= WordPress Pricing 2022 | WhatâÃÂÃÂs The Real Cost? =
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6 Expenses to Budget For
There are two key things to mention about WordPress.org: itâÃÂÃÂs a Content Management System (CMS), and itâÃÂÃÂs free
Yep, thatâÃÂÃÂs right âÃÂàWordPress.org software is completely free to download, and to use. But the story doesnâÃÂÃÂt end there âÃÂàthis post would be pretty short if it did!
Because while WordPress.org is technically free, you wonâÃÂÃÂt be able to get a site live without forking over at least some of the six costs weâÃÂÃÂll be covering in this article. Some of the main costs youâÃÂÃÂll encounter include domain name charges, hosting fees, and premium themes and WordPress plugins
How Much Does WordPress Cost?
To purely cover the basics, WordPress costs around
11/month. **Realistically though, you should expect a **one-off cost of around $200, with a small ongoing monthly charge ($11 âÃÂà$40/month Your WordPress costs could quickly creep into the 1000 mark if you need to hire a web designer
HereâÃÂÃÂs a quick rundown of the six WordPress pricing factors youâÃÂÃÂll need to budget for when using WordPress.org:
Domain name: $12/year. Hosting: from $2.95/month. Pre-made themes: $0 âÃÂà$200 (one-off charge). Plugins: $0 âÃÂà$1,000 (ongoing or one-off charge). Security: from $50 (ongoing or one-off charge). Developer fees: $0 âÃÂà$1,000 (one-off cost). **Good to knowIn this article, we break down pricing for **WordPress.orgthe open-source content management system. **WordPress.comon the other hand, is a less powerful WordPress platform that functions more like a website builder
Our
**WordPress.com vs WordPress.org comparison **is full of more information âÃÂàbut for now, back to WordPress.org!
== 1 Domain Name ($12/year) ==
While most website builders include a domain name in their paid plans, when building a site with WordPress.org, youâÃÂÃÂll need to buy one from a domain registrar such as Domain.com
WeâÃÂÃÂd suggest you go for a domain name thatâÃÂÃÂs as similar to your business or site name as possible. It should be short and memorable!
Most domain names clock in at a very reasonable
11.99/year but desirable ones have been known to creep into the thousands âÃÂàor even millions!
The most popular and desirable domain name extension is âÃÂÃÂ
com but check out our guide to domain names for some backup options if your dream com** domain is already taken! **Good to knowPremiumâÃÂàdomain names are highly desirable domain names that have been snapped up by investors to resell to the general market at a profit. The initial price of these names could be in the thousands, but after the first year, itâÃÂÃÂll renew at the standard $10 âÃÂà$15/year rate
== 2 Hosting ($2.95 âÃÂà$49.95/month) ==
Aside from buying a domain name, hosting is pretty much the only unavoidable cost when setting up your website
When you buy a hosting plan, youâÃÂÃÂre basically reserving a little bit of internet space for your website to sit in. No hosting, no website âÃÂàitâÃÂÃÂs as simple as that
**Good to knowWith a website builder, you pay a small monthly fee for an âÃÂÃÂall inâÃÂàservice âÃÂàhosting and domain name included
In terms of choosing a host, weâÃÂÃÂd recommend Bluehost for WordPress websites. It came out top in our research for WordPress hosting, and is recommended by WordPress itself âÃÂàyou canâÃÂÃÂt say fairer than that! Read our Bluehost review to find out why we were so impressed with its service
The good news is that in the grand scheme of things, hosting costs proportionately very little
|Hosting type||Bluehost prices* (/month)|
|WordPress2.95 - $5.45|
|WP Pro (Managed WordPress19.95 - $49.95|
|WooCommerce6.95 - $12.95Please note some of these prices are promotional offers, and were true at the time of publishing. We will update them as often as possible, but please check the Bluehost website for the most up-to-date rates.*
For cheap âÃÂàyet powerful âÃÂàhosting for your WordPress website, BluehostâÃÂÃÂs
**WordPress hosting **plan, starting at just $2.95/month is just the ticket. That costs less than your morning cup of Joe!
If your traffic starts to pick up, youâÃÂÃÂve got the option of the more flexible
**WP Pro (Managed WordPress hosting to accommodate spikes in traffic. This plan starts at just $19.95/month
Want to start selling online through WordPress? YouâÃÂÃÂll need to install the WooCommerce plugin. To make your life even easier, Bluehost offers
**hosting plans designed specifically for WooCommerce starting from just $6.95month
Looking to switch hosts?
- Bluehost will migrate your WordPress site to its own servers for free, as long as you sign up to a Bluehost hosting plan first
- Alternatively, you can pay $149.99 to have Bluehost transfer up to 5 websites and 20 email accounts to any server
== 3 Pre-made Themes ($0 âÃÂà$200 as a one-off charge) ==
Now weâÃÂÃÂve got the boring admin costs out of the way, itâÃÂÃÂs time for something much more fun âÃÂàthemes!
