WooCommerce
Free, open-source WordPress store plugin from Automattic for physical and digital products, extended with free and paid extensions from the Woo Marketplace.
98
Easy Digital Downloads
WordPress plugin built for selling digital products such as ebooks, software and music, with paid passes adding subscriptions, licensing and more.
Free installs40K+WordPress.org, active
Est. Pro installs~5.4KLikely 2.7K–11K
Rating4.7/5592 reviews
Price from$199/yrFreemium
Last updated2 Nov 2026Version 3.7.3
Overview
Easy Digital Downloads (EDD) is a WordPress eCommerce plugin focused on digital goods: ebooks, software, music, courses and other downloadable files. It has been around for well over a decade and is developed by Sandhills Development.
How it works
The free plugin (sometimes called Lite) gives you products with variable pricing, a cart and checkout built from blocks, discount codes, tax rates, customer records, purchase history and revenue reports. Files are delivered through protected download links. Stripe, PayPal and Square are included, with Apple Pay and Google Pay through Stripe. A REST API, hooks and filters cover custom development, and orders, customers and products live in your own database.
Free vs paid
Paid features come with yearly passes. The Personal pass ($199/year, 1 site) adds subscriptions with free trials, abandoned-cart recovery and EU VAT handling. Extended ($399/year) removes the platform fee and adds multi-currency, content restriction, bundles, reviews and Zapier. Professional ($599/year, 2 sites) adds software licensing with an API, physical product shipping, post-purchase funnels and marketplace tools; All Access ($999/year, 3 sites) adds loyalty, fraud prevention and advanced reports. First-year prices are currently half price.
One important detail: the free version and the Personal pass add a 3% platform fee on Stripe sales. It is removed from the Extended pass upward.
Strengths and limitations
- Lean, purpose-built for downloads, with licensing that suits plugin and theme sellers.
- Large library of official extensions.
- Physical products are an afterthought: shipping needs the Professional pass and stock limits need a paid extension.
EDD is a strong fit for creators and software vendors selling digital products who want a lighter alternative to WooCommerce, provided they budget for an Extended pass or higher to avoid the Stripe fee.
Best for: Creators and software vendors selling ebooks, plugins, themes or other downloads who want a focused, self-hosted store.
EDD is still one of the most practical ways to sell digital products and software on WordPress, especially with its licensing and subscriptions. Factor in the Stripe platform fee on the free and Personal tiers; the Extended pass is the realistic starting point for a busy store.
Pros
- Purpose-built for digital downloads with protected file delivery
- Stripe, PayPal, Square, Apple Pay and Google Pay in the free plugin
- Block-based cart, checkout and customer account pages
- Mature software licensing with an activation API (Professional)
- Lightweight compared with general-purpose store plugins
Cons
- 3% platform fee on Stripe sales in the free version and Personal pass
- Subscriptions and abandoned cart require a paid pass
- Physical shipping needs the Professional pass; no core stock tracking
- Introductory discounts renew at double the first-year price
Key features
What Easy Digital Downloads highlights on its WordPress.org page and its own website, split by version.
Free version WordPress.org
- Unlimited digital products
- Variable pricing and bundles
- Protected download links
- Stripe, PayPal and Square payments
- Apple Pay and Google Pay via Stripe
- Discount codes with limits
- Tax rates and tax reports
- 16 blocks for cart and checkout
- Customer profiles and purchase history
- Revenue reports with comparisons
- REST API, hooks and filters
Pro / paid adds From $199/yr
- Subscriptions with free trials
- Abandoned cart recovery
- EU VAT compliance
- No platform fees (Extended+)
- Multi-currency support
- Content restriction and reviews
- Software licensing with API
- Physical product shipping
- Post-purchase funnels and upsells
- Multi-vendor marketplace and commissions
- Fraud prevention and advanced reports
Feature checklist
23 of 23 features we track in eCommerce Plugins, feature score 98/100
Products 6/6
Physical products Key
Sell shippable goods with stock and weights.
Physical product shipping is included from the Professional pass; core targets digital goods.
Paid version Professional
Digital downloads Key
Sell files with secure, expiring download links.
Core sells downloadable files through protected download links.
Included
Product variations Key
Sizes, colours and other variants with their own price and stock.
Variable price options per product; stock per option needs the paid Purchase Limit add-on.
Included
Subscriptions & recurring payments Key
Sell products or services that renew automatically.
Subscriptions with free trials included from the Personal pass.
Paid version Personal
Inventory management
Track stock levels and low-stock alerts.
No stock tracking in core; the paid Purchase Limit extension caps sales per product or option.
Via add-on
Software licensing
Issue licence keys for software or plugins.
Software Licensing & API included from the Professional pass.
Paid version Professional
Checkout & payments 7/7
Stripe & PayPal included Key
Major payment gateways work without paid add-ons.
Stripe, PayPal and Square are free, but Stripe adds a 3% platform fee below Extended.
Included
Apple Pay & Google Pay
One-tap wallet payments at checkout.
Apple Pay and Google Pay available through the free Stripe integration.
Included
Checkout customisation
Change checkout fields and layout, or build custom checkout pages.
Checkout is built from blocks; extra checkout fields need a paid extension.
Partial
Coupons & discounts
Discount codes and automatic discounts.
Discount codes with expiry dates and product restrictions in the free plugin.
Included
Upsells & order bumps
Offer extra products at checkout or after purchase.
Post-purchase funnels included from the Professional pass; cross-sell/upsell extension also available.
Paid version Professional
Abandoned cart recovery
Email shoppers who leave without paying.
Abandoned cart recovery included from the Personal pass.
Paid version Personal
Multi-currency
Show prices and take payments in several currencies.
