An overview of how much it costs to start playing World of Warcraft Classic or The War Within in 2024.
Since its release in 2004, World of Warcraft (WoW) has released 10 expansions! Fortunately, as a new or returning player, you don’t need to buy each of these updates and games individually. So, what expansions do you need to buy? How much does it cost to start playing WoW?
In short, you can begin playing WoW Classic and all content up through the 9th expansion (Dragonflight) for the price of a monthly subscription. In the U.S., this will cost you $14.99/month for a single month, $41.97 for 3 months, or $77.94 for a 6-month commitment. If you want to play the current expansion — World of Warcraft: The War Within— you must purchase it (starting at $49.99).
I’ll untangle all those options below, but first, I’ve embedded The War Within cinematic below if you haven’t checked it out.
If you decide to purchase the game, check out my ultimate guide for new World of Warcraft players!
WoW subscription costs in the United States
When you purchase longer subscription lengths, you get a lower monthly price, but you have to pay upfront. Each tier you move up lowers the monthly price by $1.
So, if you opted for two 6-month subscriptions (or the full-year sub), you would save $24 per year. Also, you would receive a couple of in-game rewards (typically mounts or transmog) reserved for players with a 6-month or 12-month subscription.
| Subscription Length | Cost/Price (US) | $ Per Month |
| 1-month | $14.99/month | $14.99 |
| 3-months | $41.97 | $13.99 |
| 6-months | $77.94 | $12.99 |
| 12-months | $155.88 | $12.99 |
WoW subscription costs in Canada and the U.K.
The prices I quoted above only apply to players in the United States, where I live. If you are from another country, your costs may be slightly different.
For example, players in Canada will pay a somewhat higher per-month price, even after the exchange rate. In 2024, WoW subscription costs in Canada are as follows:
| Subscription Length | Cost/Price (CAD) | $ Per Month |
| 1-month | $21.99/month | $21.99 |
| 3-months | $52.49 | $17.50 |
| 6-months | $97.99 | $16.34 |
| 12-months | $195.98 | $16.34 |
In contrast, the price of subscriptions is slightly lower after the exchange rate for players in the U.K. For those of you in the U.K., you can expect to pay the following amounts if you are interested in playing WoW:
| Subscription Length | Cost/Price (U.K.) | £ Per Month |
| 1-month | £9.99/month | £9.99 |
| 3-months | £28.17 | £9.39 |
| 6-months | £52.14 | £8.69 |
| 12-months | £104.28 | £8.69 |
All prices mentioned to this point are for players who set up recurring subscriptions on their accounts. This requires that you provide a credit card that will be charged on the renewal date. If you aren’t interested in setting up a recurring subscription, there are a few other options…
Alternatives to reoccurring subscriptions
The first alternative to a recurring subscription is to purchase 60 days of game time. You can do this through your Battle.net launcher shop or the online Blizzard Shop. When purchased, it will grant you two months of game time and set you back $29.99. Your time expires at the end of the 60 days, and you would need to purchase additional time to continue playing.
As a side note, you can also gift game time to your friends with this approach.
Another alternative to a recurring subscription is to purchase your game time with WoW tokens. Unfortunately, this method requires that you have active game time on your account and the ability/time to make a decent amount of in-game gold.
To get a WoW token, you will need to farm up gold and buy one at the auction house. The token price will depend on how many tokens are available at the auction house, so I can’t give you an exact gold price here.
If you are interested in how much gold you need, you can look on the A.H. or in the shop tab of your in-game menu.
The final alternative to a recurring subscription is to subscribe and then immediately cancel. While this still requires you to provide a credit card, it will ensure that you avoid that surprise charge if you forget to cancel.
Purchasing WoW: The War Within in 2024
Chances are you landed on this article because you want to play World of Warcraft: The War Within. If so, you can buy a base edition copy now for $49.99 USD.
Like many other games today, there are also premium versions you can buy as well, including the Heroic edition for $69.99 or the Epic edition for $89.99.
Here are the three options available on Blizzard’s website right now compared side-by-side:
| Base ($49.99) | Heroic ($69.99) | Epic ($89.99) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The War Within Expansion | X | X | X |
| Dragonflight Expansion | X | X | X |
| Level 70 character boost | X | X | X |
| Trader’s Tender (Trading Post) | 500 | 750 | 1,000 |
| Algarian Stormrider Mount | X | X | |
| Stormrider’s Attire Transmog | X | X | |
| War Within Beta Access | X | ||
| 3 day early access to War Within | X | ||
| 30 Days of Game Time | X | ||
| Squally Hatchling pet | X | ||
| Sandbox Storm Gryphon Toy | X | ||
| Deepweller’s Earthen Hearthstone effect | X |
And here is the announce trailer for The War Within if you are interested!
How much does WoW Classic/Cataclysm Classic cost?
Perhaps you are interested in WoW because you want to play Classic. Let’s talk about how much that will set you back.
Basically, it will cost you the monthly membership price if you want to play WoW Classic or Cataclysm (Cata) Classic. In the U.S., it would run you $14.99/month. However, suppose you are planning on playing for longer than a month. In that case, you can purchase the longer subscription for a lower per-month price.
How much does WoW Hardcore/Season of Discovery (SOD) cost?
Hardcore is a unique game mode where you get “one-life,” so when your character dies, you have to start all over if you want to keep playing. The official Hardcore servers are part of the WoW Classic Era version of the game, so it will cost you $14.99/month to play Hardcore mode (unless you purchase a more extended subscription).
You can also play Season of Discovery at the same subscription price. This fun twist on vanilla/Classic WoW allows you to find runes that dramatically change how your character plays. Mages that heal? Warlocks that tank?
That means that for the price of one subscription, you can play five versions of the game — retail (up through Dragonflight), WoW Classic, Hardcore, Season of Discovery, and Cataclysm Classic!
Is there any way to play WoW for free?
If you want to try out World of Warcraft but aren’t ready to buy yet, you can play a free trial. This trial allows you to create and play a new character to level 20 in the game’s retail version. However, the free version has many restrictions, including the amount of gold you can have, content you can play, and social interaction.
There is no free trial of WoW Classic or Cataclysm Classic.
Regardless, it is an excellent way for new players to try the game. If you need help getting started with the free version, check out my article on playing World of Warcraft for free.
Final Thoughts
While a lot of World of Warcraft content has been released since 2004, you don’t need to buy all of the past expansions. Except for The War Within, every version of the game can be played by signing up for a subscription or using a game time card. The War Within can be purchased now! If you are a new player or just want to dabble with a low-level character, you can play World of Warcraft for free.
Frequently Asked Questions
World of Warcraft: The War Within was released on August 26th, 2024!
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