WPBeginner Turns 16 Years Old – Reflections, Updates, and a Giveaway

Today, WPBeginner officially turns 16 years old!

If WPBeginner was a kid, it would be old enough to drive in Florida. Crazy how time flies.

Looking back, it’s hard to believe that what started as a simple WordPress resource site has grown into such an incredible community of website owners, bloggers, developers, and entrepreneurs from all around the world. YOU continue to be the heart and soul of WPBeginner!

Like every year, I want to take a few minutes to share all the major updates happening in the business as well as some personal reflections.

To celebrate this special milestone, I am hosting a huge birthday giveaway with over $20,000 in prizes! We’ll be selecting 87 lucky winners who will get access to premium WordPress plugins and tools to help grow their websites.

Since this is a long article, you can easily skip to the section you’re most interested in:

My Personal Updates

If you’re new here, you might not know that I have been using WordPress since I was 16 years old, and I started WPBeginner in 2009 when I was in college at age 19.

Ever since then, I’ve been dedicated to the WordPress community, and WordPress plays a huge role both in my life as well as my family’s life.

My son, Solomon, is now 8 years old, and he regularly attends our company events. He even did the opening bit for our last keynote with over 200 team members in attendance. Watching Solomon grow up and develop his public speaking skills is truly special.

Although a bit more limited, I have continued our travels around the world, exploring new cultures, and meeting local WPBeginner readers.

Here are some photos from our travels:

One of the best parts about running a fully remote online company is the flexibility it offers us. We have team members in over 50 countries now, and my goal is to continue visiting at least a few new countries each year. Side note: yes, we’re hiring.

Also if you didn’t get a chance to read my 2024 recap, I highly recommend checking it because I shared lessons learned from last year.

WPBeginner Updates

Like all publishers and content websites, our traffic has been impacted by Google’s algorithm and the rapidly changing A.I. landscape.

Being in the SEO industry since 2006, this isn’t the first wave of big changes that I have witnessed, but this time the wave is much larger. I plan to share more actionable thoughts on this in a separate blog post in the near future.

The good news though is that we’re fortunate to have an incredible community of readers and subscribers. This is the what’s MOST important.

Since starting WPBeginner, my focus has always been to create helpful tutorials and resources for WordPress beginners, and we will continue to serve our community.

I’m truly grateful for everything we’ve accomplished together this year.

As always, none of this would be possible without your continued support and trust. THANK YOU for being part of our journey!

Here are some of the big updates that happened on WPBeginner in the last 12 months:

1. We Launched WPBeginner Spotlight

Over the past year, we’ve been publishing a monthly series called WPBeginner Spotlight, where we cover major WordPress industry news from brand acquisitions and mergers to flagship feature releases, and other significant announcements that matter to WordPress enthusiasts.

We started this initiative because a lot of our readers asked us to do it. There was a vacuum in this category as other WordPress news blogs stopped publishing.

Take a look at the latest edition of WPBeginner Spotlight if you haven’t checked it out.

Got something to share in the next edition of Spotlight? Whether it’s a new product launch, a significant update, or an exciting event, reach out to us through our contact form.

2. Real People, Real Impact: #MyWordPressStory Series

We’ve had the privilege of talking to WordPress experts and letting them share their inspiring stories with our community through our #MyWordPressStory series. This series brings you insights from some of the most successful leaders in the WordPress industry.

Take a look at some of the inspiring #MyWordPressStory editions here:

These stories share personal insights about what worked, what didn’t, and what you can do to succeed in your unique journey.

Want to be featured in the next edition of #MyWordPressStory? Feel free to reach out through our contact form here.

3. WPBeginner Workshop: Free Live Training

This year, we launched WPBeginner Workshop, bringing live education directly to the WPBeginner community. We hosted numerous workshops every month, covering WordPress fundamentals, SEO strategies, blogging, and eCommerce tips, and much more.

Each workshop has featured expert instructors sharing practical knowledge, followed by live Q&A sessions where attendees got their WordPress questions answered in real-time.

Best of all, it’s totally free to attend!

All you need to do is join our newsletter to stay up to date.

4. New Acquisitions, Investments & Product Launches

In 2018, I created the WPBeginner Growth Fund to invest in WordPress focused companies that are solving important problems that you, our readers, want me to help out with.

In the past 12 months, we have made several big acquisitions and investments in the ecosystem.

• We acquired BuddyBoss to help you create a private community with social networking groups, forum discussions, online courses, and more. Here’s the full background story.
• We completely revamped Sugar Calendar to make it easier and faster to manage events and ticketing in WordPress. Here’s the full background story.
• My team at AIOSEO launched a brand new writing assistant, SEOBoost. As you write, it gives you real-time insights into how to optimize your content for improving your search rankings. Here’s the full background story.
• We launched OnePageGA, a one-page Google Analytics dashboard. It lets you easily create a simple and easy-to-understand dashboard for Google Analytics 4. Here’s the full background story.
• We launched ClickSocial, a social media management plugin. It helps you start scheduling and publishing social media content right from your WordPress dashboard. Here’s the full background story.
• We launched WPConsent, a powerful cookie consent management plugin that ensures your website meets global privacy standards and avoids fines. Here’s the full background story.
• We acquired aThemes, a popular WordPress theme company known for building beautiful website templates that are optimized for speed and performance. Here’s the full background story. If you’re looking for a new theme, check out Sydney and Botiga (both are free).

