by There are two types of WordPress maintenance packages: hourly and monthly. Both offer similar benefits, but they differ in important ways. When choosing between a monthly or hourly WordPress maintenance package, you want to consider more than just the cost.
Monthly plans usually cost less per month, but they require a subscription term of at least six months. Hourly plans allow you to pay only for the time spent maintaining your site on an as requested basis.
You might think, “Oh, great! An hourly plan means I don’t have to worry about paying for services I don’t use.”
Let’s look at the differences between hourly and monthly WordPress maintenance packages. Spoiler alert: You’re going to see why we recommend a monthly service plan over hourly.
The Cost of Hourly vs Monthly WordPress Maintenance
Hourly
Hourly WordPress website maintenance at Emily Journey & Associates is $200/hour with a minimum of 2 hours. This includes everything from installing plugins to fixing broken links. The hourly rate also covers any additional tasks such as backups, security audits, theme version updates, etc.
Monthly
A monthly website maintenance package starts at around $299/month with a minimum term of 6 months. WordPress.com lists the six most crucial maintenance tasks as:
- WordPress Core Updates
- Plugin Updates
- Theme Updates
- WordPress Website Backups
- Check Uptime and Performance
- Website Security and Malware Scans
Emily Journey’s monthly WordPress maintenance plans include all of the regular updates your website needs for security, plus some extra features like automated backups, malware scanning, website speed optimization, etc. Our regular updates also include plugin updates, theme version updates, and updates to the WordPress software. We even test your contact form to be sure it’s working!
Contact us for more information about our monthly website maintenance services.
Dedicated Support for Hourly vs Monthly WordPress Maintenance
Hourly
With our hourly WordPress maintenance services, we do not provide dedicated support. Instead, we respond to requests for help only during business hours, and projects are assigned based on the availability of our team. This means you may not receive support as quickly as you might prefer.
Monthly
For a monthly WordPress maintenance package, you get support via email and phone from your website manager. Your website manager will answer questions about your site, troubleshoot issues, and perform routine security maintenance. If there are problems, she will work to resolve them quickly. Meet our team of WordPress consultants »
Crisis Management for WordPress Maintenance Packages
We understand how frustrating it can be when something goes wrong with your site. That’s why we offer crisis management options for both hourly and monthly WordPress maintenance.
Hourly
As with our hourly WordPress maintenance services, we do not provide dedicated support for crisis management for non-subscription clients. Instead, we respond to requests for help during business hours only, and projects are assigned based on the availability of our team of professionals. This means you may not receive support as quickly as you might prefer. Or, we may need to involve a trusted third party professional, which can create an added expense but will resolve your crisis sooner.
Monthly
If you experience a major issue with your site, we’ll make sure you’re taken care of even if the problem comes up outside our regular business hours. Your WordPress website manager will contact you by phone, email, or even text message if necessary. We will keep you up-to-date on what’s going on with your website so you know exactly what to expect. If your website manager is unavailable, then someone else on our dedicated team will pitch in to resolve your crisis.
Strategy Support for Hourly vs Monthly WordPress Maintenance
Hourly
Strategic Website, Marketing, and SEO consulting are not available on an hourly basis. Instead, we offer strategic consulting packages for Website Development Strategy planning and SEO Strategy planning.
Monthly
When you work directly with your website manager, you receive the benefit of ongoing strategic advice and consultation. Want to know the best options for website hosting? We can advise you on that. Want to know how to make some website edits on your own? Your dedicated website manager can show you how to make some changes independently or you may opt for WordPress training.
Since our clients tend to stay with us for years, we get to know their businesses quite well. We get to know the things that make your unique business tick. And, we care about the success of your business.
If you need help with anything related to your WordPress website, then it makes sense to choose a monthly website maintenance plan over an hourly one. Not only will you have a proactive, strategic partner to support your business goals, you can always contact your website manager via email or phone if you run into issues.
What if my website gets hacked?
There’s a misconception that WordPress websites have problems with security. That is true if the website is not maintained with security updates.
WordPress is an incredibly popular website management system. According to colorlib.com, there are close to 472 million websites that use WordPress as of 2024, representing approximately 43.3% of all websites. And because WordPress is so popular, it is a regular target for hackers.
But that doesn’t mean that it’s not secure. In fact, WordPress is just as secure as any other platform as long as you take the correct security measures.
Luckily, these measures aren’t complicated—they’re mostly housekeeping. But, they’re also easily forgotten if you don’t have a dedicated website manager.
Which WordPress maintenance package should I choose?
Basic Website Maintenance Plan
Great for companies that need standard monthly maintenance with basic content updates.
Monthly Subscription
$299/mo
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- Backups, security updates, and basic content changes
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- Preferred pricing for larger projects
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- We respond to your communication within 24 hours.
- Direct access to your Website Manager
Premium Website Maintenance Plan
Ideal for larger websites that need more attention each month.
Monthly Subscription plans starting at
$599/mo
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- Advanced security and support for websites using e-commerce, membership portals, multi-site, event calendars, and other types of websites requiring more attention.
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- Preferred pricing for larger projects
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- We respond to your communication within 24 hours.
- Direct access to your Website Manager
Take your next step with us
Our goal is to help your business succeed and deliver the results you deserve. If you want exceptional WordPress website maintenance services, we have you covered.
Whether you need standard monthly maintenance or more extensive WordPress maintenance services each month, we are here as a valuable resource to help your business flourish.
WordPress maintenance is necessary to ensure your site is accurate, secure, and engaging your prospects. Your professional website manager will save you time and effort so you can focus on your other important responsibilities. With a regular WordPress maintenance plan, you will have the support you need to ensure your website is healthy and attracting your prospects.
We offer responsive website maintenance plans that will enhance user experience and security. But most importantly, we customize your plan based on your vision and goals.
We are ready to create a WordPress maintenance package that will exceed your expectations.
If your WordPress maintenance plan isn’t responsive, reliable, and focused on you, it’s time—fire your website agency! You’re in the driver’s seat.
Whatever your company website needs are, let’s talk about them!
