Website care plans, compared

Website Care Plans for Small Business

Agencies sell website care plans in tiers: updates and backups on the cheapest, a few hours of edits on the priciest. Judge any tier against six items, see which ones it leaves out, and compare it with what Theo's Basic, Starter and Pro plans give at $29.99, $69.99 and $129.99 a month, with Starter free for the first 30 days.

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By Theo. Updated September 28, 2026.

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The six-item checklist any website care plan should cover
Basic $29.99: the site, managed hosting and 1,500 credits for edits
Starter $69.99, free for 30 days: weekly pages, fixes, indexing and a report
Nothing to update: no core, theme or plugins on a Theo site

From $69.99 a month on Starter, free for 30 days.
Rated 4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 26 reviews
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Your first build is on Theo: see the site before you decide

A website care plan is a monthly fee an agency charges to keep a finished site updated, backed up and edited; the cheapest tier is upkeep only, the top tier adds a few hours of changes. Theo's plans start at $29.99 a month on Basic for the site, managed hosting, security and 1,500 chat credits, with no ongoing program. Starter, $69.99 a month and free for the first 30 days, adds what care plans leave out: new pages and posts every week, technical fixes, indexing and a weekly report. Pro, $129.99 a month, adds more of each. The Admin Bar's guide for WordPress agencies puts most care plans at $100 to $150 a month, as of September 2026.

The checklist

What a website care plan should include

Judge any care plan, Theo's included, on these six items. Each one names what the agency tier usually covers, what it bills on top, and what Theo does about it on which plan.

Hosting and security

A care plan should say where the site lives, who pays the host and how the site stays safe. Agency tiers often resell hosting inside the fee or bill it as a separate line, so ask for the line item and the renewal date. With Theo the answer is the same on every plan: managed hosting is included, the site is static (plain files, with no database or admin login to defend) and it is served over HTTPS. Payments go through a connected store, never the site itself. Hosting and security are not a tier; they come with Basic at $29.99 a month and with Starter and Pro.

WordPress care plans: the updates line item

On WordPress, updates to the core, the theme and every plugin are the main job of a care plan and the reason the higher tiers cost more: someone applies them, tests the site afterward and rolls back when an update changes a layout. Plugin license renewals are often billed on top. A Theo site has no CMS, theme or plugins, so there is nothing to patch, nothing to renew and nothing to roll back. That is why a Theo plan can cost less than a care plan while covering more: the largest task on the agency's list does not exist on a static site.

Changes and content edits

Ask which edits are in the tier and which are quoted as projects. Most care plans include a set number of minutes or tasks a month (a new phone number, a swapped photo) and quote anything larger. On Theo, every change comes through the chat: type "Change Saturday hours to 9 to 2" or drag in a new photo, and Theo makes the edit. A small edit uses a few chat credits, a new page more and a redesign the most; Basic includes 1,500 credits a month, Starter 4,500 and Pro 7,000, and top-up credits never expire.

Customer paths: phone, booking, contact and store

A care plan should test the parts of the site that turn a visit into a customer: the phone link, the contact form, the booking link, the store. Theo builds those paths in and links them to the tools the business already runs. The plumbing demo site puts click-to-call in the header, the restaurant demo links reservations and ordering to the tools the kitchen uses, and the CPA demo links a secure client portal. Booking tools such as Calendly, Jobber or OpenTable are linked, not replaced, and a Shopify or Wix store connects directly on every plan, with checkout finishing on the store.

Search health and page speed

Most care plans stop before this line, or sell it as an SEO add-on at a separate price. On Starter ($69.99 a month) and Pro ($129.99), Theo researches keywords and competitors, fixes technical SEO issues, improves page speed, submits new and changed pages to Google through Search Console, and works toward citations in AI search tools including ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews. It also adds pages and posts every week: a service page for a search the site does not yet answer, a post for a question customers keep asking. None of that work uses chat credits, and the owner reviews it rather than orders it.

