Are monthly website plans worth it for a small RV park?
Over five years a monthly plan costs more than a one-time build. That is a real point against it, and it is still usually the right answer for a park under fifty sites.
SHORT ANSWER
Usually yes, for a park without someone on staff who can update a website. A monthly plan at $85 costs $5,100 over five years versus roughly $4,000 for a one-time build plus hosting, so the subscription costs more in raw dollars. What it buys is that somebody keeps it running: rate changes get made, the platform stays patched, and when something breaks at the start of a holiday weekend there is a number to call. The monthly plan is a bad deal if you have a capable family member who will genuinely maintain it, or if the plan locks you into a long contract and you do not own the site.
The five-year math
| Monthly plan | One-time build | |
|---|---|---|
| Up front | $0 | $3,000 to $8,000 |
| Year one | $1,020 | $3,400 to $8,400 |
| Five-year total | $5,100 | $4,400 to $10,000 |
| Changes included | Yes | No, billed hourly |
| Who fixes a break | The company | Whoever you can find |
The one-time column assumes $400 a year hosting and no paid changes, which is the optimistic case. Add two $150 change requests a year and the columns cross.
What makes a monthly plan bad
- You do not own the site. Cancel and the site disappears. Ask directly.
- A long contract. Twelve or twenty-four months with an early termination fee.
- Changes that are not really unlimited. A ticket queue with a two-week turnaround.
- The domain in their name. This is the one that traps people. It should be in yours.
What makes it good
No contract, you own the domain and the content, changes actually get made the same week, hosting and SSL included, and the company knows the industry well enough that you are not explaining what a pull-through is. If those five are true, the extra $700 over five years buys a site that stays current instead of aging into a liability.
The question to ask any company
"If I cancel next month, what do I keep?" The right answer is the domain, the content, and either the site files or a working export. Anything vaguer than that means you are renting, and the price is not the problem, the leverage is.
Related questions.
Do I own my website on a monthly plan?
With us, yes: the domain, the content, and the site. Not everyone works that way, so ask before signing anything.
What happens to my site if I stop paying?
With a no-contract plan it should come down cleanly and you keep your domain and content. With some companies it vanishes and you start over, which is why the ownership question matters.
Is a monthly plan cheaper than hiring a freelancer?
Cheaper per change, usually. A freelancer charges $75 to $150 an hour, so three changes a year roughly equals a year of a monthly plan.
Can I switch from monthly to owning it later?
With us, yes; we hand over what we have. Ask any company this before you start, because the answer varies a lot.
Want this handled for your park?
We build and run websites for RV parks and campgrounds, and nothing else. Websites from $85 a month, SEO from $250.