Last updated 30 October 2026
Prices seen 30 October 2026 on the provider’s own pages, in US dollars as WordPress.com lists them; no rupee price was published.
The most common mistake I see with WordPress.com is assuming it’s the same as the WordPress you install on a host. It’s a managed service: hosting, core updates and security in one account, billed in US dollars.
Some old advice is also out of date. Plugins are now listed on every paid plan, including Personal at $4 a month billed yearly. What you still don’t get on the cheaper plans are real-time backups and SFTP/SSH access. Those start at Business, at $25 a month.
Picking a WordPress.com plan without overpaying
- Prices are in US dollars a month, billed yearly (checked 30 October 2026): Personal $4, Premium $8, Business $25, Commerce $45. Month-to-month costs more, and 2- or 3-year terms show a lower monthly price again.
- Work out the rupee cost from the full invoice at the checkout rate, add taxes and payment conversion fees, and note the renewal terms.
- Personal is enough for a serious but simple blog or brochure site: no ads, 6 GB, plugins, and a first-year domain on eligible billing.
- Choose Premium ($8, 13 GB) only if you will use its analytics, payment buttons or video features.
- Choose Business ($25, 50 GB) when you need real-time backups, one-click restores, SFTP/SSH, WP-CLI or priority support.
- For a shop, compare Commerce ($45) with Shopify and self-hosted WooCommerce before you pick.
- The free plan is for learning. It shows WordPress.com ads, which looks out of place on a business site.
- If you need full control of the server or want to move hosts freely, self-hosted WordPress is the better fit.
ScaleSaathi verdict
A sensible managed route—provided you do not confuse it with WordPress.org
WordPress.com packages WordPress software with hosting, security and support. That makes it easier to operate than assembling a self-hosted stack. Paid plans now list plugin installation from Personal upward, which removes an old limitation many comparison articles still repeat. Indian buyers must account for USD pricing, longer-term discounts and the fact that full developer and real-time backup features are concentrated in Business and Commerce.
Bloggers, organisations and small businesses wanting WordPress without managing a separate host.
Buyers who want complete infrastructure choice, the lowest local-currency hosting bill or unrestricted server access on an entry tier.
What to know first
- The free plan is suitable for learning but displays WordPress.com ads and uses platform constraints.
- Plugin installation is officially listed on every paid plan, including Personal.
- Personal is $4/month when billed yearly; longer terms lower the displayed monthly equivalent.
- Business adds real-time backups, one-click restores and developer tools such as SFTP/SSH and WP-CLI.
Plans and decision facts
| Plan | Yearly-billed equivalent | Storage | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 1 GB | Learning and testing |
| Personal | $4/month | 6 GB | Simple professional blog/site |
| Premium | $8/month | 13 GB | Media and monetisation tools |
| Business | $25/month | 50 GB | Advanced business/developer workflow |
| Commerce | $45/month | 50 GB | Managed WooCommerce store |
Price check: Offers change. Confirm tax, billing term, renewal and included features on the official checkout before paying.
✓ Strengths
- Hosting, core updates and security protections managed together
- Free starting plan and guided builder
- Plugins listed on all paid plans
- Easy route into the familiar WordPress publishing model
— Limitations
- USD pricing and long-term discounts need conversion
- Advanced backups and developer access require higher plans
- Less infrastructure freedom than self-hosted WordPress
- Free tier has ads and is not ideal for a commercial brand
WordPress.com and WordPress.org are related, not interchangeable
WordPress.org distributes the open-source software that you install with a host. WordPress.com is a hosted service built around WordPress. With WordPress.com, hosting, core security and account support sit with one provider. With self-hosting, you select the infrastructure and take responsibility for more moving parts.
Neither model is automatically superior. A founder who does not want to maintain backups and hosting may save time with WordPress.com. A publisher building a specialised affiliate system may value the wider control and provider choice of self-hosting.
The current paid-plan picture
The pricing page checked on 30 October 2026 lists plugin installation on Personal, Premium, Business and Commerce. Personal removes visitor ads, includes 6 GB storage and a first-year domain on applicable billing. Premium increases storage and adds richer analytics, payment buttons and video features.
Business is a large price step because it adds operational features such as priority support, real-time backups, restore controls and developer access. Commerce packages a WooCommerce experience and store extensions. Do not pay for those tiers until the workflow requires them.
Cost and India fit
WordPress.com presents prices in US dollars on the public page. The yearly equivalent is lower than month-to-month, and two- or three-year commitments reduce the displayed monthly amount again. Convert the full invoice using the checkout rate, allow for applicable taxes and payment conversion fees, and record renewal terms.
For an Indian audience, performance depends on the managed platform and content delivery as well as page weight. WordPress.com reduces infrastructure decisions; it does not remove the need for compressed images, accessible design and focused content.
