The verdict in three sentences
A business website without maintenance is a time bomb: security holes, outdated plugins, silent outages. A maintenance retainer costs 80 to 350 EUR/month depending on service level and SLA. It's insurance: a single uncovered emergency (800-2,500 EUR) costs more than a full year of the Essential tier.
The three retainer tiers
Maintenance is structured into tiers by responsiveness and scope. Here are the typical 2026 levels in Berlin.
| Tier | Price (EUR/month) | Included | Intervention SLA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential | 80 - 130 | Security updates, backups, uptime | 72 business hours |
| Comfort | 150 - 230 | + small edits (2 h/month), monitoring | 24 business hours |
| Premium | 250 - 350 | + edits (4 h/month), priority support, reporting | 4 business hours |
The SLA (guaranteed intervention time) is the real differentiator: for a lead-generating site, 4 h vs 72 h can mean thousands of euros in lost contacts.
Included, out-of-scope and the cost of an outage
Knowing what's covered avoids surprise invoices. Here is the 2026 detail.
| Service | Included in retainer | Out of scope (on demand) |
|---|---|---|
| CMS/plugin security updates | Yes | - |
| Automatic backups | Yes | - |
| Restore after outage | Yes (covered) | 800 - 2,500 EUR if uncovered |
| Small content edits | 2-4 h/month by tier | 60 - 90 EUR/h beyond |
| New feature | No | Project quote |
| Page redesign | No | 400 - 1,200 EUR/page |
The most underestimated item is post-hack restoration: without backups or a retainer, bringing a site back after compromise routinely costs 800 to 2,500 EUR in emergency work, plus lost revenue.
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Mini case study
Markus runs an accounting firm in Berlin. His site generates 12 contacts/month. He hesitated to pay for a retainer. One Sunday, an unpatched plugin flaw takes the site down. Without a contract, the emergency fix costs him 1,800 EUR plus 4 days offline, roughly 6 lost contacts. He then subscribes to the Comfort tier at 190 EUR/month (2,280 EUR/year): backups, updates and a 24 h SLA. The math is clear: a single avoided outage nearly repays a full year of maintenance.
FAQ
Is maintenance really mandatory? Technically no, but an unpatched CMS is the leading cause of hacks. Without a retainer, you're playing the lottery: the question isn't whether an outage happens, but when.
What exactly does the SLA cover? The SLA guarantees an intervention time (4 h to 72 business hours by tier), not a resolution time. For a critical commercial site, aim for a 4-to-24 h SLA.
Are small edits included? By tier: 2 h/month in Comfort, 4 h/month in Premium. Beyond that, they bill at 60 to 90 EUR/h. New features always get a separate quote.
How much does an uncovered outage cost? An emergency restore after a hack or crash routinely costs 800 to 2,500 EUR, not counting revenue lost during downtime. The Essential tier at 80-130 EUR/month avoids this risk.
Can I change tiers mid-year? Yes, most contracts let you move up or down a tier with one month's notice, as your needs and traffic evolve.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your CMS, page count and business criticality: we'll recommend a maintenance retainer of 80 to 350 EUR/month with the right SLA. Detailed quote within 48 h. 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.