So the great thing about buying a theme isâÃÂæ well, that you donâÃÂÃÂt actually
*have *to buy a theme. ThereâÃÂÃÂs a whole selection of free ones in the WordPress library that you can demo and install at the click of a button. They will have been created and submitted by developers, and have passed through the watchful eyes of the Theme Review Team. Each one also has a user rating, which is a good way to make sure you donâÃÂÃÂt end up with a dud
Although there are plenty of free themes on offer, you can also pay for one via a third party site like Themeforest. The benefit of paying for a theme is that youâÃÂÃÂre likely to end up with something a little less generic, and a little more sleek. Plus, itâÃÂÃÂs a one-off payment âÃÂàand once youâÃÂÃÂve got a theme, you can use it for as many different sites as you like
**WeâÃÂÃÂve seen themes on offer from anywhere between $2 and $200, but weâÃÂÃÂd say the average is around $55. **
Make sure you always read user reviews where possible, and donâÃÂÃÂt be tempted by cheap, sketchy themes âÃÂàyouâÃÂÃÂll only kick yourself once an update rolls around, your theme doesnâÃÂÃÂt get amended, and your site breaks as a result!
And donâÃÂÃÂt worry if your theme doesnâÃÂÃÂt have every feature you need âÃÂàyouâÃÂÃÂll be able to bulk it out with plugins (essentially âÃÂÃÂappsâÃÂàfor your website). WeâÃÂÃÂll look at how much theyâÃÂÃÂll set you back next
**Want more informationOur guide to **website maintenance costs**explains the upkeep costs of different website pricing factors. **Need a hand customizing your theme Check out our guide on **How to Design a Website** for some helpful tips!
== 4 Plugins ($0 âÃÂà$1,000; some one-off costs, some ongoing) ==
As we mentioned above, plugins are a way to add functionality to your theme âÃÂàkind of like downloading apps to your phone or laptop
There are loads of free plugins around, and loads of premium ones with free, pared back versions. For a simple, âÃÂÃÂpersonal projectâÃÂàwebsite, such as a blog, you could get away with spending little or nothing here âÃÂàitâÃÂÃÂs when you want something more complex that the costs start to stack up
Here are some of our favourite plugins:
Yoast SEOâÃÂàA must have tool for nailing your SEO (Search Engine Optimization), helping your site to rank well. ThereâÃÂÃÂs a free version available, or the premium one costs $69 (one-off). MonsterInsightsâÃÂàTo take your analytics to the next level. Free version available, or premium versions from $99.50 âÃÂà$399.50/year. MailChimpâÃÂàWhatever your siteâÃÂÃÂs purpose, the ability to capture addresses and send out emails is super handy, and nobody does it better than MailChimp. Free version available, or premium plans cost $59 âÃÂà$149/year. **Good to knowItâÃÂÃÂs thought that as many as 60% of hacked WordPress sites are compromised through a theme or plugin. Choosing a cheap or free plugin over a reliable, well-reviewed one could cost you a lot more later down the line
WeâÃÂÃÂve covered security-focused plugins in the next section
== 5 Security ($50 âÃÂà$550 as a one-off cost, $50+/year ongoing) ==
Security is another thing you
*could* theoretically pay nothing for, as some pretty robust security measures are baked right into the WordPress software itself
The core WordPress software, along with the plugins and themes, will regularly require updating
**When an update is available, itâÃÂÃÂs crucial that you install it as soon as possible. **Old software leaves you seriously vulnerable to hackers and viruses. **Top tipChoose a WordPress hosting provider which includes automatic updates and backups as standard, such as Bluehost
SSL Certificate
An SSL certificate, or âÃÂÃÂSecure Sockets LayerâÃÂàcertificate, is a secure website essential. ItâÃÂÃÂs the standard technology for keeping internet connections secure, and is behind the âÃÂÃÂsâÃÂàin âÃÂÃÂhttpsâÃÂÃÂ. It also gives your site that all important padlock in the search bar:
Website builders include SSL certificates as standard, but if you use a CMS system, youâÃÂÃÂll have to arrange one yourself
**These cost around $50 a year for a basic one, but can creep up to $600 or more for the most high tech options. **
Some hosting providers, including Bluehost, offer a free SSL certificate with at least some of their WordPress hosting plans
Security is another thing you
*could* theoretically pay nothing for, as some pretty robust security measures are baked right into the WordPress software itself
The core WordPress software, along with the plugins and themes, will regularly require updating
**When an update is available, itâÃÂÃÂs crucial that you install it as soon as possible. **Old software leaves you seriously vulnerable to hackers and viruses
Plugins
Although WordPress has decent levels of built-in security, there are a number of plugins that can give you that valuable extra layer of protection. We love:
