When clients tell us they can get a WordPress site for $3,000, we don't argue. They're right. But that $3,000 is just the down payment.
The Initial Build: $2,500 - $5,000
This is the number everyone focuses on. A freelancer or small agency builds your WordPress site, installs a theme, configures some plugins, adds your content, and launches. Done.
But the spending has just begun.
Year One: The Hidden Costs
Hosting: $240 - $600/year
That $5/month shared hosting won't cut it for a business site. You need managed WordPress hosting for decent speed and security. Budget $20-50/month.
Premium Theme: $50 - $200
Most quality themes require a one-time purchase. Some require annual renewal for updates and support.
Essential Plugins: $300 - $800/year
The good plugins aren't free:
- SEO plugin (Yoast/RankMath Pro): $99-199/year
- Security plugin (Wordfence/Sucuri): $99-199/year
- Backup plugin: $50-100/year
- Forms plugin: $50-100/year
- Speed optimization: $50-100/year
Maintenance: $1,200 - $3,600/year
WordPress, themes, and plugins need regular updates. Security patches drop constantly. Someone needs to apply these updates, test that nothing broke, and fix conflicts when they arise.
Budget 2-5 hours per month at $75-150/hour if you're hiring it out. Or spend that time yourself instead of running your business.
The Emergency Costs
These aren't "if" – they're "when":
Site Got Hacked: $500 - $2,000
Malware cleanup, security audit, restoring from backup, hardening against future attacks. This happens more often than you'd think.
Plugin Conflict Crashed the Site: $200 - $500
An update broke something. Now you need emergency developer time to diagnose and fix it.
Site is Suddenly Slow: $300 - $800
Database bloat, plugin conflicts, hosting issues. Performance optimization isn't a one-time thing.
The Three-Year Total
Let's add it up conservatively:
- Initial build: $3,500
- Hosting (3 years): $1,200
- Premium plugins (3 years): $1,500
- Maintenance (3 years): $5,400
- One hack + two emergencies: $1,500
Three-year total: $13,100
That $3,000 site actually cost over $13,000. And you still have a WordPress site that needs ongoing care.
The Next.js Alternative
A custom Next.js site at $15,000-25,000 seems expensive upfront. But here's the three-year cost:
- Initial build: $20,000
- Hosting (Vercel): $0-240/year = $720
- Plugins: $0
- Maintenance: Near zero
- Security emergencies: Virtually none
Three-year total: ~$21,000
For $8,000 more, you get a faster site, better security, no maintenance headaches, and three years of your time back.
The Real Question
It's not "how much does a website cost?" It's "how much does owning this website cost over time?"
When you factor in total cost of ownership, custom development often wins.