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Website maintenance cost per month is an important part of any business, yet it can often be overlooked. Many people don't realize how much work goes into maintaining a website not mentioning costs and services, and keeping it updated with the latest content to ensure that it's running smoothly and doesn't experience any downtime.
In this guide, we will discuss some of the best ways to maintain your website either by yourself or by professionals like Fit Design - web design agency in London - that will keep it running smoothly. We'll also talk about the average costs involved and what kind of services you should expect from a freelance website designer or website design agency.
Table of contents:
What is a website?
A website is a collection of web pages that are accessible on the internet. A web page is a document that is formatted in HTML and can be viewed in a web browser. A website can be static or dynamic.
- A static website is a collection of web pages that are stored on a web server. The web pages do not change unless they are updated by the webmaster.
- A dynamic website is generated by a web application. The web application retrieves the website's data from a database and generates the web pages on-the-fly.
What is website maintenance?
It's important to know that a good website has only 0.05s [50 milliseconds] to make a notable first impression or your site visitors might end up moving on to the competition. Web design and SEO are not about just having a pretty website, it's more about building trust, confidence, and credibility with your audience.
What does website maintenance include?
It's the process of keeping your website up-to-date, error-free and optimized for search engine and users. This includes website maintenance tasks like regularly backing up your website, updating your website content and ensuring that all your plugins are up-to-date.
Also, as your business grows, you might need to add new features to your website or make changes to the existing ones. All these changes require web maintenance that can be time-consuming and costly if you don't have the right tools or the right knowledge.
Always assess the scope of work required before you make any changes and reach out to a freelance website designer or a web design agency in London for a quote or solution.
How much is monthly maintenance for a website?
Well, website maintenance cost depends on the type of site and on a few factors like the size of your website, the number of pages, the intent, the complexity of the design, and whether you need to make any changes to the existing website or add new features.
Our web design agency has breakdown the average website maintenance fees according to past works and web design projects.
- For a small website with up to ten pages, the web maintenance cost will be between £0 and £50 a month.
- For a medium website with up to fifty pages, the web cost will be between £50 and £200 a month.
- For a large website with more than fifty pages [eCommerce business], the web cost will be between £300+ a month.
Detailed costs of website maintenance
The following website costs are to be considered before you commit to hiring a web designer in London or building a website yourself. Prices and deals were valid on 28/01/2023.
1. Domain name
Price: from £0.99 to £24.99 a year [ Registrar fee ]
The domain name is the web address of your website, like "fitdesignldn.com" or "mhservices.org.uk". Once you have registered your domain name, it's yours for as long as you renew it.
Popular domain providers
Namecheap
Create your online identity cheap with confidence.
HostGator
Another well-known domain registrar with great offers.
GoDaddy
Reliable domain and web hosting plan provider, that has been around for a while.
2. Web hosting
Price: from £30 to £200+ a year
Web hosting provide is a service that stores your website files on a dedicated server and makes them available to be viewed on the internet. Once you have registered your domain name, you will need to find a web hosting service to host your website.
Popular web hosting providers:
DreamHost
Bluehost
NameCheap
3. SSL certificate
Price: from 0 to £500 a year
An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that encrypts the data exchanged between your website and its visitors. It is important to have an SSL certificate if you want to accept payments on your website. An SSL certificate typically comes FREE in a bundle with web hosting, but you may need to purchase it separately if you need premium website security.
4. Email hosting
Price: from £20 to £200 a year
Email hosting is a service that provides you with an email address for your website. For example, if your domain name is "fitdesignldn.com", you can have an email address like "info@fitdesignldn.com". Email hosting typically comes bundled with web hosting, but you may need to purchase it separately with some providers. Either way, it's recommended as it will boost your website's credibility and authority.
5. Update
Price: from £0 to £1000+ a year
As your business grows, you might need to add new features to your website or make changes to the existing ones. All these changes require website maintenance that can be time-consuming and costly if you don't have the right tools or the right knowledge.
At this stage, you might need help from a web design agency in London or a freelance website designer that charges you a fixed fee or monthly cost.
Web agency vs freelance web designer maintenance costs
When it comes to web design and maintenance, there are a few different options available to businesses. Option one is to hire a web design agency in London and option two is to hire a freelance website designer.
1. Web design agency
Will come with a team of web designers and developers who can manage all aspects of your site from WordPress website maintenance service, website analytics, and domain registration to functionality and security updates.
Benefit:
- You will have a team of experts working on your website at all time
- When it comes to monthly website maintenance fees, you will get a more comprehensive service
- Web design agencies can offer a more holistic approach to web development, design and maintenance
- Great communication and time-efficient service
Drawback:
- Web agencies tend to be more expensive than freelance web designers
- Prefer to work with long-term clients
Price:
Monthly essential website maintenance costs start from £50/month which includes analysis and report. Or you can pay a fixed fee every 3,6 or 12 months for audit and maintenance service that usually starts from £150+.
2. Freelance web designer
A web designer that works independently and is usually available to be hired for short-term web design projects. Offers similar website maintenance plans as an agency, which include technical maintenance, domain name renewal, WordPress maintenance service and so on.
