Realistically, most businesses will want the aptly named Business plan. It’s the only plan that gives you access to plugins and vital SEO tools. With these features, you can make anything from a robust ecommerce site to a content-heavy recipe blog, and you can make sure customers can find you through search engines.
Plus, the Business plan lets you upload your own WordPress themes (like those you can buy from ThemeForest), and it works with Google Analytics so you can see how your site is performing. It also comes with unlimited storage, so you can upload all the item pictures or weblog videos your heart desires.
So let us be clear: we recommend the Business plan. With any other plan, you’re losing out on WordPress’s most valuable features—and at that point, you should go with an easier builder like Wix.
But maybe you want to know about your other plan options, just in case. While we don’t recommend these plans, they certainly can work for some small-business websites.
The Personal plan has some severe limitations: you can’t use any plugins, you can’t customize your website’s appearance much, and you can’t even add a PayPal button to accept payments. It also has the most limited storage. Still, if you just need a very simple website—an author homepage, perhaps, or a basic website for your HVAC business—the Personal plan lets you make one on the cheap.
With the Premium plan, you get more storage and more customization options (like the ability to change your site’s CSS). It also gives you Premium themes, so you have more choices for out-of-the-box design. You can’t add plugins, but you can add a PayPal button. So if your pet taxidermy business only has a few sales each month, or if you just want more control over your freelance writing business website, Premium could work.
Some plugins and themes are free, but many will cost money, so factor that into your overall budget. A paid plugin can range in price from $10 to $10,000 (though if you’re using plugins on only one website, most will range from $10 to $100). And while WordPress includes lots of free themes, the average paid WordPress theme costs around $58.1
You’ll also need to consider a domain name. All three plans—Personal, Premium, and Business—come with a free domain for one year. After that, you can get a domain name from one of our favorite domain registrars.