Setting up a WordPress website can be very easy. But when you plan to use it for your business, the budget becomes a decisive factor. How much does WordPress actually cost? 

WordPress costs include several factors, including:

• Hosting
• Domain names
• Themes 
• Plugins
• Web design

In this article, we will take a closer look at each of these aspects and consider the respective costs in relation to a WordPress website.

What does WordPress really cost?

Before you create a website, you need to decide whether you want to use WordPress.com or WordPress.org. Both are great options, but serve different purposes. You'll find that the cost of WordPress website packages varies greatly between the two options.

WordPress.com allows you to create a WordPress website without having to buy a separate hosting plan. Although you can buy WordPress hosting plans through WordPress.com, you cannot monetize your website with advertising. Nor can you sell items or services through an online store. Unless you opt for an e-commerce plan. 

Most WordPress websites that are created on WordPress.com are intended for informational purposes. You can't extend the functionality of your website very much with WordPress.com either. In addition, you won't be able to use third-party plugins that were developed for the self-hosted version of the platform.

With WordPress.org, you can monetize your website in any way you want and use a wider range of features such as plugins and shortcodes. You need to buy your own web hosting to use WordPress.org. There is a complex setup process, but the platform offers a lot of flexibility. 

Costs for hosting tariffs & domains

Before you can create a new website, you need to secure a hosting plan and your own domain. Let's discuss the specifics of the different types of hosting offered by web hosts in a quick WordPress hosting comparison. 

Costs for WordPress.com

As mentioned earlier, WordPress.com is a great way to start a WordPress website for free. It offers a way to start a website without having to invest a dime. 

However, if you want to expand your website, WordPress.com also offers premium plans.

The costs for WordPress Premium include:

• Personnel 
• Premium 
• Business 
• E-Commerce 

It's important to know that you can only use plugins to extend the functionality of your website from the Business level onwards. And while you can accept payments at the personal level, you only get access to all monetization features at the e-commerce level.

With these plans, you do not have access to the backend of your website. Server-side development is not possible with the WordPress.com packages. Since WordPress.com doesn't give you full control over your website's files, it's not the best choice for business or enterprise websites. 

Shared WordPress Hosting 

If you choose WordPress.org, you'll need to find a web hosting service. Most people use shared hosting as an entry-level option, as the cost of WordPress is typically low.

A few advantages of shared hosting are:

• The option to use your own themes and plugins
• The ability to edit the code of your website 
• WordPress installation with just one click

Some web hosting providers even offer a free SSL certificate and a free domain name with their hosting plans. Shared hosting can also be referred to as a WordPress personal plan, as it is typically used by individuals or businesses just starting out. Shared hosting is very popular because of its low cost. 

However, there are also a few disadvantages to shared hosting. First of all, the performance of your website depends on other websites that are on the same server as you. If you share disk space with a popular website, the popular website may consume all available resources, causing your website to load slowly. 

Another disadvantage of shared hosting plans is that if another website on the same server is hacked, your WordPress website could also be infected.

Managed WordPress hosting 

Managed WordPress hosting offers a higher level of service than shared hosting. This means you can expect a higher level of care to be taken with your website.

Managed hosting is often marketed to those who want to set up a small business website or membership site, or who otherwise want to take over the maintenance of their website. This often includes plugin and theme updates. 

The result is that managed WordPress hosting eliminates many of the technical headaches associated with running a WordPress website. In other words, this plan is a good choice if you want to focus on content creation - and don't want to worry about maintenance yourself. 

The cost of managed hosting for WordPress websites varies and depends on the amount of bandwidth and direct support you require. 

Raidboxes

Raidboxes is an ideal choice for creating a customized website. Our managed hosting services offer fast and secure hosting. Website migration (also known as relocation) is even included free of charge. We have a variety of managed hosting plans to suit all website needs. 

The FULLY MANAGED plan costs €30/month and includes a single WordPress installation, an SSL certificate and regular updates for WordPress core, plugins and themes. Backups are also included. 

Raidboxes also offers bulk plans, which are perfect for agencies and freelancers looking for a reliable hosting provider for their clients. 

You can get started for free and work on websites for clients or opt for one of our bulk plans, such as the WEBDESIGNER S plan, which allows you to host 5 WordPress websites with free SSL certificate, regular updates for the WordPress core and nightly WordPress backups. Bulk hosting plans start at 60 €/mo. 

Our WooCommerce hosting plans, such as the PRO WooCommerce plan, are perfect if you have an online store and want to focus on developing new products and marketing strategies. Our WooCommerce plans start at €50/mo for a single WooCommerce store. 

If you have a website that receives a lot of traffic, our High Performance and Enterprise plans are just right for you. As with the other plans, a free SSL certificate, nightly backups and regular core updates are included in the cost of the hosting plan. High Performance plans start at €100/mo.

WordPress VPS Hosting

Another option you should consider is VPS hosting. VPS stands for Virtual Private Server. VPS hosting providers use a physical server that acts like multiple, separate servers. Each of these "separate" servers is an instance with its own share of server resources. Typically, each instance hosts one website, so you don't have to worry about other websites affecting performance. 

