Platform/Staging

Spin up a staging site in seconds.

Clone your live site or start fresh on a $2 staging site, test in isolation, then push it live in one click. No staging server to set up.

Create a staging site → See pricing

~10s to spin up $2/month, billed daily Promote to live in one click

mysite.instawp.site ProductionSandbox

SandboxProduction

InstaCDN

InstaShield

Automated backups

You're live on Productionmysite.instawp.site

Running on a $2 Sandboxdev & staging site

One plan change. No migration. Same site, same URL, same data.

A $2 dev & staging site. Flip the switch to take it live.

~10 sec

to spin up

$2/mo

billed daily

1-click

promote to live

Full

toolkit, every plan

The $2 staging site

Test anything. Push it live, or throw it away.

Your staging site runs on a real $2 Sandbox: comes with every developer tool. Ready to go live? Promote it to a production tier in one click.

Sandbox plan

$2/mo · per site

≈ $0.07/day · billed daily

Included: the full dev toolkit, monthly backups, your choice of PHP and WordPress version.

Add on promote: Premium CDN, InstaShield WAF and off-site backups (daily on Plus and up).

Same machine, one plan change to go live · See pricing →

A real cloud server, not a local previewReal PHP and MySQL, your own plugins and themes, SSH and SFTP.
Spin up dozens, delete freelyYou pay per site by the day, so throwaway work costs cents, not a plan.
Promote without a migrationThe same site goes live on a plan change. Same URL, same data.

Real WordPress. Real PHP. Real you.

Not a stripped-down preview. A real cloud server you can SSH into, with the whole toolkit, and a one-click path to live.

01 · Provisioning · Ready in seconds

A real WordPress install, not a preview.

Pick a launch method: a blank install, a starter template, or a copy of an existing site. The site comes up with real PHP and MySQL on its own URL, and you're in wp-admin in seconds. Choose the WordPress and PHP version up front, change them later.

blank or templatereal PHP + MySQLown URL~10s

~/work · instawpzsh

$ instawp create --name demo --php 8.3 Provisioning WordPress 6.9 · PHP 8.3 · sandbox … ✓ Live at https://demo.instawp.site (~9s) # open wp-admin with a magic login, no password $ instawp open demo --admin

02 · Pricing · $2 a month, disposable

Spin up dozens, delete freely.

Every staging site is $2 a month, billed by the day, so it costs about $0.07 a day to keep one running and nothing once you delete it. You pay per site, not per seat or per plan, so running ten throwaway sites is just ten small line items you can kill any day.

$2/mo per site≈ $0.07/daybilled dailydelete any day

client-acme$2 / mo

plugin-test-php83$2 / mo

upgrade-rehearsal$2 / mo

3 staging sites≈ $0.20 / day · cancel any day

03 · Dev tools · The full toolkit on the cheapest plan

Every developer tool, no upsells.

SSH and SFTP, InstaCLI, WP-CLI preinstalled, an in-site MCP with 40+ tools, and Local Mount to edit the live files in VS Code over WebDAV. Pick PHP 8.x and your WP version per site. Nothing here is gated behind a higher tier.

SSH / SFTPInstaCLIWP-CLIMCP, 40+ toolsLocal Mount

See all developer tools →

ssh · demo.instawp.sitessh

$ ssh demo@demo.instawp.site Connected. A real shell on a $2 sandbox. demo $ php -v PHP 8.3.6 (cli) demo $ wp plugin list --status=active woocommerce active 9.4.1 demo $ instawp local mount # edit in VS Code

04 · Sharing · Magic login + a demo link

Send a client straight in. No password.

Every staging site has a shareable URL and a magic-login link. Send a client straight into wp-admin to review work, or hand them a clean preview link with no credentials to type. No staging server to set up, no "let me add you as a user" round-trip.

magic loginshareable URLno passwordwp-admin or preview

05 · Promote · Take it live in one click

From staging to live, in one plan change.

When the work is ready, promote the same site to a production tier. It is an in-place plan change: same URL, same data, no export, no import, no migration plugin. Promoting is what turns on the Premium CDN, the InstaShield WAF and off-site backups (daily on Plus and up).

one-click promotesame URLno migrationadds CDN + WAF + backups

mysite.instawp.site

SandboxProduction

Live in one click · same URL, same data

Also on every staging site

1-click reset

Wipe a staging site back to a clean install in one click when an experiment goes sideways. No teardown.

Auto-expiry option

Set a staging site to delete itself after a set time, so demo and test sites never sit on your bill forgotten.

Start from a template

Launch a staging site from a saved blueprint with your stack already in place. See snapshots & templates.

Create staging sites via API

Token-auth REST endpoints and the CLI create, configure and delete staging sites straight from your scripts and CI.

Ship, watch and scan

Deploy from Git, keep an eye on the site with real-time monitoring, and run a vulnerability scan on your plugins and themes before anything goes live.

Three real workflows.

Staging on InstaWP isn't a copy you babysit. It's a real site you can share, run in parallel, and rehearse risky changes on, then promote the winner to live.

Client site delivery: build it, share a magic-login link, hand it off
Test plugins and themes across PHP and WP versions in parallel
Test risky changes on a throwaway copy, promote only when it works

1Client deliveryBuild in a staging site, send a magic login link, hand off or promote on sign-off.

2Version matrixOne staging site on PHP 8.0, one on 8.3, test in parallel, delete both.

3Risky changeClone live to a throwaway site, rehearse the upgrade, promote only when green.

Staging vs a local copy

Local, but in the cloud.

A copy on your laptop is free and fine, until you need to share it, run versions in parallel, or push it live. Cloud staging does all three, and you still work on it like it is local: mount it in your own editor with Local Mount, or SSH in for Bash and WP-CLI.

What you actually needLocal copyInstaWP staging

SetupDocker / installer, minutes~10 seconds

Where it runsYour laptop onlyA real cloud server

Edit it locallyYes, on your diskLocal Mount, or SSH (Bash + WP-CLI)

Shareable URLNo, localhostMagic-login link

Team accessLocal onlyShare with client / team

Real server parityDepends on your machineMatches the production stack

Go liveExport / migrateOne-click promote

Dev toolsVaries by toolSSH / CLI / MCP / Local Mount

CostFree, but local-only$2/mo cloud, billed daily

One platform, not just staging.

Staging is one piece of InstaWP. Every site plugs into the rest of the platform. Keep exploring:

Dev Tools →

SSH, CLI, Git deploy, MCP

API & Webhooks →

Provision sites by API

Snapshots →

Save sites & reusable presets

Hosting →

Managed WordPress, per site

Domains →

Buy, connect, or resell

Migrations →

Bring sites in, free

Integrations →

Connect your stack

Manage →

Every site, one dashboard

WaaS →

Resell hosting, your brand

Portal →

Panel for your clients

Templates →

Sell ready-made sites

AI & MCP

An in-site WordPress MCP your AI agent can drive, across every feature.

Explore AI →

The whole platform

See how every piece of InstaWP fits together, from sandbox to production.

Explore the platform →

Stop setting up WordPress. Start shipping it.

Spin up a real staging site in seconds, build on it, and take it live in one click.

Create a staging site → See pricing

✓ ~10s to spin up · ✓ $2/month, billed daily · ✓ Promote to live in one click · ✓ No annual lock-in