WP Remote vs MainWP
WP Remote is a hosted WordPress management service from BlogVault, billed per site. MainWP is two free, open-source plugins: MainWP Dashboard turns a WordPress site you own into your MainWP Dashboard, where you manage unlimited client sites, and MainWP Child connects each site to it. MainWP Pro adds every premium add-on for one flat price.
As a WP Remote alternative, MainWP handles the same bulk updates, uptime checks and one-click logins. The difference grows with your client list: MainWP costs the same at 10 sites or 500, its free version already includes backups and an activity log, and your client data stays on your own server. The MainWP Dashboard and MainWP Child plugins are also open source, while WP Remote’s dashboard, API and MCP server are proprietary hosted services.
Over 20,000 MainWP Dashboards manage over 700,000 child sites, and MainWP has over 2,200 five-star reviews on WordPress.org.
How much do WP Remote and MainWP cost?
MainWP charges for the plan, and WP Remote charges for each site. These are both companies’ regular list prices on November 3, 2026.
| Plan and price | What you get |
|---|---|
| MainWP Core Free |
Unlimited sites, with updates, Built-In Backups, uptime monitoring, Network Activity, clients and Cost Tracker, MainWP MCP and the free MainWP Essentials add-ons. |
| MainWP Pro $29 a month, $199 a year, or $599 once for lifetime |
Everything in MainWP Core, plus over 30 Pro add-ons such as Pro Reports, White Label, Team Control, Staging and Regression Testing, and priority ticket support. Unlimited sites. |
| WP Remote Free Free |
Any number of sites, with updates, uptime monitoring, client reports and one-click login. |
| WP Remote Essential $1.99 a site a month, or $19.99 a site a year |
Adds daily backups, white-labeled reports, the API and the MCP server. |
| WP Remote Premium $4.99 a site a month, or $49.99 a site a year |
Adds malware scanning, a firewall, vulnerability alerts, staging and the activity log. |
| WP Remote Advanced $14.99 a site a month, or $149.99 a site a year |
Adds sandbox updates, longer backup history and a dedicated account manager. |
A year on yearly billing, by number of sites:
| Sites | MainWP Core | MainWP Pro | WP Remote Essential | WP Remote Premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | $0 | $199 | $199.90 | $499.90 |
| 25 | $0 | $199 | $499.75 | $1,249.75 |
| 50 | $0 | $199 | $999.50 | $2,499.50 |
| 100 | $0 | $199 | $1,999 | $4,999 |
Every client site you add raises a WP Remote bill, and MainWP Pro stays at $199 a year. On WP Remote Advanced, 100 sites come to $14,999 a year, and WP Remote quotes agency pricing above 100 sites. With the free MainWP Core, updates, backups and uptime checks for all of those sites cost you the WordPress hosting your MainWP Dashboard runs on and the storage you pick for backups. Compare the free MainWP Core with MainWP Pro.
How do WP Remote and MainWP compare feature by feature?
MainWP features are part of the free MainWP Core unless they’re marked MainWP Pro.
