Elementor WordPress Page Builder Review : Free vs. Pro Version
Over a third of all websites use WordPress, so it’s worth considering for your next website. But WordPress does require a bit of technical knowledge. Luckily, Elementor is a page builder that doesn’t require coding skills.
Should you use Elementor for your WordPress website? Is it worth downloading the plugin? Keep reading to learn more about the free and paid versions of Elementor:
What are the Pros and Cons of Elementor?
Here’s an overview of the benefits and drawbacks of both the free and paid version of Elementor:
Pros of the Free Version
- Drag and drop editor: Elementor’s drag and drop editor makes it easy for you to edit your website. You get most of the basic editing features for free.
- Basic templates and widgets: The free plan comes with over 40 basic widgets and 30 templates you can use to create your site.
- Use on multiple sites: You can use the free plan on one site or hundreds of sites, and the price stays the same.
Cons of the Free Version
- No support or updates: You may not have to pay cash, but you will have to spend time fixing things yourself if you don’t pay for Elementor.
- No theme or popup builders: You can’t design themes or popups for your website without paying for Elementor Pro.
Pros of the Paid Version
- More themes and widgets available: If you want to customize your site, you can access hundreds of themes and widgets with a Pro plan.
- Flexible prices for different needs: Elementor has different tiers based on how many sites you need to use with the builder.
- Ecommerce builder available: You can use Elementor Pro to build an online store, so you can turn a profit from your investment.
Cons of the Paid Version
- Steep price increases: The second level paid plan is twice as expensive as the first level, and you can only use Elementor on two more sites with the upgrade.
- Nothing new at higher tiers: Unless you need to use Elementor on more sites, higher-priced plans offer nothing extra.
Overview
Elementor is one of the most popular page builders for WordPress websites. Over 5 million people use Elementor to build part or all of their websites. You can control all elements of your web design from one place with the page builder.
Sites with Elementor run quickly, so you don’t have to worry about it bogging down your website. You also don’t need to worry about coding or dealing with the backend. All of the design is visual, and you can drag and drop elements where you want them.
Elementor has a free plan you can use to test it out. If you want more features, you can upgrade to Elementor Pro, and there are different tiers based on the number of websites you have.
- Personal (1 website)
- Plus (3 websites)
- Expert (1,000 websites)
Before moving forward, let’s look at what Elementor is:
What is a Page Builder?
Elementor is a page builder that functions as a drag and drop editor to use on your WordPress site. By default, you have to edit WordPress sites through their “backend” using text boxes and some coding.
Page builders like Elementor give your site the ability of other platforms, like SquareSpace. Instead of using code and text, you can design a website with just the visuals. Elementor is a WordPress plugin, but other page builders come as full themes you can download and install.
Who is Elementor Best For?
Elementor is an excellent option for anyone who needs to build a website with WordPress. You can use it to edit your personal site, or you can use it with web design clients. Here are a few uses for Elementor:
Personal
Do you want to start a blog or website without the limitations of other web design platforms? Elementor makes it easy to create a WordPress site. You can access popular plugins and features, but you don’t have to learn to use the WordPress editor. Just choose a web host that fits your budget and set up your site.
Business
If you want to become a web designer, you need to get some experience and build a portfolio. The Elementor Pro Plus plan lets you build three sites with one license. You can use Elementor to experiment with different sites, so you can show off your skills.
Once you have more sites to run, you can upgrade to the Expert plan for use with up to 1,000 sites.
Ecommerce Sites
No matter which Pro plan you choose, you can use the WooCommerce builder on Elementor. You can create an online store that looks beautiful and is easy to edit and navigate.
While the WooCommerce builder isn’t available with Elementor Free, it’s worth the upgrade if you want to build an online business.
Reliability and Performance
When choosing a website builder and page builder, you want it to be reliable and fast. Luckily, Elementor checks those boxes. If your page builder or website crashes, you won’t be able to access your content, and visitors will leave your site.
