Yearly Website Costs: Budgeting for Domain, Hosting & Maintenance
The build fee is only part of what a website costs over time. Once your site is live, a few smaller recurring costs keep it online, secure, and up to date. Here's a realistic yearly budget so nothing catches you off guard.
The three ongoing costs
| Cost | Typical yearly range (KES) | What happens if you skip it |
|---|---|---|
| Domain renewal | KSh 1,000 – 2,500 | Your site's address expires and becomes unavailable |
| Hosting | KSh 3,000 – 15,000 | Your site stops loading entirely |
| Maintenance (optional) | KSh 6,000 – 30,000+ | Security and update risk builds up over time |
For a straightforward business site, a realistic total yearly budget after the initial build is roughly KSh 10,000–25,000, depending on hosting quality and whether you take a maintenance plan. E-commerce stores usually sit at the higher end due to larger hosting and payment processing needs.
1. Domain renewal
Your domain name is billed annually and renews automatically in most cases — the key risk is an expired card or a missed renewal email, which can take your entire site offline overnight. Mark the renewal date somewhere you'll actually see it.
2. Hosting
Hosting is usually billed monthly or annually, and the price scales with your site's traffic and storage needs. A simple business site needs far less hosting power than a busy e-commerce store processing daily orders and images.
3. Maintenance (optional but recommended)
This is the one cost that's genuinely optional, but skipping it entirely is a false saving for most businesses — see our note on what maintenance actually covers. Many businesses start without a plan and add one once the site is generating real revenue worth protecting.
What about e-commerce-specific costs?
If you're running an online store, factor in payment gateway transaction fees too — providers processing M-Pesa and card payments typically charge a small percentage per transaction, which isn't a flat yearly cost but scales with your sales volume.
A simple way to plan for it
Treat these costs the way you'd treat rent for a small shop — predictable, recurring, and worth budgeting for from day one rather than being surprised by a renewal notice. Ask your developer for the exact renewal dates and amounts before you launch, not after.
Want a clear breakdown for your specific project?
We'll walk you through exactly what your ongoing costs will look like before you commit.
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