| Pricing | |
|---|---|
| MainWPOne price for unlimited sites | WP RemoteBilled per site, by plan |
| Where it runs | |
| MainWPYour MainWP Dashboard, on a WordPress site you own | WP RemoteWP Remote’s hosted dashboard |
| Open source | |
| MainWPMainWP Dashboard and MainWP Child plugins, GPL, public on GitHub | WP RemoteProprietary hosted dashboard, API and MCP server with no published source code, and the WP Remote plugin under GPLv2 |
| Updates | |
| MainWPBulk updates, automatic updates for the plugins and themes you trust, an update delay, and Safe Updates with WordPress rollback | WP RemoteBulk and automatic updates on every plan, with a backup first on Essential and up |
| Testing updates | |
| MainWPStaging and Regression Testing add-ons with MainWP Pro | WP RemoteVisual checks on more pages with each plan, and sandbox updates on Advanced |
| Backups | |
| MainWPBuilt-In Backups: full, database, files-only and incremental, encrypted, sent to S3-compatible storage, Google Cloud Storage, Dropbox or SFTP | WP RemoteDaily backups on Essential and up, kept 50 to 180 days on WP Remote’s storage |
| Security | |
| MainWPSite hardening checks and the free Vulnerability Checker, Patchstack, Jetpack Protect, Sucuri and Security Ninja add-ons. Wordfence, Solid Security, Virusdie and Jetpack Scan with MainWP Pro | WP RemoteMalware scanning, firewall, vulnerability alerts and virtual patching on Premium and up |
| Uptime | |
| MainWPHTTP, ping or keyword checks every 5 minutes to once a day, with down and up emails. SSL Monitor and Domain Monitor with MainWP Pro | WP RemoteUptime and domain monitoring on every plan, SSL monitoring on Essential and up |
| Activity log | |
| MainWPNetwork Activity, including changes made in each site’s own WP Admin | WP RemoteActivity log on Premium and up, kept 7 to 60 days |
| Client work | |
| MainWPClient profiles and Cost Tracker. Pro Reports, White Label and Team Control with MainWP Pro | WP RemoteClient reports and team roles on every plan, with white-label reports and plugin on Essential and up |
| AI assistants | |
| MainWPMainWP MCP, free and open source, with over 100 abilities that preview each update and deletion before it runs | WP RemoteA read-only MCP server in beta with 32 tools, on Essential and up |
| API and scripts | |
| MainWPREST API, WP-CLI, MainWP Control and over 1,000 actions and filters for your own add-ons | WP RemoteREST API with over 150 actions, on Essential and up |
| Support | |
| MainWPDocs and the MainWP Discord community for everyone, plus priority ticket support with MainWP Pro | WP RemoteEmail support on every plan |
What does the free MainWP Core include that WP Remote charges for?
WP Remote’s free plan covers updates, uptime checks, client reports and one-click login. The free MainWP Core covers updates, uptime checks and one-click login too, and adds these features, most of which WP Remote keeps for its paid plans:
- Backups: Built-In Backups schedule full, database, files-only and incremental backups for every site, encrypt them, send them to the storage you pick and restore them. WP Remote starts backups on Essential.
- Activity log: Network Activity shows who changed what across your sites, including changes made in each site’s own WP Admin. WP Remote includes its activity log from Premium.
- Vulnerability alerts: the free Vulnerability Checker add-on finds known vulnerabilities in the plugins and themes on your sites. WP Remote includes vulnerability alerts from Premium.
- AI and scripts: MainWP MCP, the REST API, WP-CLI and MainWP Control. WP Remote includes its API and MCP server from Essential.
- Clients and costs: client profiles with contacts, and Cost Tracker for the costs of each site, client or tag.
Every one of these works for unlimited sites. See everything MainWP includes for free.
Where do WP Remote and MainWP keep your data, and which is open source?
WP Remote runs the dashboard, its servers and its backups for you. Your backups are kept on WP Remote’s storage, and staging copies and the activity log history live on its servers.
Your MainWP Dashboard runs on a WordPress site you own. Your client list, site data and history live on your server, and your backups go to the storage you choose. Each child site connects with its own key pair, and your MainWP Dashboard signs every request it sends, so each site can verify it came from you.
The MainWP Dashboard and MainWP Child plugins are open source under the GPL and public on GitHub, so you, or a client’s IT team, can read every line of code before it runs on a client site, and you can change or extend it. WP Remote’s dashboard, API and MCP server are proprietary hosted services from BlogVault, with no published source code, and its WordPress plugin is under GPLv2. See how MainWP keeps your sites secure.
What can developers build on WP Remote and MainWP?
MainWP is built for developers to extend. Your MainWP Dashboard runs over 1,000 actions and filters, so your own plugin can change the logo, add a menu entry or a column in Manage Sites, or become a full MainWP add-on with its own pages, settings and widgets. If you make a plugin or tool, you can sell its MainWP add-on from your own site and keep your sales.
