Do the math
A do-it-yourself website isn’t free.
You pay for it in hours.
WordPress, Wix and Squarespace all make you learn their software. Then you forget it, and learn it again every time something needs to change. Here’s what that really costs, and what it costs when we handle it for you.
The part nobody counts
Learn it. Forget it. Learn it again.
You learned the editor when you built the site. Six weeks later a price changes, and you’re back in the help articles trying to remember where that setting was. New skills fade fast when they aren’t used, so for most owners, nearly every change starts with relearning.
- Learn itEditor, menus, plugins or apps, settings.
- Make the changeFinally, the thing you came to do.
- Forget itWeeks pass between changes.
- Relearn itBack to the help articles, every time.
Your time, counted for one year
35 to 81 hours a year.
Or about 2.5.
An example owner making about 2 changes a month, valuing their time at $75 an hour. UpSite rows include the plan price, so they’re the full cost. Website-builder rows don’t even include their own subscription or app fees.
| Platform | Learning (first year) | Relearning (per year) | Making changes | Updates & upkeep | Total hours | Year one cost | Year two and on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress | 15 h | 12 h | 18 h | 36 h | 81 h | $6,075 | $4,950 |
| Wix | 8 h | 9.6 h | 14 h | 12 h | 44 h | $3,300 | $2,700 |
| Squarespace | 6 h | 8.4 h | 12 h | 9 h | 35 h | $2,655 | $2,205 |
| UpSite $49 plan | 0.5 h intake | 0 h | 2 h | 0 h | 2.5 h | $776 | $738 |
| UpSite $99 plan | 0.5 h intake | 0 h | 2 h | 0 h | 2.5 h | $1,376 | $1,338 |
“Making changes” on an UpSite is the few minutes it takes you to text or email the request. Estimates for illustration, not a quote or guarantee; your numbers will differ.
Your numbers
Run the math on your own website.
Pick your platform, how often something on your site needs to change and what an hour of your time is worth.
Doing it yourself, year one
81 hours
$6,075 of your time, plus your builder’s fees
UpSite Care, $49/month, year one
2.5 hours
$776 total, plan included
That’s about 79 hours back in your first year.
Two flat plans
Hand it off for less than your time is worth.
Per website, per month: hosting plus unlimited reviewed updates. No counting minutes or revisions.
UpSite Care
- Unlimited updates: prices, hours, photos, wording
- Up to 5 new pages every month
- Hosting included
- Every change checked by a person before it goes live
UpSite Growth
- Everything in Care
- Virtually unlimited new pages
- Send photos and a few notes; we write and build the page
- Each page gets its own search target
Care plans keep an UpSite current after it’s built. Moving your current site is a separate fixed quote. See all pricing
How it works
We learn your business, so you never have to learn software.
One intake call
We learn your services, prices, hours, photos and goals, and keep them on file.
Just ask
Text, email or call with what you want changed, in plain language.
We handle it
We make the change, check it before it goes live and tell you when it’s published. Nothing to log into, nothing to relearn.
Questions
The fine print, in plain English.
Where do these numbers come from?
They are estimates for a typical small-business owner making about 2 changes a month and valuing their time at $75 an hour. Learning, relearning, change and upkeep times differ by person and by site, so use the calculator above with your own numbers. We left out website-builder subscription, theme and app fees, which only makes the do-it-yourself side look cheaper than it is.
Aren’t Wix and Squarespace easy now?
Easier than they used to be, and they keep adding features. But easy to use while you remember it is different from easy to come back to six weeks later. Menus move, settings get renamed, and the one-off change you need is rarely the one you practiced. The relearning is the part nobody counts.
What does the intake cover?
One conversation where we learn your services, prices, hours, service area, photos, the people on your team and what each page should get visitors to do. We keep it on file, so a request like “update the spring special” needs one sentence, not a briefing.
How do I ask for a change?
Text, email or call in plain language and send photos if you have them. We make the change, check it before it goes live and tell you when it is published. Nothing to log into and nothing to remember.
Do care plans include moving my current site?
No. Care plans keep an UpSite current after it is built. Moving your WordPress, Wix or Squarespace site to an UpSite is a separate fixed quote, so you know the full price before anything starts. See pricing.
What counts as an update or a new page?
An update is any change to a page you already have: wording, photos, prices, hours, a new section. Change five or six things at once if you like; there is no meter. A new page is a brand-new address, like a service, project showcase, location or promotion. Care includes up to five a month; Growth covers virtually as many as your business needs.
Get your evenings back
Hand off the website.
Keep the hours.
Tell us about your current site. Tom will quote moving it to an UpSite, then we handle every change from there.