The verdict in three sentences
In 2026, a WordPress maintenance retainer for an SME costs between EUR 50 and 900 excl. VAT a month across three levels: basic, standard and premium. For a site that generates quote requests or sales, the standard level at EUR 150 to 350 a month is almost always the right trade-off. An uncovered hack costs EUR 1,500 to 6,000 to clean up, not counting the days the site is offline.
Why quotes range from EUR 49 to 600 a month
An SME manager often receives three proposals that cannot be compared. The EUR 49 offer covers automatic updates and a weekly backup. The EUR 250 offer adds a firewall, uptime monitoring and two hours of improvements. The EUR 600 offer promises a 4-hour response. The word "maintenance" covers very different realities.
To compare, reduce each quote to five questions: who runs the updates and after which tests, where backups are stored and for how long, who monitors security, how many improvement hours are included, and what response time is guaranteed in writing.
| Level | 2026 price (excl. VAT/month) | What is included | For which site |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | EUR 50 - 120 | WordPress and plugin updates, weekly backup, monthly report | Brochure site without critical forms |
| Standard | EUR 150 - 350 | Basic + firewall, malware scan, 24/7 monitoring, daily off-site backups, 2 h of improvements | Lead-generating site |
| Premium | EUR 400 - 900 | Standard + 4 business-hour SLA, staging environment, 4 to 8 h of improvements, performance tuning | E-commerce, business-critical site |
| No contract | EUR 70 - 110/h | One-off interventions billed by time spent | Risky for an active site |
The real cost of an unmaintained site
An outdated WordPress plugin remains the main entry point for hacks on SME websites. The most frequent incidents in 2026: pharmaceutical spam injection, redirects to fraudulent sites, Google blocking with a red warning, or mass emails sent from your server.
| Incident | Clean-up cost (excl. VAT) | Indirect cost |
|---|---|---|
| Simple malware removal | EUR 400 - 1,200 | 2 to 5 days of degraded site |
| Hacked site blacklisted by Google | EUR 1,500 - 3,500 | 1 to 3 weeks of lost traffic |
| Rebuild without a usable backup | EUR 3,000 - 6,000 | Lost content and rankings |
| Form data breach | EUR 2,000 - 6,000 | GDPR notification within 72 h, reputational risk |
| Outage after an untested update | EUR 300 - 900 | Forms or payments down |
Over three years, a standard retainer at EUR 200 a month represents EUR 7,200. A single serious uncovered incident can cost the same, plus the leads lost during downtime.
The clauses to require in the contract
Before signing, check that the contract states in black and white: the response time (for example 4 business hours for a blocking incident, 48 h for a minor request), backup frequency and retention (daily, 30 days, stored off the server), coverage of clean-up in case of a hack, the number of included improvement hours and whether they roll over, ownership of access (you keep ownership of the domain, hosting and admin accounts), the commitment period (12 months maximum, cancellable with one to three months' notice) and reversibility (handover of access and a full backup at the end of the contract).
Mini case study
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Thomas manages an 18-employee renovation company and receives 25 quote requests a month through his WordPress site. He hesitates between an offer at EUR 59 and one at EUR 240 excl. VAT a month. His conversion rate is 20% and his average job is EUR 9,000, so EUR 45,000 of monthly revenue comes from the site. A week of downtime would cost him about 6 requests, so 1.2 jobs, or EUR 10,800 of revenue. The gap between the two offers, EUR 181 a month or EUR 2,172 a year, is covered by preventing a single incident. He picks the standard offer with a written SLA.
FAQ
Is a maintenance contract mandatory for a WordPress site?
No, but an unmaintained site accumulates vulnerabilities: WordPress and its plugins release several security updates a month. After 3 to 6 months without follow-up, the risk of a hack becomes high.
Can we handle maintenance ourselves?
Yes for a simple brochure site, if someone spends 2 to 4 hours a month on it and knows how to restore a backup. For a site that generates revenue, the cost of a mistake quickly exceeds the savings.
Is hosting included in the price?
Rarely in basic offers. Quality managed hosting costs an extra EUR 15 to 60 a month depending on traffic.
What happens if improvement hours are not used?
Depending on the contract, they are lost or rolled over for one to three months. Negotiate at least a two-month rollover to group small changes.
How do we switch maintenance provider?
Require the reversibility clause, recover all access and a full backup, then have the new provider run an onboarding audit, usually billed EUR 300 to 800.
Let's scope your project. We audit your WordPress site and propose a maintenance retainer that fits your business, from EUR 50 to 900 a month, with a written SLA and reversibility clauses. 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.
