What does WordPress maintenance really cost?

"Maintenance from € 29/month" sounds tempting – usually its a loss-leader. "Maintenance € 499/month" sounds excessive – often fair for complex shops. Where the truth lies depends on four concrete factors. Honest hour calculation, not marketing flat rates.

What maintenance actually includes

1. Updates – WordPress core, theme, plugins, PHP. 30–60 min per cycle smoothly. With conflicts: 2–4 hours.
2. Backups – daily auto, weekly/monthly versions stored externally (3-2-1).
3. Security monitoring – Wordfence/Solid, login protection, 2FA, malware scans.
4. Uptime monitoring – external tools, SMS/email alerts.
5. Performance checks – monthly Lighthouse, Web Vitals in Search Console.
6. Database optimisation – clean spam, limit revisions, optimise tables. Quarterly.
7. Content adjustments – small text/image updates, 0.5–4 hours/month included.
8. Communication & support – email replies, calls, status updates.

Realistic hour calculation

An average WordPress site (5–15 pages, 10–15 plugins) needs per month:

At a fair € 75–110/hour rate (AT/DE agency), thats a realistic maintenance package between € 79 and € 249/month. Anything below means either nothing happens or youre cross-subsidised (wont last).

What "€ 29/month" really means

Such flat rates work in two models: either fully automated maintenance without human verification (= updates installed but nobody checks if site still works), or a lock-in offer binding you to a host that makes its margin on overpriced add-ons.

When you need more

• WooCommerce shop – € 149–349/month
• High traffic (50,000+ visits/mo) – € 249–499/month
• Complex plugin stack (20+ plugins) – higher conflict risk
• High SLA – guaranteed 1-hour response = standby fees
• Multilingual / multi-site – each language must be checked separately

What you can do yourself

Safe to DIY: small content changes, posts, image swaps. Dont DIY without backup plan: plugin updates (especially major versions), PHP updates, theme updates, custom code, database operations. One failed update can take a site down for hours.

Hidden costs of no maintenance

• Hacked WordPress shop cleanup: typically € 1,500–6,000 + reputation damage
• Forgotten PHP update → "site doesnt work" after 2–3 years → migration € 800–2,500
• Lost Google ranking from downtime/malware – months to recover
• GDPR breach via outdated plugin – four-to-five-figure fines

Bottom line

Maintenance for € 79–249/month is cheap insurance. Maintenance for € 29/month is usually no maintenance at all. The hourly rate a pro must charge for clean WordPress maintenance is transparently calculable – anyone promising less either skimps on service or recoups elsewhere.