Why WordPress Isn’t Really Free

When businesses shop for a new website, one phrase pops up again and again: “But WordPress is free.”

On the surface, that’s true. WordPress itself is open-source software you can download without paying a penny. But here’s the catch: the software is just the starting point. By the time you’ve added the plugins, themes, licenses, security optimisations, and the ongoing maintenance you need to actually run a professional business website, the “free” part quickly disappears.

Let’s break it down.

Plugins Are Hidden Licensing Costs

Most business websites need far more than the basic features WordPress offers. E-commerce, SEO, form builders, advanced navigation, multilingual content - almost all of this comes from third-party plugins.

While some are free, the reliable, well-supported ones are not. Exchange rates vary over time so we will display these costs at their fixed values in dollars. For example:

Advanced SEO tools: $99–$299 per year

Security/firewall plugins: $99+ per year

Form builders: $80–$300 per year

E-commerce extensions: hundreds, sometimes thousands

Before you know it, you’re paying hundreds (or even thousands) annually just to keep your site functional.

Maintenance Overhead

WordPress runs on a patchwork of plugins built by different developers, updated at different times. This creates an ongoing game of cat-and-mouse: updates can break functionality, plugins conflict with each other, and suddenly your checkout stops working or your site goes offline.

Fixing those issues isn’t free, it takes development hours, and those hours add up. Agencies and freelancers often charge retainers just to keep WordPress sites running smoothly.

Security Risks

Because WordPress powers a huge chunk of the internet, it’s the biggest target for hackers. Out-of-date plugins and themes are the number one entry point. Protecting your site properly means paying for security plugins, backups, and monitoring, or for developers to clean things up when something goes wrong.

Those costs don’t show up in the initial price tag, but they’re very real.

Design Limitations

“Free” themes are often cookie-cutter and bloated with code you don’t need. To get something polished, fast, and unique to your brand, you either pay for a premium theme or hire a developer to strip down and rebuild an existing one to optimise it. Again: not free.

Why CraftCMS is Different

CraftCMS is our tool of choice and it doesn’t pretend to be free, it has license costs, but here’s the trade-off:

No endless plugin patchwork. Most features are built-in or added with a handful of well-supported, premium-quality plugins.

Stable and secure. Updates are smoother and less likely to break your site.

Custom from the ground up. Your site isn’t squeezed into a template, it’s built to fit your content and business.

That means lower long-term costs, fewer surprises, and a website that works with you instead of against you.

The Bottom Line

WordPress isn’t free. The real price tag is hidden in plugin licenses, maintenance hours, security headaches, and development fixes.

CraftCMS is honest about costs up front, but in the long run, it can actually save money, and give you a site that’s easier to manage, more secure, and tailored to your business.

So the next time you hear “but WordPress is free,” remember: free doesn’t always mean cost-effective.