Billing term changes the price more than the plan
Monthly prices by billing term (US-dollar list price on WordPress.com’s global WordPress.com pricing page, seen 30 Oct 2026; Indian checkout may show rupees and GST):
| Plan | Monthly billing | 1 year | 2 years | 3 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal | $9 | $4 | $3.25 | $2.75 |
| Premium | $18 | $8 | $6.50 | $5.50 |
| Business | $40 | $25 | $20 | $17.50 |
| Commerce | $70 | $45 | $36 | $31.50 |
Over three years, Personal costs $324 if you pay monthly, $144 if you pay yearly and $99 if you prepay three years. Monthly billing also leaves out the free first-year domain, which only comes with yearly and longer terms. My rule: test on monthly for a month if you must, then switch to a long term once you know the plan fits.
The fee on payments you collect
If you sell subscriptions or take payments through WordPress.com’s built-in payment tools, the platform keeps a share on top of Stripe’s own fee. WordPress.com’s paid newsletter support guide (seen 30 Oct 2026) lists the fee by plan: Free 10%, Personal 8%, Premium 4%, Business 2% and Commerce 0%. Stripe adds its own processing fee, which it lists as 2.9% + US$0.30 per payment in the US; check Stripe’s rate for India. The same guide notes that some payment blocks are no longer included on Free and Personal. On ₹50,000 a month of sales, 8% on Personal is ₹4,000 a month, more than the plan itself. If payments are central to your site, do this sum before you choose a tier.
Backups are worth knowing about too: Personal and Premium now get automated daily backups, while real-time backups and one-click restores remain on Business and above.
Refund windows, and why the 14 days matter
WordPress.com’s refund page (seen 30 October 2026) gives annual, two-year and three-year plans a full refund within 14 days of purchase or renewal, and monthly plans 7 days. Add-ons have 14 days. Domains are the exception at 96 hours. So set up and test a theme, a plugin or two and your payment flow in the first week. Do not leave it to day 13.
Plugins that will not run, and moving to your own hosting
Most plugins install on paid plans, but WordPress.com keeps a list of incompatible plugins that are blocked because they would hurt the site or the platform. Check that list before you buy if your build depends on one particular plugin, especially caching, backup or database tools that duplicate what the host already does.
Leaving is straightforward, with one catch. The export guide produces a standard XML (WXR) file with posts, pages, comments, categories and tags, but only links to your media, not the files. Download the media library separately, import the XML on the new host with the WordPress importer, and compare the media count on both sites before you move DNS. A domain registered through WordPress.com can stay there or be transferred out.
Which buyer should choose it?
Choose Personal for a serious but straightforward blog or brochure site. Choose Premium when its media, analytics or payment features match a defined use. Choose Business when backups, developer workflow and priority support are worth the higher annual bill. A store should compare Commerce directly with Shopify and self-hosted WooCommerce.
For ScaleSaathi-style affiliate publishing, self-hosted WordPress remains our default because of portability and system control. WordPress.com is the calmer operational choice when a smaller team wants to publish without managing the hosting stack.
Check the live offer
Verify the final terms on WordPress.com
Confirm the exact plan, full invoice, tax, renewal and refund conditions before paying.
Visit WordPress.comDirect official link until an approved affiliate URL is added.
Frequently asked questions
Can I install plugins on WordPress.com Personal?
Yes. The official pricing FAQ checked on 30 October 2026 says plugin installation is available on every paid plan, including Personal.
Is WordPress.com the same as WordPress.org?
No. WordPress.com is a hosted service. WordPress.org provides open-source software that you install with a hosting provider.
Is the free plan enough for a business?
It is useful for learning, but visitor ads, platform branding and plan constraints make a paid custom-domain setup more credible for most businesses.
Which plan has real-time backups?
The current plan information lists real-time backups and one-click restores on Business, Commerce and Enterprise, not the entry paid tiers.
Can I get a refund on WordPress.com?
Yes, within 14 days of purchase or renewal for annual, two-year and three-year plans, 7 days for monthly plans and 96 hours for domains, per the refund page seen 30 October 2026.
How do I move from WordPress.com to my own WordPress.org hosting?
Export the XML file from your dashboard (export guide), download the media library separately, import both on the new host and check the media count before you point the domain.
Do all plugins work on WordPress.com?
Almost all do on paid plans. A short incompatible plugins list is blocked, and the free plan cannot install plugins.
Is WordPress.com free?
There is a free plan with 1 GB of storage, but free sites show WordPress.com ads and cannot install plugins. Paid plans start with Personal on the pricing page.
Sources and research notes
Prices seen 30 October 2026 on the provider’s own pages. Confirm the checkout total before paying.
- WordPress.com pricing — Plan prices, storage, plugins, backups and developer features
- WordPress.org features — Open-source WordPress capabilities and ownership model
Product names and logos are trademarks of their respective owners. They are shown only to identify the products compared in this review, and their use does not imply endorsement by or affiliation with ScaleSaathi.