WordPress maintenance and support plans
Every update tested before it goes live, by one person who knows your site.
Hands-off WordPress maintenance: core and plugin updates, backups, security, fixes and changes, with managed hosting in Australia if you want it. Unused hours roll over for 12 months, and a small job costs minutes, not an hour.
What is WordPress maintenance?
A WordPress maintenance service is the regular work that keeps a WordPress site safe and working: core, theme and plugin updates, backups, security checks, uptime monitoring and fixing what breaks. Mine works as a WordPress care plan: prepaid hours that roll over for 12 months, with managed hosting in Australia if you want it.
What I do each month
For WordPress sites I built and sites someone else built.
How it works
- YouSend what needs changingOne line is enough. Attach anything that helps.
- MeI make the changeAs soon as possible, 9am to 5pm Melbourne time. Bigger jobs get a time estimate first.
- LoggedTime in 6 minute blocksA small change costs minutes, not an hour.
- MonthlyA plain reportWhat was done and the hours you have left.
What it costs
Prices in AUD, ex GST. Premium plugin licences and domains are passed on at cost.
Prepaid hours or a monthly WordPress maintenance plan?
Many maintenance plans reset every month, so you pay for hours you never use. Mine don't.
| Compared on | My prepaid hours | A typical monthly plan |
|---|---|---|
| Unused time | Rolls over month to month, and stays valid for 12 months | Usually lost, or carried over for a month at most |
| A quiet month | Costs nothing extra | Costs the same as a busy one |
| Billing | 6 minute blocks, so a small job costs minutes | A fixed monthly fee, whatever the work |
| Lock-in | None: buy a block when you need one | Sometimes a minimum term |
Managed WordPress hosting
Managed hosting is the hands-off option. Your site runs on Australian servers, with WordPress core and plugin updates, backups, SSL and uptime monitoring included. It covers the website only, not email: Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 both work well alongside it.
The difference from cheap shared hosting is who does the updates. Cheap hosting keeps the server running and leaves WordPress to you, which is how sites end up years behind on plugins. On mine, I do the updates, and I test them first.
Hacked WordPress site? What I do first
- Lock it down: change every password and key, and take the site offline if it's sending spam or malware to visitors.
- Restore a clean backup from before the hack, if there is one.
- Find the way in, often an out-of-date plugin or theme, and close it.
- Clean up what's left, update everything, and remove unused plugins and user accounts.
- Check Google Search Console for security warnings, and ask Google to review the site if it was flagged.
For clients, a site that's down or hacked is a critical incident, so I work on it outside business hours too.
What a client says
Anthony created a dream international website for me as a professional opera singer and continues to go above and beyond in his technical support, easy and effortless communication and genuine customer care. His creativity, versatility and exceptional custom-design sites ensures that businesses and professionals from all walks of life get a great deal! If you are looking for someone who understands all things websites and digital, I could not recommend him any more highly: 5 out of 5 stars! Thanks Anthony!
Common questions
How much does WordPress maintenance cost?
Prepaid hours start at $725 for 5 hours ex GST, billed in 6 minute blocks, and unused hours roll over for 12 months. Pay as you go is $150 an hour. Managed hosting, with updates included, is $220 a month.
Do I have to move my site to your hosting?
No. Managed hosting is the hands-off option, and it includes the updates. If you'd rather stay with your current host, I'll do the updates and fixes there and bill them from your hours.
Is managed WordPress hosting worth it?
Yes, if nobody on your team keeps WordPress updated. Mine is $220 a month ex GST, on Australian servers, and includes core and plugin updates, backups, SSL and uptime monitoring. It covers the website only, not email.
How often should a WordPress site be updated?
Check for updates at least monthly, and install security fixes as soon as they come out. Most hacks use holes that already have a fix, on sites that never installed it.
Why does WordPress get hacked so much?
Because it runs more than 40% of websites, so it's worth attackers' time, and most sites run plugins from many different authors. Most of the holes are in plugins and themes, not WordPress itself, so sites with out-of-date plugins are the easy targets.
What does a WordPress update cost?
On managed hosting, core and plugin updates are included. Otherwise you pay only for the time they take, in 6 minute blocks from your prepaid hours. Bigger jobs, like a major theme or PHP upgrade, get a time estimate first.
Can you speed up a slow WordPress site?
Yes. Slow WordPress sites usually come down to heavy images, missing caching or too many plugins. I find what's slowing yours, fix it on prepaid hours and check the result with Google's PageSpeed tools. If you'd like the whole site checked first, a Website Health Check covers speed, search and tracking.
Is there a minimum term?
Managed hosting has a 3 month minimum, then it's month to month. Prepaid hours expire 12 months after you buy them.
What happens if I leave?
You take your site, your content and your domain with you.
Do you look after sites that aren't on WordPress?
Yes. I look after Craft CMS and Shopify sites too, on the same prepaid hours. See website care plans for other platforms.
Want WordPress off your to-do list?
Tell me about the site and where it's hosted. I'll suggest the right block of hours, or tell you if pay as you go makes more sense.
Call me on 0466 977 253 or send me a message. I answer both myself.
Bigger project? I bring in Keal Collective, vetted people I work with, and stay your lead.