Create a development site

Last reviewed on March 31, 2026

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You can create up to five WordPress.com sites at a time using free development licenses. Development sites are not publicly accessible until you launch them.

In this guide, you will learn how to create a development site from the Automattic for Agencies dashboard.

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If all five development licenses are in use, the “Start building for free” tile is disabled. Release a development license by deleting or launching one of your current development sites before creating another site.

Create a site

Follow these steps to create a development site:

  1. Navigate to the Automattic for Agencies dashboard.
  2. Click “Add sites” at the top right-hand corner of the page.
  3. Select the “Start building for free” tile.
The Add sites panel showing the "Start building for free" tile.
  1. If there is no payment method on file for your account, you are prompted to add one. This verifies your account and ensures a seamless experience when your site is ready to go live. You are not charged until you launch the site.
  2. Configure your site details. Development sites default to the “white label” experience, where clients cannot access the WordPress.com Help Center and hosting features. You can update the white label setting after the site is launched.
The site configuration screen for a new development site.]
  1. Click “Create site”.

It may take a few minutes for the site to appear in the Sites Dashboard. Sites created with a free development license display a “Development” badge. You can filter to view only development sites using the left sidebar.

The Sites Dashboard showing a site with the "Development" badge.]

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