Elementor is fast both when you’re building pages and when loading your site. As you design your website, you can quickly drag and drop elements to fit your design idea. You can also edit your pages easily if you need to.
Elementor is open-source, which means anyone can edit the source code. Many developers can work on it to improve the builder. You can take advantage of these by updating your Elementor plugin whenever there’s a new version.
Updating will also make sure your website runs fast and secure. However, using Elementor won’t guarantee your site will run smoothly. You need to choose the right website host with reliable uptime so that your site won’t go down every day.
Look for hosts with higher than average uptimes, and try one that’s close to 99 percent. If your site has a low uptime, it won’t matter how well Elementor runs.
You can consider WordPress-recommended hosts because WordPress trusts those companies. Other hosts can work well, too, so compare a few hosts within your budget. Then, you can find the right host for you.
Tools and Features
Check out these tools and features you get when you use Elementor:
Types of Page Builders
Elementor is a page builder, and you can use it to build different parts of your website. Here are some examples:
Editor
You can use the Elementor Editor on existing or new pages on your WordPress site. If you click to edit a page, you can click on the Elementor icon to enter the drag and drop editor. Then, you can add text boxes, media files, widgets and more.
The editor makes it easy to create a page from scratch, or you can copy and paste existing content. You can use files already in your media library, or you can upload new files.
Elementor’s editor is available on both Elementor Free and Elementor Pro. You can use it on any WordPress site, and all you need is the Elementor plugin.
Theme Builder
If you want to design your entire site with Elementor, you can use the theme builder. WordPress sites run on themes, and you can use a premade theme from WordPress or a third-party designer. However, Elementor’s Theme Builder lets you create a unique theme.
You can access each part of your website and make changes within the editor. You won’t have to worry about messing with code or choosing the right website theme from what’s available. If you have a visual design in mind, you can bring it to life.
Unfortunately, the theme builder isn’t available with Elementor Free. However, you can use it with any of the Elementor Pro plans. Then, you can customize your entire site in one place.
Popup Builder
Adding popups in the right places and at the right time can help you grow your site. You can add a popup banner to the top of your site to promote your latest product or service. People can sign up with their email address, and you can contact them.
Popups also work over the body of a webpage, and you can choose when they show up. You can use a couple of popups, but don’t overdo it, or you might drive people away.
WooCommerce Builder
WooCommerce is one of the most popular online store plugins for WordPress. Luckily, you can use Elementor Pro to design pages for your store. Elementor Pro offers all of the widgets you need for your store, including product images and add to cart buttons.
Like other Elementor features, you can design the visual part of your store without having to code or edit the backend.
WordPress Integration
Because Elementor is a WordPress plugin, you know it will work on your WordPress site. It works seamlessly with WordPress, so you can create the website of your dreams.
Once you set up your WordPress site, you can go to the Plugins page, click Add New and search for Elementor. Then, you can install the plugin and head to edit a page on your site. Click the Elementor box near the top of the page editor, and you can open the visual editor.
Add-ons
You can use third-party add-ons to further customize your Elementor site. Popular add-ons include Prime Slider, which provides you with slider widgets to use on your site, and Rank Math, which can help you with search engine optimization (SEO).
You can view the available add-ons and choose the ones you want. Then, you can use them to add more capabilities to your website.
Full Site Editor
If you choose Elementor Pro, you can use the Full Site Editor to change everything about your site at once. You can change the body content like with the regular editor. But you can also edit your site’s header and footer.
That can help you save time when making changes to your website.
Revision History
If you’ve ever experimented with website design, you’ve probably done something you didn’t like. But you may also have not known how to fix it. Both Elementor Pro and Elementor Free let you access your revision history to find the version you want to go back to without manually editing everything.
Auto Save
Another issue that’s bound to happen if you work on websites a lot is to lose your work. If you spend a long time editing a webpage, you want to save those changes. Elementor will automatically save your changes, so you can access them even if your computer crashes.
