Website maintenance services and security for Toronto businesses

Website maintenance services keep the site you paid for working, secure and current long after launch day. At Canada Create™, we look after websites for businesses across Canada and the United States: software and plugin updates, off-site backups, malware scans, uptime monitoring, security fixes and the small content changes that pile up every month. We have been building and maintaining websites since 2008, we are a BBB Accredited business with an A+ rating, and our sales and support line is open 24/7 at +1 (800) 808-9235.

A website is closer to a vehicle than a brochure. The software underneath it changes every week, new security holes are published constantly, browsers change how they display pages, and forms or payment tools quietly stop working when a third party updates its code. Most owners only notice when a customer calls to say the contact form is broken or a browser shows a warning beside the site. Regular maintenance catches those problems first.

What website maintenance services cover

A good maintenance plan is a routine, not a rescue. Here is what a monthly routine should include, whether you run a five-page site for a clinic or a large WordPress site with hundreds of pages.

Core, theme and plugin updates

Updates are the single most important maintenance task. Content management systems like WordPress release security and feature updates on a regular schedule, and every plugin and theme has its own release cycle. Outdated plugins are one of the most common ways sites get compromised. We review each update before applying it, test on a staging copy when the change is large, and roll back if anything breaks. That staging step is what separates careful maintenance from clicking update all and hoping.

Backups you can actually restore

A backup only matters if it restores. We keep scheduled backups of files and the database stored away from the live server, keep several restore points so an older problem can be undone, and test restores periodically. Before every significant update we take a fresh snapshot, so a bad update costs minutes instead of days.

Security monitoring and malware scanning

Scheduled malware scans look for injected code, spam links, unexpected file changes and known malicious signatures. We also watch login activity, limit failed login attempts, remove unused plugins and accounts, and check that the SSL certificate is valid and renewing. More detail on security is in the next section.

Uptime and performance monitoring

Uptime monitoring checks your site around the clock and alerts us when it stops responding. We also watch page speed and Core Web Vitals over time, because a slow site loses visitors and search visibility gradually, often without a single moment where anyone notices it broke.

Content updates and small changes

New staff bios, updated hours, a seasonal promotion, a new service page, a replaced photo. These edits are small individually, but they are what keep a site trustworthy. Maintenance plans usually include a set amount of time each month for these changes.

Analytics, Search Console and tracking checks

Google Analytics, Google Search Console and Google Tag Manager break more often than people expect, especially after a theme change or a form update. We check that tracking still fires, that conversions are recorded, and that Search Console is not reporting crawl errors, indexing problems or security issues. If you run paid campaigns through Google Ads, broken tracking means you are paying for clicks you cannot measure.

Forms, links and functional testing

Contact forms, booking widgets, quote requests and checkout flows are where the site earns money. We test them on a schedule, check that notification emails arrive, fix broken links, and confirm that the site displays properly on phones and current browsers.

Monthly reports

Every month you should know what was done: which updates were applied, what the scans found, uptime for the period, any issues fixed and anything that needs a decision from you. A report is how you tell the difference between a maintenance plan and an invoice.

Website security and malware scans

Most small business sites are not attacked because someone chose them. They are hit by automated bots that scan huge numbers of sites for known weaknesses in outdated software, weak passwords and abandoned plugins. That is why security work is mostly prevention.

How to scan your site for malware

There are two kinds of malware checks. A remote scan, the kind you get when you paste a URL into a free online malware checker, looks at what the site shows the public: injected scripts, spam links, redirects and blocklist status. It is a useful first test, and it is quick. A server-side scan looks at the files and database themselves and can find backdoors and hidden code that a remote scan never sees. If you want to test your site for malware properly, you need both.

What a URL malware check can miss

Many infections are built to hide. Some only show spam to search engine crawlers, some only redirect mobile visitors, and some sit dormant in a file until triggered. A clean result from a free malware website check is good news, but it is not proof the site is clean. Signs that deserve a deeper look include unfamiliar admin accounts, strange pages appearing in Google results, a warning from your host, a browser security warning, a sudden traffic drop or emails from the site landing in spam.