WordPress costs for VPS plans are slightly higher, but for good reason - VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting provides a dedicated server for your WordPress website, which means:

• Faster loading times 
• Greater website security 
• Managed WordPress tariffs 

When it comes to VPS hosting plans, one disadvantage is that the hosting provider may not allocate resources correctly. This can lead to problems because virtual servers also all run on one host server.

Virtual servers are often overbooked with low-cost providers. For example, because they have more RAM and CPU allocated than is actually available. However, as not all VPSs always run at full capacity, the VPSs share the performance.

Virtual Dedicated Servers, for example, are an alternative. Although these are more expensive than VPSs, they have guaranteed CPU, RAM and SSD/HDD performance.

How to choose the best WordPress cost model for your needs

Now that you know the differences between the various hosting plans, here are a few tips that will help you choose the best WordPress cost model for your website: 

• Find out how many visitors you get each month: Almost all hosting providers list these numbers for each hosting plan they offer. This will help you determine which plan is right for your WordPress website.
• Consider what type of website you have and what your personal preferences are: If you don't want to spend time maintaining and managing your website, a managed hosting plan is a good choice. Similarly, a managed hosting plan is ideal if you have a small business website: this way you can focus on growing and scaling your business.
• Keep an eye on your budget: There are different WordPress cost options for shared, VPS and managed plans. Choose one that fits your budget, but also allows you to easily upgrade your plan as your website grows. 
• Don't forget about support: Make sure that your chosen hosting provider has support that is available around the clock so that you can get help whenever you need it. 

In the end, you should choose a solution that you can afford and that fits your business needs. Of course, you can choose a cheaper hosting plan over a more expensive one. But keep in mind that you usually get what you pay for. So it's worth paying more for a hosting plan, as your website is the most important asset you have.

Domains 

With most web hosts, a domain name is already included in the cost. However, if you want to buy a domain yourself, there are several ways to do this, for example:

• Domain.com
• Namecheap
• Name.com

Costs for web design

Once you have your web hosting, domain and WordPress installed, you need to take care of your webdesign. You can use a theme or a website builder. Or you may prefer to hire someone to create a custom web design for you. 

WordPress web design cost options vary greatly depending on the size of the website and its complexity. A small website with just a few pages can cost under $500. A small business website is in the $1,000 range. 

WordPress developers who take care of analytics, social media integration and content management systems cost around $2,000, and small e-commerce websites are typically in the $3,000 range. 

Costs for WordPress plugins & themes

If it's not possible to hire designers, then another factor related to WordPress costs is which WordPress theme you're going to use. 

You can use a free theme, and many are available in the WordPress theme directory available. Many of the fantastic options offer a lot of customization possibilities.

However, you may need a wider range of features such as contact forms, advanced e-commerce integration with WooCommerce and more customization options. This is where premium themes come into play. 

There are many premium versions of themes available in the directory, as well as third-party theme developers. 

A few top premium WordPress theme developers are: 

• Elegant Themes: This developer has been in business since 2009 and offers the popular Divi with the corresponding Divi Builder. WordPress costs for this theme are $89 for an annual subscription. 
• ThemeIsle: Popular themes offered here include Neve and Hestia, with premium versions starting at $59 per year.
• Themify: Best known for its Ultra theme, Themify sells each of its themes for $59, or you can pay $89 for access to all themes. Lifetime access costs $249.
• StudioPress: Another option is StudioPress, which is best known for its Genesis Pro theme, which is known for its extensibility and performance. 

Extending the functionality within WordPress is another priority. This is usually done through the use of plugins. 

Various WordPress plugins can extend the functions of your website. For example, to optimize for SEO, try Yoast. If you want to track analytics, Jetpack is a good place to start. 

These plugins are accessible via the WordPress dashboard and the plugin directory. 

Sometimes, however, a premium option is required. In these cases, you must include the plugins in your budget for your WordPress website. 

CodeCanyon is a good place to go for premium plugins. Plugins cost between $20 and $90 upwards and can add features such as contact forms, analytics, appointment booking and widgets to your website. 

Annual costs for your WordPress website

Now that you have a sense of the costs that make up a WordPress website, it's time to add them up. 

You can use WordPress with completely free options. WordPress.com guarantees access to free themes, free hosting and a whole range of features. This would be great for hobby bloggers. 

But let's say you go the starter route for professional freelancers. Then you can expect to pay around $36 for the cheapest web hosting plan with a domain name and free themes and plugins. If you add a premium theme, you can expect to pay around $75-100 per year. 

If you need ecommerce support, you can expect hosting fees of around $120 per year, $50-100 for a theme and around the same for premium plugins. That's a website cost of $220-320 per year. 

If you want a truly customized website, expect to pay at least $500 for a designer and an additional $200-300 per year for hosting. 

Conclusion on WordPress costs

The costs for WordPress such as hosting, domains and themes vary, but one thing is certain: there is a plan to suit every budget. 

If you're using free options, you may have to do some trial and error to find the gems, but it is possible to make the cost of your WordPress website affordable. 

Raidboxes offers managed WordPress hosting services that make it easy to set up a new website and enjoy the benefits of having maintenance done for you. You'll find that our WordPress website costs are affordable for both start-ups and agencies. Try our rates today.