And because of the revision history feature, you can get right back to work once you get your computer up and running.
Draft Mode
After you publish your website, you may decide to make changes. Perhaps you want to edit your bio or change your homepage. If you can’t edit and publish the changes at once, you can save the new version as a draft. Then, you can finish it and publish the new page later.
Copy Paste and Copy Style
As you build your website, you may design an element that you really like. Instead of recreating it, you can copy and paste the element to another part of the page or to a different page.
The copy style feature is similar, and it lets you duplicate a section or column. Then, you don’t have to redesign it for each page of your website.
Pricing Summary
If you want to test out the Elementor Pro features, you don’t need to start with the highest tier. You can start small and upgrade later if you want to use it on multiple websites.
Here’s an overview of the different plans from Elementor and their prices:
Free
As you might expect, Elementor Free doesn’t cost anything. You can use it on any number of websites without upgrading. However, you don’t have access to some of the more advanced features on Elementor Pro.
You can only work with a few widgets and themes, and you can only use it to build standard pages. The free version won’t let you create eCommerce pages, popups or themes.
Elementor Free does give you access to responsive editing, so you don’t have to mess with code. You can find Elementor in the Plugin library and install it to use it right away.
Personal
If you want more features with a page builder, you may want to upgrade to Elementor Personal. It’s one of the Pro plans, so you will have to pay about $50 per year. For that price, you get access to all of the Pro features, including updates, support, template kits and more.
You can use the Personal license on one website, so it’s great if you don’t want to hire a designer for your site. If you don’t have web design clients, you don’t need more than a single license.
Elementor Personal is also a great option if you want to test out the Pro features. You can’t get a demo of Elementor Pro, so you can use this as a paid demo of sorts. If you don’t like or need the advanced features, you can downgrade to Elementor Free at the end of the year.
Plus
Some people may need to use Elementor on a few websites. If you have a couple of websites for personal and business use, you may want to consider the Plus plan. You can use it on up to three websites, so you can test it out with a few designs.
This plan has all of the same features as the Personal plan, but it’s double the price at $100 per year. However, if you have a personal blog and a separate online store, the extra cost is worth it.
You can also take advantage of this plan if you just started a web design business. That way, you can use Elementor for a few clients, and you can upgrade later when your business grows.
Expert
Do you have a thriving web design business and want to use Elementor? You should get Elementor’s Expert plan, which is for up to 1,000 websites. Like the other paid plans, it has advanced page design features and widgets.
You can experiment with different designs to build your web design portfolio, or you can use it with real client websites. This plan costs about $200 per year, but you have a lot of flexibility with it.
You probably don’t need this plan if you aren’t a web designer. But if you do design websites often, you can stick with the same page builder to work more efficiently.
Cancellation
If you use Elementor free, you can stop using it at any time. You can go into a page that you created with Elementor and click “Back to WordPress Editor.” Once you move all pages back to the standard editor, you can uninstall and delete the Elementor plugin.
If you go with Elementor Pro, cancellation requires a few extra steps. For one, Elementor sets up your account to renew automatically each year. You will need to go into your Elementor account and click “Cancel Auto Renewal.”
That way, you won’t have to pay for another year of Elementor that you won’t use. However, you will only get your money back if you cancel within 30 days of signing up. If you cancel after that, you need to contact Elementor support about a refund.
Which Plan is the Best Value?
If you need a basic page builder, you can’t go wrong with the Free version of Elementor. However, some people may need more features. Professional web designers will benefit the most from Elementor Expert, but individuals should use the Personal plan.
Security
Elementor does its best to keep everything secure. Their developers write safe code when building and updating the plugin, and they check the software for potential security issues. Elementor also has community channels where users can report vulnerabilities, so you can help find problems.
They work quickly and efficiently to fix any problems that do show up, so you can keep your website safe. Be sure to check your WordPress dashboard regularly for any updates to Elementor and your other plugins.
