Most WordPress problems don't announce themselves. A plugin update conflicts with your theme, an old contact form quietly stops delivering mail, or a security issue sits unnoticed for weeks. Basic hosting keeps the server running; it does none of this work for you. That gap is what WordPress maintenance plans and care plans exist to close.
Basic hosting vs. proactive care
Hosting answers one question: is the server up? A WordPress maintenance plan answers a different one: is the site healthy, current, and safe to change? Here is the honest difference.
What proactive care includes
- Core, theme, and plugin updates — tested before they touch the live site
- Daily off-site backups with a restore you have actually seen work
- Uptime monitoring that notices before your customers do
- Security monitoring and malware checks
- A monthly report in plain English, not a wall of logs
- A direct channel for small changes, fixes, and questions
What you get with hosting alone
- Updating production directly and hoping nothing breaks
- Backups that were never tested with a real restore
- Uptime alerts that email you at 2 a.m. with no one to act on them
- Reports full of graphs but no explanation
What a WordPress maintenance plan should include
Plans vary a lot in what "maintenance" means, so judge any plan — ours or a competitor's — against this list. If an item is missing, ask why.
- Staged updates. Core, theme, and plugin updates are tested on a staging copy before they reach the live site. Direct-to-production updates are how sites break.
- Tested backups. Daily backups are only useful if restoring from one has been practiced. Ask when the last real restore was tested.
- Monitoring. Uptime, security, and error monitoring with a person responsible for acting on alerts.
- Included time. A defined number of hours per month for small changes and fixes, so you know what a request costs before you send it.
- Accountability. One named person who knows your site and answers when something is wrong — not a ticket queue.
- Clear reporting. A monthly summary of what was updated, what was checked, and what needs a decision from you.
Kenton Web Design care plans
Our WordPress care plans are built on exactly the list above. Every plan includes staged updates, daily backups, uptime and security monitoring, and a monthly plain-English report. The difference between plans is how much of our time is included each month.
Essential Care
Monitoring, staged updates, backups, reporting, and small fixes — for sites that mostly need to stay healthy.
$149/mo
Growth Care
Everything in Essential, plus up to two hours of monthly requests: content updates, new sections, form changes, improvements.
$399/mo
Website Partner
Everything in Growth, plus up to five hours of monthly requests and priority scheduling — for sites that change every week.
$799/mo
Every plan is month-to-month with no setup fee and no hidden fees. If your site needs work beyond included hours, you'll get a written scope and estimate before anything starts.
Do it yourself, or hand it off?
A maintenance plan is a time trade, not just a security trade. Updating a WordPress site properly — staging, testing, checking forms and checkout, monitoring — takes an hour or two a month at minimum, and far more when an update misbehaves. If that time would come out of running your business, handing the site to someone who does it every day is usually the cheaper option. If you enjoy the work and your site is simple, doing it yourself is legitimate; just put the schedule on the calendar and test your backups twice a year.
Common questions
How much do WordPress maintenance plans cost?
For hands-on plans from an experienced developer, expect roughly $149 to $800 per month. Kenton Web Design's plans are $149 for Essential Care, $399 for Growth Care with up to two hours of requests, and $799 for Website Partner with up to five hours and priority scheduling.
What does a WordPress maintenance plan include?
A solid plan covers staged core, theme, and plugin updates; daily backups; uptime and security monitoring; a monthly report in plain English; and a channel for small changes and fixes. Updates should be tested before they reach your live site.
Why do I need a WordPress maintenance plan if my host does backups?
Backups let you restore a broken site; they don't prevent it from breaking. Care plans keep WordPress, plugins, and themes current and monitored, so problems are caught early or avoided entirely — and a real person is accountable when something does go wrong.
Can I maintain my WordPress site myself?
Yes, if you have the time and discipline to update on a schedule, test after every update, and monitor security and uptime daily. Most business owners stop doing this within a few months, which is exactly when outdated plugins become a risk.
Put your WordPress site in steady hands.
Request a free website review and we'll look at your current setup, flag anything urgent, and recommend the smallest plan that keeps the site healthy. No obligation, no hidden fees.
Request a Website Review