We have a great question about WordPress this week! I always love another opportunity to gush about how amazing WordPress is, hehe. ^_^
Is WordPress worth the costs?
I’m torn between Blogger and WordPress. I’m aware that WordPress is the best, but it is insanely expensive. Some might say it’s worth it, and yes, it must be, but the price tag for hosting just makes me balk. And it’s also going to be a devil of a time to try and find a good theme, or a theme maker that’s actually affordable.
And then Blogger. Certainly, it’s easier, considering I can edit the HTML. And it’s free. But what really bugs me is how I find myself just so jealous when I see a beautiful, seamless, WordPress theme, and I find myself thinking if that’s possible in Blogger.
Any advice?
Great question! Hopefully I can shed some light on this today. 🙂
WordPress isn’t as expensive as some people think
Self-hosted WordPress actually isn’t expensive as you might think! A self-hosted WordPress blog costs, on average, about $5 – $7 per month! That’s less than the cost of one (non-self published) e-book! I actually ran into a person the other day who thought it cost like $50 per month to get a self-hosted WordPress blog. But that’s not the case! Here’s the price broken down for you:
1) You have to buy a domain name. Domain names are a yearly fee of about $10.
2) You have to pay for web hosting. Most companies allow you to pay monthly, which is anywhere from $4 to $7 per month, depending on which company you go with and which package you select. The cheapest package is almost always sufficient for a book blogger. Some companies ask you to pay for a year up front, which is why the cost might seem expensive, but you can easily just avoid those companies and pick one that allows you to pay monthly. You can find out what some of the best WordPress web hosts are here!
Free themes galore!
Additionally, there are THOUSANDS of free WordPress themes. Even more than free Blogger themes. In fact, I bet you will have a much easier time finding a fantastic free WordPress theme than a free Blogger one. All you have to do is Google “Free WordPress Theme” or just browse through the 1,700 themes hosted on WordPress.org and download one there!
Sure, you might have a better and more gorgeous WordPress theme if you pay for it, but you don’t have to buy a premium theme if you don’t want to spend the money. There are thousands and thousands of great looking free ones available!
Go for WordPress!
Unless you seriously can’t afford the $6 per month price tag, I highly recommend going with WordPress. In general, WordPress is so much more extensive, professional, and limitless than Blogger. The possibilities with WordPress are literally endless. There are so many amazing free themes and plugins, and overall I think WordPress allows for a much more user-friendly and professional experience than Blogger.
What are the best web hosts? Can you take a break from WordPress and ‘pause’ payments?
And another WordPress question:
I am highly considering getting a self-hosted wordpress. I am just wondering two things. First, which web host is best and cheapest of: BlueHost, DreamHost and Laughing Squid, which do you use? And if you will not be blogging for about a month is it possible to leave and then come back, like not using or paying for the blog and then returning. Example: summer camp not blogging but then returning to it.
Elena
Hi Elena! I’m honestly not a fan of any of the hosts you mentioned. I actually did a whole post dedicated to the best WordPress web hosts and you can see there which ones are the most highly rated (by myself and other bloggers).
I don’t use any of the web hosts on that list though. I have a dedicated server with OVH, which is a whole different ballpark. It’s not self-hosting, and it’s expensive, so I can’t recommend it for someone just switching to WordPress!
Regarding the second part of your question, it is not possible to ‘pause’ self-hosting, not pay during that time, and then come back a few weeks later and resume. When you get self-hosted WordPress you are renting server space. That server space is where you put your blog, your posts, your images, and all your other WordPress files. If you ever stop paying for that server space, you are giving up the space, which means the hosting company is going to give it to someone else instead. But before they give it to someone else, they wipe it clean.
You can think of it like a locker at a train station, or wherever the heck you rent lockers. You rent the locker for a certain amount of time, and during that time you put your stuff in it. But if you stop paying, the locker is no longer yours. So sooner or later, maintenance will come around, clean out your locker, and start renting it to someone else. If you leave items behind and stop paying, there’s no guarantee that you’ll get those items back.
I hope that answers your question!
I have thought about switching for a long time now and last week I decided to do it but when I wanted to pay for the self-hosting, I couldn’t pay. I mean, I have the money, but I literally can’t pay. I’m from Belgium and I don’t have a creditcard. So I can’t pay it in any way. So I’ll just have to stick with Blogger.
Did you check out WordPress.com?
Yeah, that’s free, but Ashley made a post about that too and Blogger is still better then wordpress.com
If I switch, it’ll be wordpress.org, but since that’s not possible, Blogger will have to do.
Do you have a check card? Those work too.
