What WordPress Plan Should i get? There are 2 types of plans WordPress currently offers. A basic free plan and a paid pro plan. When you are building a website and trying to decide between the free or the paid WordPress plan, there are many factors you should consider. Everything from your audience, what kind of website and content you are working with, and how complex your website is will influence your decision. As a thumb rule, start with the basic free plan, get your hands dirty and then go full on with the pro.
In this article, I present as I do with my clients. We introduce hosting – domain – WordPress in that order and then bring out what’s in the free and what’s in the pro plans. 99% of the time, we start of with the free plan and then go long term with the pro.
You Will first need a good website hosting plan and a domain name
To use WordPress you will first need a good hosting plan and a domain name.
Hosting is the place where your website files are stored online. It’s like a computer that holds all the files for your site. The most common types of hosting are shared, VPS and dedicated. You can read more about how to choose the right one here.
A domain name is the web address people use to find your site on the internet. Think of it as an address where people can send letters (in this case, emails) to reach you (and in this case it’s not your actual physical address).
A domain name usually consists of two parts: a top-level domain (TLD) such as .com or .org and a second-level domain that is custom-made by you. For example, www.saascritter.com would be a domain name with example as second-level domain and com as TLD.
Once you have chosen your TLD and second-level domain, all you need to do is purchase it from a registrar such as GoDaddy or Namecheap. Most hosting services like Bluehost, Hostinger, etc also let you buy a domain name. We use Hostinger and its awesome!
You can also buy hosting and domain name from WordPress Pro, but the costs can be very high!
Free WordPress Basic Plan
WordPress.com is a hosted platform which means WordPress.com hosts your site on their servers. In return, they provide a free plan to get started, which includes a free domain name, storage space and basic features.
The main benefit of using this platform is not having to worry about securing your own web hosting or managing the technical aspects of creating and maintaining a website without having to invest in any software or additional services such as shared hosting plans or domain names that would increase costs.
WordPress Basic also has a Jetpack plugin, which is an easy way for users to install apps on their site without having to know any code. This can be useful if you want things like email marketing tools or other features that don’t require coding knowledge. You literally have free plugins or add on apps for every functionality you can imagine!
The WordPress Basic plan offers access to thousands of themes, premium support and SSL certificates. Because this is such an affordable option, it may seem too good to be true; however, it does come with some downsides: Google Analytics integration isn’t included in this package (but can be added separately).
WordPress Pro
Besides the basic features, wordpress pro provides you with a lot of support and features at $15 per month:
- Unlimited storage – this allows you to have all your data hosted in one place safely, as opposed to having multiple places where it’s hosted.
- Ability to use custom plugins (customised code) – this gives you full control over what your site looks like and how it works, including things like custom design elements or pages that need specific functionality. You can also create new ways of displaying content by adding plugins that allow you to do so.
- Ability to create custom themes – if there’s something about the theme on our platform that doesn’t work for your website, then why not make your own? You don’t necessarily need an expert web developer for this task as long as it fits within our standards for good design practice (you can find more information on this here). If there are any questions about whether something is acceptable or not we will always be happy to give feedback on any proposed changes before they go live!
What wordpress says on their website
Here is a detailed feature by feature coverage of each plan as displayed on wordpress.com
In the end, it is up to you which plan you choose. If you are just starting off and want to learn then a free account is the best option. If you are serious about your blog or website then you should go for the WordPress Pro plan.
The Pro Plan comes with great features like:
- Unlimited Disk Space
- Unlimited Bandwidth
- Automatic Updates of Core Files (WordPress) & Plugins (Theme, Plugin) Every Day or Hourly depending on your choice in settings.
If you are just starting off and want to learn then a free account is the best option.
If you are just starting off and want to learn then a free account is the best option.
- You can test out your themes, plugins and other stuff without investing money into it.
- It is more affordable than the paid accounts.
The basic plan is free while the pro plans are priced at $15/month.
If you want to save money then the basic plan is a good choice as it offers unlimited bandwidth, storage space etc., but only allows one installation of WordPress on one domain with no support or security updates included in it.
On the other hand if you want more than that, then go for pro plan as it provides two installations of WordPress on two domains along with all features from basic plans but also gives access to premium support services as well as premium security updates every month (worth $89 per year).
The pro plans are designed for agencies or freelancers who need multiple installations on multiple domains with dedicated IP addresses; however these packages do not come cheap at all!
frequently asked questions about which wordpress plan should i get
What is a WordPress plan? How do they help you? And how do you pick the right one for your site? We’ve got answers to these most commonly asked questions.
Why WordPress is the best platform to use when starting a website
WordPress is the best platform to use when starting a website because it’s free, fast, and easy to use.
WordPress is free, which means that you don’t have to pay anything for it. You can get started with WordPress for free by downloading the software from WordPress.org and installing it on your web server.
WordPress is fast, which means that it’s easy for users to load your site quickly no matter where they are or what device they’re using. This is because WordPress uses caching technology so that once a page has been loaded once, it’s saved in memory so that subsequent visits will load faster than before.
WordPress is easy to use, which means that anyone can use it—even if they don’t have any coding experience or knowledge of HTML/CSS languages like CSS3 or JavaScript!