If malware is found

Cleanup follows a set order: isolate the site, keep a copy of the infected state for review, remove malicious code and unknown accounts, replace core files with clean versions, update or remove the vulnerable software that let the attacker in, reset passwords and security keys, then request removal from any blocklist and review Search Console for security warnings. Removing the visible symptom without closing the entry point is why many sites get reinfected within weeks.

Hardening that prevents the next problem

After cleanup, or from day one on a new plan, we harden the site: strong unique passwords and two-factor login for administrators, fewer admin accounts, a web application firewall where appropriate, limited login attempts, correct file permissions, removal of unused plugins and themes, and a current PHP version supported by your host. If your hosting is part of the problem, our website hosting team can move the site to a managed environment.

WordPress website maintenance services

WordPress powers a large share of business websites, and its flexibility is also its main maintenance burden. A typical WordPress site runs a theme, a page builder and anywhere from ten to forty plugins, each updated by a different developer on a different schedule. One plugin update can conflict with another and break a page layout or a checkout.

Our WordPress site maintenance service covers core, theme and plugin updates with staging tests, premium licence renewals so paid plugins keep receiving security fixes, database cleanup, PHP version upgrades planned ahead of host deadlines, and replacing abandoned plugins before they become a risk. Because we also build sites as a WordPress development team, we fix what we find instead of only reporting it.

We maintain sites built by other agencies and freelancers too. The first step is an onboarding audit so we understand how the site was built, what is custom and where the risks are.

Maintenance for Shopify, Wix, Squarespace and custom sites

Hosted platforms such as Shopify, Wix and Squarespace take care of their own core software updates, which leads many owners to assume there is nothing left to maintain. The platform keeps its code current, but everything you add on top of it is still your responsibility: apps and extensions, theme customizations, third-party scripts, tracking tags, product data and page content.

Hosted platforms

On Shopify, apps are the main source of trouble. Each one adds code to the storefront, and apps that were uninstalled can leave script fragments behind that slow the site down. We review installed apps, remove leftovers, check theme updates against your customizations, test the checkout and keep an eye on page speed as the catalogue grows. On Wix and Squarespace, the focus is on content accuracy, forms, connected domains, SEO settings and making sure any embedded tools still load.

Custom and older sites

Custom-coded sites and older content management systems need a different approach. There may be no update button at all, only a server language version, a framework and code libraries that age quietly until the host announces it will stop supporting them. For these sites we document how the site is built, check the server software it depends on, patch what can be patched and give you an honest view of when a rebuild will cost less than keeping the old code alive.

How much website maintenance costs in Canada

There is no honest single price for website maintenance, because a five-page brochure site and a busy online store are different jobs. What you can do is understand what drives the cost, so you can compare quotes fairly.

What drives the price

• Size and complexity. The number of pages, plugins, custom features and integrations sets how long updates and testing take.
• Platform. WordPress, Shopify, custom code and older systems each need different skills and tools.
• Risk. Sites that take payments, store customer data or handle bookings need more testing and monitoring.
• Change volume. How many content edits and small changes you expect each month.
• Current condition. A site that has not been updated in a long time needs catch-up work before regular maintenance can start.

Three separate costs

When you compare quotes, split them into three parts. One-time setup: the onboarding audit, catch-up updates, security hardening and setting up backups and monitoring. Monthly management: the recurring routine of updates, scans, backups, monitoring, reporting and included change time. Third-party costs: hosting, domain renewals, premium plugin licences and any security services, billed by those providers. A low monthly fee sometimes hides the third category or excludes restores and cleanups.

Plan or pay as you go

A monthly plan suits businesses that depend on their website for leads or sales and want problems caught early. Pay as you go suits a small site that rarely changes, with the trade-off that nobody is watching between requests. Ask any provider whether unused hours carry over, what counts as an emergency, and whether malware cleanup is included or billed separately.

Canada Create™ quotes maintenance after a short review of your site, so the price reflects the actual work. You can get a proposal in one business day.

