What Is Elementor in WordPress?
Elementor is a WordPress plugin that adds a drag-and-drop page builder: you design pages on a live canvas with widgets instead of writing code, while WordPress still stores the content. The free plugin builds page content; Elementor Pro adds headers, footers, forms, popups and WooCommerce layouts.
For WordPress site owners and beginners deciding whether to build pages with Elementor, and what it needs from their hosting.
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- 7
- Updated
- 14 Nov 2026
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- WebJi® team
Last editorial update: 14 November 2026. Prices follow the dated sources on this page; checkout confirms current charges.
What Elementor is in WordPress
Elementor is a plugin that adds a visual, drag-and-drop page builder to WordPress: you design pages on a live canvas with widgets instead of writing HTML, while WordPress still stores the pages, users and settings. It is not a separate website platform like Wix; remove the plugin and the layouts built with it stop rendering.
- Plugin, not the CMS: WordPress remains the site; Elementor is the editor for the pages you choose.
- Live canvas: headings, images and buttons are placed by dragging, with desktop, tablet and mobile previews.
- Two editions: the free plugin builds page content; Elementor Pro is a paid licence for site-wide templates, forms, popups and WooCommerce layouts.
The free plugin on WordPress.org lists more than 10 million active installations. Version 4 introduced the “Atomic” editor, with reusable design variables and classes that apply across the whole site.
Elementor free vs Elementor Pro
The free plugin includes the editor and more than 40 basic widgets for page content; Elementor Pro adds Theme Builder for headers, footers and archives, plus forms, popups, dynamic content and WooCommerce page design. You can publish a real page on the free plugin alone.
| Feature | Free plugin | Elementor Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Drag-and-drop editor, responsive controls | Yes | Yes |
| Basic widgets (heading, image, button, video, gallery, tabs, accordion) | Yes | Yes, plus 100+ extra widgets and tools |
| Header, footer, single-post and archive templates (Theme Builder) | No; the theme handles them | Yes |
| Form builder and popup builder | No | Yes |
| WooCommerce product, cart, checkout and account layouts | No | Yes |
| Custom CSS, custom code, dynamic content | No | Yes |
Pro is sold in tiers named Essential, Advanced, Expert, Studio and Agency, differing mainly in how many sites a licence covers. Check the current price on elementor.com; Pro is not included in any WebJi® hosting plan.
What Elementor needs from your hosting
Elementor's minimum requirements are WordPress 6.8, PHP 7.4, MySQL 5.6 or MariaDB 10.5 and a 256 MB PHP memory limit; Elementor recommends PHP 8.3 and 512–768 MB of memory. Low memory is the usual reason the editor's widget panel fails to load.
| Item | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| WordPress | 6.8 | 7.0 or newer |
| PHP | 7.4 | 8.3 or newer |
| Database | MySQL 5.6 / MariaDB 10.5 | MySQL 8.0 / MariaDB 10.6 |
| PHP and WordPress memory limit | 256 MB | 512 MB (768 MB for best performance) |
Raise WordPress memory with define( 'WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '512M' ); in wp-config.php, within what your plan allows, and pick a current PHP version in your panel. WooCommerce and Elementor add-ons need more memory again.
How to install Elementor and build your first page
Install Elementor from Plugins → Add New, open any page, click “Edit with Elementor”, then drag widgets onto the canvas and click Publish or Update. The free plugin needs no Elementor account.
- In wp-admin, open Plugins → Add New, search for Elementor, then Install Now and Activate.
- Optionally install Elementor's lightweight Hello theme, which Elementor recommends as a blank canvas.
- Open Pages → Add New (or an existing page) and click Edit with Elementor.
- Add a container, then drag in a heading, image or button and edit it in the left panel.
- Check the tablet and mobile previews, click Publish, and open the page in a private window.
For Pro, upload the Pro plugin and connect the licence in the Elementor settings. Elementor and the block editor can coexist: you choose which editor to use page by page.
Why an Elementor site slows down, and how to fix it
An Elementor site slows down when pages are built heavily, with deep nesting, many widgets, add-on packs and oversized images, rather than because the plugin is active. The fixes are mostly in how pages are built.
- Fewer nested containers: each layer adds HTML; one container often replaces a stack of sections.
- Global styles: set fonts and colours once in the design system instead of on every widget.
- Fewer add-on packs: extra Elementor add-ons often load CSS and JavaScript on every page.
- Images: WebP at the displayed size, lazy-loading below the fold; Elementor's own performance settings load CSS and JS only where used.
- Caching: a page cache serves the built HTML without running PHP for every visitor.
If the public page is still slow after those changes, a WordPress speed optimisation pass on the install is the next step.
Elementor alternatives inside and outside WordPress
Inside WordPress, the built-in block editor, Beaver Builder, Divi and Bricks are the main alternatives; Wix and Squarespace are hosted builders that replace WordPress entirely.
| Option | Where it runs | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|
| Elementor | WordPress plugin | You want a visual canvas and a large template library |
| Block editor | Built into WordPress | Post-heavy sites and simple layouts; lightest option |
| Beaver Builder, Divi, Bricks | Other WordPress plugins or themes | You already know or pay for that builder |
| Wix, Squarespace | Their own hosted platforms | You do not want to run WordPress at all |
Switching builders means rebuilding finished pages, so stay on Elementor if your site is already built with it.
Hosting for an Elementor site
Elementor needs ordinary WordPress hosting with enough PHP memory and a current PHP version; WebJi® WordPress hosting costs ₹399 a month for Webji Turbo and ₹699 for Webji Scale, before 18% GST (read 4 November 2026). Checkout confirms the current price.
The hosting price does not include an Elementor Pro licence; install the plugin after the account is live. If you would rather not handle updates yourself, managed WordPress hosting covers them, and shops should look at WooCommerce hosting. Account questions go to support@webji.services, 24/7 in Hindi and English, with an average first reply under 60 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Can I edit my header and footer with free Elementor?
Not with Elementor's Theme Builder, which is a Pro feature. On the free plugin, the header and footer come from your theme, so choose a theme whose customiser lets you edit them, or use the block editor's site editing with a block theme.
What happens to my pages if I deactivate Elementor?
The text and images remain in WordPress, but the Elementor layout, columns and styling no longer render, so pages look plain or broken. Reactivating Elementor restores them. Moving to another builder means rebuilding the layouts.
Why does the Elementor editor not load?
The most common causes are a PHP memory limit below 256 MB, an outdated PHP version, or a plugin conflict. Raise the memory limit, update PHP, then deactivate other plugins one at a time on a staging copy to find the conflict.
Who makes Elementor?
Elementor Ltd. publishes the plugin and sells Elementor Pro and its own hosting. WebJi® is not affiliated with Elementor; it hosts the WordPress sites the plugin runs on.
Plugin facts checked against the WordPress.org listing on 15 November 2026 · Reviewed by the WebJi® team, Jaipur.
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