8 Best WordPress Staging Plugins 2024 (Easy to Use)

Having a development environment is crucial if you want your developers to test new WordPress plugins, themes, and customizations. Your team can collaborate better with each other and the client by having this environment, also known as a WordPress sandbox or staging site, to test the new changes before making any changes to the live site. 

In this guide, we’ll introduce the top 8 easiest-to-use and best WordPress staging plugins for 2024, designed to streamline the creation and management of these crucial testing environments.

But wait—what is a staging site?

What is a Staging Site?

Not sure what a staging site means? Let’s explain it briefly.

A staging site is an exact copy of your website hidden from the public eye on the internet. The staging site allows you to make changes to the site without harming your original site.

Here’s an example to make things clearer.

Suppose your website faces some performance issues that you need to fix, or you want to make some design changes. But you are afraid that changing the live site can cause downtime and loss of audience. This is where a WordPress staging will help you. You can experiment with new styles, layouts, themes, and plugins without wondering if they will break your website or cause downtime.

How do I get a staging site?

There are multiple ways to create a staging or development site for your live WordPress website. The easiest way is to use a WordPress staging plugin that lets you quickly create an exact clone of your WordPress website.

And as mentioned, we’re going to present some staging plugins for you to check out. .. Which one will emerge as the best staging plugin for WordPress?

Well, grab a cup of coffee and go through our list to find out!

Best Staging Plugins for WordPress Sites [2024]

WordPress has an active ecosystem of plugins and themes, making it easy for anyone to create any website using WordPress. Similarly, there are multiple feature-rich staging plugins. We will describe them one by one.

1. InstaWP Connect

This newly released WordPress staging plugin has taken the WordPress industry by storm. The plugin will help users create a duplicate website that they can use for development, A/B testing, and design changes within seconds. You can go from WordPress staging to production via this plugin, too!

The staging sites  are added to your InstaWP account, from where you can manage multiple such sites at once.

This  plugin is free to use and allows you to seamlessly create a staging site of your existing WordPress website within seconds. It is rapidly updated with new features, and the premium version gives you access to some of the most powerful options.

InstaWP also offers a Chrome Extension for launching quick plugin and theme demos for superfast testing.

Powerful Features of InstaWP Connect:

1. All staging sites are created and hosted on InstaWP’s cloud servers.
2. Supports WordPress Versions 3.7 to the latest.
3. PHP versions support from 5.6 to 8.2.
4. Free SSL and domain name included.
5. Create “Templates” and easily import them to new staging sites.
6. Easily connect with any hosting provider to migrate your website.
7. Add team members.
8. Auto-login to your connected sites
9. Regular updates on your site health
10. Basic site information
11. 2-way push from staging to live and vice-versa.

Pros:

1. Instant site creation
2. Easy migration to any hosting provider
3. Access to SFTP/SSH (premium)
4. Save and shared template
5. Git integration and GitHub actions support
6. 3rd party service configurations
7. Human support
8. Easily clone staging sites to create multiple copies.
9. Does not take any space or resources of your hosting server.

Cons:

• Larger than 500mb website needs to upgrade to premium
• New to the WordPress industry

Final Verdict: This WordPress staging site plugin, InstaWP Connect, is the fastest way to create a WP staging site without any technical hassles. The significant advantage of using InstaWP is that your staging sites are hosted on a separate server from your live hosting server. The plugin is best for designers, developers, and agencies of any size to improve their workflows and deliver better WordPress sites faster.

The plugin provides all the features and more compared to its competitors at a lower price (starting from $9/mo). It also comes with a free version, albeit with more limited features.

Watch This Video to Know More About InstaWP.

2. WP Staging

WP Staging  is a popular WordPress staging tool  that helps to create backups, clones, and staging sites from production sites. It  creates staging sites in a sub-folder within the folder where your live site is installed. Although this is not a good practice, storing staging sites on the same server can take up a lot of disk space.

The WP Staging plugin can clone any site, even if the site is running on a shared hosting server. The plugin is beginner friendly and automatically completes complex operations while creating a staging site

Powerful Features of WP Staging:

• Login credentials to access the staging site
• Define user roles to enter the staging site
• Works with weak servers
• Works with WordPress multisite.

Pros:

• Free WordPress staging version available
• Easy to use
• Fast
• Support for large websites
• Supports multiple staging sites.

Cons:

• WordPress staging plugin free version is limited-time only
•  No support to test multiple PHP versions.
• Pro version needed to transfer staging site to live site
• No permalink support
• Most functionality in pro version
• Insecure setup.
• Doesn’t create a separate URL.

