WP Engine Review

Ryan Frankel

By: Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel, CTO and Contributing Expert

Ryan began developing websites in the late '90s and has personally tested just about every web host and cloud platform worth trying on the market today. With a masters degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Florida, he leverages his extensive knowledge of hardware, software, and their engineering relationship to inform HostingAdvice readers of the technical implications of their hosting choices. Ryan's subject matter expertise includes, but is not limited to, WordPress, cloud infrastructure management, product UI/UX design, and popular web development languages such as JavaScript and PHP.

Lillian Castro

Editor: Lillian Castro

Lillian Castro

Lillian Castro, Senior Editor

Lillian brings more than 30 years of editing and journalism experience to our team. She has written and edited for major news organizations, including The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the New York Times, and she previously served as an adjunct instructor at the University of Florida. Today, she edits HostingAdvice content for clarity, accuracy, and reader engagement.

Cristian Lopez

Reviewer: Cristian Lopez

Cristian Lopez

Cristian Lopez, Contributing Expert

Cristian Lopez uses his Business Marketing background from the University of Illinois at Chicago to create comfortable environments for customers, clients, and colleagues to share their thoughts and ideas openly. From interviewing tech leaders to conducting UX market research projects, Cristian knows the importance of storytelling — a key variable for innovation and inspiration. His goal at HostingAdvice is to wow readers on the ever-evolving nature of the tech industry and bring his audience the most reliable and exciting content on all things hosting.

OVERALL RATING 4.5 / 5.0
★★★★★
Features5.0 / 5.0
Ease of Use4.9 / 5.0
Pricing4.5 / 5.0
Reliability & Support4.8 / 5.0
Discount for Our Users See Deals

WP Engine is a WordPress-only host that specializes in scalable, secure, and performant hosting. This can suit any user — from beginners to seasoned developers. In addition to bare-bones WP hosting, the premium web host boasts popular features such as single-click restore points, a staging area, CDN, and proprietary caching tools.

Category Ratings

We had one of our resident hosting experts, Ryan Frankel, sign up for a WP Engine account and take it for a spin. Below are Ryan’s ratings of the WP Engine experience, broken down by the types of hosting WP Engine offers.

If you decide to go with WP Engine, you may get a discount by using our link to sign up. While we often make commissions on purchases made through our links, this had no bearing on Ryan’s review.

Here’s what Ryan found in reviewing WP Engine:

Disclosure: When you sign up through links on our site, we often earn referral fees from partners. For more information, see our ad disclosure and review policy.

WP Engine's Overall Rating (4.5 / 5.0)

Best Overall Rating

4.5
★★★★★

Price:

Setup Time:

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel (HostingAdvice.com):

We absolutely adore WP Engine as a hosting company, but there's one huge reason we can't recommend it to everyone: It's exclusively built for WordPress users. If you are a WordPress fan, then read on!

If not, you'll want to try one of our other recommendations. If you care enough about your WordPress site — its security, scalability, load time, and uptime — to spend upward of $15 per month on it, then WP Engine is an ideal choice for you. It'd be tough to make a strong case arguing otherwise.

Although WP Engine's price tag may scare off newbies, those who know WordPress will attest to the impressiveness of WP Engine's proprietary platform.

Always updated with the latest hardware to maximize server performance, WP Engine boasts a market-leading software layer built exclusively for WordPress users. This includes the company's own caching system to ensure your site loads super quickly for visitors, a one-click staging area, and constant security monitoring to ward off online threats.

For beginners, installing a WordPress theme and getting a site up and running couldn't be easier. For more experienced folks, WP Engine's advanced features, such as single-click development staging areas, Git integration, multiple server locations, CDN compatibility, and a ton of other niceties, can't be beat.

These features make the monthly price worthwhile, compared to what the more economically competitive hosts offer.

  • Enterprise-level WordPress hosting
  • Built-in caching and staging
  • Unlimited data transfer
  • Daily backups and 1-click restore
  • 33% discount for HostingAdvice users (was $30/month)
  • Get started on WP Engine now.
Money Back Guarantee
60 days
Disk Space
10 GB - 50 GB
Domain Name
New or Transfer
Setup Time
4 minutes
WP Engine's Cheap Hosting (not yet rated)

"We haven't evaluated WP Engine for this type of hosting service — yet. Either the company didn't offer this option at the time this review was written or this section of the review hasn't made it to the top of our editorial queue just yet. Either way, check back later, as we're always working to keep our reviews up to date and as comprehensive as possible!"

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel, Tech Expert

Want Ryan to review your hosting service? Request a review.

