Estimated monthly cost comparison — not just the headline price
WooCommerce and WordPress overlap only partly, so check that both cover what you need before comparing cost.
Prices change often — confirm on the vendor's site before buying. Report incorrect pricing →
Quick Take
WordPress has the lower estimated monthly cost (~74%)
Based on advertised price plus documented recurring fees, not your exact usage.
Best for WooCommerce
Free WordPress ecommerce plugin. No transaction fees, fully customizable, but requires hosting + ext
Best for WordPress
The world's most popular CMS powering 43% of all websites. Free and open-source, but hosting, themes
Free WordPress ecommerce plugin. No transaction fees, fully customizable, but re...
Advertised
$0
/month
Estimated monthly cost
$400
/month (illustrative)
Hosting + Performance
WooCommerce needs WordPress hosting capable of handling ecommerce traffic. Managed WooCommerce hosti...
Payment Processing
Stripe/PayPal charge 2.9% + $0.30. On $10K/mo revenue = $320/mo in fees. No way around this....
Extensions & Plugins
Subscriptions ($199/yr), memberships ($199/yr), bookings ($249/yr), shipping ($79-199/yr). Average s...
The world's most popular CMS powering 43% of all websites. Free and open-source,...
Advertised
$0
/month
Estimated monthly cost
$105
/month (illustrative)
Hosting Required
WordPress.org is free but requires paid hosting. Shared hosting $5-15/mo, managed WordPress hosting ...
Premium Plugins
Most useful plugins are paid: SEO ($99/yr), security ($99/yr), forms ($49/yr), backups ($24/yr). Ave...
Theme & Maintenance
Premium themes $50-200 one-time. Security updates, compatibility patches, and performance optimizati...
WooCommerce advertises $0/mo. WordPress advertises $0/mo.
WooCommerce has 3 documented hidden fees. WordPress has 3.
WooCommerce confidence: 75%. WordPress confidence: 78%.
| Metric | WooCommerce | WordPress | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertised Price | $0/mo | $0/mo | — |
| Estimated Monthly Cost | $400/mo | $105/mo | WordPress |
| Recurring Extra Fees | +$400/mo | +$105/mo | WordPress |
| One-Time Costs | $0 | $0 | — |
| # Documented Fees | 3 | 3 | — |
| Pricing Tiers | 0 | 0 | — |
| Affiliate Program | None | None | — |
WooCommerce advertises $0/mo and WordPress advertises $0/mo. WooCommerce has 3 documented extra fees (recurring: +$400/mo), while WordPress has 3 (recurring: +$105/mo). On these illustrative assumptions, WordPress has the lower estimated monthly cost (about 74% less). Your real cost depends on seats and usage — use the calculator for your numbers.
WooCommerce has 3 documented extra fees: Hosting + Performance, Payment Processing, Extensions & Plugins. Recurring fees add roughly $400/mo on top of the $0/mo advertised price.
WordPress has 3 documented extra fees: Hosting Required, Premium Plugins, Theme & Maintenance. Recurring fees add roughly $105/mo on top of the $0/mo advertised price.
Choose WooCommerce if: Free WordPress ecommerce plugin. No transaction fees, fully customizable, but requires hosting + ext. Choose WordPress if: The world's most popular CMS powering 43% of all websites. Free and open-source, but hosting, themes. The right choice depends on your team size, usage volume, and which features you need most.
This comparison is compiled from public vendor pricing pages and documentation. It uses illustrative assumptions (see "Cost Comparison Summary"), not your exact seats or usage, and vendor prices change often. Confirm current prices on each vendor's site, and use our calculator with your own usage for a closer estimate. Spotted an error? Email hello@trulycritic.com.
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