Final Verdict: If you want a quick and easy way to create a free WordPress staging site, then WP Staging will be a good choice. This WordPress staging  plugin also has a pro version starting from $8.08/month.

3. WP Stagecoach

Another one of the best WordPress staging plugins is WP Stagecoach. A little trivia: WP Stagecoach vs WP Staging is a very-searched for phrase in Google!

Going back, the plugin can merge databases of your WP stage site site with the live one. It works well with busy and complex websites such as WooCommerce and Membership sites, where the database is constantly updated.

WP Stagecoach creates the staging site on its live server and doesn’t take up the resources of your live server. WP Stagecoach also has a manual merging option if the automatic merging fails.

Powerful Features of WP Stagecoach:

1. Import chunk files, so it works well on slow servers
2. Hotlinking media cuts down the migration time
3. Link revert option to fix any mistake
4. Staging copy passwords are protected.

Pros:

• One click setup
• Password protection
• Off-server staging
• Compatible with all web hosts

Cons:

• Don’t get this if you’re looking for a free staging plugin for WordPress
• Doesn’t support multisite

Final Verdict: If you have the budget and you have a large website, then you should choose this premium staging plugin. The premium version starts at  $99/year.

4. WP Time Capsule

This is a backup-focused plugin that creates incremental backups. WP Time Capsule takes the backup of your entire site and creates a staging site with the backup copy. The plugin can handle large websites as the backups are updated incrementally as the live site updates.

The live site is broken into chunks and then pieced together in the staging site so that nothing is left behind. Users also have the option to do selective merge.

You can quickly recover and restore your live site with a time-stamped backup, this plugin enhances your backup policy, and the staging site feature allows you to test the changes before pushing them to the live site.

Powerful Features of WP Time Capsule:

• Backup website in real-time
• Make updates in the staging site in a single click
• Auto backup before every update
• Only includes selective files and database tables.

Pros:

• User-friendly
• Selective merge
• Auto backup
• Password protection

Cons:

• Staging only in pro version
• Data stored in Google Drive, Dropbox, and Amazon S3.

Final Verdict: If you want to back up your WordPress websites, then you can use this plugin. The bonus is the staging feature which comes with the premium version. The premium version starts at $49/year.

5. WP Pusher

The WP Pusher plugin is a developer-friendly plugin that makes Git deployments easy. You can create staging sites on your git repository and use WP Pusher to seamlessly push the updates from staging sites (Git Repos) to live WordPress sites. It supports all the popular Git services like Github, BitBucket, and GitLab.

This plugin is ideal for agencies that use version-controlling services in their development workflows. Though WP Pusher doesn’t advertise itself as a staging WordPress plugin, it is one of its use cases.

Powerful Features of WP Pusher:

1. Ability to select a specific branch to update code
2. Keeping the staging site and development site separate
3. Built on an existing WordPress site.

Pros:

• Easy setup
• Works everywhere
• Works with cheap shared hosting

Cons:

• Not user-friendly
• The UI is not easy to understand

Final Verdict: All in all, this plugin is not for WordPress noobs. The plugin is specially designed for developers, and the premium version starts at $99/year.

6. Duplicator

This backup plugin can be used in creating a staging site. To create a staging site, you need to download a copy of your live website and migrate it to a staging location using the Duplicator plugin.

But before you create a staging site, you have to manually create a folder and domain name and then migrate your live site over using the Duplicator plugin.

Powerful Features of Duplicator:

• The plugin is multi-threaded
• Connect to cPanel and make changes to the staging site
• Email notifications
• Migration and cloning

Pros:

• Looks for site issues
• Download site with few clicks
• Support big sites and database

Cons:

• Not beginner-friendly
• UI is complex
• Free update is available only for year

Final Verdict: If you have the technical knowledge and know your way around using WordPress plugins, then you can surely use the Duplicator plugin. The Duplicator Pro starts at $49.50  a year for 2 sites.

7. BlogVault

BlogVault is not just an automatic off-site WordPress backup solution; it also boasts a built-in staging feature. This tool simplifies the creation of development sites for WordPress, allowing for one-click setup of clones on BlogVault servers.