WP Engine's Dedicated Hosting (not yet rated)

"We haven't evaluated WP Engine for this type of hosting service — yet. Either the company didn't offer this option at the time this review was written or this section of the review hasn't made it to the top of our editorial queue just yet. Either way, check back later, as we're always working to keep our reviews up to date and as comprehensive as possible!"

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel, Tech Expert

Want Ryan to review your hosting service? Request a review.

WP Engine's VPS Hosting (not yet rated)

"We haven't evaluated WP Engine for this type of hosting service — yet. Either the company didn't offer this option at the time this review was written or this section of the review hasn't made it to the top of our editorial queue just yet. Either way, check back later, as we're always working to keep our reviews up to date and as comprehensive as possible!"

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel, Tech Expert

Want Ryan to review your hosting service? Request a review.

WP Engine's WordPress Hosting (4.8 / 5.0)

WordPress Rating

4.8
★★★★★

Price:

Setup Time:

With prices much higher than many WordPress users are accustomed to seeing, we understand that WP Engine may not be for everybody. But for those developers, designers, agencies, and growing businesses passionate about website performance, stability, and cutting-edge WordPress features, WP Engine will be a godsend.

Installing WordPress, setting up a theme, and moving a site from development to staging to production is simple for beginners.

The company's 2018 acquisition of StudioPress, the makers of the ultra-popular Genesis theme framework, further solidified customers' design options and WP Engine's involvement in the WordPress community.

More experienced users will appreciate the single-click staging areas, Git integration, choice of server locations, CDN compatibility, and other niceties. Plus, don't forget available add-ons for WordPress Multisite, geotargeting, and edge security.

These luxurious features make the higher-end monthly price exceedingly worthwhile. Plus, the built-in caching system allows WP Engine sites to outperform almost all other WordPress sites without the use of plugins, meaning you can focus more on your content and design and let the experts at WP Engine focus on maintaining your site's ridiculously great performance.

  • 0% OFF your first payment for our readers
  • FREE Genesis Framework & StudioPress themes
  • Fast, scalable, and secure WordPress
  • FREE SSL certificate and CDN ready
  • Upgrade for geotargeting and edge security
  • Get started on WP Engine now.
Money Back Guarantee
60 days
Disk Space
10 GB - 50 GB
Domain Name
New or Transfer
Setup Time
6 minutes
WP Engine's Website Builder Hosting (not yet rated)

"We haven't evaluated WP Engine for this type of hosting service — yet. Either the company didn't offer this option at the time this review was written or this section of the review hasn't made it to the top of our editorial queue just yet. Either way, check back later, as we're always working to keep our reviews up to date and as comprehensive as possible!"

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel, Tech Expert

Want Ryan to review your hosting service? Request a review.

Features

(5.0 / 5.0)

Ultra-Performant WordPress Hosting

  • WP Engine has servers across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and in the Asia-Pacific region so your server can be close to your customers. This dramatically speeds up the delivery of your dynamic content.
  • The company's EverCache technology handles page, database, and object caching automatically, so you don't have to fuss with any caching plugins.
  • Get better SEO returns and conversions with PHP 7 and HTTP/2, plus a fully managed global content delivery network.

Sights Set On Scalability

  • Unlike most hosts, WP Engine does not limit your data transfer. That means serving up large images, videos, and files is of no concern to you.
  • WP Engine maintains top-of-the-line hardware and is constantly bringing improvements to deliver the best service possible.
  • In addition to great hardware, the company provides hardware quotas to ensure sites hosted on its network can handle large traffic spikes with ease. Where most hosts would struggle to keep up, WP Engine takes the traffic in stride.

Security, Security, Security

  • Clustered and redundant configurations, along with proactive and multi-layered security measures, keep your website up and running.
  • WP Engine's experts not only block attacks typically experienced by every website, but they ensure WP Engine sites are more resilient to WordPress-specific attacks.
  • WP Engine automatically scans for malware, and the company guarantees that if your site is hacked, the team will fix it for free.

Amazing Development Tools

  • WP Engine really sets the bar high with its development tools. Our favorite is the easy-to-use development, staging, and production environments.
  • Isolated dev environments for testing, along with automated backups and WordPress Core updates. Real-time activity logs provide visibility into your account.
  • In addition, single-click restore points and Git version control round out WP Engine's amazing portfolio of dev tools and tricks.