Who maintains a website, and should you hire someone

The person who maintains a website goes by several titles: webmaster, website administrator, web developer, site maintainer or website manager. In practice, most small and mid-sized businesses do not employ one full time. They hire an agency or a freelancer on a monthly maintenance plan, because the work needs a range of skills (updates, security, hosting, analytics and content) that one hire rarely covers.

Can I hire someone to manage my website?

Yes, and for most businesses it costs less than a part-time employee while covering more ground. What matters is that you keep ownership. You should hold the admin login, the domain registration, the hosting account and your analytics properties in your own name, with your provider added as a user. We work that way with every client.

Can I maintain my website myself?

You can handle content edits yourself, and many business owners do. The harder parts are testing updates safely, reading scan results, restoring from backup under pressure and cleaning an infection. If you do it yourself, the checklist below is the minimum.

How do I maintain a website: a basic checklist

• Weekly: apply and test updates, confirm backups ran, check the site on a phone.
• Monthly: run a malware scan, test every form, review Search Console, check page speed, remove unused plugins and accounts.
• Quarterly: test a backup restore, review user accounts and passwords, check SSL and domain renewal dates, review key pages for outdated content.
• Yearly: review hosting, PHP version, accessibility and whether the design still serves your customers.

How to choose a website maintenance company

Searching for website maintenance services near me returns a long list of agencies and freelancers. Reviews help, but these questions reveal more:

• Do you test updates on a staging copy before applying them to the live site?
• Where are backups kept, how many restore points do you hold and when did you last test a restore?
• Is malware cleanup included, and what is your process if the site is hacked?
• What do the monthly reports show?
• Will I keep full ownership of the site, domain, hosting and analytics?
• Can you fix problems in the code, or only report them?

Your site stays online while routine maintenance is done. Significant updates are tested on a staging copy first, and live changes are made at quiet times.

Maintenance for online stores, booking sites and lead sites

Online stores need more than a basic plan. Payment gateways, shipping and tax extensions and inventory integrations all update independently, and a broken checkout costs sales by the hour. For stores we test the full purchase path after updates, watch order emails and keep backups frequent enough to protect new orders. If you are planning a rebuild, see our ecommerce website service.

Lead generation sites depend on forms, call tracking and landing pages. A maintenance plan that keeps those working protects the return on your SEO and local SEO work, because traffic only matters if visitors can reach you. If the site has reached the point where patching no longer makes sense, our web design team can plan a rebuild.

What happens when a website is not maintained

An unmaintained site rarely fails all at once. It degrades in small steps that are easy to miss until they add up.

• Security exposure grows. Every month without updates adds known weaknesses that automated bots already test for.
• Features stop working. A form plugin falls out of step with the email service, a map embed changes its terms, or a payment extension stops talking to the gateway.
• Speed slips. Images get larger, scripts pile up and the database fills with old revisions and expired data.
• Search visibility suffers. Broken pages, slow load times, security warnings and outdated content all make it harder for the site to hold its place in search results.
• Catch-up gets expensive. Jumping several major versions at once is far riskier than regular small updates, and sometimes the only safe path is a rebuild.

Regular maintenance usually costs less than emergency repairs because it spreads the work into small, predictable steps and catches problems while they are still minor.

Domains, SSL certificates and business email

Some of the most damaging website problems have nothing to do with the site itself. An expired domain takes the website and every email address on it offline at the same time. An SSL certificate that fails to renew makes browsers show a security warning that sends visitors away. A wrong change to DNS records can stop email from arriving without anyone noticing for days.

As part of maintenance we track domain and certificate renewal dates, confirm auto-renewal is turned on with a valid payment method, keep a record of your DNS settings and check that the email authentication records (SPF, DKIM and DMARC) are in place, so messages from your site and your staff are less likely to land in spam. Where the domain is registered in someone else’s name, such as a former developer, we help you move it back into your own account.

Speed and Core Web Vitals care

Speed is a maintenance task, not a one-time project. A site that loads quickly at launch slows down as new images, plugins, tracking tags and chat widgets are added. Google’s Core Web Vitals measure how quickly the main content appears, how fast the page responds to a tap or click and how much the layout shifts while loading, and all three can drift over time.

