To play modern World of Warcraft, you need an active subscription, which runs about $14.99 USD per month if you pay monthly. Longer plans drop the price: roughly $13.49/month on a 3-month plan and $12.99/month on a 6-month plan. That subscription covers both the current retail game (Midnight) and World of Warcraft Classic on the same account. The only thing you usually buy on top of that is the latest expansion when a new one launches.

Here's the full picture so you know exactly what you're signing up for before you commit.

The subscription: your main ongoing cost

The subscription is the core of what you pay. As long as it's active, you can play the current retail version and Classic. Prices in the US look like this:

• 1 month: about $14.99

• 3 months: about $13.49/month (billed in one lump)

• 6 months: about $12.99/month (billed in one lump)

Prices vary a bit by region and currency, so check the in-game shop or Battle.net store for your exact local rate. The longer plans save you a few dollars a month if you know you're sticking around.

Do you have to buy the game or expansions?

The base game and all older expansions are included free with your subscription. You only pay extra for the newest expansion. Right now that's The War Within, which costs around $49.99 for the base Epic-less edition, with fancier editions (Heroic and Epic) costing more and bundling extras like early access, mounts, and character boosts.

If you're brand new, you can usually start playing through a chunk of content without buying the latest expansion at all, then grab it when you're ready to reach the current max level and zones.

Can you play World of Warcraft for free?

Sort of. Blizzard offers a Starter Edition that lets you play for free up to level 20 with no time limit. It's a real way to try the game and decide if it clicks before spending anything. You can't trade freely, earn much gold, or access most social features, but it's enough to get a feel for the combat and a class or two.

Beyond level 20, you'll need a subscription.

The WoW Token: paying with gold instead of cash

If you grind enough in-game gold, you can effectively play for free. The WoW Token lets you buy game time with gold. Here's how it works:

1. A player buys a Token for real money (around $20) and lists it on the in-game Auction House.

2. Another player buys that Token with gold at the current market price.

3. That Token can be redeemed for 30 days of game time (or converted to Battle.net Balance).

So once you've got a solid gold income, you can fund your subscription without spending real cash. The gold price fluctuates based on supply and demand, so it's not a fixed number. You can check in-game for the current going rate at any time.

Optional extras you don't need

None of these are required to play, but they exist if you want them:

• Character boosts to instantly jump a character to a recent level cap (sold for real money, often bundled with expansions).

• Cosmetic mounts and pets from the in-game shop.

• Server/faction transfers and name changes, which carry one-time fees.

You can absolutely play the entire game start to finish without buying a single one of these.

So what's the real cost?

If you want a quick answer: budget about $15 a month plus a one-time $50ish for the current expansion when you're ready for endgame. A casual first year might land around $230 ($180 in subs plus the expansion). If you stick around long-term and learn to make gold, you can offset or even fully cover your subscription with WoW Tokens.

And if you just want to test the waters, the free Starter Edition costs nothing at all.