UpdraftPlusfor backups and restores (free plan available, premium plans cost $70 âÃÂàÃÂã195as a one-off cost) Sucurifor advanced protection and hack fixing ( $199.99 âÃÂà$499.99as a one-off cost)
Find out more
- Discover the
10 Best Free SSL Hosting Providersto make sure you get protection without the price tag
- Are you new to the world of website security? Learn
Why Your Site Needs HTTPSin our handy guide
- SSL security and plugins arenâÃÂÃÂt the only way you can protect your WordPress site! Find out what else you can do in our guide on
How to Secure a Website
== 6 Developer Fees ($0 âÃÂà$1,000 as a one-off cost) ==
And lastly, you may choose to hire a developer to build your WordPress website for you for one of the following reasons:
- YouâÃÂÃÂre short on time
- You have a very specific design in mind, or you need advanced functionality that requires custom coding
- You donâÃÂÃÂt feel confident with the process
ItâÃÂÃÂs hard to put an exact figure on this cost because itâÃÂÃÂs so dependent on your needs. If you just need someone to set up a super basic site for you, this could cost as little as $100 âÃÂà$200
If you need something quite complex, you could easily spend over $1,000. But what makes a complex website? Say youâÃÂÃÂre starting a gym. You need a way for people to log in to their accounts, pay for memberships, and book classes, which you need to be able to schedule. You can see how extra functions can quickly stack up to something you canâÃÂÃÂt handle on your own!
If itâÃÂÃÂs a question of confidence, there are loads of resources online (both paid and free) to guide you through the process. WeâÃÂÃÂve published a guide to creating your WordPress website, as well as 15 tips for WordPress beginners
The WordPress community is also a friendly one, not to mention large! If you have a specific query, you can bet that it has been answered online already, either in the WordPress forum or elsewhere. There are also a lot of free tutorial videos on YouTube, or you can think about trying some online courses from Lynda.com or similar
**Have you worked with a web designer beforeWe put together this handy guide to give you **8 Tips for Working With a Web Designer**so that you can make your project enjoyable *and*a success!
== WordPress.org Pricing: Summary ==
WeâÃÂÃÂve taken you through the key costs youâÃÂÃÂre likely to encounter when making a website through WordPress.org. As you can see, itâÃÂÃÂs hard to put an exact figure on how much it will cost âÃÂàrather, thereâÃÂÃÂs an associated base cost (hosting, domain and SSL certificate), with most people realistically needing to spend a bit more along the way:
|What's the costHow much is itOne-off, monthly or annual?|
|Domain Name12||Annual|
|Hosting2.95 âÃÂà$49.95||Monthly|
|Pre-made Themes0 âÃÂà$200||One-off|
|Plugins0 âÃÂà$1,000||A mixture|
|Security50 âÃÂà$550||A mixture|
|Developer Fees0 âÃÂà$1,000||One-off|
== What About WordPress.com? ==
As promised, this article has focused on the cost of building a website with WordPress.org, the free CMS. But it wouldnâÃÂÃÂt be right not to touch on its website builder version, WordPress.com, too
With a website builder, you pay a small monthly fee for a site thatâÃÂÃÂs basically ready to go, with domain and hosting included. You pick a theme, and customize it with your own content. If youâÃÂÃÂre not convinced you have enough time or technical know-how to tackle WordPress.org, a website builder could be a great option for you
**WordPress.com vs WordPress.org comparison guide**
As website builders go, WordPress.com is decent (you can read our WordPress.com review for all the pros and cons), but there are
*better ones out there*. Check out our roundup of the best website builders, or take our short quiz to be matched with your ideal platform
== FAQs ==
How much does WordPress cost?
WordPress is a free open-source platform, but it still comes with costs attached. The main cost associated with WordPress is hosting, which starts at around $3.95/month. Other common costs include domains, themes, and plugins. Realistically, WordPress pricing falls between $11 and $40 per month, after a one-off cost of $200
Do I have to pay for hosting for my WordPress website?
The short answer is, yes! You wonâÃÂÃÂt be able to publish your site online without a web host, so hosting fees are a necessary cost to budget for when working out WordPress pricing. There are tons of hosting providers out there so you need to find one that suits your needs and your budget. Check out our article on the Best Cheap Web Hosts to compare over 50 of the best deals
Should I use a free WordPress theme or a premium one?
Well, it depends on your needs. The risk with free themes is that theyâÃÂÃÂre pretty basic and can even come with security issues if they havenâÃÂÃÂt been coded properly. But there are still some good options out there âÃÂàjust always read reviews and research your theme before comitting to it. Premium themes are generally more sleek and well-equipped than free themes, so we recommend them for a more professional website.