Nope, nothing to pay it with. 🙁
Bieke, can you get “debit cards” in Belgium? They work exactly the same as credit cards, but you actually have to have the money in your bank account..it’s like an EFTpos card but is considered a “credit” card for all intents and purposes. It’s linked to your bank account and instead of paying cash for something in a store, you use your “debit card” in the electronic machines and the money comes out straight away. And you can use them online as a “credit” card. According to Google, there’s something called a “Maestro” debit card in Belgium? Or do you have “pre paid” Visa gift cards, that can be used as credit cards, but you pre pay a certain amount on them. (Kinda like a gift card, or gift voucher)
This is actually a really helpful post, Ashley! I eventually want to make the switch to WordPress, and pricing has definitely been a concern of mine. Knowing that it’s actually not expensive at all, takes a lot of pressure off, haha.
It makes me feel better to know it’s not that expensive to self-host. I just have to get rid of my fears and do it one day.
Thanks for putting this out there, Ashley! Hopefully lots of bloggers will see it and switch to WordPress. I love it so much more than I EVER did Blogger.
I love that you love WordPress! I don’t know why, but it seriously makes me so happy to see people raving about WordPress. I guess because I love it, so I love it when other people love it! Haha!
Ah, another WordPress post! And a convincing one at that. Is it like your secret mission to get Inkykins on WP? Lol. Cuz I like really want to. And I will. But as I promised Jessi, I will after I pay for my big trip. Because OHMYGOSH I want to, but can’t afford to spend elsewhere right now. =) Seriously though, you are so snazzy!! I have genius big bloggy sisters! It rocks. Psst, when I decide to switch you are helping me. I have a feeling I’d be a major confused flop otherwise.
Keep talking WordPress!!! I’ll get there someday!
<33333 Inkykins
Great post, but I think there is some confusion. WordPress itself is free. So saying that “WordPress isn’t as expensive as some people think” is a bit misleading. It’s not WordPress that’s expensive, but rather the hosting that makes up the bulk of the cost.
Even better, you can forego the self-hosted option and start a blog on WordPress.com. Blogs on WordPress.com are free, though not as flexible (limited themes etc.) For someone wanting to get their feet wet with WordPress, and who doesn’t require that flexibility, WordPress.com may be a good option.
My blog is a self-hosted WordPress site. I am a Web Developer (not a Web Designer, big difference), but didn’t want to build my own theme from scratch, so I found a free one and customized it to my liking. Works great for me.
Well I went on to clarify where the costs come from (domain and hosting), so I think it ends up pretty clear. 🙂
I actually don’t encourage people to use WordPress.com, unless it’s just for experimenting to test out the interface before moving to self-hosted. WordPress.com is a lot more restricting than Blogger, so if people want a free platform, I suggest Blogger. At least on Blogger you can edit your site’s HTML and use JavaScript (neither of which you can do on WordPress.com!).
Yeah, that’s what I wanted to say when she replied to my comment. WordPress.org is better than Blogger, but I prefer Blogger over wordpress.com. And since I can’t pay (like I explained) for the self-hosting, I’ll stick with Blogger and make it work for me.
“who thought it cost like $50 per month to get a self-hosted WordPress blog”
I think that was me!
It was great meeting you at blogger con 🙂
Eep, hi Tiffany! It was so lovely meeting you. 🙂 I was bummed when I didn’t see you the rest of BEA!
How’s the wedding planning coming??
Thanks a lot, Ashley, because that was my question you answered about Blogger and WordPress. And from looking at the list of web hosts, I’ve decided to go with rfe, if I can ever convince my mother that spending money on my blog is worth it.
Gigatux seemed to be the most likely option, since it was the highest, but then you did mention it could be confusing, and it kinda is.
But I’ve also seen this site, offering a free wordpress blog setup, and when I used their links to see if what they said about a free domain name was true, it. Link: http://www.wpbeginner.com/free-wordpress-blog-setup/
But all in all, thanks for the post, Ashley! It reassures me a bit, but all in all, if converted to my currency, it’s actually quite big. So I think it would be better if I prove myself to be a good blog that’s worth spending money on.
The wedding planning was good!
I know, I was so surprised I didn’t run into you! Did you have a good rest of the show?
Thank you for answering my question Ashley! It was really helpful. Same as other people I am trying to stop fearing and get a WordPress blog but especially for a teen, it can be a lot of money. However I previously bought your book blog plug-in and it’s so beautiful I am hoping to switch soon!
Hi, I love this post! I will def be back for any other WP posts I see. I am a new convert (less than 1 week now. ) & I am LOVING it.
Here are my price deets: I am hosting w/GODADDY. I bought a 1 year package for 2.99 a month! Its the economical package. It has a band with limit, but I wont use half of that limit per month.
GoDaddy was AWESOME n helping me move my domain and everything else I needed to set up WP, move my posts, permalinks, etc.
The 2.99 was a special half off deal. I should of bought 2+years, but finances were tight.
I am still tweeking it all, but I am truly liking it so much more.
Thank you for these helpful WP posts 🙂
Yay, welcome to WordPress!! I’m so glad you’re liking it!
I’m so glad that GoDaddy worked out for you. 🙂
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