Reporting: what was done and what changed

A care plan should show its work, and most send a monthly update log at best. On Starter and Pro the Growth tab shows each page built and fix made as it lands, and a weekly report tracks analytics and performance alongside what was published that week. Because the ongoing work compounds over months, the report is how the owner sees the fee turning into pages and visits rather than a line on a statement. On Basic there is no program to report on; the site is hosted, secured and changed when asked, the right fit for a site that only needs to stay up.

Who this is for

Who this care plan comparison is for

This page is for the owner holding two or three agency care-plan quotes, usually for a WordPress site, working out what each tier buys. Tiers mostly differ in update frequency and minutes of edits; new pages and search fixes are usually sold separately. Theo rebuilds the site as a static site on its own hosting, matching the current design if wanted, so the updates disappear, and on Starter and Pro the fee goes toward new pages, fixes and indexing instead. Of the 687 WordPress sites with search data in Theo's audit of 5,974 small business websites, 35 percent got an estimated zero visitors a month from Google search (the full report).

Choosing a care plan

Questions to ask before choosing a website care plan

Use these on any provider, Theo included. Before you compare prices, get in writing the list of what happens every month without you asking, what needs your approval, and what is billed on top of the tier.

What happens every month without me asking?

A WordPress care plan usually answers: updates, backups, a security scan, sometimes a link check. Theo gives every plan hosting and security with nothing to update, and Starter and Pro the research, new pages and posts, technical fixes, speed work, indexing through Search Console and a weekly report, none of it waiting on a request from you. If a provider's answer is that it responds to tickets, the plan is reactive; that can be fine, as long as it is priced like it.

Which changes are included, and what counts as a project?

Most tiers cap edits at a number of minutes or tasks a month and quote anything larger, so a new service page or a seasonal offer becomes an estimate and a wait. Theo draws every change from the same monthly credits: a few for a small edit, more for a new page, the most for a redesign, with 1,500 credits on Basic, 4,500 on Starter and 7,000 on Pro. If a month runs heavy, a top-up covers it and those credits never expire; if it runs light, the weekly work on Starter and Pro still happens, because it never draws on credits.

Does the plan include SEO and new pages, or is that extra?

On most care plans it is extra: content and SEO are sold as a separate retainer or an add-on tier, and the base fee covers upkeep. On Theo it is the difference between the plans. Basic, $29.99 a month, is hosting, security and credits for edits, with no ongoing program. Starter, $69.99 a month and free for the first 30 days, and Pro, $129.99, include the research, the weekly pages and posts, the technical fixes, the indexing and the AI search work as part of the fee, not as a quote.

Included

What Theo handles

Basic, $29.99 a month: the site and its hosting

The build, managed hosting and HTTPS security, with no ongoing program: for a site that only needs to stay up and change when you say so. The first build is free and happens before any plan starts, so you see the site before you pay. Basic is the right plan when the site is a brochure and the business finds its customers elsewhere.

Every plan: chat credits for changes

Every change comes through the chat and is paid from credits: 1,500 a month on Basic, 4,500 on Starter, 7,000 on Pro. A small edit such as new hours uses a few, a new page more, a redesign the most. The paid extras are top-up credits, a domain bought through Theo and the optional backlink packages in the Boost checklist; top-up credits never expire.

Starter, $69.99 a month: the weekly search work

Free for the first 30 days. Everything in Basic plus the work most care plans leave out: keyword and competitor research, new pages and posts every week, technical SEO fixes, page speed work and a weekly report. The growth work never uses credits, so the 4,500 credits stay for the changes you ask for.

Starter and Pro: indexing, AI search and reports

Each new and changed page goes to Search Console for indexing, Theo works toward citations in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews, and analytics and performance are tracked in the Growth tab and the weekly report. Over months the work compounds: more pages answering more searches, with the record of each one in the tab.

Pro, $129.99 a month: more of each, plus the code

Everything in Starter with 7,000 credits, more weekly pages and posts, room for bigger changes such as a section-by-section redesign, and read-only access to the site code through GitHub. Pro fits the owner who asks for a lot of changes or wants a copy of the code on hand.

