Building your dream website could soon be easier than ever thanks to a new update from WordPress.
The website builder has launched a stripped-back platform that costs just $5 per month, offering WordPress managed hosting and unlimited site traffic for what it calls “a revolutionary price”.
WordPress Starter looks to offer a middle-tier option for users, sitting between the company’s current Pro premium offering and its free basic option.
WordPress Starter
“From building your audience with a blog, to sharing your business, design, expertise, or experiences with the world. If you’re looking to make your work visible, and make it visual, the Starter plan has you covered,” WordPress wrote in its announcement (opens in new tab).
Subscribers to the new platform will get access to a wide selection of tools helping them to set up and personalize a website, starting from custom .com domains instead of the company’s basic wordpress.com offering.
When building their site, users will benefit from 6GB of storage for their assorted photos and images, and will get access to Google Analytics as a default alongside WordPress’ own tools. The company says this partnership will allow website owners much greater visibility into who is visiting their site, what content they are engaging with, and much more.
For those looking to dip their toes into the world of ecommerce, WordPress Starter will give access to a number of useful tools and payment platforms, including a Payment Button block that provides a fast way to take payments and set up subscriptions with Stripe. They’ll also get access to the Donations Form block as a way to accept tips and donations, and the Premium Content block for the option to sell one-off, monthly, or yearly premium content.
WordPress says it will also soon be be introducing a range of add-ons that will pair with Starter to give users “an extra boost”.
The news could be a welcome addition for WordPress users upset with the company’s recent price changes (opens in new tab).
Back in April 2022, the company introduced major price changes without warning, replacing all of its paid plans with a single Pro plan costing $180 a year with no option to spread costs out monthly, a facility previously available with the old plans.
WordPress had also reduced the storage on its free plan significantly, from 3GB to just 500MB, so the new Starter plan may prove popular with those seeking a little more space.
