What does a website cost per month in the UK?

When people ask what a website costs, they usually mean the build. That’s covered in our guide to how much a website costs in the UK.

This guide is about what comes after: the monthly and yearly costs that keep your site online and useful. Some are unavoidable, some are optional, and some are easy to overpay for. Knowing which is which helps you budget properly and compare quotes fairly.

Almost every website needs these:

• Domain name. Your address, such as yourbusiness.co.uk. Usually renewed yearly and fairly inexpensive, though some extensions cost more.
• Hosting. Where your site lives. Simple, modern sites can often be hosted cheaply. Busy shops or complex sites need more.
• SSL certificate. The padlock that keeps visitors’ data secure. Most good hosts now include it free.

If you use a website builder such as Wix or Squarespace, hosting is part of your monthly subscription, and premium plans that remove adverts or add booking or selling cost more.

These aren’t part of the website, but they often get bundled into the same budget:

• Business email on your own domain, through Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, usually charged per user per month.
• Booking, ordering or shop software, often a monthly subscription, sometimes with per-booking or per-order fees.
• Payment processing, usually a percentage plus a small fee per transaction.
• Live chat or chatbots, if you use one.

Add these up separately. They often cost more than the hosting itself.

Websites need occasional care:

• Content updates: new prices, opening hours, photos, staff and offers.
• Software updates: WordPress and its plugins need regular updates for security. Simpler static sites need far less.
• Backups and monitoring: so a problem can be fixed quickly.
• Small improvements: adding a page or a new service.

Some businesses pay a monthly maintenance fee, others pay as they go. If your site rarely changes, pay-as-you-go is often cheaper. My website design Business package (£995) includes three months of free updates after launch.

Once the site is live, you may choose to spend on getting more people to it:

• Local SEO: ongoing work to rank higher on Google and Maps. My local SEO plans start at £299 a month, after a one-off Google profile set-up from £249.
• Google Ads: you set the budget and pay when people click.
• Social media management: content and posting, often monthly.

These aren’t essential to keep a site running, but they’re usually what turns a website into a steady source of enquiries.

Every business is different, but most small business sites fall into one of these patterns:

• Lean: domain, simple hosting and business email. You make occasional updates yourself or pay as you go.
• Typical: the above, plus a booking or ordering tool and occasional paid updates.
• Growth: the above, plus monthly SEO, social media or ads.

When you compare quotes, ask each supplier to list the running costs separately from the build. A cheap build with expensive lock-in can cost more over two or three years.

• Own your domain. Make sure it’s registered in your name, not your designer’s.
• Avoid long contracts for hosting or maintenance until you know you need them.
• Don’t pay for features you don’t use, such as premium plugins or plans.
• Check what “maintenance” includes before signing up.
• Ask for access: you should be able to log in to your domain, hosting and analytics.

Every site I build is handed over with the domain in your name and Google Search Console set up, so you’re never locked in.

• Domain renewal date and cost.
• Hosting or builder subscription.
• Email accounts.
• Booking, ordering or shop software.
• Payment fees.
• Maintenance: monthly plan or pay as you go.
• Optional marketing: SEO, ads, social.

If you’d like a clear, fixed quote with running costs listed separately, start a project brief.

Here’s how running costs typically look for different businesses. These are illustrations, not quotes:

• A sole-trader plumber with a five-page site: domain, simple hosting and one email account. Occasional updates are paid as needed.
• A salon with online booking: the above plus a booking subscription and text reminders, which often cost more than the website itself.
• A restaurant with direct ordering: the above plus an ordering system and card fees on every order.
• A growing service business: the above plus monthly SEO and social media to bring in new enquiries.

Seeing it this way makes it clear which costs are about keeping the site running and which are about growth.

• You pay a monthly “website fee” but can’t say what it covers.
• Your hosting costs more than the businesses next door with similar sites.
• You’re on a premium plan for features you never use.
• You’re locked into a long contract with no way to leave.
• You can’t log in to your own domain or hosting.

If any of these apply, ask your provider for a breakdown. You may be able to move to a simpler set-up without losing anything.

Before agreeing to any monthly cost, ask the supplier to answer these in writing:

• What exactly is included each month, and what is charged extra?
• Is there a minimum contract length, and what does it cost to leave early?
• Who owns the domain, the website files and the content?
• Will I have my own logins for the domain, hosting and analytics?
• How quickly will you make small changes, and how are they charged?
• What happens to my site if you stop trading or I move to someone else?

Clear answers to these questions protect you far more than a low headline price. A good supplier will be happy to give them, and will put them in your quote without being asked.