Every plan: your domain and your store

Theo walks you through pointing your domain at the site, root and www, or sells you one. Shopify and Wix stores plug in directly: products, prices and stock appear on the site with a cart, and the order is paid on the store. Etsy, WooCommerce, Square Online, Big Cartel and similar stores keep their checkout behind a storefront that links to the real listings, and that store can live on shop.yourdomain.com.

Process

How it happens

Compare your current plan with the checklist

Mark which of the six items your current plan covers and what each costs as a line item. Then run the free audit on the site: it checks traffic, rankings and search health and lists specific fixes, no login needed. You come away with a plain list of what the site has, what it lacks and what would change on a Theo plan.

Theo rebuilds the site as a preview

Give Theo the current URL to match the look, or describe the business from scratch. The first preview is usually ready in minutes, and the first build costs nothing. You refine it in the chat, section by section, and the preview stays on a temporary address until you decide to publish. Nothing on the current site changes while you look.

Publish and switch the domain

Publish, then follow Theo's steps to point the domain at the new site, both the root and the www version, with forwarding and parking turned off and email records left alone. The domain connects once the registrar's records update, usually within a few hours, and the old site keeps serving until then. Connect Analytics and Search Console once the domain is active; Theo then redirects the old addresses that still get traffic or carry links to the matching new pages, and on Starter and Pro submits the new pages for indexing.

Cancel the old plan and let Theo's run

Once the domain and both Google connections are in place, the Growth Engine switches on: on Starter and Pro the research, weekly pages, fixes and indexing start and show up in the Growth tab, with the weekly report to follow. Cancel the agency plan and check whether its tier carried a minimum term. Theo's plans run month to month; cancel anytime, and the confirmation shows the end date.

Pricing

What it costs, in full

The ongoing search work is part of Starter and Pro. Basic is the site and hosting on its own. Starter is free for the first 30 days.

Plan	Per month	Ongoing search work	Chat credits	Best for
Basic	$29.99	Not included	1,500 a month	Owners who just want their site live and easy to update.
StarterFree for 30 days	$69.99	Included, uses no credits	4,500 a month	Owners who want the site handled without heavy publishing volume.
Pro	$129.99	Included, uses no credits	7,000 a month	Owners who want more capacity, more publishing, and more room to experiment.

No contract, cancel anytime, and you own the site and its content. Top-up credits roll over and never expire. Full pricing and what credits are.

Reviews

What customers say

Rated 4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 26 reviews.

Theo is the best in the game. I was originally forking over hundreds of dollars for a website hosting service only to be on the third page of Google search, but with Theo, I have a gorgeous site constantly optimizing SEO and actually getting me conversions. Truly life changing stuff, couldn’t be more grateful

Greg on Trustpilot

Theo is a fantastic platform, not only from a build and usability standpoint, but in terms of real, measurable performance. The platform is intuitive, well thought out, and easy to work with. More importantly, we saw significant lifts in a remarkably short period of time, and the analytics gave us a clear view into what was driving it. It has been genuinely impressive to see how quickly Theo makes an impact.

Tom Drymalski on Trustpilot

This tool is amazing! Truly the best bespoke AI tool that I've come across in the past year. The website design capabilities are tremendous, and even though I've only experienced 2 months of how Theo can support with SEO, the increases in traction we saw were significant. I've been telling everyone I know who could benefit from Theo to start using it today.

