# Website maintenance: what it includes and what it costs > What website maintenance covers, what it costs on the German market and what to check in the contract. My care tiers from €79 per month, compared. Author: Lika Kandel Published: 2026-07-09 Updated: 2026-10-01 Source: https://likakandel.com/en/blog/website-wartung-was-gehoert-dazu-und-was-kostet-es --- > **At a glance** > > - Website maintenance keeps the technology, security and content of your site up to date: hosting, backups, monitoring, updates and small changes. > - With me it costs €79, €189 or €390 per month; according to my market research (prices as of 27 September 2026), the market ranges from about €29 to €390 per month. ## What does website maintenance include? Maintenance, upkeep and website care usually describe the same service, with three areas of focus: - **Maintenance:** keeping the technology current and installing security updates. - **Upkeep:** keeping the content current, changing copy and images. - **Operations:** monitoring uptime, testing forms, keeping backups. A site without maintenance ends up showing outdated content, runs on insecure technology, and its forms stop working. When that happens depends on how the site is built, so I will not give you a fixed figure. ## What do my three care tiers include? *What the three care tiers include* | Service | €79 per month | €189 per month | €390 per month | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Hosting, SSL, domain | yes | yes | yes | | Daily backups, restore tested every quarter | yes | yes | yes | | Uptime monitoring, alert within 15 minutes | yes | yes | yes | | Security updates | yes | yes | yes | | Content changes per month | 30 minutes | 2 hours | 6 hours | | Report on load time and Core Web Vitals | quarterly | monthly | monthly | | Search Console check, scan for broken links and 404 errors | no | monthly | monthly | | Ranking report for your search terms | no | yes | yes | | New pages per year | no | 1 | 4 | | Strategy call | no | quarterly | monthly | | Review with recommendations | no | no | quarterly | | Response time during business hours | 2 working days | 1 working day | 4 hours | No VAT is charged under §19 UStG (small business exemption). Care is optional and runs for at least 12 months, then you can cancel monthly. ## What does website maintenance cost on the market? According to my market research (prices as of 27 September 2026), entry-level plans start at about €29 to €40 per month. Two agencies quote €80 to €200 and €80 to €300 as typical, and the highest tier I found costs €390 per month. These are the prices you will come across when you compare website care in Germany. The price says little until you know what it covers. A €29 plan usually includes less time for changes and no reports; a €189 plan includes analysis and calls. Compare hours, response time and reports, not just the monthly amount. ## How do you maintain a website yourself? If you look after the site yourself, work through this list regularly: - [ ] Check that copy, prices, opening hours and contact details are up to date. - [ ] Update the software and plugins, as far as your system requires it. - [ ] Test the contact form and check that the confirmation email arrives. - [ ] Look for broken links and 404 errors, for example in Search Console. - [ ] Measure load time and Core Web Vitals, the values Google uses to rate how a page loads and how stable it is. - [ ] Check how often a backup is made and whether the site can actually be restored from it. If you do not want to do this every month, hand it over to a website care plan. That is exactly what a maintenance contract is: an ongoing agreement in which a provider takes care of maintenance, upkeep and updates. ## What does a website cost per month in total? On top of the monthly care fee come the domain and hosting, if they are not included. With me, hosting, SSL and domain are part of all three tiers, so at €79, €189 or €390 per month you know your running costs. With other providers, ask what the monthly fee does not cover. ## Do you need maintenance if you edit the site yourself? If you change the content yourself, you mainly need the technical side: updates, backups, monitoring. A CMS like Webflow lets you edit copy without code, and I show you how. The technology behind it keeps running all the same and needs someone watching it. ## What should you look for in a maintenance contract? - **Term and notice:** how long are you tied in? - **Hosting and domain:** are they included in the price, and who owns them? - **Changes:** how many minutes or hours per month are included? - **Response time:** what happens if the site goes down? - **Reports:** do you get figures on load time, visitors and enquiries? - **Backups:** how often, and has a restore ever been tested? When you buy a website from me, I look after it after launch in one of the three tiers, if you want. What the package looks like is explained in [Fixed-price website: what should the price include?](https://likakandel.com/en/blog/website-erstellen-lassen-festpreis-was-ist-enthalten) **Next step:** you will find the services and terms of website care under [Website care](https://likakandel.com/en/website-betreuung). If you would like to know which tier suits your site, [book a call](https://likakandel.com/en/termin).