BloggingPro: Original License & GPL Products (A Review)!
WordPress is fortunate to have countless developers building plugins and themes that make website customization quick and easy for users. Many plugins follow a freemium model, where basic features are free, but advanced ones come at a cost.
This article takes a closer look at BloggingPro, a platform offering WordPress items at reduced prices. But before diving into BloggingPro.co, we need to understand what the WordPress GPL license is all about.
🔥 In all you do, ensure you check the list of the best GPL clubs currently. It will help you choose the most feature-rich platform offering rare functions like automatic upgrades from the WordPress area.
⚠️Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, meaning I may earn a commission if you purchase through these links. Rest assured, using these links doesn’t add any extra cost to you, nor does it affect the integrity of my review. All opinions are my own and unbiased.
What is GPL in WordPress?
Before understanding how WordPress is linked to GPL. Let’s first understand the term —
The term GPL stands for General Public License. It’s an open-source software license that gives users the freedom to use, modify, and share software. The purpose of the GPL license is to encourage collaboration between users and to fit the opensource nature of WordPress.
WordPress as an open-source platform is licensed under GNU GPL.
The GPL license is also open-source, which is why WordPress went with it in the first place.
As a platform under such a license, it basically means that all WordPress works (not just the cms alone) but also its derivatives (i.e., themes and plugins) are all inheriting the open-source nature.
Being open-source means everyone can see the source code and can modify the software as they see fit.
WordPress had intentionally adopted the GPL license to maintain its steady growth as the #1 content management system. Meanwhile, the fact that WordPress is open source is the reason why it has made lots of progress over the years.
The GPL grants four main freedoms:
- Use the software for any purpose.
This means you can install the software and use it however you see fit — whether for personal projects, client websites, or even to test new ideas. - Access and modify the software’s source code.
With GPL-licensed software, you’re not limited to the original design. You can tweak or enhance it to suit your preferences or business needs. Developers give users full access to the their code. - Distribute the original software.
If you download a GPL product, you are free to share it with others just like the original developer does on their platform. - Share modified versions under the same GPL terms.
Any changes you make to a GPL product are still governed by the same rules. If you share your modified version, it must also be under the GPL license. This keeps it open and accessible to others.
What Do These Freedoms Mean for Developers?
Developers working under the GPL model (i.e., producing themes/plugins for WordPress) must accept the reality that they don’t have complete control over their software. Once a plugin or theme is released on WordPress, anyone can share or modify it legally — even without the developer’s permission.
What Do These Freedoms Mean for WordPress Users?
For users, the GPL provides freedom and flexibility. You don’t need to be confined by a product’s original design or pay every time you want to use or tweak it. However, many people are unaware of these rights and as a result, do not take advantage of them.
Platforms like BloggingPro.co use the freedom to legally redistribute premium GPL products so that everyone can have access. This not only helps users save money but also contributes to improvements.
Understanding these principles clears any doubt about the legality of platforms like Blogging Pro. They operate well within the bounds of the GPL license.
What is BloggingPro.co?
BloggingPro.co is a platform with the motive of reducing the actual prices of premium WordPress plugins and themes.
It does that in two ways —
By redistributing already acquired licenses from direct developers for free following the GPL freedoms. Here BloggingPro downloads premium files from WordPress developers and then tweaks the product to get rid of license key restrictions.
That way, interested users can download the files from their website for a penny and yet obtain the same functionality as they would if they went to actual developers.
These types of files do not come with developmental updates from the WordPress admin area. Blogging Pro can only release updates on their site, and users must go back to the directory to download new versions to their site.
The second way BloggingPro tries to decrease the cost of WordPress products to make them accessible to everyone — is by acquiring Agency membership from actual developers which comes at a high cost.
Agency membership can secure hundreds or sometimes unlimited domain installations, making it realistic for BloggingPro.co to retail at much-reduced prices.
Unlike the first way through which the platform makes WordPress items buyable for everyone, the second way which isn’t based on GPL rights exploitation, users are ushered to benefit from regular updates coming from main developers.
How Safe and Legal is BloggingPro?
To be able to offer a reasonable answer — it’s important to recall two things!