Josh Buoy on Trustpilot

Compare

Theo against the alternatives

	Theo	Typical agency	DIY builder
Monthly cost	$69.99 (Starter, free for 30 days) or $129.99 (Pro); a site plus hosting with no ongoing program is $29.99 (Basic)	$75 to $250 a month for a WordPress care plan per The Admin Bar, most at $100 to $150; CauseLabs tiers at $229 and $399; both as of September 2026	A builder plan plus your evenings
Hosting	Theo's managed hosting on every plan, static and over HTTPS	Often a separate hosting fee, or resold inside the plan	Part of the builder subscription
Updates, backups and plugin renewals	Nothing to update: no core, theme or plugins	The core of the plan; plugin licenses often extra	The platform's job
Edits included	Any change you can describe, paid from monthly chat credits	A set number of minutes or tasks a month; the rest quoted	As many as you make yourself
Content added each month	Weekly pages and posts on Starter and Pro, no credits used	Usually not part of a care plan	Yours to write
Search health	Technical fixes, speed work and Search Console submissions on Starter and Pro	An SEO add-on at a separate price	Your job, with the builder's SEO panel
What you get to see	The Growth tab and a weekly report on Starter and Pro	A monthly update log, when one is sent	Platform analytics
Commitment	Month to month; cancel anytime	Monthly, sometimes with a minimum term	Monthly or annual

FAQ

Questions buyers ask

How much does a website care plan cost?

The Admin Bar's guide for WordPress agencies puts most care plans at $100 to $150 a month, starting at $75 and topping out near $250, as of September 2026; CauseLabs, an agency, lists tiers at $229 and $399 a month. Theo's Basic plan is $29.99 a month for the site, hosting and 1,500 chat credits; Starter is $69.99 a month, free for the first 30 days, and adds the weekly search work; Pro is $129.99 a month, and every plan is on the pricing page. Month to month, Starter sits below the typical care-plan rate, and the Theo figure includes the hosting, the weekly pages and the fixes.

How long does it take to start a website care plan?

Theo builds the preview at no charge, usually within minutes of getting the URL or a description, and the site publishes when you say so. The plan starts when you publish. Once you point the domain, the switch usually completes within a few hours as the registrar's records update, and the old site stays live in the meantime. On Starter and Pro the research, weekly pages and fixes begin after Analytics and Search Console are connected, and the results build over months rather than days.

Who owns the website?

You do, on every plan, including the copy, pages and images; Theo hosts it. Pro customers get read-only access to the code through GitHub, and if you leave you can copy the site and images to move elsewhere. Ask any agency who holds the hosting account and the plugin licenses, since those are what you would need to take with you.

Can I cancel a website care plan?

Yes. Theo's plans run month to month with nothing long term; cancel whenever you like, and the confirmation states the day the plan ends, with the site still yours to copy. Agency care plans are usually monthly too, but some carry a minimum term, so read the tier before you sign.

What should a website care plan include?

Six things: hosting and security, software updates where the platform needs them, edits and content changes, working customer paths (phone, booking, contact and store), search health and page speed, and a report of what was done. The Admin Bar's guide for agencies splits its own list into essentials and optional deliverables, and the cheapest tiers usually cover only the essentials. Ask which of the six each tier covers and which are quoted separately.

Is a website care plan the same as a website maintenance plan?

Nearly. Care plan is the WordPress agency label for a maintenance retainer: updates, backups and a little support time, with content and SEO sold on top. Theo covers the same ground on every plan and adds the search work on Starter and Pro. Website maintenance services explains the maintenance side, and website maintenance packages puts the three plans in one table.

I have a WordPress care plan now. What changes with Theo?

The site stops needing the care. Theo rebuilds it as a static site on its own hosting, matching the current design from the URL if you want it kept, so the core, theme and plugin updates your plan pays for no longer exist. You keep the domain, the old site runs until you point it over, and the old addresses still earning visits or links are redirected to their new pages. Theo versus WordPress lists the differences, and a WooCommerce store keeps its WordPress hosting and checkout behind the new storefront.

What does a Theo care plan not include?

Payments, bookings and member logins run in the tools built for them, and the site links to those tools rather than replacing them: checkout finishes on the connected Shopify or Wix store, a booking link opens the scheduler the business already uses, and Theo does not process payments or run a member database. Custom code development is not part of any plan, and Google Business Profile is handled through Theo's Boost checklist, which walks you through the listings that matter. Nobody can promise a ranking and Theo does not; the weekly work is what the fee buys, and the Growth tab shows it.