Spill the Tea: Is WordPress Premium Worth It?

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is wordpress premium worth it

If you’re a blogger, you know that blogging is your life. Writing content has become less of a chore and more of an addiction.

Blogging is your escape from normal life. And with each piece of content you publish, your readership grows.

If you’re a blogger, you’re probably on WordPress. 26.4% of the world’s blogs are a WordPress blog. That’s because WordPress is the preferred CMS system for all content creators, whether you’re a hobby blogger or you host a business blog.

You probably heard of WordPress Premium. But is WordPress Premium worth it? At $99 a year, you hope it is! Continue reading to find out if you should sign up.

The Price Is Higher

If your blog is new or making no or barely any money, you may think the $99/year price may be a bit too steep.

But don’t think about the yearly cost, think about the monthly. That’s only $8.25/month. This is about the same price as your Netflix subscription!

You’re also probably thinking that a lot must come with that price, right? Well, yes and no. We’ll discuss everything that comes with Premium later on.

But unless you run an extremely popular blog, you probably only need the bare minimum.

This is why signing up for WordPress hosting is worth it in the long run. They offer all essentials and you’ll save more money.

Most Serious Bloggers Have a Standard (Free) WordPress Account

Most bloggers will agree Premium has far more benefits over the standard WordPress, or the free one (which is what you more than likely have). But most serious bloggers only use standard WordPress. Why is that?

Two reasons:

  • It’s still awesome
  • It’s the edition that comes with most hosting sites

While Premium offers benefits that the standard edition doesn’t have, the standard is still solid enough for most bloggers. Unless there are Premium features you absolutely need, you should settle for the standard edition.

You’re Still Renting Your WordPress Website

Have you ever wondered why WordPress is free? It’s because it’s an open-source website.

In other words, it’s free because hundreds of thousands of users make WordPress the amazing software it is. But it doesn’t mean you own your website — WordPress still owns your website.

Since you’re paying for the site, you probably think you own the website. Unfortunately, your payment doesn’t exclude you from the open source community.

What About Themes?

One of the reasons why many bloggers consider WordPress Premium is the theme benefits. WordPress Premium touts more theme options and many of them are free.

Surprisingly, the themes and their prices aren’t that much different from the standard WordPress. You can still get a high-quality, responsive, and affordable theme with the standard edition.

This also doesn’t include custom theme options. Unfortunately, web developers don’t work for free. If you want a custom website for a WordPress Premium site, it will cost you extra.

WordPress Premium Features

While most bloggers settle with the standard edition, WordPress premium does offer benefits and features that you can’t get with the standard edition. This includes:

  • Free domain (for a year)
  • Essential Jetpack features
  • Email and live chat support
  • Unlimited premium themes
  • Advanced design opportunities
  • 13 GB storage (the standard only offers 6 GB)
  • No WordPress ads
  • Able to monetize your website
  • VideoPress support (huge for video websites)

This is a larger list than the standard. But the standard also offers many of the same benefits. This includes free and paid themes, Jetpack features, support, design opportunities, and a decent amount of storage space.

There’s another reason why many bloggers settle for the standard edition: plug-ins enable bloggers to use many Premium features while saving money.

Is WordPress Premium Worth It?

While looking at the pros and cons, you’re probably still wondering if you should sign up for WordPress Premium. While there are many benefits, you should only sign up if you absolutely need to.

Here are common situations when WordPress Premium is a good idea.

Blogging Influencers, Web Entrepreneurs, and Professional Writers

If you take blogging seriously, Premium is your best option. While many serious bloggers and writers still use the standard version, the Premium version comes in a convenient package.

And since you’re likely making good money from your blog, $8/month is a small price you have to pay. Professional bloggers and entrepreneurs need to:

  • Monetize their site
  • Have custom or unique web design
  • Need more storage space
  • Optimize their blog for more content (video, etc.)

You may get away with using the standard version for these features, but you’ll eventually need to make the upgrade.

You Need More Storage Space

Premium offers 7 extra GB of storage space compared to the standard version. This is huge! But when will you need more storage space?

If you’re a new or hobby blogger, you don’t need that much space. Actually, you likely use up a whole gigabyte for the first few months after you start blogging.

Once you start to exceed more than 1,000 daily visitors, it’s time to look into an upgrade. At this rate, you’re posting several articles and utilize many forms of content. All of these posts take up memory.

You’re a Video Curator

If you’re a video personality, you can still use your videos on a standard WordPress website. You can upload your videos on another source such as YouTube, and embed the code into a post or insert the video using a plug-in.

But let’s face it, uploading your video content directly on WordPress gives better SEO results. VideoPress support offers a fast and convenient way to upload your videos and integrate them seamlessly into your blogs.

Will You Purchase WordPress Premium?

Is WordPress Premium worth it?

WordPress Premium offers more features than benefits than the standard version. But WordPress Premium is only necessary if you’re a professional blogger, your blog requires more space, and if you upload lots of video content.

For more WordPress advice, visit our WordPress blog page.