BloggingPro distributes both tweaked and original licenses from actual developers. The tweaked licenses stand on the GPL freedoms, to make minor edits to WordPress items in order to wipe out license key restrictions.
Note: You can filter items by Original license key by going to their VIP category.
For the original product licenses distributed through BloggingPro, the items are 100% safe and legal. Remember, actual developers made that possible in the first place by offering Agency membership plans.
And don’t misquote me — while the original items from actual developers are 100% safe and legal, the other products distributed through WordPress GPL Freedoms aren’t illegal or unsafe to use.
Here’s my take on the GPL side of BloggingPro (i.e., products distributed by using the right to distribute however you want).
—
Blogging Pro is one of the platforms that is making use of the GPL freedoms explored above to share WordPress plugins and themes, perhaps to benefit the entire community.
BloggingPro obtains items from actual developers directly and then distributes them for free (without customer support, though).
The distributed products are backed up by the freedom of redistribution, allowing the platform to share free premium WordPress plugins and themes.
This means BloggingPro is a lawful platform in terms of legality, as they operate within the GPL license freedoms.
Typically, platforms like BloggingPro.co share only GPL products that have already passed safety guidelines for building for WordPress.
Note: All WordPress plugins and themes are GPL products. GPL (General Public License) means the freedom to use, modify, and distribute WordPress products.
In essence, what GPL platforms like BloggingPro are sharing are the main versions from actual developers, but in this case, they are shared for free.
In most cases, the only changes that platforms like Blogging Pro make on products — is bypassing the premium license field so that people can have access.
It’s worth mentioning that BloggingPro charges a small fee to keep renewing their subscriptions with the main developers.
Overall, BloggingPro.co is safe to use and legal.
And that applies to their two ways of reducing WordPress prices down to pennies.
Are the Products on BloggingPro Up to Date?
Another key area to explore in this review of BloggingPro is the rate of their update! Do they even offer it?
Yes, BloggingPro.co offers updates for any theme or plugin you download from the site.
Some products are prioritized in terms of upgrades and others receive updates on an irregular basis.
We noticed that top plugins and themes for WordPress like as you would find if you make a search are mostly up-to-date. After a while following the developers’ release, the latest version is uploaded to the platform and potential users will be able to have current versions.
For items that aren’t commonly used, updates can be challenging as the platform focuses on what users are downloading most. However, our evaluation found out that — even if the product isn’t in the latest version, it mostly won’t be far behind what is current.
We have just got that question answered… But we have been speaking for the tweaked products at BloggingPro.co.
What about the category of original software that is no different from the actual product?
For Resselled Products (obtained through partnership with actual developers), Updates happen the same way it used to on WordPress.
Updates for these certain types of files happen from the WordPress area.
Since they are the same files gotten from direct developers, you receive the regular kind of upgrades you get for your WordPress Plugins and Themes.
BloggingPro Features
Here are all the features of Blogging Pro that you’ll be exposed to while using the platform.
1. GPL Products
As aforementioned, Blogging Pro operates also as a GPL club, where premium WordPress is shared under the umbrella of the open-source nature, you guessed it, for free.
BloggingPro has a cool number of the WordPress tools you need.
The normal price of a GPL product on the site is $4.99
2. Original WordPress with License key or Activation
BloggingPro.com also functions as a platform that leverages Agency subscription plans from direct makers to share WordPress products at a significantly reduced price.
If a product is marked with “Original License Key or Activation”, it means the product is no different from the one which you can get by patronizing actual developers.
It also means that the product you’re getting isn’t touched at all. Because it’s gotten through Agency membership, the need to bypass the license key doesn’t exist.
These kinds of items receive upgrades just like a typical plugin or theme would do on WordPress.
They are no different from the ones from actual makers, unlike the GPL-based products.
3. Online Tools Reselling
Just like Group Buy Online Tools sites, Blogging Pro also has packages for Canva, Semrush, FreePik, and Envato Elements just to name a few.
BloggingPro.co Pricing Breakdown
BloggingPro has every desire covered when it comes to pricing and its membership plan. You can get a single item without having to take the subscriptions.