Our routine includes compressing and resizing new images, lazy loading media further down the page, reviewing caching settings, cleaning the database, removing scripts that are no longer needed and checking field data in Search Console for pages that fall behind. When a speed problem comes from the server itself, we explain the options, including a change of hosting, before any money is spent.

Accessibility and content upkeep

Accessibility is easier to keep than to add later. Each time a page is edited, new problems can creep in: images without alternative text, headings used for styling instead of structure, low-contrast text on a new banner, or a PDF that a screen reader cannot read. During maintenance we check new and edited content for these common issues and fix what we find, so the site stays usable for people who navigate by keyboard or with assistive technology. We do not give legal advice about accessibility obligations; for a formal compliance opinion, speak with a qualified adviser.

Content upkeep matters for the same reason. Outdated hours, former staff, discontinued services and old promotions make visitors doubt everything else on the page. A quarterly content review keeps the site accurate and shows you which pages are worth expanding.

How our maintenance onboarding works

Taking over a site, whether we built it or not, follows the same steps.

1. Access and ownership check. We confirm who owns the domain, hosting, admin accounts and analytics, and add Canada Create™ as a user rather than taking over your accounts.
2. Full backup. Before we change anything, we take a complete backup of files and database and store it away from the live server.
3. Audit. We review software versions, plugins, theme, custom code, security settings, speed, forms, tracking and Search Console, and list every issue by priority.
4. Catch-up work. Outdated software is updated in a safe order on a staging copy, security is hardened and monitoring is switched on.
5. Regular routine. From there, the monthly plan runs: updates, scans, backups, checks, change requests and a report.

Requests and history are tracked in CS+, our CRM, so every change to your site has a record you can ask about later.

Emergency help when your site goes down

Even a well-maintained site can go down: a host outage, an expired card on a renewal, a bad update from a third-party service or an attack. When that happens, speed of response matters more than anything else. Our sales and support line is open 24/7 at +1 (800) 808-9235. For sites on a maintenance plan, we already hold current backups, access details and a record of how the site is built, which is what makes a fast recovery possible. If your site is down and we do not maintain it yet, call anyway and we will explain what we can do.

What website security includes

Security audit and hardening

A review of your site, theme, plugins, users, hosting and integrations, followed by hardening: removing unused plugins and accounts, enforcing strong authentication and MFA on admin access, locking file permissions, disabling risky features, securing the database and configuring headers such as Content Security Policy and HSTS.

Web application firewall

A managed firewall in front of your site that blocks known attack patterns, brute-force logins, bots and traffic from hostile sources before they reach your server, with rules tuned for WordPress, WooCommerce and custom applications.

Malware removal and cleanup

If your site has been hacked, defaced, redirecting visitors, sending spam or flagged by Google, we clean it: removing malicious code and backdoors, closing the entry point, restoring from clean backups where needed, and submitting review requests to Google and security blacklists to restore your reputation and rankings.

Updates and vulnerability management

Core, theme and plugin updates tested and applied on a schedule, with emergency patching when a critical vulnerability is disclosed, and vulnerability scanning between updates so nothing is missed.

Monitoring and alerts

Uptime, file integrity, malware, blacklist and SSL monitoring with human follow-up, so you find out about a problem from us, not from a customer.

Backups and recovery

Off-site, versioned backups tested regularly, with a documented recovery procedure and a recovery time you can plan around.

Secure managed hosting

Our managed hosting gives your site its own dedicated environment with SSL, backups, malware protection and updates included, for $30/month + tax, paid annually ($360 + HST in Ontario). Busy stores and applications are quoted in writing.

Penetration testing for web applications

For custom applications, portals and e-commerce with sensitive data, a manual web application penetration test finds the logic and access flaws that scanners and firewalls cannot.

Related guides: securing your WordPress website and fixing the not secure warning.

Start with a website health review

We begin with a review of your site: software versions, plugins, backups, security, speed, forms and tracking. You get a clear list of what needs attention now and what a monthly plan would cover, with a quote to match. Call +1 (800) 808-9235 any time, or request a proposal and get it in one business day.