Core uses one store currency; Multi-Currency Support starts at the Extended pass.
Paid version Extended
Tax, shipping & orders 5/5
Tax calculation Key
VAT and sales tax rules or automated tax calculation.
Tax rates and tax reports in core; EU VAT compliance from the Personal pass.
Included
Shipping rates Key
Zones, flat rates, live carrier rates or labels.
Physical product shipping (Simple Shipping) included from the Professional pass.
Paid version Professional
Order management
View, edit, refund and fulfil orders in WordPress.
Order list, details, refunds and customer management in the admin.
Included
Customer accounts
Customer area with orders, downloads and subscriptions.
Customer purchase history, downloads and login/registration blocks.
Included
Sales reports Key
Revenue, product and customer reports.
Revenue reports with date comparisons and breakdowns by gateway, country and category.
Included
Platform 5/5
No platform transaction fees Key
No extra fee on sales beyond the payment processor's.
3% Stripe platform fee applies on free and Personal; removed from the Extended pass.
Paid version Extended
Store data in WordPress
Products, orders and customers stored in your own database.
Products, orders and customers are stored in your WordPress database.
Included
Extension ecosystem
Large library of official and third-party extensions.
100+ official extensions and integrations, many bundled in passes.
Included
Block editor support
Product, cart and checkout blocks for the block editor.
16 blocks including cart, checkout, buy button and customer downloads.
Included
REST API & webhooks
API and webhooks for custom integrations.
REST API with API keys plus hooks and filters; vendor cites webhook support.
Included
Pricing
Free
$0On WordPress.org
Lite (free)
Freeper yearUnlimited
Free on WordPress.org; 3% platform fee on Stripe transactions.
Personal
$199per year1 site
First year $99.50. Subscriptions, abandoned cart, EU VAT; Stripe platform fee still applies.
Extended
$399per year1 site
First year $199.50. No platform fees, multi-currency, content restriction, bundles, reviews, Zapier.
Professional
$599per year2 sites
First year $299.50. Adds software licensing & API, shipping, post-purchase funnels, marketplace and commissions.
All Access
$999per year3 sites
First year $499.50. Adds loyalty, fraud prevention, advanced reports and premium support.
Prices are list prices from the vendor's site, checked 14 Oct 2026. Many vendors discount the first year.
How many sites use Easy Digital Downloads?
Free installs from WordPress.org, the vendor's own claim, and our estimate of paid installs.
Free version (WordPress.org)
40K+
Active installations reported by WordPress.org.
Vendor claim
50,000+
Paying customers claimed by the vendor. source
Estimated Pro / paid installs
~5.4K
Our estimate, see method below.
How we estimated this: About 45K free installs x 12% (the usual share of free sites that also run the paid version when some key features are paid, and store owners upgrade more often) gives 5.4K. Likely range: 2.7K to 11K. This counts sites running the paid version, including sites whose licence has lapsed. Estimates are rough and based on public figures as of 14 Oct 2026.
Stats & health
Weekly downloads
21,802 downloads last week, 6.2M all time
Rating breakdown
| Version | 3.7.3 |
|---|---|
| Last updated | 2 Nov 2026 (1 days ago) |
| Tested up to | WordPress 7.1.4 |
| Requires | WordPress 6.7+, PHP 8.0+ |
| Support threads (2 months) | 17 of 17 resolved |
| On WordPress.org since | 10 Apr 2012 |
Company & policy
| Paying customers claimed | 50,000+ (source, 11 Oct 2026) Pricing page says 50,000+ businesses/professionals use EDD; homepage adds 187 countries and 30M+ processed orders. |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2012 (source, 11 Oct 2026) Homepage cites 13+ years supporting creators; plugin first released in 2012. |
| Refund policy | 14-day money-back (source, 11 Oct 2026) |
Easy Digital Downloads compared
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FAQ
Is Easy Digital Downloads free?
Yes. Easy Digital Downloads has a free version on WordPress.org. Paid plans start at $199/yr.
How many sites use Easy Digital Downloads?
WordPress.org reports 40K+ active installations of the free version. We estimate around 5.4K sites run the paid version.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have physical products?
Yes: paid version (Professional). Physical product shipping is included from the Professional pass; core targets digital goods.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have digital downloads?
Yes: included. Core sells downloadable files through protected download links.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have product variations?
Yes: included. Variable price options per product; stock per option needs the paid Purchase Limit add-on.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have subscriptions & recurring payments?
Yes: paid version (Personal). Subscriptions with free trials included from the Personal pass.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have stripe & paypal included?
Yes: included. Stripe, PayPal and Square are free, but Stripe adds a 3% platform fee below Extended.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have tax calculation?
Yes: included. Tax rates and tax reports in core; EU VAT compliance from the Personal pass.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have shipping rates?
Yes: paid version (Professional). Physical product shipping (Simple Shipping) included from the Professional pass.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have sales reports?
Yes: included. Revenue reports with date comparisons and breakdowns by gateway, country and category.
Does Easy Digital Downloads have no platform transaction fees?
Yes: paid version (Extended). 3% Stripe platform fee applies on free and Personal; removed from the Extended pass.
Does the free version of EDD charge a fee?
Yes. Stripe payments in the free version and on the Personal pass carry a 3% platform fee on top of Stripe's own fees. An Extended pass or higher removes it.
Can EDD sell physical products?
Yes, but shipping comes with the Professional pass, and stock limits need the paid Purchase Limit extension. It is best suited to digital goods.
Which pass includes software licensing?
Software Licensing & API is included from the Professional pass ($599/year, 2 sites) upward.
Are first-year prices permanent?
No. The current half-price offer is introductory, and renewals are charged at the full list price.
Last updated 11 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit.