The plan structure in 2026
WP Engine's plans page lists three plans: Essential (shared environment, 25,000 to 400,000 visits, 10 to 50 GB storage), Business (isolated resources, 400,000 to 800,000 visits, from $400 a month billed annually) and Enterprise (custom pricing). Essential is configured by choosing a capacity tier, then adding extensions. Its general hosting page says entry pricing starts at $30 a month, while the plans page showed $28 a month billed annually and $35 billed monthly for the 1-site tier; the figures below come from the plans page in USD.
Essential capacity tiers (USD, 29 October 2026)
All plans list automated WordPress and PHP updates, daily and on-demand backups (WP Engine states it keeps backups for no less than 30 and no longer than 60 days), EverCache, a Cloudflare-powered CDN, one-click staging and development environments, SSL and SSH. The first-year pricing terms say coupons and first-year pricing apply only to new customers buying Essential plans, are redeemable once at signup, do not apply to renewals, and that taxes and overages may apply.
| Tier | Monthly billing | Annual billing (first year) | Visits/month | Storage | Bandwidth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 site | $35/month | $336/year ($28/month) | 25,000 | 10 GB | 75 GB |
| 3 sites | $65/month | $624/year ($52/month) | 75,000 | 15 GB | 150 GB |
| 10 sites | $130/month | $1,248/year ($104/month) | 100,000 | 20 GB | 240 GB |
| 30 sites | $330/month | $3,168/year ($264/month) | 400,000 | 50 GB | 550 GB |
Add-ons and what they cost
The eCommerce Performance Pack bundles three per-license add-ons that would cost $35 a month separately ($10 plus $5 plus $20), so its $99 price is mostly paying for the store-specific features: Slow Query Monitor, Dynamic Plugin Loading and WooCommerce-aware caching, which WP Engine's ecommerce page describes as live cart-aware caching.
| Add-on | Monthly | Annual | Unit | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global Edge Security | $35 / $50 / $65 / $110 | $420 / $600 / $780 / $1,320 | Priced by tier (1, 3, 10, 30 sites) | Managed WAF, DDoS mitigation, Cloudflare CDN and SSL |
| Smart Plugin Manager | $10 | $120 | Per license | Automated plugin updates with visual regression testing |
| Site Monitoring | $5 | $60 | Per license | Alerts on errors or downtime |
| NitroPack | $20 | $240 | Per license | Automatic front-end speed optimizations |
| eCommerce Performance Pack | $99 | $1,188 | Per site | Includes 1 Site Monitoring, 1 Smart Plugin Manager and 1 NitroPack license, Slow Query Monitor, Dynamic Plugin Loading and EverCache |
| Additional sites | $20 | $240 | Per site | Extra site beyond the tier |
Visits, bandwidth and overages
WP Engine counts a visit as one unique IP address per day (UTC). Static assets do not count, known and suspected bots are excluded, and requests answered with 403 Forbidden are excluded. Its support article lists overages of $2 per 1,000 extra monthly visitors, calculated and charged monthly even on annual plans; that article names the older Startup, Professional, Growth and Scale plans, so confirm the rate for current Essential tiers at checkout.
Bandwidth works differently. WP Engine's bandwidth article says shared plans are not charged overages for bandwidth; if you exceed the limit, someone contacts you about the acceptable use policy and options such as reducing usage or changing plans. Bandwidth is measured on compressed data from WP Engine's servers and its CDN partner since 27 August 2024.
Worked first-year total: a membership site
Assumptions: one WordPress membership site with about 20,000 visits a month (peaking at 30,000 in one launch month), annual billing, and the extensions a small course business is most likely to want. List prices from 29 October 2026, before tax.
| Line | Basic setup | Store-focused setup |
|---|---|---|
| Essential, 1-site tier, annual | $336 | $336 |
| Global Edge Security (1-site tier) | $420 | $420 |
| Smart Plugin Manager | $120 | Included in pack |
| eCommerce Performance Pack | $1,188 | |
| Launch month overage: 5,000 visits at $2 per 1,000 (if the published rate applies) | $10 | $10 |
| First-year total | $886 | $1,954 |
Reading the total, and year two
Global Edge Security costs more than the 1-site hosting tier itself on annual billing ($420 against $336). Skip it only if you already run your own WAF or CDN in front of the site. The basic setup is the realistic floor for a membership site that wants managed plugin updates; hosting alone is $336.
Year two is the unknown. The annual figures include a first-year promotional discount and the terms say renewal pricing is subject to change. As a reference point only, the same 1-site tier billed monthly was $35, or $420 a year. Ask for the renewal price in writing before committing.
If your site grows past 25,000 visits most months, compare the overage cost with moving to the 3-site tier ($624 a year first year), which also adds sites you may use for a marketing site or staging copies.
Before you buy
- Measure monthly unique daily IPs, not page views, and add launch-month peaks.
- Price Global Edge Security at your tier; it scales from $35 to $110 a month.
- Decide between separate per-license add-ons and the per-site eCommerce Performance Pack.
- Confirm the current visit overage rate for Essential tiers.
- Ask for renewal pricing and any money-back terms at checkout; the plans page checked did not state a money-back period.
- Confirm backup retention meets your needs: 30 to 60 days is stated on the plans page.
Questions before you decide
How much is WP Engine's cheapest plan?
The Essential 1-site tier was $35 a month billed monthly or $336 for the first year billed annually on 29 October 2026, for 25,000 visits, 10 GB storage and 75 GB bandwidth.
Does WP Engine charge bandwidth overages?
Its support article says shared plans are not charged bandwidth overages; WP Engine contacts you instead. Visit overages are charged separately.
What is in the eCommerce Performance Pack?
One Site Monitoring, one Smart Plugin Manager and one NitroPack license, plus Slow Query Monitor, Dynamic Plugin Loading and EverCache, at $99 a month or $1,188 a year per site.
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- WP Engine: Plans and pricing (USD) Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: Managed WordPress hosting Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine Support: How visits are counted Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine Support: Bandwidth causes and effects Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: eCommerce solutions Accessed 29 Oct 2026
Sources link directly to providers. Product buttons may use separately labeled affiliate links. Read our disclosure.