If you have a website, you probably see a charge called "hosting," another for the domain and, sometimes, one for "maintenance." They are not the same thing, and they are not always charged by the same company. This guide explains what each one is, what it should cover, and how to ask so the monthly charge stops being a mystery.
Three charges that get mixed up
The domain is your address, like yourbusiness.com. Hosting is where the files of your site live. Maintenance is the work someone does to keep the site running and up to date. They can arrive on a single invoice or on three. What matters is that you know which one is which.
The domain: it renews, and someone has to remember
ICANN, the organization that coordinates domain names, says a registration typically lasts between one and 10 years and that you have to renew it with your registrar before it expires. If it lapses, you risk losing the name for a short time or, in its words, "possibly for good."
The registrar sends renewal reminders to the contact email on the account, and ICANN asks owners to keep that information up to date. So check whose email is on yours. If the person who registered the domain no longer works with you, those reminders go to nobody. For more on who should own the domain, read our guide on what to ask before hiring someone to build your website.
Hosting: the computer that keeps your site open
Mozilla's developer guide describes a web server as a computer that stores a website's files. It says a dedicated server is typically more available and always connected to the internet, and that a third party usually maintains it. Hosting is renting that service.
The same guide says hosting services range from free to thousands of dollars a month. So the price alone does not tell you what you are getting. Ask what happens if your site goes down on a Saturday: who finds out, and who puts it back up?
Ask about the secure address too. Google's page experience guidance includes a plain question: are your pages served in a secure fashion? That is the https at the start of your address. Find out whether the certificate is included and who renews it.
Maintenance: the part you only notice when it is missing
Maintenance usually means updating the software the site runs on, keeping a backup, checking that the contact form still delivers, and fixing what breaks. A site that nobody looks after can slow down or fail without anyone noticing, until a customer tells you.
Maintenance does not usually mean new pages, a redesign or rewriting your text. That is separate work. Ask how small changes are handled: is a new phone number or a change of hours included, or billed apart? Our guide on what a website costs and why also explains how to compare quotes line by line.
What to ask whoever bills you
Put these questions in an email and keep the answers:
- Is the domain in my name, and who renews it?
- What exactly does the monthly charge cover?
- Is the https certificate included?
- If the site goes down, who fixes it and how do I reach them?
- Are small edits, like hours or a phone number, billed separately?
- What happens to the site if I stop paying?
A good provider answers without getting defensive. If the answers are vague, treat that as information.
How we handle it at Páginas Web en PR
At Páginas Web en PR, hosting and maintenance is a monthly fee that is separate from the one-time fee to build the site, and it is what keeps your site online. We publish on Vercel. To know what it covers in your case, ask us before you start and we reply within one business day.
If you ever decide to leave, we transfer the domain, the site files and the content, once any pending balance is settled. The pricing page shows the build and the monthly line separately, and the FAQ has more answers. If you would rather talk it through, contact us.
A ten-minute check you can do today
Open your email and search for "renewal," "domain" and "hosting." Write down three things for each one: who charges you, how much and how often, and on what date it renews. Then open your site on your phone and check that the address starts with https and that the contact form still sends. If something does not add up, you have the questions ready.