Quick answer
In the US, fixing a hacked website typically costs about $100–300 for a simple, single-site malware cleanup, $300–800 for a deeper infection with backdoors or database spam, and $800–2,500+ for severe, repeated or multi-site compromises, blacklist removal and recovery. Cheap one-off scans often miss backdoors, which is why sites get reinfected.
Key takeaways
- Simple cleanup: roughly $100–300. Deep infection: $300–800. Severe or repeated hacks: $800–2,500+.
- Price depends on how widespread the infection is, not on the size of your website.
- Google blacklist removal, host reactivation and hardening can add to the total.
- The cheapest fix often skips finding the entry point — so the hack comes back.
When your website is hacked, one of the first questions is how much it will cost to fix. The honest answer is that it depends less on the size of your site and more on how deep the infection goes. Here are typical US price ranges in 2026 and what you get at each level.
Typical cost to fix a hacked website
- Simple cleanup — about $100–300. One site, caught early: injected code in a few files, a malicious redirect or a spam page. Cleanup, a malware scan and basic hardening.
- Deeper infection — about $300–800. Hidden backdoors, malware in the database, rogue admin users, or spam pages already indexed by Google.
- Severe or repeated compromise — about $800–2,500+. Multiple sites on one hosting account, reinfections after previous cleanups, card-skimming malware on a store, or a site that is blacklisted and suspended by the host.
For a detailed WordPress breakdown, see WordPress malware removal cost.
What drives the price
- How widespread the infection is: a few files versus hundreds, plus the database.
- Backdoors: finding and removing every way back in takes the most time.
- Number of sites: other sites on the same hosting account are often infected too.
- Google warnings and blacklists: requesting a review adds work after the cleanup.
- Host suspension: some hosts need a written cleanup report before reactivating.
- Urgency: same-day emergency work usually costs more.
Why the cheapest fix often costs more
Many low-cost services run an automated scan, delete what it flags and close the ticket. If the backdoor or the original entry point — usually an outdated plugin or stolen password — is left in place, the attacker simply comes back, and you pay again. A proper cleanup finds how they got in and closes it.
What a proper fix should include
- A full backup of the infected site before anything is changed.
- Cleaning files and the database, not just the obvious symptoms.
- Removing unknown admin accounts and backdoors.
- Finding and closing the entry point.
- Requesting removal of any Google warning.
- Hardening and monitoring so it doesn't happen again.
Ongoing costs to prevent another hack
Prevention is far cheaper than cleanup. A maintenance plan with updates, backups and security monitoring usually costs a fraction of a single cleanup.
Need it fixed now? See hacked website recovery or emergency malware removal.
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