Data4 min read
The $635 a year nobody budgets for.
A typical WordPress plugin stack renews at about $635 a year, before hosting or anyone's time. Here's the itemized list, at renewal prices.
Read the noteWordPress or Statamic,
for an owner who doesn't care about either.
You don't need to know what a CMS is. You need to know what each one costs you every year, what breaks, and who can fix it. Here's that, with sources.
- a year in WordPress plugin renewals, typical paid stack
- $635
- a year for Statamic updates after year one, included in Keep
- $99
- of 2025's new WordPress-ecosystem vulnerabilities were in plugins
- 91%
Six questions an owner actually asks.
| Question | WordPress, typical small-business site | Statamic, on the Ludic kit |
|---|---|---|
| Software cost each year | About $635 in plugin renewals on a typical paid stack, at renewal prices. The itemized list. | $99 for Statamic updates after year one. Included in Keep. |
| Things to keep updated | Core, theme and every plugin, each on its own schedule from a different vendor. | One platform from one vendor, on Laravel, plus two small Statamic add-ons (sitemap, redirects). Not a WordPress-style plugin stack, and Nathan updates them together. |
| Security disclosures | 11,334 new WordPress-ecosystem vulnerabilities in 2025. 91% were in plugins; 46% were unpatched when disclosed (Patchstack). | Fewer third-party parts, each maintained by one vendor. Not zero risk, and we won't say it is. |
| Who can maintain it | Any WordPress developer. There are many. | Any Laravel developer. Laravel is the most-used PHP framework (JetBrains 2025). Why that matters. |
| Editing | Block editor or a page builder. Easy to break a layout. | Locked layouts, edits saved as drafts with a preview link, and nothing publishes until someone says so. |
| Where your content lives | A MySQL database on your host. | A standard database you own, plus the code in a GitHub repo in your name. Exportable any time. |
When you should stay on WordPress.
- You run a store on WooCommerce with a stack of extensions your business depends on.
- Your team publishes every day and is happy in the WordPress editor.
- One plugin does something you can't live without, and nothing else does it.
- Someone already keeps it updated, well, for a price you're happy with.
If that's you, keep it. Nathan will tell you the same on the call.
The numbers behind this page.
Data5 min read
What 403 HVAC websites run on.
We read 403 HVAC company websites across 16 Southeast metros. 233 run WordPress, the most of any trade we looked at. What that means for owners.
Read the noteSources: Patchstack, State of WordPress Security in 2026; JetBrains State of PHP 2025; renewal list prices for Elementor Pro, Astra Pro, WP Rocket, Gravity Forms, ACF PRO, Wordfence, Yoast Premium and UpdraftPlus; statamic.com/pricing. Checked October 2026.
Twenty minutes. A price and a date.
Nathan answers. Lark is the scanner. Bring your URL and leave with the price, the date and what moves.