You can also download a third-party security plugin to keep your site safe. But regularly updating your site is a good start to securing your site with or without Elementor.
Even if you don’t have to make changes to your site all of the time, check it each week to see if there are updates. Be sure to also update WordPress when new versions come out to protect your entire site.
Website security is essential to keeping your data safe. It can also help you bring in and retain visitors and customers. While Elementor can’t control every part of your site’s security, it is a secure and reliable plugin.
Customer Service
Elementor offers multiple options for getting the help you need. Anyone can access the knowledge base, where you can read about Elementor and its features. Their FAQ section has questions that others have had, so you can see if someone has an answer for your issue.
If you prefer to learn with videos, Elementor also offers some video tutorials to help you get started. You can also ask the community and connect with other web designers on Facebook and Github to learn more about Elementor.
Unfortunately, Elementor Free users don’t have access to one-on-one customer support. However, Pro users get 24/7 support through Elementor’s ticket system. You can log into your account and submit a support ticket.
Customer support reps can log into your WordPress dashboard or even your website control panel to help solve your problem. Then, you don’t have to waste time trying different solutions.
FAQs
Here are some common questions about Elementor and their answers:
Why Should I Use a Page Builder on WordPress?
WordPress is the most common website platform in the world, but it’s not the easiest one. You have to use the text editor and a bit of code to get the design you want. But if you aren’t that tech-savvy, it can be difficult to use WordPress.
Still, you have more control over your site than if you used another visual editor, like Wix or SquareSpace. Elementor is a plugin that you can add to your new or existing WordPress site, and you can get the benefits of a drag and drop editor.
You don’t have to worry about coding, and you can design with website visuals in mind. Plus, you can use other popular WordPress plugins, like WooCommerce or Yoast, to build a beautiful, functioning website.
Do I Need Elementor Pro?
If you just want a basic page builder for your website, you don’t need Elementor Pro. The free version has a decent number of features to get you started. However, you can only do so much with the free plan.
You should choose one of the Elementor Pro plans if you want more features and page building options. It’s also worth the upgrade if you think you may need individual customer support.
If you’re unsure about Free or Pro, start with free. You may find you don’t need any extra features or help from Elementor. However, if you need or want a widget or feature that doesn’t come on the Free version, you can upgrade.
Which Elementor Pro Plan Should I Get?
If you don’t plan on designing other websites, the Personal plan is more than enough. It’s relatively affordable, and you can take advantage of all the features. And if you have a web design business, you can use the Expert plan for all of your client websites.
Most people have one or maybe two websites. So you probably don’t need the Expert plan unless you have a growing design firm.
Consider how many sites you plan to use with Elementor and where you will need the Pro features. Even if you own a few sites, you may only need the Personal license. You can use the Pro features on one site, but you can get an Elementor Free plan for your other websites.
What If I’m Not a Web Designer?
Elementor makes it easy for web designers and non-designers to create gorgeous websites. If you’re new to web design, you can read through Elementor’s knowledge base or watch some video tutorials to learn the ropes.
You don’t have to worry about hiring a web designer to create or update your site. As long as you check your WordPress dashboard each week, you can stay on top of your website maintenance.
What If I Need Help?
If you have an Elementor Pro account, you can contact their in-house support team. But even if you have the free version, you can get help from the Elementor community. The plugin is one of the most popular WordPress page builders, and odds are someone can help you fix your issue.
Final Thoughts
Elementor is an excellent page builder for WordPress sites. You can get all of the freedom and creative benefits of WordPress without having to code or work with the backend. They have plans for every budget, and you don’t need to be a professional designer to use it.
Finally, you can use Elementor on as many WordPress websites as you need. You may need multiple licenses for Elementor Pro, but it doesn’t matter if you have one site or a dozen sites. If you want an easy way to create and edit pages, you should look at Elementor.