I’m really proud of how far we’ve come with the Growth Fund, and it’s really amazing to see the impact our companies are making in the WordPress ecosystem and the larger open web.

Want me to invest in your business? Learn more about the WPBeginner Growth Fund.

Product Company Updates

One of the questions I often get from new readers is that how does WPBeginner make money when we give away all our WordPress tutorials and training for free.

Yes, we also have a huge library of WordPress video courses that are completely free for everyone.

WPBeginner is funded 100% through the support of our readers like you.

My various companies develop premium WordPress plugins to help you grow your website. These plugins are built with the same beginner-friendly approach you know and love from WPBeginner, and they have powerful features to take your website to the next level.

When you buy a license for any of my premium plugins, you’re not only helping make your website better, but you’re also helping support WPBeginner and our mission.

My company, Awesome Motive, has over 330+ team members across the world, and all of us are committed to helping you build a better website!

Here’s a list of our plugins that you should check out. Collectively, they’re being used on over 30 million websites. Your support means a lot to us whether you use the free version or purchase a premium license — we are here to serve.

PluginDescriptionFree versionOptinMonsterPowerful conversion optimization software that helps convert abandoning visitors into subscribers & customers.DownloadWPFormsTrusted by over 6 million websites, WPForms is the world’s most beginner-friendly WordPress form builder.DownloadDuplicatorBackup your entire WordPress site, including databases, themes, plugins, & settings – all with a few clicks.DownloadAIOSEOThe original and most powerful WordPress SEO plugin used by 3 million+ sites to boost traffic & rankings.DownloadMonsterInsightsThe most popular Google Analytics plugin that helps you make data-driven decisions.DownloadWP Mail SMTPThe #1 plugin that ensures your emails arrive safely in the recipient’s inbox, and not in the spam folder.Download SeedProdThe ultimate drag and drop website builder to create custom WordPress themes and landing pages.DownloadSmash BalloonSeamlessly integrate your social media feeds with WordPress. Used by 1.7 million websites.DownloadPushEngagePowerful push notification software. Add a new traffic & revenue channel to your site.DownloadSearchWPTrusted by 30,000+ website owners, SearchWP lets you customize WordPress search form and search results.NoEasy Digital DownloadsTop rated WordPress plugin for easily selling digital products and subscriptions.DownloadAffiliateWPLaunch your own self-hosted affiliate program in minutes to grow your eCommerce revenue.NoBuddyBossCreate a private community with social networking groups, forum discussions, online courses, and more.NoWP Simple PayAccept payments online without a shopping cart. Supports credit cards, ACH bank debit, Google Pay, Apple Pay, etc.DownloadSugar CalendarPowerful event calendar management plugin built for churches, conferences, and more.DownloadWP CharitableWordPress donation and fundraising plugin that helps you raise more money. Trusted by 10,000+ non-profit orgs.DownloadWPCodeAdd custom code to your site without editing your theme files. It can replace dozens of existing WordPress plugins.DownloadThrive ThemesA powerful suite of conversion-focused tools that can transform your website into an online business platform.NoSEOBoostGet real-time insights into how to optimize your content for improving your search rankings.14-day free trialOnePageGACreate a simple and easy-to-understand dashboard for Google Analytics 414-day free trialClickSocialStart scheduling and publishing social media content right from your WordPress dashboard.DownloadWPConsentIt’s a cookie consent management plugin that ensures your website meets global privacy standards and avoids fines.DownloadSydneyA great all-purpose free WordPress theme, used by over 100,000 websites. DownloadBotigaA lightweight WooCommerce theme built for optimal performance while boosting conversions.DownloadaThemes MerchantAn all-in-one WooCommerce growth tool that lets you boost revenue, AOV, and retain customers.DownloadEnvira GalleryCreate beautiful photo and video galleries with this easy-to-use drag-and-drop gallery builder.DownloadUserFeedbackSee what your users are really thinking through smart website surveys. Trusted by 200,000 websites.DownloadLowFruitsUncover valuable longtail keywords with the best keyword research tool. 14-day free trialUncanny AutomatorThe #1 no-code automation plugin for WordPress. Create powerful workflows to save time.Download

WPBeginner 16th Birthday Giveaway

To celebrate the 16th birthday of WPBeginner, we’re running our biggest ever giveaway!

We are giving away premium plugin licenses worth over $20,000 to 87 lucky winners.

So, what kind of goodies are we giving away? Here’s the complete list:

WPForms, MonsterInsights, OptinMonster, AIOSEO, SeedProd, Thrive Suite, Funnelkit, Uncanny Automator, MemberPress, Easy Digital Downloads, SearchWP, RafflePress, WPConsent, WPCode, Duplicator, aThemes, WP Mail SMTP, WP Simple Pay, Formidable Forms, Pretty Links, AffiliateWP, BuddyBoss, Envira Gallery, Smash Balloon, SEOBoost, LowFruits, ClickSocial, PushEngage, and OnePageGA.

Thank You, Everyone

I want to say thank you to everyone who has supported us in this journey. I really do appreciate all of your retweets, personal emails, content suggestions, and the interactions at the events.

I also want to say special thank you to everyone who’s using our plugins because that enables us to keep bringing more free tutorials on WPBeginner.

You all are AMAZING and without you, there is no WPBeginner.

I look forward to another solid year ahead of us.

Syed BalkhiFounder of WPBeginner