First, let me be clear. I absolutely love Framer.
Framer has completely redefined the way we build websites.
What used to take days of design tweaks and handoff chaos can now be done in hours. You design it, you publish it. All in one flow.
The ease, the polish, the speed.
There’s a sense of satisfaction every time you see your design come alive exactly as you imagined it.
It’s honestly hard to match.
That’s why everyone wants Framer to win.
But here’s the catch… the new pricing changes make that dream a little harder for many of us to afford.
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Framer’s New Pricing Plan
Framer says it wanted to simplify its pricing, and it did. The five-tier system is gone, replaced by three clear plans:
Plan | Pricing | Ideal for |
|---|---|---|
Basic | $15/month or $120/yearly | Personal or hobby projects |
Pro | $45/month or $360/yearly | Small teams, startups, or professionals |
Scale | $1,200/yearly | Larger, growing companies |
Enterprise | Custom | Full-scale organizations |
The pitch is simple: “Free to try, affordable for small sites, and fair for companies that scale.”
And while that sounds good on paper, the real-world math tells a different story.
The Legacy Plan Advantage
Before we dive into the criticism, let’s give credit where it’s due.
If you’re on a legacy plan, you’re protected. You’ll keep your old pricing no matter what.
For how long? Not forever, but for a really long time according to Koen Bok who works at Framer.
And if you missed the old plan, Framer is allowing you to rejoin it for the next 60 days by reaching out to their support team.
That’s rare and commendable. Most SaaS companies wouldn’t go that far.
But beyond that? Things start to look a little less rosy.
The Real Issues
It’s Getting Harder for Small Businesses and Freelancers
Having worked with multiple small businesses and agencies, I can confidently say this:
paying $45 per month (monthly) or $360 per year is a tough ask — especially for a tool that used to be known for its accessibility.
While I love Framer as a product, it’s slowly becoming a harder sell to clients who just want a beautiful, functional website without enterprise-level costs.
For many, Framer was supposed to be the alternative to overpriced builders like Webflow or Squarespace.
Now, it’s creeping dangerously close to joining them.
The CMS Problem: One Collection, Too Many Limitations
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room.
The CMS restrictions.
The new Basic plan only includes one CMS collection. That means you can’t have a “Blog” and a “Projects” section without upgrading to Pro.
Framer claims that only 10% of Basic users were using both CMS collections before, but that’s… hard to believe.
For most creators, even small portfolio sites need two CMS structures minimum. One for posts, one for projects.
So removing that feels like a clear push to force upgrades.
As one frustrated user put it:
“Simplified, yes. Necessary? No. The biggest problem is 1 CMS and 10GB of bandwidth — not even enough for a portfolio. It pressures you to upgrade to Pro, which costs six times the previous Mini package.”
Bandwidth, Pages & Editors
The problems don’t stop at CMS limits.
The new plans cut bandwidth and reduce page limits, while doubling the price of editor seats…all at a time when users were already complaining about high costs.
One user on X wrote:
“Sure, it’s $5 less, but bandwidth is cut by five, one CMS is removed, and editor pricing on the Pro plan is doubled when everyone already complained it was too expensive.”
Another said:
“As a software engineer, I have a hard time understanding why you need to charge so much just to give additional accounts access to projects in your backend.”
And perhaps the most telling comment:
“You knew we all used the 2 CMS for $20/mo and now make us pay $45/mo compared to Webflow’s $29/mo. You’re outpricing yourself into oblivion.”
When your users are doing public math comparisons, that’s never a good sign.
The Community Isn’t Happy
Social media has made one thing clear: the community isn’t happy.
These aren’t isolated frustrations. They’re consistent patterns from long-time, loyal users — designers, developers, and agencies that helped Framer grow.
And when those people start to feel alienated, it’s time to listen.
A Possible Solution To Framer's New Pricing
Framer deserves credit for being transparent. They published a full breakdown of changes and even acknowledged that 60% of users will pay less and 40% could save up to 20% depending on usage.
However, the gap between Basic ($10) and Pro ($30) might look small, but for many users, that’s a 200–300% price jump for features they barely need.
A good solution here would be Add-On's
Framer actually used to have an add-on system for enterprise sites back in 2023–2024.
You could buy extra CMS collections, bandwidth, or locales — a la carte.
That flexibility was perfect. It let creators pay for only what they needed, not for features they’d never use.
Then it was removed.
Then a new pricing plan was introduced.
And now another one.
While this was for enterprise plans, bringing back add-ons for all tiers could solve most of the backlash overnight.
Want to stay on the Basic plan but add another CMS collection? Pay a few extra dollars.
Need more bandwidth? Add it.
Need an extra locale or editor seat? Purchase just that.
This modular model worked before — and it could easily work again.
It’s simple, fair, and keeps Framer’s biggest fans happy.
Final Thoughts
Let’s circle back.
Framer is still an incredible platform.
It’s fast, intuitive, visually stunning, and has redefined what no-code web design can be.
But this new pricing direction? It risks isolating the very people who made Framer popular.
While the legacy plan protection and 60-day grace period are commendable, the lack of flexibility, reduced CMS limits, and steeper editor pricing make it harder to recommend Framer to small businesses — the very group that once loved it most.
If Framer continues on this path, it might lose its identity as the friendly, accessible alternative to bloated web builders.
The solution is right there: bring back add-ons. Let people choose their own scale.
Because Framer doesn’t need to be everything for everyone.
It just needs to be fair… to the people who’ve believed in it all along.