Powerful Features of BlogVault:

• Automatic backups stored off-site
• One-click staging setup
• Plans for single to multiple sites, including Agency options
• Quick staging site setup and easy merge options
• Security features like webmail and Google indexing prevention, SFTP and phpMyAdmin access, password protection, and HTTP authentication

Pros:

• Dual functionality for backups and staging
• Fast and simple staging process
• Flexible for various hosting environments
• Strong security measures

Cons:

• Subscription costs after the free trial
• Might be complex for beginners

Final Verdict: BlogVault is an excellent tool for those who need a reliable backup and an easy-to-use staging solution for WordPress sites. With plans starting at $149 a year for a single site, it offers a valuable service for website owners and agencies alike. The balance of features, ease of use, and security measures make it a worthwhile investment for managing and protecting WordPress sites efficiently.

8. All-in-One WP Migration

All-in-One WP Migration, developed by ServMask, is a versatile migration plugin that doubles as a staging tool. It allows users to create website duplicates easily and manage them directly from the desktop. With the ability to exclude unnecessary files and perform find-and-replace operations, it streamlines website management.

Powerful Features of All-in-One WP Migration

• Facilitates website duplication for staging purposes.
• Option to exclude spam comments, database entries, and more during duplication.
• Breaks up sites into chunks to navigate file size limits, overwrites existing sites for updates.
• Uses original site credentials for staging site access.

Pros:

• Free version available; paid extensions for larger sites and advanced features.
• Drag-and-drop functionality simplifies file and site management.
• Automatically creates backups with every export via its pro feature
• Free plugin can be installed on any number of websites.

Cons:

• Free version limited to sites up to 512 MB.
• Moving sites, especially in both directions, requires manual work.

Final Verdict:
All-in-One WP Migration offers a practical solution for both migrating and staging WordPress sites. Its free version suits smaller sites, while paid extensions (starting at $24 a month) cater to larger needs and offer cloud storage options. Despite some manual effort required for site movement, its ease of use and comprehensive features make it a valuable tool for website administrators.

Summary

Here is a summary of all the staging plugins,

Plugin name/Features	User-friendly	Free Version	One-Click Staging	Create Templates	Hosting Provider Support	Pricing
InstaWP Connect	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	$6/month
WP Staging	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	$7.41/month
WP Stage Coach	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	$99/year
WP Time Capsule	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	$49/year
WP Pusher	No	No	No	No	Yes	$99/year
Duplicator Pro	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	$51/year
BlogVault	Yes	Yes (Trial)	Yes	No	Yes	$149/year
All-in-One WP Migration	Yes	Yes	Manual	No	Yes	$24/month

Who Wins the WordPress Staging Plugins War?

We are at the end of our list of the best staging plugins for WordPress, and hopefully, you have found the plugin that fits your needs.

After looking at the comparison and the features of these staging plugins, we can say that InstaWP Connect 1-click Staging Plugin is the best WordPress staging plugin you can use. If you look at its features along with the pricing, then the plugin gives the best value for money.

How To Use InstaWP Connect

Curious to see how easy it is to use it? Well, the first thing you need to do is sign up for an account at InstaWP. When you’re done, go to your WordPress account plugins, and search for InstaWP, like this:

Install it and activate, then go to Installed Plugins. You’ll see it sitting here:

Press Create Staging below, and you’ll be taken here:

Remember, we said to sign up first, right? So here, all you need to do is press the Connect with InstaWP button. You’ll be taken to your InstaWP dashboard with this notification:

Just press Approve to continue and you’ll return to your Plugins menu with this new message:

Press + Create Staging Site to proceed. Here’s going to be the first thing you see:

Select the kind of staging you want, whether a complete duplicate of your site, a partial copy, or custom. Click Next Step then at the next window, you’ll see this:

Again, choose your preferences. You’ll do the same with the third step, as you choose which things you want to exclude:

One last step after, to confirm that everything you did is what you’re looking for:

Click Create Staging to proceed and you’ll see this happening:

Once it’s done, you’ll then see this:

Login to your staging site and start making changes. The best part? Once you want to sync changes, you can, still using the same plugin

Read our blog here for more about InstaWP’s 2-way sync feature.

Conclusion

Wrapping up, our dive into the world of WordPress staging plugins for 2024 has armed you with the top tools to test and tweak your site safely. Remember, using a staging site lets you safely test changes to your website without affecting the live version. It’s an essential step for anyone looking to update or improve their site, ensuring everything works perfectly before going public.

And in our roundup of tools, InstaWP Connect shines as the go-to choice, blending speed, simplicity, and affordability. Insert this in your workflow and you can push updates with confidence.

Sign up for an account with InstaWP today to get started.