WordPress Maintenance Plan: What a Host Does Not Do
A WordPress maintenance plan covers updates, separate backups, and the fixes a host bill skips. I handle that work for you, from $99 a month.
In this article· 6 sections
A host invoice is not a WordPress maintenance plan. The bill pays for the place the site sits. It does not update WordPress, store a backup somewhere else, or change the hours on the page.
The dashboard warning sits there because that click is nobody’s job. A host ticket will not make the click, and it will not put the new photo on the menu.
Short answer: A WordPress maintenance plan should include hosting and SSL, daily backups stored separately, core, plugin, and theme updates, monitoring, security hardening, and a fix when something breaks. A host bill covers the place the site lives. Managed Website Hosting & Care covers the rest from $99 a month, and you can cancel any time.
What should a WordPress maintenance plan include?
A WordPress maintenance plan should include hosting and SSL, daily backups stored separately from the site, core, plugin, and theme updates, uptime monitoring around the clock, security hardening, and a fix when something breaks. Small changes use the monthly time first, then $125 an hour.
Daily backups are stored separately from the site, so a bad day on the live copy is not the only copy you have. Security hardening is locked-down logins, firewall rules, and safe defaults.
Small changes are text, photos, hours, a new post, or a section. Email them to michael@michaelheredia.com. A link or a screenshot helps. They use the monthly time first, then $125 an hour, and I tell you before going over. Unused time does not roll over.
The WordPress maintenance page is that same list: updates, backups, and small edits.
What does a host bill leave out?
A host keeps the site in a place and bills you for that place. It does not apply WordPress updates, keep a daily backup stored separately, harden the logins, or edit the page. Those jobs are the plan. The host bill is the place, not the work.
Say you run a bike shop. The Saturday hours changed. A stack of updates sits in WordPress. The host renewed and the site still loads. None of that touched the hours or the updates. The account is fine. The page is stale.
A ticket about the account is not a person who tests a plugin update, stores a second backup, or swaps the photo. If you cannot name where yesterday’s backup lives, you do not have a separate copy.
You can keep that host. Same plans, same price. The host keeps billing you for hosting. I look after the site on the existing account and keep my own daily backup stored separately. Priority’s dedicated server applies only when I host.
If the host itself is the problem, moving one standard site is included. I copy it, test it, then switch the domain at a quiet time. A large online store or a custom app gets a fixed quote before any work starts.
What can I check before I pay for a plan?
Log in if you can, and note whether the last backup lives apart from the live site. A free outdated-site check looks for old libraries, an old copyright year, and a page that fails on a phone. Leave the update button alone if you do not trust a copy.
Open the outdated website check and save what it shows. It does not click your updates. An update that breaks a form is a Tuesday you did not plan. If that already happened, the first checks are in what to do when a WordPress site breaks after an update.
Email a link or a screenshot to michael@michaelheredia.com. Say whether you can log in, where a backup is if you know, and which page is wrong. You do not need a server login to send that note.
How do the plans cover the work a host skips?
Essentials is $99 a month with 30 minutes of changes and a reply within 2 business days. Business is $249 a month with 1 hour, a staging copy, and malware cleanup. Priority is $499 a month with 3 hours, a dedicated server, and 24/7 response if the site goes down.
Restoring a backup is included in every plan. Fixing something that broke on my watch is included too.
Essentials includes the updates and does not include a staging copy. Business and Priority test updates on a staging copy before they go live. Malware cleanup is $125 an hour on Essentials. It is included on Business and Priority.
On Essentials and Business, an outage goes to the front of the line during business hours. Priority gets a 24/7 response if the site goes down. A normal request on Essentials gets a reply within 2 business days.
You do not get a server login or a control panel to manage. You keep the domain and the content, and you can ask for a complete copy of the site any time.
Which plan fits a WordPress site?
Essentials fits a simple site with few edits. Business fits a site that brings in work, where updates should be tested on a staging copy first and malware cleanup is included. Priority fits a site that needs 24/7 response if it goes down, plus a dedicated server when I host.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $99 a month | Hosting and SSL, separate daily backups, updates, monitoring, security hardening, 30 minutes of changes, a reply within 2 business days. Malware cleanup is $125 an hour. Fixes and restores are included. |
| Business (most popular) | $249 a month | Everything in Essentials, 1 hour of changes, updates tested on a staging copy before they go live, malware cleanup included. |
| Priority | $499 a month | Everything in Business, 3 hours of changes, a dedicated server when I host, and 24/7 response if the site goes down. |
The price is the same if I host or if I look after the site on the host you already pay. “Most popular” is only the label on Business. See the plans.
When this isn’t the right fit
This is the wrong fit if someone on staff already applies the updates, keeps a separate backup, and makes the small changes. It is also the wrong fit if the pages need a redesign, a new feature, an online store, or an integration before care is the useful next step.
A care plan looks after the site you have. If the pages themselves are the problem, start with web development. Redesigns, new features, online stores, and integrations are a fixed quote before any work starts.
On cancel, the plan runs to the end of the paid month. Before it ends, you get a full copy of the site and help pointing the domain to a new host.
See the plans or send a question through the hosting form. Checkout takes a couple of minutes, and an email arrives within 1 business day to start onboarding.
FAQ
What should a WordPress maintenance plan include? +
Hosting and SSL, daily backups stored separately, core, plugin, and theme updates, monitoring around the clock, and security hardening: locked-down logins, firewall rules, and safe defaults. A fix on my watch, or restoring a backup, is included. Small changes use monthly time, then $125 an hour. I tell you before going over.
What do the monthly plans cost? +
Essentials is $99 a month, Business is $249 a month, and Priority is $499 a month. Essentials includes 30 minutes of changes and a reply within 2 business days. Business adds 1 hour, a staging copy, and malware cleanup. Priority adds 3 hours, a dedicated server when I host, and 24/7 response if the site goes down.
Do I have to leave my current host? +
No. You can keep your current hosting at the same price. Your host keeps billing you, and I look after the site there with a daily backup stored separately. Priority's dedicated server applies only when I host. Moving one standard site is included: I copy it, test it, then switch the domain at a quiet time.
What do I get if I cancel? +
The plan runs to the end of the paid month. Before it ends, you get a full copy of the site and help pointing the domain to a new host. You keep the domain and the content, and you can ask for a complete copy any time. You do not manage a server login or a control panel.
