Flywheel vs WPX
We give Flywheel a 2.0 GPA and WPX a 1.8, out of 4.0. Flywheel grades higher on features and platforms. WPX grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Flywheel
Managed WordPress hosting for designers, freelancers and agencies
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAFlywheelFair | 1.8GPAWPXWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CGraded against the other managed WordPress hosts. Starter is $300 a year for one site, so two years cost $600, about $25 a month, the middle of that group. Extra sites are $20 a month, and visits over 25,000 are $1 per 1,000. | BGraded against the other managed WordPress hosts. Starter's 2-year term is $341.81 upfront, so two years cost about $14.24 a month, the cheapest of that group, though not by enough for an A. Monthly is $17.99. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial. There's a 60-day money-back guarantee, longer than most, but it isn't a trial, and Agency plans aren't covered by it. | FNo free plan and no trial on record. Prepaying earns free months, but that's a discount, not a way to try it. |
| Features | BNightly backups kept 30 days, staging, FlyCache with a Fastly CDN, free malware cleanup, Blueprints and billing transfer. Managed plugin updates are an $8 add-on and there's no email, but the managed WordPress job is covered. | CIts own XDN CDN, daily malware scans with free cleanup, a firewall, daily backups, and migrations and speed work done by staff. The gaps: Starter has no email and runs on half a CPU core and 3 GB of RAM, and staging isn't on record. |
| Ease of use | CNo app store rating to go on. Free migrations help, and building in Local first is handy, but it's still a WordPress host with plans and limits to learn. | CNo app store rating to go on. Staff handle migrations and speed work, which takes a lot off your plate, but you still run a WordPress site. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web dashboard plus the free Local app on your computer, which builds sites offline and pushes them to Flywheel. Fastly, Genesis and Google Analytics are named too, but no API is on record. | CA web dashboard only, with WordPress and WooCommerce as the named integrations. No API is on record. |
| Best for | designers building WordPress sites for clients | managed WordPress with fixes done for you |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Flywheel and WPX. How we grade
Price against what you get
Flywheel starts at $25 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. WPX starts at $11.99 a month and scores 2.0.
Flywheel scores higher, and starts $13.01 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than Flywheel for less, and 6 score higher than WPX for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Flywheel starts at $25 per month for 1 site, billed annually ($30 billed monthly). WPX starts at $11.99 per month for 1 site, prepaid for 5 years ($17.99 billed monthly).
At a glance
| Flywheel | WPX | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | $25 per month for 1 site, billed annually ($30 billed monthly) | $11.99 per month for 1 site, prepaid for 5 years ($17.99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | WP Engine | K Media Tech, LLC |
| Price read from | getflywheel.com | wpx.net |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Flywheel
- Designers and freelancers who build WordPress sites for clients
- Agencies that hand billing for each site over to the client
- Single WordPress sites that want backups and staging handled for them
WPX
- WordPress site owners who want migrations and fixes done for them
- Small businesses that want email and hosting from one provider
- Buyers willing to prepay several years for a lower monthly rate
Worth knowing
Flywheel
- Flywheel does not host email; its pricing page sends you to a separate email provider such as Google.
- Traffic over the plan's limit is billed at $1 per 1,000 visits and storage at $1 per GB, rather than the site being throttled.
- Extra sites cost $20 a month each, and the Agency and Custom plans are excluded from the 60-day money-back guarantee.
- It hosts WordPress sites only, and the page notes that prices may vary by server location.
WPX
- Email at your domain needs the Business plan or higher; Starter has none.
- The lowest rates need years paid upfront: Starter is $11.99 a month only on a 5-year prepayment of $719.60.
- It hosts WordPress and WooCommerce only; agency and WooCommerce plans are sold on separate price lists.
- Starter runs on half a CPU core and 3 GB of RAM; more sites or resources need Business or Professional.
Key features
Flywheel
- Nightly backups and staging
- Every site is backed up each night and the copies are kept for 30 days, with one-click restores. Staging sites let changes be tested before they go live.
