Best Free Blogging Platforms for Starting a New Blog
Starting a blog for your small business can be challenging because there are so many different platforms. But don’t worry — in this article, you’ll learn all about the top five best free blogging platforms that won’t cost you much money.
Free Blog Warning: While there are many free blogging platforms, there are also limitations to them. For one, you have little control over your content.
If you decide to take the leap into self-hosted blog, then it may be difficult to take all of your information with you or download anything that has been saved already.
— The original article was published on my blog on startupam.com —
If you’re looking to blog, there are free and paid options for both personal expression and online business. Free blogging platforms provide you with the ability to share personal thoughts anytime, but if you plan on using your blog to make money online then it’s best that you choose a paid option.
Your main motivation for starting a blog is initially going to be either money or fame. If you intend on making money from your blog, however, then the free blogging platforms that are out there generally restrict this sort of thing or don’t offer the tools & customization options needed to make a good quality blog / site.
There are plenty of blog platforms to fit your business’s needs. Some blogs start off free, but provide a service for a small monthly cost. Others only have a minimal fee and let you pay more to upgrade to premium services if needed.
Affiliate disclosure: This Articles from this blog post contain affiliate links. We receive commissions from the purchases made through these links at any cost to you, they are the (Top Free Blogging Platforms) we use and trust. You can read more about it in our full disclosure policy.
The Top 5 Free Best Blogging Platforms
#1. WordPress
WordPress is one of the most popular blogging platforms in the world. You can access it for free, download a plugin or upgrade to a paid account depending on your needs.
While WordPress is free of charge on both sites, you’ll need to buy web hosting if you download it from WordPress.org. For the free version, you can visit WordPress.com and sign up for an account there.
For those of you interested in starting your own blog, WordPress.com offers a large selection of themes and the ability to customize them. It also offers many specific templates for blogs about various subjects like food & recipes, fashion & beauty, sports etc.
Benefits to WordPress.com Platform:
- You get the option to have a custom domain which also means an annual fee, but it’s worth it.
- Your security, backups, spam filters and upgrades are all taken care of by professionals. All you need to do is focus on your business rather than worrying about the technical stuff.
- There is a huge and varied selection of free blogging themes available to help you get started and express your creativity.
- A blog platform that many people use, so there are many tutorials for it.
How to get started with WordPress.com
To get started, create a free account at WordPress.com and choose a domain name — give it some thought though! If you want to use the free option, your URL will look like this: yourdomain.wordpress.com.
Consider well when choosing your domain name for this is important in building your brand.
Again, if you wish to try and make money or hold any commercial intent with your blog you’ll need to go the self-hosted WordPress.org route.
In order to use WordPress, you will need a hosting account from a company like ( SiteGround or Bluehost ).
You can usually get a beginner hosting package from these companies for less than $10.00/mo and it allows you to install WordPress on your own host.
Note: One other advantage to self-hosting WordPress is that you can collect email addresses and ad revenue as you grow your site.
#2. Wix.com
Wix has popular website builder tools and also a free blogging platform. The former comes with a monthly fee while the latter is powered by Wix ads. With Wix, you can choose from our lineup of blog design templates to create the perfect blog for your needs.
How to get started with Wix.com
Head to Wix.com/start/blog to create your own blog. You can log in using your email or a Facebook or Google account — you’ll be asked a few questions about what you’re trying to accomplish.
You can take advantage of many customization options with the Wix platform. It’s easy-to-use interface allows you to customize your blog / website with no need for any coding experience. When you’re done, it will prompt you to upgrade for more features.
Whilst it is not necessary to upgrade your registration type in order to get your site up and running, you will have more control of your site with an upgrade. This includes the ability to assign a domain name of your own choice, removing ads from the website or being able to use design templates.
#3. Medium.com
Medium.com is a blogging platform that is growing increasingly popular. Unlike other sites, it has a slightly more intimate community-focused feel and allows users to quickly post articles which can be published directly on the site.
The Medium platform has an open, clean design which is easy to use and fun for journalists and other content creators.
How to get started with Medium.com
Visit the Medium homepage. You’ll see a ‘Sign In/ Sign Up’ button in the top right corner. Simply click it to create an account by linking your social media accounts, including Twitter, Facebook, and Google.
If you sign up using your existing Facebook or Twitter account, Medium will automatically import any followers to our network. You’ll start building your own following fast!
I would recommend using another blog / website as your primary place of business online, but Medium is a great place for traffic. You can blog on there to reach new potential customers that wouldn’t be aware of you otherwise — they might come back to your site afterwards.
#4. Blogger
Blogger is a free blogging platform that was created by Google. Millions of blogs are running on this platform so I think it’s pretty popular.
Benefits to Blogging with Blogger.com:
- Lots of free designs and templates
- Very easy to setup
- No need to know or use custom code
How to get started with Blogger
Once you have a Google account- whether it’s with Gmail, YouTube, etc. — you should link it to your free Blogger account to make things easier.
Once you have created your free Blogger account, you can start building your free blog. Within a few hours, you should be able to publish your first blog post.
This blogging platform is perfect for bloggers that are looking to share their ideas with the world. The technical content requirements are lower than other blogging platforms, so if you’re not interested in business activities, this might be the right choice for you.
#5. Tumblr
One easy way to start blogging is Tumblr. This system has few options, but you can get started because it’s more or less ready to go. The interface reminds me of Twitter combined with WordPress.
Tumblr is considered a type of microblogging platform. You can share anything, from quick thoughts to pictures that are relevant to you. Many Tumblr blogs consist of sharing pictures that are tied into a specific theme.
The Benefits of Blogging on Tumblr.com:
- You can use a custom domain
- Blog directly from your desktop, mobile device or via email
- Enjoy Tublr shared traffic from their network — opening your free blog content to their huge audience
How to get started on Tumblr.com ?
Start building your social media profile by visiting Tumblr.com and logging in. Click “Joining” to create a free account and click “Blog Editor” for a quick tour of the site. Learning how to use the platform will make it easier for you to start your free blog.
Tumbler is a different type of social media and blogging platform, and it’s easily my favorite. It’s very easy to use and has lots of features.
As tempting as it might be to use Tumblr for your blog, you should still have a separate website for your business pages, products or services. Basically, you’ll have your own separate site for handling the business end of your web presence and use Tumblr as a source of traffic to your main website.
Other Free Blogging Platforms
There’s a huge variety of blog platforms available and many of them are also free. Here we touch on the most popular and newest among them, but there are so many to choose from.
These days, it is hard to tell the difference between a “regular website” and a blog. That means you may not need to use two different platforms for both — instead, you could just use one on its own.
Some other free blogging platform options you may want to look at include:
- Wix.com
- SquareSpace.com
- Web.com
These are all better options than hosting your blog as a public domain as you will be able to monetize it and make money from blogging!
Alternatives to a Free Blogging Platform
When it comes to blogging, I recommend setting up your blog on your own hosting account (such as SiteGround or Bluehost ) and then installing WordPress. This will give you complete freedom and flexibility to control not only the content but also the commercial intent of your blog.
More articles about blogging and other forms of marketing and content creation can be found on my blog: startupam.com.