Ease of Use

(4.9 / 5.0)
Simple Account Dashboard
WP Engine Review
Step-By-Step Migration Assistant
WP Engine Review
Looks Just Like WordPress
WP Engine Review

Based on our experience with WP Engine, we found the interface to be incredibly straightforward. The customer dashboard is incredibly responsive, fast, and easy to navigate. It's apparent that WP Engine has focussed on having a modern home website — showing off the company's commitment to usability in every aspect of its business model. Once our site was launched, we were in the typical wp-admin area of WordPress and were able to get a wait time of only 42 milliseconds for our first byte. We probably don't have to tell you this, but that is extremely fast!

Pricing

(4.5 / 5.0)

Lite Plan

Startup Plan

Professional Plan

While at first glance, WP Engine seems exhorbitantly expensive, it turns out the host's plans are extremely competitively priced for the amazing hosting provided. These plans are built for developers and agencies, not the first-time site owner looking to publish a family blog. For most sites, the Startup plan is more than enough, and all subscribers benefit from WP Engine's in-house technology. The main difference between plans is the number of visitors you can have coming to your site (ranging from 25K to millions per month), the amount of WordPress installs (ranging from 1 to 25+), and the amount of local storage (10GB and up). The WP Engine team's WordPress expertise really puts the company at the top of the food chain if you want to run a top-tier WordPress site.

Reliability & Support

(4.8 / 5.0)

With a 99.95% service availability guarantee, WP Engine has above-average reliability. The company's support portal provides nice access to a knowledgebase for the most commonly asked questions regarding WP Engine services, site migration, and common WordPress problems. In addition, the support staff is available via online chat, phone, and a ticketing system. Furthermore, the folks who are helping you are WordPress experts and can almost always help point you in the right direction.

WP Engine Includes:

24/7 Phone, Chat, Knowledgebase, and Ticket System

Other Hosts vs. WP Engine

Wondering how WP Engine stacks up againt other web hosting services? See our host-vs-host reviews below and compare them side by side.

WP Engine vs. HostGator

If you’re planning to host your WordPress site and don’t mind paying a premium for the best quality services, then look no further than the folks at WP Engine.

See full comparison »
WPEngine vs HostGator

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
WPEngine vs HostGator

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0

WP Engine vs. WordPress

WordPress is the world’s most popular content management system for several reasons — it’s free, easy to use, and flexible enough to be leveraged for various site types.

See full comparison »
WordPress vs. WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
WordPress vs. WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.7/5.0

WP Engine vs. GoDaddy

Comparing our hosts today is similar to comparing a Golden Doodle to a Great Dane.

See full comparison »
GoDaddy vs WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
GoDaddy vs WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.7/5.0

WP Engine vs. Liquid Web

When it comes to WordPress hosting, few can compete with WP Engine.

See full comparison »
Liquid Web vs. WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
Liquid Web vs. WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

WP Engine vs. Flywheel

We present the behemoths of managed WordPress hosting: Flywheel and WP Engine.

See full comparison »
Flywheel vs WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
Flywheel vs WP Engine

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

WP Engine vs. InMotion

Comparing WP Engine with InMotion is similar to comparing a specialist to a primary care provider.

See full comparison »
WP Engine vs. InMotion

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
WP Engine vs. InMotion

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.9/5.0

WP Engine vs. Bluehost

Business owners and entrepreneurs love WP Engine’s WordPress-optimized hosting for its security, scalability, load time, and uptime.

See full comparison »
WPEngine vs Bluehost

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
WPEngine vs Bluehost

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.9/5.0

WP Engine vs. SiteGround

WP Engine is to WordPress as an orthodontist is to braces.

See full comparison »
WPEngine vs SiteGround

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
WPEngine vs SiteGround

Overall Rating

★★★★★ 5.0/5.0

WP Engine is the winner
0 out of 8 times.

The Rundown

Ryan Frankel

Ryan Frankel

Hosting Expert:

To recap, here's a rundown of what WP Engine has to offer

If you are looking to run a WordPress site and performance is of significance to you, look no further then WP Engine. The premium hosting provider's state-of-the-art technology, including hardware and software, is second to none. In addition, the support staff is made up of WordPress experts who can provide guidance and expertise instead of just creating support tickets. We found our experience with WP Engine to be outstanding, and the service was both snappy and simple to use.

WP Engine review

Overall Rating

4.5 / 5.0
★★★★★

About The Author

Ryan Frankel has been a professional in the tech industry for more than 20 years and has been developing websites for more than 25. With a master's degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Florida, he has a fundamental understanding of hardware systems and the software that runs them. Ryan now sits as the CTO of Digital Brands Inc. and manages all of the server infrastructure of their websites, as well as their development team. In addition, Ryan has a passion for guitars, good coffee, and puppies.
Ryan Frankel
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