- Caching and CDN
- FlyCache handles caching at the server with exclusions for common plugins, and a CDN run by Fastly is included on every plan.
- Security and malware cleanup
- Malware and hacking attempts are scanned for and blocked at the server, hacked sites are cleaned free, and plugin security alerts flag vulnerable plugins.
- Tools for client work
- Blueprints save a theme and plugin set for reuse, Organizations share sites with a team, and billing for a site can be handed to the client.
- Local development app
- Local, a free app from the same company, builds WordPress sites on your own computer and pushes them to Flywheel when they are ready.
- Paid add-ons
- Managed Plugin Updates ($8 a month per site) uses AI visual regression checks, Performance Insights sends monthly reports, and White Label lets agencies resell hosting.
WPX
- WPX XDN
- WPX runs its own content delivery network, the XDN, included free on every plan, with hybrid DDoS protection in front of its servers.
- Malware scans and cleanups
- Sites are scanned for malware every day and cleaned free, with a web application firewall, brute-force protection and two-factor login.
- Manual migrations
- Unlimited site migrations are done by WPX staff rather than a tool, usually within 24 hours, including debugging and malware cleanup.
- Speed optimization by staff
- An optimization team works on customer sites to make them load faster, at no extra charge.
- Business email
- Business and higher plans include email with webmail, unlimited mailboxes, email migration and AI-powered spam protection.
- Fixed For You guarantee
- Every plan carries WPX's Fixed For You guarantee, with live chat support around the clock and daily backups.
Plans
Flywheel
Starter$25
per month for up to 25,000 visits, billed annually ($30 monthly)
1 site, 10 GB storage and 50 GB bandwidth. Billed at $300 a year. Extra visits cost $1 per 1,000 a month.
Freelance$96
per month for up to 100,000 visits, billed annually ($115 monthly)
Up to 10 sites, 20 GB storage and 200 GB bandwidth. Billed at $1,150 a year.
Agency$242
per month for up to 400,000 visits, billed annually ($290 monthly)
Up to 30 sites, 50 GB storage and 500 GB bandwidth. Billed at $2,900 a year. Not covered by the 60-day money-back guarantee.
CustomCustom
Built with sales for more than 30 sites or high-traffic projects, with dedicated clusters and an account manager.
WPX
Starter, monthly$17.99
per month for 1 site, billed monthly
1 website, 10 GB storage, 100 GB bandwidth, unlimited visitors and 9 PHP workers.
Starter, 1 year$14.99
per month for 1 site, prepaid yearly ($179.90)
The same Starter plan with 2 months free for paying a year ahead.
Starter, 3 years$12.49
per month for 1 site, prepaid for 3 years ($449.75)
The same Starter plan with 11 months free. A 2-year term is $14.24 a month ($341.81).
Starter, 5 years$11.99
per month for 1 site, prepaid for 5 years ($719.60)
The same Starter plan with 20 months free, the lowest rate. A 4-year term is $12.37 a month ($593.67).
Business, 5 years$19.99
per month for up to 5 sites, prepaid for 5 years ($1,199.60)
20 GB, 200 GB bandwidth, business email with unlimited mailboxes and AI-based spam protection. $29.99 billed monthly.
Professional, 5 years$39.99
per month for up to 15 sites, prepaid for 5 years ($2,399.60)
40 GB, 400 GB bandwidth and 15 GB RAM for freelancers and small agencies. $59.99 billed monthly.
Ways to pay less
Flywheel
- Annual discount
Two months free with yearly billing
Paying yearly includes two months free: Starter is $300 a year instead of $30 a month, and an extra site is $200 a year instead of $20 a month.
WPX
- Annual discount
Free months for prepaying 1 to 5 years
Prepaying adds free months: 2 for 1 year, 5 for 2 years, 11 for 3 years, 15 for 4 years and 20 for 5 years.
