A maintenance quote is only assessable if it lists six things. “Maintenance — ₹X” with nothing against it isn’t a plan; it’s a subscription to being answered. Score any offer below.
The six items
Send this list and ask them to confirm each.
☐ 1. Backups
- Taken automatically, on a stated frequency
- Stored somewhere other than the same server
- Restorable — ask what restoring would involve
Ask: “Where are backups stored, and how old is the newest one?” A backup living only inside the hosting account is worthless if that account is lost or suspended.
☐ 2. Software and plugin updates
Done regularly on a CMS. This is the item that earns the whole fee — skipped updates are the usual route to a compromise, and cleanup in India typically runs ₹20,000–50,000 or more, frequently exceeding what the site cost to build.
☐ 3. Uptime monitoring
So somebody knows the site is down before you do. Without it you’ll find out from a customer.
☐ 4. A stated number of content edits
As a monthly allowance or hours. “Small changes included” without a number is where disputes start.
Ask: “How many edits per month, and what counts as one?”
☐ 5. A response time
“Within one working day” is a commitment. “We’ll look into it” isn’t. Get the number.
☐ 6. SSL renewal and technical hygiene
Note that free certificates via Let’s Encrypt are standard with most hosting and renew automatically — so a separate recurring SSL charge deserves a question.
Score the quote
| Items confirmed | Verdict |
|---|---|
| 6/6 | A real plan. Now judge the price against the ranges below |
| 4–5 | Ask for the missing ones. Most providers will confirm them |
| 2–3 | You’re paying to be answered, not maintained |
| 0–1, on a site nobody has touched | This is a renewal with a different label |
Fair price by site type
| Site type | Reasonable monthly | Reasonable yearly |
|---|---|---|
| Static 5-page brochure, rarely edited | ₹1,000–2,500 | ₹12,000–30,000 |
| Site edited monthly | ₹2,500–5,000 | ₹30,000–60,000 |
| Store with orders and payments | ₹5,000 upward | ₹60,000 upward |
The annual figures match what the Indian market commonly charges for small business AMCs. A quote well above that band for a simple brochure site deserves an itemised explanation.
The two questions that expose padding
1. Could you list what’s included monthly — backups, updates, monitoring, number of edits, response time? 2. What was actually done on my site in the last twelve months?
The first tells you what you’re buying. The second is the one that matters — on a site nobody has touched, the honest answer is “nothing,” and that’s a fair basis to decline or renegotiate.
A provider doing real work answers both easily.
What a plan does not cover
So you aren’t surprised twice:
- New pages or features — that’s a project, quoted separately
- A redesign
- Content writing beyond the edit allowance
- Recovery from something you deleted, unless a backup exists
- Traffic or marketing — an entirely different purchase
Is a plan cheaper than paying per change?
Count last year’s ad-hoc charges. Two ₹500 changes a month is ₹12,000 a year — with no backups, no monitoring and no response commitment attached.
A ₹1,500 monthly plan is ₹18,000 and includes all three. If you make more than about two changes a month, the plan usually wins on arithmetic alone.
The free version, if you decline
Legitimate for a genuinely static site — and we’d rather say so than sell you something you don’t need. Five things:
☐ Download your own backup and keep it off the server. The single item that turns a disaster into an afternoon
☐ Both renewal dates in your calendar with 30-day reminders, auto-renew on, card current. A missed domain renewal takes down your site and your business email together
☐ CMS updates monthly, after taking a backup
☐ A quarterly reminder to open your own site on your phone and read it as a customer would — ten minutes, four times a year, and your site never joins the abandoned category
☐ A per-change rate agreed in advance with one developer, so you’re not negotiating during an emergency
That’s the substance of a plan for nothing. The usual failure point is item three.
When you genuinely need a plan
- The site runs on a CMS with plugins — the update risk is real
- Your business depends on the site — enquiries, bookings, orders
- You’d have no idea who to call at 9pm on a Saturday
- You make content changes more than a couple of times a year
- You’d rather not own the renewal dates yourself
What to do this week
- Send the six-item list to whoever quoted you.
- Ask what was actually done on your site in the past twelve months.
- Total last year’s ad-hoc change charges and compare.
- Check whether your hosting already includes automatic backups.
- Download a backup and store it off the server, either way.
If you want it done the certain way
We price maintenance against these six items with a stated response time — and if your site genuinely doesn’t need a plan, we’ll say so and charge per change instead. Backup, both renewal dates and all logins handed to you regardless. WhatsApp us; we reply in about five minutes between 9am and 7pm.
Related reading
- Website maintenance in India: what AMC should cost and cover
- AMC vs no maintenance: is it worth ₹1,000–2,500/month?
- What’s a fair monthly maintenance amount?
- ₹500 to change a phone number? The ad-hoc update trap
- Does a backup of your website exist?
FAQ
What should website maintenance include?
Six things: automatic backups stored off-server, regular software updates, uptime monitoring, a stated number of content edits, a committed response time, and SSL renewal. A price with no list against it isn’t a plan.
How much should website AMC cost in India?
₹1,000–2,500 a month for a static brochure site, ₹2,500–5,000 for one edited regularly, more for a store. Annual contracts for small business sites commonly run ₹15,000–30,000.
Is a maintenance plan cheaper than paying per change?
If you make more than about two small changes a month, usually yes. Two ₹500 changes monthly is ₹12,000 a year with no backups, monitoring or response commitment included.
What question exposes a fake maintenance charge?
“What was actually done on my site in the last twelve months?” On a site nobody has touched, the honest answer is nothing — which is a fair basis to decline or renegotiate.
