How Much Does It Cost To Start A WordPress Blog?

Many people looking to start profitable blogs ask the question, “how much does it cost to start a WordPress blog?”

To be sure, many of the bloggers answering this question on the internet are going to tell you the following:

It costs $2.95 a month to start a blog on BlueHost.

Now, that carries its share of truth.

However, BlueHost is not your only expense when you start a blog.

In fact, it is only your first and most important expense.

In this article, we are going to talk about all the various expenses that come with starting a profitable blog, starting with BlueHost.

Sign Up for Web Hosting with HostGator, BlueHost, Kinsta or WP Engine

What is the cost to start a WordPress blog, with respect to web hosting?

Buying web hosting is often the first step for people who want to start a profitable WordPress blog.

Here are the expenses. Choose one of these 4 WP hosting options:

HostGator – $2.95 a month
BlueHost – $2.95 a month
Kinsta – $35+ a month

WP Engine – $20+ a month

As you can see, HostGator and BlueHost are your budget options for buying web hosting.

The budget-conscious will want to buy HostGator or BlueHost , to save money.

This gets you a free domain name, and a 1 click installation of WordPress.

However, the more affluent will want to buy Kinsta or WP Engine.

Kinsta is $35 a month for 1 WordPress website, and $115 a month for 5 WordPress blogs.

WP Engine is $20 a month for 1 WordPress website, and $77 a month for 10 WordPress blogs.

We think that if you have affluence, then Kinsta or WP Engine is an excellent option.

Thus, hosting your WordPress blog – the first step in how to start a blog – costs between $36 a year and $1,000+ a year.

We recommend you start with BlueHost.

Get Your WordPress Themes from StudioPress with Genesis Pro

What is the cost to start a WordPress blog, with respect to WordPress themes?

Next, you will want to choose a WordPress theme.

To be sure, there are thousands of free WordPress themes that you can choose from.

However, many of you will want to splurge and get a premium WordPress theme collection.

The #1 recommended WordPress theme collection is Genesis Pro, by StudioPress.

We have found that the cost of $360 a year for Genesis Pro is reasonable, and there is a bonus.

If you sign up for WP Engine, then Genesis Pro is free – Genesis Pro is made by the makers of WP Engine, and they offer it for free when you sign up for WP Engine.

The savings of $360 a year make the $240 a year for hosting next to free.

So, WP Engine for web hosting, and Genesis Pro for free, is the best choice.

If you are not looking to save money but rather spend money, then start with Kinsta or BlueHost for web hosting and then get Genesis Pro for $360 a year.

Make Sure You Get Email Marketing to Integrate Opt-In Forms and Generate New Subscribers

Cost To Start A WordPress Blog With Email Marketing

Next, you will want to get an email marketing plan to integrate with your WordPress blog.

There are many email marketing companies, but our favorite – and the one we use – is ConvertKit.

What is the cost to start a WordPress blog with email marketing included?

ConvertKit costs $10 a month for up to 1,000 email subscribers.

For 5,000 email subscribers, ConvertKit costs $66 a month.

This is an expense, but when you gain knowledge of how to monetize your blog and email list, then $66 is a drop in the bucket.

Many blog owners make thousands of dollars a month from their email list, by sending emails to their subscribers about affiliate offers – such as ConvertKit, which has a lucrative affiliate program!

That $66 a month can turn into hundreds or thousands of dollars a month in revenue when you send emails to affiliate offers, or your eBooks and courses.

You will need to have opt-in forms on your blog to convert readers into blog subscribers, and ConvertKit is the most affordable and high-performance option with excellent opt-in forms.

It is made for bloggers, publishers, and online marketers.

So, to sum it all up, ConvertKit costs $10 a month to start, and $66 a month for 5,000 subscribers.

Add SEO to your Blog Mix with Semrush, SpyFu, and All-in-One SEO Pro

Cost To Start A WordPress Blog With WP SEO

Now, SEO tools can be expensive.

But the offers we are sharing with you make a big difference to your blog performance.

What is the cost to start a WordPress blog with respect to SEO?

Let us start with Semrush.

Semrush costs $240 a month and has a 7-day free trial.

Semrush lets you do SEO analysis, keyword analysis, backlink analysis, and much more.

With respect to content, Semrush gives you an SEO Writing Content tool, that gives you all the additional keywords you need to place in your blog to get ranked #1 on Google.

Next, SpyFu is an excellent SEO alternative.

SpyFu is used for gaining access to your competitor’s keywords.

Now, you will know which keywords they are using for web articles as well as for Google advertising.

Thus, you can see which keywords are most profitable, and that is where you would then direct your attention.

SpyFu costs $39 a month, and there is also a $16 a month version for the lite version.

Next, All-in-One SEO Pro costs between $99 and $299 a year, and the $299 a year version gets you plenty of blog traffic for an excellent price.

Finally, Surfer SEO helps you do on-page optimization for your blog posts, for $69 a month.

When you add up all these costs, getting SEO on your blog costs as little as $99 a year, or as much as $300 a month.

Get your SEO from Semrush, SpyFu, Surfer SEO, and All-in-One SEO Pro.

Google Analytics Is Free, But Have You Tried MonsterInsights?

Cost To Start A WordPress Blog With WP Analytics

What is the cost to start a WordPress blog, with respect to analytics?

Finally, you will want to install Google Analytics on your blog.

Google Analytics is free, and gives you access to a beautiful dashboard of data that lets you gain insight into your blog’s performance.

Now, sometimes Google Analytics can be difficult to set up.

For those of you having trouble – or simply because you want to upskill – there’s MonsterInsights Pro.

MonsterInsights Pro costs $99 a year, and the analytics from MonsterInsights Pro is excellent.

The analytics are very detailed with many different options, and we highly recommend using it.

We use MonsterInsights Pro ourselves with Quick Blog Profit.

So, analytics should cost you only $99 a year with MonsterInsights Pro.

Summary

When you add it all up, you are factoring in these purchases to start a WordPress blog:

Web hosting – $2.95 a month to $1000+ a year – BlueHost

WordPress themes – $360 a year or FREE with WP Engine – Genesis Pro

Email Marketing – $10 a month to start, or $66 a month with 5,000 subscribers – ConvertKit

SEO – $99 a year to $300 a month – SEMRush, SpyFu, Surfer SEO, All In One SEO Elite

Analytics – FREE to $99 a year – MonsterInsights Pro

Adding up all these expenses, the cost to start a WordPress blog is around $1,000 to $5,000 a year.

That is the honest answer.

If you are ready to start a WordPress blog, then check out these handy resources listed above.

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