Is WordPress Free?

WordPress - Is it Free?

Is WordPress Free? The simple answer to that is YES! But like most things in life it's a little more complicated than it looks at first glance. Let's take a closer look.

WordPress Core

The core software that is at the heart of WordPress is free to download and use. There are no user licenses or yearly fees. No matter how big your website is. None. Nada. Zilch. Zero!
That's great news, because it's hard to get cheaper than free!

So, What's The Catch? There's always a catch, right? Well, yes... and no.

Plugins

The core is free, but there's more to WordPress than just the core. There are also plugins. Plugins are extensions to the core. They allow for additional functionality to be plugged in to WordPress. Now, a lot of these are free, just like the core, but there are also many commercial plugins, or premium plugins. These attract either a one-off fee or an annual subscription. Now if you only use free plugins - it's all still free 🙂 (Duh, obviously!)

Themes

And then there's themes! Every WordPress site has a theme. Yep, every single one of them! Just like plugins, there are lots of free themes around, and just like plugins there are lots of premium themes. So, use a free theme, and free plugins, and... you guessed it, it's still free!

Yes, But Is This Realistic?

Is it a realistic expectation to never use premium themes or plugins. Probably not, but it is totally possible. At some point you're probably going to want to use a premium plugin. And you still have to factor in hosting and associated costs. So, plan to pay a little bit! 🙂