A website with no maintenance does not break the next day. It breaks in six to eighteen months, and almost always the same way: an outdated plugin opens a security hole, or an update breaks something and nobody notices for weeks.
Maintenance is not a subscription you pay “just in case”. It is an insurance policy with very specific contents — and you should know exactly what you are buying.
Not sure what state your site is in?
Request a free check and you will get a report on updates, backups, speed and security.
What maintenance actually includes
If the quote only says “monthly maintenance”, ask for a breakdown. A serious package has six parts.
| Part | What it means | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Updates | Core, theme, plugins, PHP version | Monthly or more often |
| Backups | Files and database, stored off the server | Daily |
| Uptime monitoring | An alert if the site goes down | Continuous |
| Security | Scanning, firewall, access review | Continuous |
| Performance | Speed, database cleanup, images | Quarterly |
| Small changes | Copy, photos, prices | Monthly, in hours |
The third and sixth are what separate quotes from each other. Many packages include no working hours at all — only automated updates.
What happens if you skip it
In order of how often we see them in practice.
- A breach through an old plugin. The site fills with redirects or spam pages. Google flags it as dangerous and you lose all traffic.
- A broken contact form. It works for months, then stops after an update. Nobody notices, because nobody sends test messages.
- An incompatible PHP version. The host upgrades the server and the site shows a blank page.
- An expired SSL certificate. The browser shows a “not secure” warning and visitors leave.
- Declining speed. The database bloats, images pile up, load time doubles.
- No way to restore. When you finally need it, you discover the last backup is two years old, or nonexistent.
The second is the most insidious, because it is invisible. You lose enquiries and find out by accident.
What does it cost?
| Level | What it covers | Indicative monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | Updates, backups, monitoring | €25 – €50 |
| Standard | The above + security + 1 hour of changes | €50 – €120 |
| Full | The above + performance + 2–4 hours + reporting | €120 – €300 |
| E-shop | The above + order and payment checks | €150 – €400 |
Compare that with the cost of a breach: cleaning an infected site typically runs €300–€1,200, and that is before counting the days offline or the lost rankings.
If your site is simple and static, the basic level may be enough. If it has forms, payments or personal data, basic is not enough.
Want to know which level you need?
Send us your site’s address and we will tell you what it has and what it is missing.
Can I do it myself?
Yes, if you run WordPress and have one hour a month. The routine is specific.
Every month, in this order:
- Take a full backup before touching anything.
- Update plugins first, then the theme, then the core last.
- Open your five main pages and check they display correctly.
- Send a test message through the contact form.
- If you have an e-shop, place a test order.
- Check speed in PageSpeed Insights.
Every quarter:
- Delete plugins you do not use. An inactive plugin is still a risk.
- Review who has administrator access and remove anyone who should not.
- Confirm backups are stored off the same server.
That last point is critical. A backup living on the same server as the site disappears with it.
Where you are hosted matters too — see our guide to domains and hosting.
What to demand in a maintenance contract
Six points, in writing. Without them, you do not know what you are paying for.
- What exactly is included and what is billed separately.
- How many hours of changes per month, and whether they roll over.
- Response time on an outage: hours, not “shortly”.
- Where backups live, how many are kept, and how a restore works.
- Who holds the credentials. The answer should be “you, with the provider given access”.
- A monthly or quarterly report of what was done.
The third point separates the serious. Ask directly: “if the site goes down on a Saturday night, when does someone look at it?”
The rest of the questions to ask any partner are in our guide on choosing a web developer.
When maintenance is not enough
If your site runs on a theme that has not been updated in years, or on abandoned plugins, maintenance merely delays the inevitable.
In that case the maintenance money returns more spent on a refresh or a rebuild. The criteria are in our guide to website redesign.
The same applies if you are considering a platform change — see WordPress or custom.
Frequently asked questions
Does a simple brochure site need maintenance?
Yes, but at the basic level. Even a five-page site needs updates, SSL and backups.
What if my site is custom, with no CMS?
It has fewer updates but still needs backups, monitoring and server-level patching.
Are automatic updates not enough?
They cover half the job. The problem is not applying the update — it is having someone check whether anything broke afterwards.
How often should backups run?
Daily for an e-shop, weekly for a brochure site — and always before any update.
Who is liable if the site is lost?
It depends on the contract. That is why backup responsibility must be written down, not implied.
The ten-minute check
Open your site and check four things: the SSL padlock shows in the browser, the contact form works, it loads in under three seconds on mobile, and you know where the latest backup is.
If you are unsure about any of them, that is the first thing to sort out. The other common problems are in ten website mistakes.
Next step
Book a free 30-minute call with the team at The Dev Alley. We will look at the state of your site and tell you what level of maintenance it actually needs.