My web designer wants a monthly fee — is that normal?
Monthly fees are normal — but they cover wildly different things, from £10 of hosting to £200 of nothing. Here's how to tell what you're actually being charged for.
Quick answer
Yes, monthly fees are normal — but the range of what they cover is enormous, and that's where the problem lies. Hosting and a domain genuinely cost money, realistically £5–£25 a month. A support retainer covering updates, backups, security and a set number of content changes is legitimate and commonly £30–£150. What isn't reasonable is a mandatory fee that buys nothing identifiable, or one where stopping payment means losing a site you paid to have built. Ask for an itemised breakdown and check what you own.
What a monthly fee should actually cover
| Fee | Typical range | Fair? |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting + domain | £5–£25/mo | Yes — real cost |
| Care plan (updates, backups, security) | £30–£80/mo | Yes, if itemised |
| Retainer incl. content changes | £50–£150/mo | Yes, if hours are specified |
| SEO / marketing retainer | £300+/mo | Only against reported results |
| 'Website licence' — you own nothing | Any | Treat as a red flag |
| Unspecified 'maintenance' | Any | Ask for itemisation |
Step-by-step
- 1
Ask for the fee to be itemised, line by line
This one request resolves most cases. A fair retainer breaks down into identifiable things: hosting, domain renewal, SSL, software updates, offsite backups, security monitoring, and a stated number of hours or content changes. A designer running a legitimate care plan will send that breakdown without hesitation. Reluctance to itemise is the signal, not the amount.
- 2
Separate the costs that are genuinely real
Hosting, a domain and an SSL certificate cost money — for a small business site, realistically £5–£25 a month all in. Nobody should be criticised for passing that on with a modest margin. The question is what sits on top of it and whether that's proportionate to your site. A brochure site for a local trade doesn't need the same maintenance as an e-commerce platform.
- 3
Establish what happens if you stop paying
This is the question that matters most, and the answer separates a service from a hostage situation. If stopping means you move your site elsewhere and keep it, the fee is a service — you can leave, so it has to stay competitive. If stopping means the site disappears and you have nothing, you're renting something you paid a build fee for. Get the answer in writing before the next payment.
- 4
Check whose name the domain is in, today
Do this before any conversation about the fee. Your domain should be registered to you as the registrant, not to your designer or their agency. If it isn't, that's the first thing to fix, because it's the piece that's hardest to recover if the relationship sours. It's also the cheapest thing to be right about — a domain costs around £10–£15 a year.
- 5
Compare the retainer against what changes actually cost
If the retainer includes content changes, count how many you actually made last year. Paying £100 a month for a plan you use twice a year is £600 per edit. Conversely, if you're making changes monthly and being billed hourly on top, a retainer may be saving you money. Match the plan to your real behaviour rather than the sales pitch.
- 6
Decide between renegotiating and moving
If the site is good, you own it, and the fee is itemised but too big for your usage, ask to move to a smaller plan — most designers will rather than lose the client. If you don't own the site and the fee is unexplained, the honest calculation is what a replacement costs. A self-editable site you own outright, on an AI builder for £0–£20 a month, usually pays back within a year against a £100+ retainer.
Tips & best practices
- ▸Itemisation is the test. The amount matters less than whether it can be broken down.
- ▸Check the domain registrant name today — it takes two minutes and it's the piece hardest to recover later.
- ▸Count last year's actual change requests before judging whether a retainer is good value.
- ▸'What happens to my site if I stop paying?' is the single most revealing question you can ask.
- ▸A mandatory fee with no itemisation, on a site you don't own, is worth getting a replacement quote for.
Common questions
Is it normal for a web designer to charge monthly?
+−
Yes. Hosting, domains, SSL, software updates, backups and security monitoring are real ongoing costs and work, and packaging them into a monthly care plan is standard practice. What isn't normal is a monthly charge that can't be itemised, or one where you lose the site entirely if you stop paying.
How much should a website maintenance fee be?
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For a small business brochure site, £5–£25 a month covers hosting and a domain, and a care plan adding updates, backups, security and some content changes commonly runs £30–£150. Marketing or SEO retainers are a separate purchase at several hundred a month and should be judged against reported results, not bundled in silently.
What happens if I stop paying my web designer?
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It depends entirely on what you own. If the domain is in your name and you have access to the site files or builder account, you can move elsewhere and keep the site. If the site was built inside the designer's account or on their licence, stopping usually means it comes down. Ask before you stop, not after.
Can my web designer hold my website hostage?
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They can withhold access to things registered in their name — which is why the registrant on your domain matters so much. Your content, your text and your images are yours, and you can always rebuild elsewhere. The practical answer is to check ownership now, while the relationship is fine, rather than during a dispute.
Should I pay a monthly fee or build my own site?
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If the retainer is itemised, proportionate and you own the site, paying it is a reasonable trade of money for time. If it's unexplained, or you'd lose the site by stopping, run the three-year number against a self-editable site on an AI builder at £0–£20 a month. In that comparison, a £100+ monthly retainer on a site you don't own rarely wins.