Are you someone who uses wordpress.com and wish you could use third-party themes or plugins? If you are using the standalone version of WordPress from wordpress.org, you know this is easy. The good news is that now you can install third-party themes and plugins on your WordPress.com site.
Third-Party Themes – There is a Catch!
For a very long time, WordPress.com restricted you from using themes and plugins from outside of their own products. As a result, customers would be frustrated. But with the announcement that WordPress.com can now install third-party themes and plugins are now possible. However, there is a caveat to this change-of-heart of them. To take advantage of this, you need to sign-up for the Business Plan (or above) at wordpress.com to get that option. At the time of writing this article, their price for the Business Plan is $25 USD ($33 CAD if you are Canadian like me).
Not Sure Where I’ve Been
I am sure there are many who are reading this article and thinking, “We already knew about this“. Fair enough, but I’m not sure where I’ve been because I didn’t find out about this until this year.
However, the fact you can now use third-party themes and plugins in wordpress.com opens the door to more choices for their customers. To be honest, I have had many customers come to Rough Pixels to purchase a theme membership and then use it on their .com account at WordPress.
With the amount of confusion between the two WordPress options, this is obviously a smart move. Just unfortunate that you need at least the Business Plan for this capability.