Benefits:
- It is more affordable than a web design agency in London
- Faster turnaround time
- Can be more flexible with their working hours
Drawbacks:
- May not have the same level of expertise as a web agency
- Doesn't have access to premium design/development tools
- May not offer a comprehensive maintenance services
Price:
The monthly website maintenance pricing could be as low as £25/month. The fixed fee could be negotiated individually according to the website owner's needs and requirements.
Website maintenance package
Both options, web design agencies and freelance web designers offer website maintenance packages that are billed monthly or annually. These web maintenance costs usually include:
- Regular website backups
- Website's performance monitoring and reporting
- Security scanning and malware removal
- Software and plugin updates
- Uptime monitoring
- Live chat and technical support
- And more…
The website maintenance cost UK will depend on the size and complexity of your website, as well as the number of features you need. For example, a small business website with only a few pages will need a website maintenance plan that cost less than eCommerce websites with thousands of products.
The average monthly website maintenance costs for a small business start from £50/month. The larger online stores - eCommerce website maintenance has an average monthly costs starting from £200/month.
How often should you do website maintenance services?
Business website owners should be aware of the importance of website maintenance. Not only is it necessary to keep your site looking fresh and up-to-date, but it's also important to ensure that your site is functioning properly and providing a positive user experience.
So, how often should you do website maintenance? While there is no hard and fast rule, we recommend performing a site audit at least once a month. This will help you identify any areas that need improvement and make sure that your site is running smoothly.
Also, with the right tools like GTmetrix and Google Analytics in place, you can keep an eye on your website performance and make sure that it is meeting your goals. If you want to rank higher and optimize your web pages SeoObility and SEOTester are great tools to check ranking, on-page SEO strategy and many more.
According to the KPMG survey about online shopping, there is a huge global arena of consumers ready to spend US$1.9 trillion online. So, it's worth tapping into this market by ensuring that your site is up to date and user-friendly.
Steps to take to lower website maintenance costs?
Check out the following website maintenance services list and see how you can take matters into your own hands and keep website maintenance costs down.
1. Review the website goals and objectives
Before you start making changes to your site, it's important to take a step back and review your website's goals and objectives. What is your site trying to achieve? What are your target customers looking for? By understanding your goals, you can ensure that any changes you make will help you achieve them.
2. Check for broken links
One of the most important aspects of website maintenance is checking for broken links. Broken links can frustrate users and damage your credibility, so it's important to fix them as soon as possible. You can use a tool like BrokenLink or DeadLinkChecker to scan your site for broken links.
3. Update your content
Another important step in website maintenance is updating your content. Outdated content can make your site look stale and unprofessional, so it's important to keep it fresh. You should aim to update your content regularly adding new blog posts, products, and pages as needed. Many great AI tools are out there to help you without any knowledge and writing skills.
If you have a content management system (CMS), you can make updates yourself. If not, you may have to hire a freelance web designer in London or a web development agency to help you. Updating your content doesn't have to be a huge undertaking. Even small changes, like fixing typos or updating your About page, can make a big difference.
4. Optimize search engines
If you want your site to be successful and rank high on search engine results pages [SERPs] you have to make sure your site has search engine optimization [SEO] at its fullest. This means ensuring that your site is well-designed, fast-loading, and mobile-friendly. You should also make sure that your content is keyword-rich and informative and has all the necessary on-page website's SEO elements to reach good search engine rankings.
There are several ways to improve your site's SEO, but it's important to start with the basics. You can use tools like Outranking, Marketmuse and Surfer to create content, and optimize your site's keyword, title, and meta tags. If you need a free audit, reach out to Fit Design and our expert web design agency in London will send you a full report.
5. Monitor your site's performance
Make sure to monitor your site's performance regularly. This includes things like checking your web server's error logs, uptime monitors and analyzing your website traffic. Doing this will help you identify any potential problems early on and fix them before they cause major issues.
FAQ - website maintenance guide for beginners
- How often do I need website maintenance services?
It depends on your website and business. If you have an eCommerce website, you'll need to update your product inventory regularly. If you have a personal blog post website, you'll need to add new content regularly. If you have a static website, you may only need to make changes occasionally.
- How much does website maintenance cost?
The cost of website maintenance varies depending on the size and complexity of your site, as well as the frequency of changes. You can expect to pay anywhere from £25 to £500 per month for website maintenance services.
- What if I don't do website maintenance?
If you don't maintain your website, it will become outdated and may no longer function properly. This can frustrate users, damage your credibility, and hurt your business. So it's important to keep your site up-to-date and running smoothly with regular website maintenance services.
- Who should perform my website maintenance service?
You can perform website maintenance yourself if you have the time and knowledge. If not, you may want to hire a web designer or web development London to help you.
Conclusion
Cost of maintaining a website can seem daunting, but it's important to keep your site running smoothly and looking its best. If you want to achieve success online and make sales, you have to make sure your site is well-designed, fast-loading, and mobile-friendly. You should also update your content regularly and optimize your site for SEO. By following these tips, you can ensure that your website is always up-to-date and running smoothly
And if you ever need help, don't hesitate to reach out to our bespoke web design agency in London. We're always happy to help! Our services include regular maintenance, web design, web development, SEO, eCommerce solutions and digital marketing campaigns. As a full-service web design agency, Fit Design will help your online business grow. Contact us today to learn more about our website maintenance services and tech support.