A quick overview of the different plans.
- PersonalA simple site for a single person. Perfect for freelance writers, bloggers, graphic designers and more.
- ProGet more out of your WordPress site with premium features, including customization options like custom headers, menus and backgrounds. Themes are also included in this plan so you can make any style of website you want!
- BusinessSave time managing your business site on the go with mobile apps or view updates from anywhere in the world at all times through an integrated calendar system.
Can I transfer my website to WordPress?
Yes, you can transfer your website to WordPress. It’s a relatively painless process, and in some cases can be done by yourself. You may also want to consider hiring someone who knows what they’re doing to help with the transfer.
Transferring your site yourself will cost you time and money, but it’s easy enough for anyone who is familiar with HTML or CSS (or has access to someone who is). If you choose this option, make sure that the URL of your new WordPress installation matches the old one as closely as possible so search engines will index everything properly.
If you’d rather not do it yourself or if there are any issues after transitioning, then hiring an SEO company like ours might alleviate some stress as we will handle things from start-to-finish on your behalf at no extra charge!
What if I already have a domain?
If you already have a domain, you can just set up your site on that domain. This is the easiest and most common way to get started with WordPress.
If you don’t yet have a domain name, see our guide to choosing one here.
Does a WordPress plan include a theme and plugins?
You can find the free and paid themes and plugins in the WordPress.org theme and plugin directories.
Themes are templates that control how your site looks, while plugins are tools that add functionality to your website. Some themes come with built-in plugins, so you may want to think about whether you want a theme or a plugin first.
WordPress plans do not include premium themes or premium plugins. However, all plans come with access to thousands of free themes and plugins via WordPress.org’s directory listings as well as access to thousands more premium themes and premium plugins through other sources like Envato Marketplaces (formerly ThemeForest) or Code Canyon
How do I get started with WordPress?
- You’ll need to choose a plan and domain name.
- Install WordPress.
- Choose a theme, customize your theme, add content and start blogging!
- Install plugins (optional).
You can find out more about how to install WordPress on the official website here: https://codex.wordpress.com/Installing_WordPress
What does the Personal plan offer?
The Personal plan is perfect for individuals and small businesses that need a website. You can build one site on this plan, which includes:
- 1 website
- 6GB space
- 13GB bandwidth per month (for the entire account)
In addition to the above features, you’ll also get WordPress.com ad-free and business email for no additional charge. You’ll also get access to the free themes we have available and basic design customization so you can tailor your site’s appearance to suit your needs.
What does the Pro plan offer?
The Premium plan offers all of the features that the Personal plan offers, plus:
- Ability to upload audio and video files
- Ability to create a store (shopify)
- Ability to use custom plugins
- Themes that can be customized by you or an expert designer.
To learn more about what you get with each WordPress plan, see our pricing page.
What does the Business plan offer?
The Business plan offers the following:
- Unlimited premium themes.
- Advanced design editor, including an intuitive drag-and-drop visual interface that lets you build your site visually with no coding required. (You can also use WordPress’s built-in text editor.)
- Integration with Google Analytics, so you can track the performance of your website and see how users interact with it.
- No ads on your site or in our member community (the “Members” section). We don’t believe in selling advertising space that affects our members’ enjoyment of the platform. It’s just not who we are as a company—and it wouldn’t be fair to our members!
In addition to these features, the Business plan includes all of the features available on all other plans plus some additional extras:
How do I choose the best WordPress plan for me?
The first thing you need to do when considering a new website provider is to identify the type of site you want to create. Are you going to have a simple blog or business website? Will it be used by multiple people, or just one person at a time? Once that’s clear, think about what features are important to your site. Do you want an e-commerce store with an online payment system? Do you need some sort of customer support or community forums built in? Will you be using advertisements on the site?
Once those things are determined, it should be much easier for us here at WordPress.com/support to help find the best plan for your needs!
Which plan is ideal for me?
The WordPress.com plans can be confusing, especially when you’re starting out. But fear not! We’ve got a simple solution for you:
The Personal plan is perfect if you want to start blogging on your own or as part of a small team. It includes 1GB of storage, 20GB bandwidth per month (that’s about 100 million hits), and all the great tools that come with our other plans—like one-click staging and development environments, infinite auto-scaling options across multiple hosts, and access to our new developer tools like Jetpack Search.
You’ll also get one click daily backups with no additional cost! Personal is perfect if you’re just getting started with web publishing or managing your own website while collaborating with friends and family who don’t need their own accounts on WordPress.com
Can I switch Plans in WordPress?
Yes, you can switch from one plan to another. Just go to your account page and choose the plan you want. Your billing cycle will restart when you make the change, so there’s no need to worry about double payments!
Conclusion
WordPress has a reputation for being difficult to learn, and while it is probably not the best software to start out with if you have no coding experience, it is certainly possible to create a fully functioning website. This is true whether you go with the free plan or the paid plan.
Both have their pros and cons, of course. The free plan offers limited options on how extensive your website can be, but if you are just starting out this may be all you need. If money is an issue, the free plan offers a great opportunity to get some web presence.
