Hidden costs to watch for
The recurring website costs many clients overlook — domain renewal, hosting, plugin licenses, SSL, stock images, fonts, and third-party tools — and how to plan for them.
Most clients focus on the one-time cost of building their website. But websites have ongoing costs — some obvious, some easy to miss — that add up every year. This guide lists them all so you're never caught off guard.
Quick summary
Beyond the build cost, a typical small-business website carries $500–$2,000+ per year in recurring costs: domain renewal, hosting, plugin and theme licenses, SSL (on some platforms), stock images, fonts, and third-party tool subscriptions. Know what you're signing up for before you launch.
Ranges are illustrative
The cost ranges below reflect typical industry pricing at time of writing and are meant to help you plan. Your actual costs depend on which providers and tools your site uses. Always check current pricing directly with each vendor.
Domain name renewal
Your domain name (for example, yourbusiness.com) is rented, not owned. It renews annually — typically in the range of $10–$20 per year for a .com — but specialty extensions (.io, .co, .agency) can cost significantly more.
What to watch for:
- Auto-renew should be on. If your domain lapses, your site goes offline and you risk losing it permanently.
- Some registrars offer a very low first-year price, then raise it at renewal. Check the renewal price before you register.
- Premium domains or short, popular names may cost much more.
See Renewing your domain and Turning on auto-renew for more detail.
Web hosting
Hosting is what keeps your site online. It's typically a monthly or annual fee paid to your hosting provider — not to us.
| Hosting type | Typical cost range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Shared / budget hosting | Lower end | Not recommended for business sites |
| Managed WordPress hosting | Mid range, per month | Better performance, security, and support |
| Premium managed WordPress | Higher end, per month | Fastest performance; suits high-traffic or revenue-generating sites |
| Webflow hosting | Included in Webflow plan | Charged as part of your Webflow subscription |
| Squarespace | Included in plan | Monthly or annual Squarespace subscription |
What to watch for:
- Hosting fees come directly from your hosting provider — not from Chykalophia — unless we've set it up differently for your project.
- Prices can change at renewal. Budget a small buffer each year.
- "Unlimited" shared hosting plans often throttle performance. For business sites, managed WordPress hosting is almost always worth the cost.
See Who pays for hosting? and Understanding your hosting bill.
SSL certificate
SSL is the security technology that puts the padlock in your browser and the https:// at the start of your URL. Without it, browsers show a "Not secure" warning — which drives visitors away and hurts your SEO.
On many modern hosts (Flywheel, WP Engine, Kinsta, Webflow, Squarespace), SSL is included in the hosting fee.
On some older or budget hosts, SSL is a separate annual charge. Check with your host.
What to watch for:
- Never let SSL lapse. A single day without SSL on a business site erodes trust and can trigger search engine penalties.
- Free SSL certificates (via Let's Encrypt) auto-renew — but only if your host manages them correctly.
See What is SSL & HTTPS? for a plain-English explanation.
Plugin and theme licenses (WordPress)
WordPress itself is free. But most serious WordPress sites use premium plugins and themes — and almost all of them require an annual license renewal to receive updates.
Common examples include page builders, SEO plugins, form plugins, backup tools, security plugins, WooCommerce extensions, and custom theme licenses.
What to watch for:
- A plugin's license typically needs to be renewed once a year. If you let it lapse, the plugin stops receiving updates — which eventually becomes a security risk.
- Some plugins switch from one-time purchase to annual subscription. Check what you're paying for.
- If you're running an e-commerce store, WooCommerce extensions can add up quickly — some cost $100–$300 per year each.
See Plugins explained and Updating plugins safely.
Stock photography and image licensing
If your site uses stock photos, those images have a license. Most stock photo licenses are either:
- Subscription-based — monthly or annual fee for a set number of downloads (e.g., Adobe Stock, Shutterstock)
- Per-image purchase — a one-time or annual license per image
What to watch for:
- Stock photo licenses do not always transfer when your website changes. If we built your site using images from our account, you may need your own license going forward.
- Free stock photos (Unsplash, Pexels) are generally fine for commercial use but have specific terms — check the license for each image.
- AI-generated images have their own licensing and usage terms that are still evolving.
See Stock photos & licensing and Where to get images legally.
Web fonts
Most modern websites use custom fonts — brand fonts or licensed typefaces that aren't built into the browser. Depending on how your site loads fonts, there may be an ongoing cost.
| Font source | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Google Fonts | Free (loaded from Google's servers) |
| Adobe Fonts (Typekit) | Included in an Adobe Creative Cloud subscription |
| Font vendor (Fonts.com, MyFonts, etc.) | Annual web font license — ranges from modest to significant |
| Webflow-served fonts | Included in plan if using Webflow's built-in library |
What to watch for:
- If a font license expires, your site may fall back to a default browser font — suddenly changing how it looks.
- Some premium typefaces cost hundreds of dollars per year for a web license. Know which fonts your site uses and who owns the license.
Third-party tool integrations
Most business websites connect to at least a few external tools. Each of these is an additional subscription:
- Email marketing — Mailchimp, Klaviyo, ActiveCampaign, etc.
- CRM — HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho, etc.
- Booking / scheduling software — Calendly, Acuity, etc.
- Live chat — Intercom, Crisp, Tidio, etc.
- Form tools — Gravity Forms, Formidable, Typeform, etc.
- Analytics — Google Analytics is free; some advanced tools are not
- Video hosting — Vimeo Pro if you host videos on your own domain
What to watch for:
- Many of these tools have generous free tiers that disappear once you exceed a subscriber or traffic threshold.
- Integration plugins that connect WordPress to these tools also need their own annual licenses.
Care plan / maintenance
If your site is professionally maintained, you're paying a monthly or annual fee for that service. This is not a hidden cost — but it's sometimes forgotten when clients are planning their annual budget.
See Understanding care plan pricing for a full breakdown.
Putting it all together
Here's a rough picture of what a typical small-business WordPress site might cost to run each year, beyond the initial build:
| Cost item | Typical annual range |
|---|---|
| Domain renewal | $15–$50 |
| Managed WordPress hosting | $200–$600+ |
| SSL | Often included in hosting |
| Plugin/theme licenses | $100–$500+ |
| Stock photo subscription | $0–$300+ |
| Web fonts | $0–$200+ |
| Third-party tools | $0–$1,000+ |
| Care plan | Varies by level |
The total varies widely depending on your setup. The point is: budget for it. These costs don't go away after launch.
Common questions
Related guides
- What a website actually costs
- Understanding care plan pricing
- Understanding quotes & invoices
- Who pays for hosting?
- Renewing your domain
- What is SSL & HTTPS?
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