Find out how much FFXIV costs a month

Final Fantasy XIV has handily become one of the most popular MMORPGs in the world, as countless players log in to Eorzea every single day to take on raids and complete new quests.

With the new Dawntrail expansion and Viper job around the corner too, there's no better time than now to jump in and start exploring all of the different editions and subscriptions for the game.

How much does FFXIV cost a month?

There are a couple of different price tiers for the FFXIV monthly subscription, so check out below for all of the details:

As you can see, the two best value options are the 30-day Entry Tier and the 180-day Standard Tier, but which one you choose very much depends on how you want to play.

If you're only really bothered about having one character, then the Entry Tier will be perfect for you, as you are restricted to a maximum of eight characters per server and physical data center.

However, if you want to play with lots of different characters, then Standard will need to be the option for you, as it allows eight per server and up to 40 per physical data center.

Which edition of FFXIV should I buy?

If you're jumping in after completing the free trial, the ideal edition for you is the Complete Edition (Standard), as it gives you the remaining two expansions so you can complete the story. Check out the table below though to see all of the different options you can choose from:

The Starter Edition is generally rather redundant outside of a few added benefits. It includes the full A Realm Reborn story, in addition to the Heavensward expansion pack. However, these are both included within the free trial - which we will go into more detail about below - and you will have to pay the monthly fee after the first 30 days if you buy the Starter Edition.

However, you will not be subject to any form of level cap, and you can access certain things like the Market Board that are otherwise restricted from free trial users.

The Complete Edition on the other hand is well worth the price of entry if you've done everything possible within the free trial. In simple terms, it gives you full access to the base game and all four expansions: Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers, and Endwalker.

The Complete Edition (Collector's) comes with all four expansions and a boatload of in-game bonus items for each expansion. Here's a full list of what you will get:

• Arion Mount
• Baby Behemoth Minion
• Behemoth Barding
• Chicken Knife Red Mage Weapon
• Coeurl Mount
• Dark Knight Cecil-themed Baron Helm
• Death Scythe
• Fantasia
• Fat Chocobo Mount
• Grani Mount
• Griffin Mount
• Helm of Light
• Revolver Gunbreaker Weapon
• Syldra Mount
• Wind-up Bartz Minion
• Wind-up Fran Minion
• Wind-up Kain
• Wind-up Moogle Minion
• Wind-up Porom Minion

As you can see, there is an abundance of items to enjoy here. So, if you're loving the game at the end of your free trial it might be worth it for you to pick this edition up.

If you've already been playing the full version of Final Fantasy XIV though and want to jump into the latest expansion, then the Endwalker Standard Edition is for you. This just includes (as the name suggests) the Endwalker expansion, and also the other three if you've missed any along the way.

If you want to get the in-game bonus items alongside this though, then the Endwalker Collector's Edition is for you. The Digital Collector's Edition will simply get you all of the bonus in-game items, but there are also two physical collector's editions that you can pick up if you want to show off the game in real life. You can see the full details of what's included on the Square Enix website here.

All FFXIV free trial restrictions

The free trial in Final Fantasy XIV is notoriously generous, letting you play through the base game (A Realm Reborn) and the first two expansions (Heavensward, Stormblood) with no restrictions on time and a healthy level 70 cap.

There are however quite a few restrictions in place for free trial users though, which include the following:

• Can create up to eight playable characters but only one per world
• Can only purchase some items from the Online Store
• Cannot access the in-game Market Board
• Cannot assemble a party by themselves
• Cannot create or join a Free Company
• Cannot create or join a PvP team, or participate in The Feast
• Cannot hire Retainers
• Cannot log into the Lodestone forum or the Companion app
• Cannot possess more than 300,000 Gil
• Cannot progress past Level 70
• Cannot trade with other players
• Cannot use certain chat options like 'Shout', 'Yell', or 'Tell'
• Cannot use the Moogle Delivery Service to send letters

When playing through the free trial myself I didn't find these restrictions to be too limiting, as many of them involve things that I shouldn't be too concerned with as a young Sprout. By the time you reach the end of Stormblood, you should be a seasoned Warrior of Light though, and ready to dive into things like a Free Company or even PvP. 

You can find out more about the upcoming FFXIV x FFXVI crossover, and become a master of your hotbars too.