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Prices checked on October 12, 2026. This guide is based on the published plans and documentation, not on long-term use by us.
Quick answer
Personal ($4/mo) for a personal blog. Premium ($8/mo) if your site earns money or you need more storage and lower transaction fees. Business ($25/mo) if downtime would cost you customers: real-time backups, priority support and unlimited visitors. All prices billed yearly, with a free domain for year one.
WordPress.com has four paid plans, and the names do not tell you much. “Personal”, “Premium” and “Business” sound like levels of importance, not lists of features. Pick too low and you hit a limit a month later; pick too high and you pay for tools you never open.
This guide puts the three most popular plans side by side, explains the differences that actually matter, and tells you which one to buy for your kind of site.
Side by side
| Personal | Premium | Business | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billed yearly | $4/mo ($48/yr) | $8/mo ($96/yr) | $25/mo ($300/yr) |
| Billed monthly | $9/mo | $18/mo | $40/mo |
| 3-year term | $2.75/mo | $5.50/mo | $17.50/mo |
| Storage | 6 GB | 13 GB | 50 GB |
| Free domain, year one | Yes (yearly plans) | Yes (yearly plans) | Yes (yearly plans) |
| Ads removed for visitors | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Plugins | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Premium themes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Payment buttons (PayPal, Stripe) | No | Yes | Yes |
| Premium stats | No | Yes | Yes |
| Video uploads | No | Yes | VideoPress, 250 GB |
| Payment transaction fee | 8% | 4% | 2% (0% on WooCommerce payments) |
| Real-time backups | No | No | Yes |
| Support | Free support | Free support | 24/7 priority support |
| SFTP, SSH, WP-CLI, GitHub | No | No | Yes |
| Business email, $200 ad credits | No | No | Yes |
The four differences that matter
1. Transaction fees
If you take payments on your site, this can decide the plan for you. On Personal, WordPress.com takes 8% of each payment; on Premium, 4%; on Business, 2%, and 0% on WooCommerce payment features. Sell $500 a month and the gap between Personal and Premium is $20 a month in fees alone, more than the $4 difference in plan price.
2. Storage
6 GB is plenty for a text blog. Sites with lots of photos, PDFs or downloads fill it faster. Premium more than doubles it, and Business gives 50 GB.
3. Backups and support
Only Business includes real-time backups and round-the-clock priority support. If your site going down for a day would lose you sales or clients, this is the line that matters most.
4. Developer tools
SFTP, SSH, WP-CLI and GitHub deployments are Business-only. If you or your developer need server access, Personal and Premium will not do.
Which plan should you buy?
- Personal blog, portfolio, CV site: Personal. $48 a year, ad-free, your own domain.
- Blog that earns money, coaching or service site: Premium. Payment buttons, better stats and half the transaction fee.
- Business website, busy blog, agency client site: Business. Backups, priority support, unlimited visitors and developer access. Read our Business plan review.
- Online shop: skip all three and look at Commerce. See what a WooCommerce store costs.
Choose your WordPress.com plan →
How to pay less on any plan
- Pay yearly. Personal drops from $9 to $4 a month, Premium from $18 to $8.
- Take a longer term if you are sure. Three years brings Personal to $2.75 and Business to $17.50 a month.
- Start lower and upgrade. You can move up a plan later, so begin with the plan you need today.
FAQ
Can I upgrade from Personal to Premium later?
Yes. WordPress.com lets you move to a higher plan at any time, so starting on Personal does not lock you in.
Can I install plugins on the Personal plan?
Yes. WordPress.com says plugin installation is available on all paid plans: Personal, Premium, Business and Commerce.
Is Premium worth it over Personal?
If your site takes payments or shows video, yes: the lower transaction fee alone can pay for the $4 difference. For a simple personal blog, Personal is enough.
Prices and plan features are set by WordPress.com and can change at any time. Always confirm the final price at checkout.
