Among other website building platforms, WordPress is one of the most affordable and convenient platforms of all. Most of the features that WordPress provides are free. However, some parts need to be bought. Knowing that one must wonder how much does a WordPress website cost.
Building a website on WordPress may be partially free, but there are some resources that you will have to buy. The overall cost of a WordPress website depends on how much web resources you want in your website.
This article will tell you about all the free of cost resources WordPress offers and all the other valuable resources you will have to buy.
What is free in WordPress?
WordPress is free when it comes to the terms of cost and usage rights of the core software. In other words, anyone can access and download the WordPress software. It is freely distributed and offers freedom of use. The core software may be free, but the resources you use along with the core software to build a responsive website conveniently are not free.
What is not free in WordPress?
Now, as a layman, one would wonder, how do the WordPress developers make money? The answer to that is developing and selling all the user-oriented solutions based on the open-source software. Plugins, themes, domain, hosting, and SEO tools are produced by different companies or individual developers and then sold to website builders.
In short, you can make a website using the free WordPress core software, but to make your site operational and running, you will need to pay for all these resources. Below are the primary and most costly resources that you will have to pay for.
1. Hosting plan
A web hosting will provide the storage space for all the data you will upload to your site. Web hosting makes the website available to users all over the world. The cost of the WordPress hosting plan depends on your need. If you know how to choose your website’s best hosting plan, you can buy the perfect hosting plan from any hosting company.
Different web hosting companies provide different rates. However, there are very few companies that offer maximum resources at the lowest price possible. For instance, A2hosting, BlueHost, HostGator, and SSDHOSTERS, the most cheaply of all, is the SSDHOSTERS.
There are two types of hosting plans, manages and unmanaged. The managed hosting plan is that your hosting provider will take care of your website’s maintenance and optimization. The unmanaged hosting plan is for those who know how to maintain and optimize their website.
2. Domain Name
A domain name is a unique address that you give to your site. People who want to visit your website will enter that domain name in the search engine. The cost of your domain name depends on the Top-Level Domain and the registrar you choose to buy. Nowadays, most of the hosting providers will give you the option of purchasing a new domain or migrating one.
For the first year, the domain costs as low as $0.99; after that, you will have to pay between $9.99 and $14.99 a year. Already bought domains are super expensive; the more specific and relevant the domain name is, the more costly it gets. The price of the existing domain name can be in millions or billions as well.
3. Design and a WordPress website
After buying the best hosting plan and choosing the perfect domain name, you will have to design your website that bests suits your goals. A WordPress theme is the best and most convenient, readymade design for your website. You can download thousands of WordPress themes from the WordPress themes directory for free.
You can also buy themes at the theme store; such website themes will also fulfill your unique requirements. The premium themes cost between $30 and $100. You will get 24/7 customer support, regular updates, and many new unique features.
In case your requirements are met neither by a free nor premium theme, you can hire a developer and design your custom theme that meets all your needs. This method, however, is the most expensive of all.
4. WordPress Plugins
WordPress plugin is small software with different particular functionalities. You can get WordPress plugins in the Plugin directory for free. Plugins in the Plugin directory are free of cost and should cover all your website needs. In case you want a unique functionality, you will then have to buy a premium plugin.
A premium plugin will cost you no more than $15-$20 per year. The more expensive the plugin, the more complex and unique features it has. We would recommend you first search the plugin directory for the functionality you need. If you don’t get the appropriate plugin, then buy a premium plugin.
Conclusion
Building a website on WordPress will cost you some money. If you plan wisely, you can decrease the amount. If you want to calculate how much your site will cost you, you need to calculate the following components’ costs.
- The cost of a Hosting plan
- The price of a Domain name
- The website designing cost
- The cost of plugins.
Above are the four most important components that your website must have; calculating all these four components’ sum cost will give you a rough estimate of how much money you will have to pay for your WordPress website.
