One of the most frequently asked questions from our users is “Do I have to pay to use WordPress?”. We tell them WordPress is free, open source software, followed by “Why is WordPress free?”
In this article, we will discuss why WordPress is free and what it costs to run a WordPress page, and what’s the catch?
Reading: How to start creating a website in wordpress
WordPress is open source software. It’s free in the sense of freedom, not in the sense of free beer. What’s the difference between these two, you might be wondering?
Open source software gives you the freedom to use, modify, build on, and redistribute the software any way you want without paying any fees .
However, there may be costs in other areas. We’ll discuss the cost of using open source WordPress software later in this article.
Why don’t they sell WordPress as software?
We’re often asked why not . Aren’t the people and companies behind WordPress selling it? Of course, if WordPress is as good as everyone says they would make a lot more money selling it.
This statement would make sense if owned by a single company or individual WordPress.
WordPress is an open source community project that has had contributions from tens of thousands of talented people to make it the great software it is today.
There is a core team of developers who lead project development, but anyone can contribute patches, fix bugs, create features, suggest features, etc.
Also, project leaders move from one release to another. If you’re deeply involved in the community, you can also become a major contributor to WordPress.
The philosophy behind open source software
The philosophy The essence of the open source software movement is that software is not like other tangible products. Once software is created, it can be copied many times at low cost.
Let’s take a toy factory as an example. Every manufactured toy has different parts and every part has its price. The cost of manufacturing these parts can be calculated by the factory to determine a reasonable profit margin for the product.
On the other hand, the cost of creating software and making copies of it are not the same. Some groups believe that with every copy sold, the software’s profit margin becomes more unfair.
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To learn more about the ideals of open source software, read the GNU Philosophy.
How Do People Make Money With WordPress?
The two most important profitable parts of any open source software are products and services built on the same open source software.
The People often confuse WordPress with WordPress.com, but they’re actually two different things. WordPress (often referred to as self-hosted WordPress or WordPress.org) is a free blogging platform and website builder.
Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress, started a company called Automattic, the “limited” free Blog hosting service on WordPress.com, and you can pay/upgrade to unlock features and remove ads.
However, to unlock all features of WordPress, you must upgrade to a paid plan. For example, you can’t open an online store with WordPress.com unless you pay for their ecommerce plan, which starts at $45 per month.
Automattic has over $985 million in funding $ upset. (source)
Other developers have also gone ahead to build successful multi-million dollar businesses around WordPress, creating commercial plugins, commercial themes and even offering WordPress hosting.
Some examples of Successful Multi-Million Dollar WordPress Businesses are:
- WPEngine – a managed WordPress hosting company that has raised over $290 million and now also commercial StudioPress Designs.
- Awesome Motive – led by Syed Balkhi is another multi-million dollar WordPress based company. The company manages WPBeginner, OptinMonster, WPForms, MonsterInsights, SeedProd, AIOSEO, Smash Balloon and other popular WordPress plugins used by over 20 million websitesYou own the copyright to any changes you make to the software, not all of the code.
GPL requires that any derivative works you publish or distribute must also be licensed under the GPL. You can have the copyright to do anything you want, your derivative works automatically inherit the GPL license so others are free to use, modify and redistribute your code as they wish.
Is that what it says ? All premium WordPress themes and plugins are licensed GPL?
According to an official blog post on WordPress.org, themes are also GPL. Images, CSS and Javascript used in themes and plugins can be excluded, but all PHP and HTML parts of themes and plugins make heavy use of WordPress functionality, hence they are a derivative work and therefore under the GPL licensed.
While some people may disagree, most trustworthy WordPress companies follow and abide by the community guidelines.
Content published with WordPress also inherits the GPL ?
No, you are free to license your content however you wish. Unless the content you post is actually a derivative work of WordPress or some other GPL-licensed work.
For example, if you share your articles, photos, or other artwork on your blog, then you are theirs Owners full copyright on it.
However, if you are writing a blog post that shows people how to use a WordPress feature with examples, then that particular blog post might be licensed differently. The code used in the examples is actually a derivative work and automatically inherits the GPL license.
The WordPress Trademark
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The WordPress as software code is released under the GPL, but the Words WordPress, WordCamp , and the WordPress logo are registered trademarks of the WordPress Foundation.
To distinguish between an official and community operated website or resource, the Foundation asks people to type “WordPress ‘ not to be used in your domain name.
That’s why our site is called WPBeginner instead of WordPressBeginner. Any website, training course, or resource that has WordPress in its domain name is probably being run by someone who doesn’t know enough about WordPress. That means you probably shouldn’t be paying them any of your money.
Most reputable companies built around WordPress know the brand guidelines and respect the rules.
Cost of using WordPress
WordPress as a software can be downloaded and used for free. However, to use WordPress on the web, you need WordPress hosting.
You can use WordPress.com to create a free blog, but be aware that there are some differences. For more details, see our comparison of WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org.
The cost of using WordPress is relatively low, and the same applies to running any other type of website. The only real costs are web hosting ($7.99 per month) and domain name ($14/year).
However, WPBeginner users can get a free domain name and 60% off web hosting from Bluehost , which means you can start a website for just $2.75 a month. Bluehost is an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider.
Related: How to Start a WordPress Blog (Ultimate Guide)
Additional costs could also be commercial WordPress themes are known as premium WordPress themes. However, you don’t have to use these as there are over 9,500 free WordPress themes you can use.
People often use commercial plugins, but you don’t have to use these as well as there are over 59,000 free WordPress plugins available.
We’ve created a detailed guide on how much it really costs to build a WordPress website, with instructions on how to start a website on a budget and save money.
We hope this article has answered your questions about WordPress licensing, the cost of running a WordPress site, and the business of WordPress. You may also want to see our list of easy-to-start online business ideas that actually make money.
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