for nothing in particular. The fix is not a better word, it is a list. If a provider cannot ” enumerate what they do each month, they are not maintaining anything.
The list worth paying for
1. Updates, actually applied
WordPress core, theme and plugins updated — and tested afterwards. An update that breaks the checkout is worse than no update. This is the single most important item and the one most often skipped.
2. Backups that are verified
A backup nobody has restored is a hope, not a backup. Restoring one is the only way to know it works. Monthly off-site copies at minimum, with a restore test recorded.
3. Uptime and TLS watched
Somebody should be alerted when the site is down or the certificate is about to expire. An expired certificate on a shop is revenue lost quietly, usually over a weekend.
4. Security patching and login hygiene
Known vulnerabilities patched, admin accounts reviewed, default passwords changed. Our own view is that unmaintained WordPress is not a future security problem, it is a current one with a plugin backlog.
5. A monthly summary in plain language
What was updated, what broke and was fixed, what is still open. This is the item that separates a caretaker from a vendor, and it is the one you should insist on even if everything else is routine.
6. Small fixes included
A defined allowance of small changes each month, so the routine work does not become a
series of invoices. Ours is $99–$299/month for site care, with a workflow-care
variant at $199 for automations. Both are on our
What maintenance is not
It is not redesigns, new features or SEO campaigns. Those are projects with their own
quotes. It is also not a substitute for ownership — you should still control your
domain and hosting accounts, because a caretaker who holds the keys is a single point of
failure. An unmaintained site fails slowly and then all at once: an expired certificate, a
plugin hole, a failed backup discovered at the worst moment. Across our
Next step
Send us your site URL and we will tell you what state it is actually in — what is
out of date, what is missing, and what it would cost to bring it current:
When did you last find out your site was down — and who told you?Why the cheapest option is rarely cheapest