- Starts from $4.99 per item
- $33.36/month
- $58.39/three-months
- $166.87/year
>>> Get access to BloggingPro Premium.
Blogging Pro Alternatives and Competitors
The urge to type “BloggingPro Alternative” in search can come up because of these reasons —
BloggingPro lacks a good number of plugins and themes, let’s say unpopular ones that can enable a particular function on your site.
BloggingPro also doesn’t automatically update items from WordPress directly (unless you’re going with the original item category). This gives users the headache of manually downloading and uploading new versions.
BloggingPro only distributes WordPress products. If you want items for Shopify and other CMS (that works like WordPress), then the platform is not a place to find them.
Here are the best BloggingPro.co alternatives you might consider exploring before going with the platform.
- Pluginsforwp, best overall GPL site for WordPress themes and plugins | best for rare product availability (10,000+ products)
- Srmehranclub, a GPL site that offers solutions beyond WordPress (33,500+ products)
- WorldPressIT, the best GPL site for single-download preferences (3,500+ products)
- GPL Vault, another great place for GPL Downloads (4,700+).
BloggingPro still differentiated itself by offering lots of products with original license. Pluginsforwp.com is merely a GPL site, therefore it doesn’t offer original licenses. The same applies to WorldPressIT. Srmehranclub.com does have Original products; it intentionally makes them available together with the GPL-free version. That allows users to select what they want. To add…, Srmehranclub has an edge over BloggingPro through their Automatic Upgrades plugin. The Plugin makes it realistic for upgrades to happen for GPL-free items, as it normally does for products with original license keys or activations.
🔥 Read Reviews on my site — Srmehranclub Review, Pluginsforwp Review, WorldPressIT Review.
BloggingPro Pros and Cons
Whether you’re going with the redistributed GPL product pack or the Original items from actual developers, BloggingPro has a number of pros and cons.
BloggingPro Pros
1. Useful for short-term usage and testing of products without paying the original price
2. Single product download option
3. Original items bargained with actual developers exist
4. Original items obviously come with the typical WordPress upgrades
BloggingPro Cons
1. Uncommon Plugins and Themes are mostly not in its library
2. Updates don’t happen on WordPress directly for redistributed GPL items, unlike the likes of Srmehranclub.
Conclusion
BloggingPro.co is making the cost of running a WordPress website easier for everyone to afford.
It runs as a platform that exploits GPL licensing loophole, to spread premium WordPress items at lower price tags. Simultaneously, BloggingPro exists as an alternative to platforms like Themeforest.
By distributing original items that aren’t touched in any way, users can decide to acquire developer licenses rather than buying redistributed GPL products, which it also offers in another category.
These original items of course come with the same upgrade experience which you normally get from the admin area.
When it comes to their redistributed GPL items in terms of legality, BloggingPro isn’t breaking any law nor is it existing as a false or scam website.
The platform is legit and safe to use. But it’s still advisable to run every item (especially redistributed GPL items) in scanners before finally uploading them to WordPress.
FAQs
Is BloggingPro safe to use?
In both categories of BloggingPro services — Tweaked/Redistributed WordPress items and Original Plugins/Themes from developers, the platform is legal and safe to use.
Is the business of BloggingPro ethical?
For the original items, there’s no doubt that it’s an ethical business because it operates just like the likes of Themeforest.
For tweaked GPL items where the platform involves in exploiting the freedom of redistribution to provide developers products for free, most people will say that it’s unethical.
Because actual developers are trying to earn a living through their hard-earned labor just to see Blogging Pro and other GPL sites label their products at pathetic prices; and also take the money they make as their own.
Can I buy from a GPL site for testing or review purposes?
Yes, that’s even my main use case.
You can leverage sites that redistribute WordPress items (using GPL rights) for testing or review purposes. It can save you a lot of money.
If the act goes overboard in the sense that you replace actual developers with GPL sites, then you’re making a mess of everything.
If developers don’t get rewarded, the beauty of WordPress dies automatically.
🔥 In all you do, ensure you check the list of the best GPL websites currently. It will help you choose the most feature-rich platform offering rare functions like automatic upgrades from the WordPress area.
