Website maintenance covers updates, backups, security monitoring and small changes. Depending on scope, it costs roughly €50 to €300 a month in Germany. Our care package is €99 a month and covers the tasks every website needs on an ongoing basis. This article shows what is included, what you pay and when you can manage without a contract.
What does website maintenance include?
Maintenance means someone regularly looks after the technical health of your website. In practice it includes:
- Software updates: keeping the CMS (a content management system you use to edit content yourself), theme, plugins and dependencies current, and checking that the site still looks right afterwards.
- Backups: regularly saving the website, database and media. It also matters that a backup can demonstrably be restored.
- Security monitoring: keeping an eye on login areas, the SSL certificate and known vulnerabilities in the components in use.
- Small changes: texts, images, opening hours, prices, contact and legal details.
- Uptime checks: the site is online, forms and bookings work, load times are fine.
Larger tasks such as new subpages, additional features or a relaunch are usually not included. Define the scope precisely in the contract.
What does website maintenance cost?
The ranges are wide. The market figures are rough guides for small and medium-sized businesses; our prices are final prices (§ 19 UStG, no VAT).
| Service | Rough market range | With WebDrift |
|---|---|---|
| Basic maintenance (updates, backups, monitoring) | €50 to 150 a month | included in the care package |
| Care package incl. small changes | €100 to 300 a month | €99 a month |
| Hosting and domain (managed) | from about €10 a month | from €59 a month |
The care package is our entry point: it maintains the site and handles small changes. If you also want more visibility in search engines and AI answers, add SEO and AI visibility. The costs around a new site are covered in What does a professional website cost in 2026?.
When is looking after it yourself enough?
Not every website needs a contract. Doing it yourself is realistic if:
- your site is static or has only a few components,
- you are technically confident and can test updates first,
- you can set aside 30 to 60 minutes a week and actually use that time,
- you have a backup routine that you check regularly.
As soon as a CMS, plugins or a booking system come into play, it quickly becomes a permanent job. The most common failure is not the first update but the sixth: nobody is clearly responsible when the business is busy.
When does a maintenance contract make sense?
A contract pays off once the website is part of your business. Typical signs:
- Dependency: enquiries, bookings or orders run through the site.
- Several people editing content: you need clear permissions and someone watching compatibility.
- No technical contact: you do not want to learn how to restore a backup.
- Growth: new subpages, a shop or a blog increase the upkeep.
What should you check before signing a maintenance contract?
These points should be settled before you sign:
- Updates: which components, how often, where they are tested first
- Backups: frequency, retention, testing of restores
- Security monitoring: what is reported, to whom, with what response time
- Changes: number included, definition, billing beyond that
- Hosting and domain: who manages them, who pays, where the login details are kept
- Response and resolution times, and a named contact
- Exit: notice period, data handover, rights to your content
Conclusion: maintenance is the price of a website that keeps working
Maintenance is not a side cost; it is what keeps your site secure and fast six months from now. For €99 a month, our care package covers updates, backups, security and small changes. If you look after a simple site yourself, you can manage without a contract. If you are unsure which applies to you, talk to us. We will tell you honestly whether doing it yourself is enough.