The MainWP REST API v2 comes with the free MainWP Core. It connects a billing system, a client portal or a nightly script to your sites, clients and costs, and the MainWP docs publish an OpenAPI 3.1 file for it. WP-CLI adds wp mainwp commands on your Dashboard’s server, and MainWP Control, free and open source, runs your Dashboard’s abilities from the command line. WP Remote’s REST API, with over 150 actions, comes with its paid plans from Essential up. See what developers build on MainWP.
How do WP Remote and MainWP work with AI assistants?
Both tools connect to AI assistants through MCP. WP Remote’s MCP server is a read-only beta with 32 tools on its paid plans, so an assistant can look up your sites.
MainWP MCP is free and open source, and it reaches over 100 abilities your MainWP Dashboard registers with the WordPress Abilities API. Ask Claude, Cursor, VS Code Copilot or OpenAI Codex which sites need updates or which sites are due for a backup, then have it run the updates or the backups. MainWP MCP previews every update and deletion and runs it after you confirm. See what your AI assistant can do with MainWP.
Is MainWP or WP Remote right for your agency?
Find the row that matches how you work:
| If you | Best fit |
|---|---|
| Manage 10 or more client sites | MainWP. One price for unlimited sites keeps your cost flat as you grow. |
| Want backups, updates and an activity log at no cost | The free MainWP Core, for every site you manage. |
| Want client data on a server you control, and open-source code you can build on | MainWP, self-hosted and open source, with over 1,000 actions and filters for your own add-ons. |
| Want an AI assistant that acts on your sites with your approval | MainWP, with MainWP MCP. |
| Need client reports, white label and team roles | MainWP Pro, at one price for every site. |
How do you switch from WP Remote to MainWP?
You can move your sites over in batches, with WP Remote still connected while you check each one:
- Install the free MainWP Dashboard plugin on a WordPress site you control. The install guide walks through it.
- Install and activate MainWP Child on a group of sites with WP Remote’s bulk plugin install: select the sites, then Manage Plugins.
- Import that group on Sites > Import Sites with a CSV file of each site’s name, URL, admin username and password.
- Check the sites on Sites > Manage Sites, then remove them from WP Remote once your last reports have gone out.
The Switch to MainWP guide covers each step.
WP Remote vs MainWP FAQ
Is MainWP cheaper than WP Remote?
Yes. The free MainWP Core costs nothing for any number of sites, and it includes the backups WP Remote starts charging for on Essential. When you want the Pro add-ons, MainWP Pro is $199 a year for unlimited sites, while WP Remote Essential is $19.99 a site a year, or $999.50 for 50 sites.
Do you host MainWP yourself?
Yes. Your MainWP Dashboard runs on a WordPress site you own, on the hosting you choose. Hosting it yourself is what keeps your client data on your server, and unlike WP Remote’s hosted dashboard, the MainWP Dashboard is open source under the GPL.
How many plugins does MainWP add to each client site?
Every site needs one plugin, MainWP Child. Updates, Built-In Backups and Network Activity work through it, and uptime checks run from your MainWP Dashboard. Add-ons that connect a third-party tool, such as Wordfence or UpdraftPlus, work with that tool’s own plugin on the sites where you use it, and Pro Reports records site changes through the free MainWP Child Reports plugin.
Can MainWP back up sites like WP Remote?
Yes. MainWP Built-In Backups are part of the free MainWP Core. They schedule full, database, files-only and incremental backups, encrypt them, and send them to S3-compatible storage, Google Cloud Storage, Dropbox or SFTP. A restore can take a safety backup of the site first.
Does MainWP scan sites for vulnerabilities and malware?
Yes. The free Vulnerability Checker add-on finds known vulnerabilities in your plugins and themes, and MainWP runs site hardening checks on every site. Free add-ons connect Patchstack, Jetpack Protect, Sucuri and Security Ninja, and MainWP Pro adds Wordfence, Solid Security, Virusdie and Jetpack Scan.
Can you try MainWP while you still use WP Remote?
Yes. Connect a few sites to your MainWP Dashboard while they’re still in WP Remote, try it on real work, and move the rest when you’re ready.
What support comes with MainWP?
MainWP Pro includes priority ticket support. Everyone, including users of the free MainWP Core, has the MainWP docs and the MainWP Discord community.