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4.2/5 on Google410 reviews Since 2013 hosting small businesses7 days a week live-chat support 4.3/5 on Trustpilot573 reviews

Why maintenance matters more than launch

Most of the broken WordPress sites we see were fine when they launched. They broke slowly — an update skipped, a plugin abandoned, a form quietly failing for months before anyone noticed. Maintenance is unglamorous and it is most of the job.

  • Software ages whether or not you touch it
  • Contact forms fail silently and nobody reports it
  • Search rankings drift down as speed and content go stale
  • A hacked site is usually just a neglected site
Why maintenance matters more than launch

Every week

Ten minutes. Most weeks nothing needs doing, which is the point — you find out early on the weeks something does.

  • Apply plugin, theme and core updates
  • Load the homepage and one key page — do they look right?
  • Submit your own contact form and confirm the email arrives
  • Glance at the user list for anything unfamiliar
Every week

Every month

Half an hour. This is where you catch the slower problems that a weekly glance misses.

  • Confirm backups are running and, once in a while, actually restore one
  • Check for broken links and 404s
  • Review your Search Console coverage report
  • Run a speed test and compare it with last month
  • Delete spam comments and unused media
  • Check for plugins that have stopped being updated
Every month

Every quarter

An hour or two. The strategic pass — not just is it working, but is it still doing its job.

  • Audit your plugin list and remove what is unused
  • Review your content — are prices, hours and staff still correct?
  • Check your PHP version is current
  • Review admin accounts and remove people who have left
  • Test the site properly on a phone
  • Confirm your SSL and domain are not about to expire
Every quarter

What we handle for you

Some of this is already covered at server level, so it happens whether or not the list gets done.

  • Daily backups via JetBackup on every plan
  • Malware scanning via Imunify360, continuously
  • Server and firewall patching — that is our job, not yours
  • Uptime monitoring on our infrastructure
  • WordPress core, plugins and content remain yours to keep current — that part cannot be automated safely
What we handle for you

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Hosting from AED8.50/month billed annually, with free SSL, business email and daily backups included, plus a free .com domain from Starter up. Our AI builder makes your website free in about a minute, and on Website Care a designer perfects it — no agency fee, no contract.

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The WordPress Maintenance Checklist — Common Questions

  • How often should I update WordPress?

    Check weekly and apply security releases immediately. Major version updates can wait a week or two while any issues surface, but should not be left for months.

  • Will updating break my site?

    Occasionally, which is why you take a backup first. Breakage from updating is far less common, and far easier to fix, than breakage from not updating.

  • Do I need a maintenance plan?

    Not necessarily. The routine above takes about ten minutes a week. A paid plan makes sense if you would rather not think about it at all.

  • What if I have not updated in a year?

    Back up first, then update in stages rather than all at once — core, then plugins in small batches, testing as you go. Get in touch if anything breaks.

  • How do I know if my backups work?

    Restore one. An untested backup is an assumption. JetBackup lets you restore from your control panel, so trying it costs nothing.

  • Does Hostking update WordPress for me?

    We keep the server, PHP and security layer current. WordPress core and your plugins stay under your control, since an unattended update can break a customised site.

4.2/5 on Google410 reviews Since 2013 hosting small businesses7 days a week live-chat support 4.3/5 on Trustpilot573 reviews