// comparisons
Managed WordPress hosting vs static hosting: which does your site need?
I've paid for managed WordPress hosting since 2017 and I'm now moving small sites to static hosting. Neither is better; they solve different problems.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Managed WordPress: a live CMS, logins, stores and plugins, with someone else running servers, updates and backups. From about $20-35/month per site.
- Static: pre-built files on a CDN. Free to a few dollars, very fast, almost nothing to hack, but no server-side features.
- Test: if the site needs to do something per visitor (cart, login, search over a database), stay dynamic. If it only needs to show pages, go static.
Compared
| Managed WordPress | Static hosting | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical cost (1 site) | $20-35/month | $0 to a few dollars |
| Speed | Fast with edge caching | Fastest: every page is a cached file |
| Security work | Plugin updates, alerts, backups (host helps) | Almost none |
| Editing | WordPress editor, anyone can publish | Git or a static export step |
| Stores, logins, memberships | Yes | No (needs external services) |
| Forms, search, comments | Plugins | Third-party services or small functions |
| Backups needed | Yes, frequent | Your Git repository is the backup |
When I keep a site on managed WordPress
- It sells something or takes bookings.
- Several non-technical people publish to it.
- It depends on plugins that need a database (LMS, membership, forums).
Everything else is a candidate for static. Here's how to move a WordPress site to static hosting.
FAQ
Is a static site better for SEO?
Search engines don't rank static sites higher by default, but static sites are usually faster and more reliable, which helps.
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