How much does a website really cost to run?

Clients often tell us: "I already paid $3,000 for the website. Why would I keep paying monthly?"

It's a fair question. And the answer is that a website isn't a toaster. It's a living thing that needs care.

The one-time cost is just the beginning

Let's break down what happens after your site launches:

| Item | Typical annual cost | |---|---| | Domain renewal | ~$15 | | Hosting (managed) | $120–$600 | | SSL / CDN | $0–$240 | | Backups (off-site, tested) | $60–$360 | | Uptime monitoring | $0–$120 | | Updates + security patching | $0–$900 (freelancer time) | | The "something broke" emergency | $200–$2,000 per incident |

Skip the backups and monitoring and the first emergency will usually cost more than a year of care.

Where the real costs hide

The sneaky costs aren't invoices — they're your time:

• 2 hours a month updating plugins and checking the site
• A lost weekend when something breaks
• A developer's emergency rate when you need it now
• The revenue you lose while the site is down

For most small businesses, "free" maintenance costs more than ours does.

What $49/month buys you

Our Launch plan covers the boring, expensive parts:

• Hosting — on fast, managed infrastructure
• Daily backups — restore-tested, not just scheduled
• Monitoring — 24/7, so we catch issues first
• Updates & security — patched before they become problems
• 2 content edits/month — prices, promos, team pages
• Email support — a real human within 24 hours

Compare that to a single emergency call-out at $150/hour and the value is obvious.

The bottom line

Your website isn't a project with a finish date — it's an ongoing business asset. The question isn't "why monthly?" The question is "what's it worth to never think about it?"

For most businesses, the answer is less than a cup of coffee a day.

Curious what plan fits your situation? Check the pricing or send us a note.