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Whether you run a small blog or a large online store, your website will require regular maintenance. This can include software updates, security management, and more. If you’re a non-technical site owner, offloading these tasks can be a good idea. But you might be wondering: how much you should pay for WordPress maintenance?
Since every WordPress website is unique, the cost of maintenance can vary greatly. That said, once you have a solid understanding of the most common requirements, you’ll be better equipped to assess any quotes or pick the most appropriate maintenance package.
In this post, we’ll start by discussing the importance of carrying out regular WordPress maintenance. Then, we’ll go over some of the main WordPress maintenance tasks. Finally, we’ll talk about how much it may cost to access ongoing maintenance services for your website. Let’s get to it!
Why you should pay for WordPress maintenance
Before we dive into our pricing guide for WordPress maintenance services, let’s talk about why outsourcing these tasks may be a good idea (and investment).
First, if you’re not a tech-savvy person, conducting regular maintenance can be tedious and time-consuming. Unfortunately, this is not something that you can neglect or attempt halfheartedly. It’s a constant job, and you wouldn’t want to drop the ball since a poorly maintained WordPress site is more vulnerable to cyberattacks.
For example, security issues like unpatched vulnerabilities can give hackers an opening to infiltrate your site. A hacking event can lead to data loss and a damaged online reputation. This could have a significant impact on your revenue.
Additionally, your website’s performance can suffer greatly if it’s not properly maintained. Slow-loading pages can lead to a poor user experience (UX). As a result, your rankings in the search engine results pages (SERPs) will suffer, and your site will miss out on valuable organic traffic.
If you run an online store or a creative enterprise, learning how to maintain a WordPress website is probably not the best use of your time. You might prefer to outsource this task so you can have more room in your schedule to focus on other aspects of your business, like growth strategies and marketing.
The most important WordPress maintenance tasks
Now, let’s go over some of the most important responsibilities when it comes to maintaining WordPress sites.
Note that the following list isn’t exhaustive. If you run a large online store, other maintenance tasks may include removing outdated customer accounts or optimizing a bloated database.
Software updates
WordPress can be extended thanks to plugins and themes. However, these tools need to be updated regularly. Otherwise, your site may not work properly or it can become susceptible to cyberattacks.
Similarly, the core WordPress software needs to be updated when new releases are available.
While updating WordPress plugins and themes is typically straightforward, there’s always a risk that new updates won’t work well with other tools on your site. Therefore, it’s best to run updates on a staging site first, to test their compatibility with the WordPress core software and other plugins.
That way, you can ensure that none of the updates will break your site or affect the user experience.
Website backups
Backups involve creating a complete copy of your website including its design, content, and database.
If your business encounters a severe server issue or data breach, you can restore a recent copy of your website to mitigate the damage and resume operations. Ideally, these backups should be stored in a safe and remote location.
Even if you take all necessary security precautions, it’s still important to make regular backups. Human errors like installing a bad plugin or misconfiguring a theme can break your site.
Security management
Security is vital to your website’s success and business reputation. In addition to ensuring that your website is up-to-date, you’ll also need to carry out other security tasks like vulnerability scanning and malware removal.
You’ll also need to keep an eye on other site elements like secure sockets layer (SSL) certificates. An expired SSL certificate enables malicious actors to intercept the connection between your server and the user’s browser.
Performance optimization
Performance is vital to the success of any site. It can impact your user experience and rankings.
Managing speed optimization is part of regular site maintenance. This may include installing tools like caching plugins or a content delivery network (CDN), compressing media files, removing unnecessary plugins and scripts, and more.
How much do WordPress maintenance services cost?
By now, you should have an idea of common WordPress maintenance tasks, and why they’re important. But you’re probably still wondering: how much do WordPress maintenance services cost?
Well, the answer isn’t so simple. As we have seen, WordPress maintenance isn’t a one-time job. It requires you to complete multiple recurring tasks. Plus, many of these tasks need to be carried out at different intervals, and you won’t be able to anticipate all of them.
For instance, you’ll likely need to update the WordPress core less frequently than certain plugins. And, unless you’re constantly following WordPress news and plugin development, you won’t know when the next update will be available. That means you’ll need a long-term service, which typically involves monthly charges.
So, let’s discuss some ballpark numbers for hiring a freelance WordPress maintenance expert. To get these data points, we did some research on Fiverr, which is one of the most popular freelancer marketplaces.
We discovered that the lower end of the price range for WordPress maintenance services is around $30 per month:
However, this is for a basic service like updates and bug fixes. If you want a website audit and a project plan, the price increases to $180 per month.
You can find more comprehensive WordPress maintenance services, but naturally, they’ll cost more:
For example, some WordPress experts offer steeper prices, ranging from $200 – $300 per month. But they provide a lot more in their maintenance packages:
After looking at other freelancer marketplaces like Upwork, we found that not a lot of professionals offer monthly packages (only hourly services). And, most other platforms where you can hire WordPress developers (like Toptal or Codeable) require a premium membership. So, it can be difficult to assess freelancer fees for ongoing maintenance tasks.
Should you hire an agency for WordPress maintenance?
As we have seen, the cost of WordPress maintenance services falls somewhere between $30 and $300 per month. However, hiring a freelancer for ongoing WordPress maintenance can be tricky. This can be due to several reasons.
Firstly, lots of freelancers prefer to charge on an hourly basis. This isn’t ideal for recurring maintenance work because you could end up paying more if the freelancer isn’t very efficient or if they run into a severe issue.
Additionally, if you are lucky enough to find someone who provides WordPress maintenance packages, you still can’t be sure that their offerings are comprehensive enough. Since the freelancer doesn’t have a team to collaborate with, they could have blind spots or overlook crucial elements of a WordPress maintenance plan.
With all of that in mind, hiring an agency for WordPress maintenance services can be a much safer option. Freshy is an excellent choice, as our maintenance packages include everything from regular updates to vulnerability scans:
Freshy will also conduct a complete audit of your site right at the start. This way, your maintenance plan is customized for optimal results.
What’s more, if it turns out your website has outgrown its current hosting provider, we can help you migrate to a new one. This way, you’ll have a server that can handle your demands and requirements, which can help ensure a smooth performance.
When you opt for an agency like Freshy, you can rest assured that you’re getting top-notch maintenance services from a team of WordPress experts (not just one person). You’ll also get a project manager who will communicate your needs to the team and oversee the entire process.
If your website needs upgrades beyond maintenance, Freshy can help. For instance, we can refresh your website with our bespoke WordPress design services or boost your organic traffic with WordPress SEO services.
Conclusion
Conducting regular WordPress maintenance tasks can ensure that your website runs smoothly and doesn’t fall victim to cyberattacks. It’s common for businesses to hire someone to take care of ongoing WordPress maintenance, but you might be wondering how much you’ll have to pay for it.
WordPress websites can vary widely in terms of functionality and complexity, so the cost of maintenance will depend on your requirements. If you hire a freelancer, you’ll likely pay between $30 and $300 for monthly WordPress maintenance services. However, freelancers may not be as dependable or efficient as WordPress agencies.
If you opt for a top-notch WordPress agency like Freshy for WordPress maintenance services, you’ll get everything from regular updates to malware removal. Plus, we will conduct a complete audit of your site. This way, we can provide you with the most comprehensive maintenance strategy possible. Get a quote today!
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