The verdict in three sentences
The creation cost of a website is often less than half of the real spend over three years. The true recurring items are domain, managed hosting, maintenance and SEO, which can exceed the initial price as early as year two. Anticipating this total cost of ownership (TCO) from the quote stage avoids the nasty surprise and the site abandoned for lack of recurring budget.
Recurring cost grid (2026)
| Item | 2026 range | Frequency | Essential? |
|---|---|---|---|
| .com domain | 10,000 - 15,000 FCFA | per year | Yes |
| .sn domain | 15,000 - 25,000 FCFA | per year | Optional |
| Managed hosting | 25,000 - 75,000 FCFA | per month | Yes |
| SSL certificate | 0 - 30,000 FCFA | per year | Yes (often free) |
| Technical maintenance | 50,000 - 200,000 FCFA | per month | Recommended |
| SEO | 75,000 - 300,000 FCFA | per month | Goal-dependent |
| Automatic backups | 5,000 - 20,000 FCFA | per month | Yes |
3-year total cost of ownership
Two realistic scenarios, excluding advertising campaigns.
| Item | Showcase (3 years) | E-commerce (3 years) |
|---|---|---|
| Initial creation | 500,000 FCFA | 2,400,000 FCFA |
| Domain (3 years) | 45,000 FCFA | 45,000 FCFA |
| Managed hosting | 1,080,000 FCFA | 2,700,000 FCFA |
| Maintenance | 1,800,000 FCFA | 5,400,000 FCFA |
| SEO (24 months) | 1,800,000 FCFA | 4,800,000 FCFA |
| Backups | 360,000 FCFA | 720,000 FCFA |
| 3-year TCO total | ~5,585,000 FCFA | ~16,065,000 FCFA |
Recurring spend therefore weighs ~90% of a showcase TCO and ~85% of an e-commerce one: the creation quote alone is misleading.
How to reduce the recurring bill
| Lever | Potential saving | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Shared vs managed hosting | -40 to -60% | Performance, support |
| Quarterly vs monthly maintenance | -50% | Security, late updates |
| In-house SEO after training | -100% of vendor cost | Learning curve |
| Free SSL (Let's Encrypt) | -30,000 FCFA/year | None for a standard site |
Mini case study
Moussa, who runs an accounting firm in Thies, only budgets the 500,000 FCFA creation cost. After a year, with no maintenance or managed hosting, his site crashes during a botched update and loses its ranking. Emergency recovery: 350,000 FCFA. Had he provisioned a maintenance + hosting plan at 75,000 FCFA/month, he'd have spent 900,000 FCFA over the year but avoided the outage, the SEO loss and the extra cost. The recurring plan was cheaper than the accident.
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FAQ
What is the minimum recurring cost of a showcase site?
At minimum the domain (~12,000 FCFA/year) and hosting (25,000 FCFA/month entry-level), i.e. about 312,000 FCFA/year excluding maintenance.
Is maintenance really mandatory?
Not legally mandatory but strongly recommended: without security updates, a site gets hacked or breaks. Budget 50,000 to 200,000 FCFA/month depending on complexity.
Why does hosting cost more for e-commerce?
E-commerce needs more server resources, frequent backups and high availability: 50,000 to 75,000 FCFA/month vs 25,000 for a showcase site.
Is the .sn domain necessary?
The .sn (15,000-25,000 FCFA/year) strengthens local Senegalese anchoring, but .com remains the priority for SEO and the diaspora. Many businesses take both.
How much to plan over 3 years, all-in?
About 5.6 million FCFA for a showcase and 16 million FCFA for an e-commerce site, of which 85 to 90% are recurring costs excluding advertising.
Let's talk about your project. We give you a transparent 3-year TCO, creation and recurring separated, from the quote stage. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
