Have you ever thought if it’s too late to start a blog and become a top-notch blogger? Or, finding an appropriate blogging network among multiple best free blogging platforms is a tough decision?
Or too complicated.
Maybe a little hard to make the final choice of blogging.
You absolutely don’t need to take the stress and get it on your nerves. This helpful post will tell you some best free blogging platforms where you can build a successful blog within few minutes.
Everyone’s friend ‘GOOGLE’ has already made it feasible to find a topic and get a varied range of blog post ideas and resources. But, we are always in need of fruitful advice and recommendations. To be honest, the internet has swarmed with suggestions, tips, and techniques.
But, only effective tips win the race.
Grab my step-by-step tutorial to “Create a profitable WordPress blog and make money online”. These are the exact steps I used to create this blog. Only self-hosted blogs can help you make a full-time income! Well, that’s true.
Being a beginner, you might don’t want to invest money into a blog business. After reviewing multiple blog platforms, I come to realize that you can test out your blogging and interest without paying for a self hosted blog.
So, here’s a list of absolutely free blog sites to start your own blog, without even spending a penny.
Interesting, right?
You can always go for your own domain(.com or .org)by paying few dollars yearly. So, it is also not a big deal. If you plan, in future, to run an online business, eshop, or a career portfolio you can easily upgrade the plan and go Premium.
I always recommend Namecheap for buying domains. There are so many options to choose from. The buying process is easy to get started. Even, their customer support is great. Even if want to transfer a domain to Namecheap, it’s easy to do that.
Now, let’s look into list of free blogging platforms for beginners.
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List Of Free Blogging Platforms For Beginners
The big giant World Wide Web enables millions and billions of users to create free blogs online. The purpose should be to display the work, portfolios, run an online biz, disseminate content, visual interactions etc. A free blog site is an online publication network where you can share, interact and receive feedbacks.
For blogging means, there are multiple best free blogging platforms to help you get started with your own blog.
I also want you to know that only self hosted blogs can turn into full income business. So, if you plan to turn your blog into business in future then free blogging platforms may not be ideal.
But, if you haven’t experienced blogging ever then start a free blog today.
Let quickly hop on free blogging platforms to start a blog. In the end, I’ll also reveal my favourite free blogging platform for beginners.
9 Best Free Blogging Platforms For Beginners To Start A Free Blog
Whether you are just a newbie or a career-oriented person, seeking for a free platform, to showcase services these best free blogging platforms will help you to create a blog or website.
But, I would encourage you to make the best decisions for your blog so that you can earn and start a living income for yourself.
1- Wordpress.org
WordPress is the most powerful system to give you an unforgettable blogging experience. Millions of aspiring bloggers, writers, business people, beginners use wordpress.org to create a free blog site.
A powerful blogging network gives access to use the site for a lifetime, without any charges at all. Once you sign up, you’ll be directed to publish your content within 5 minutes. With free themes and other tools, WordPress has become a favorite platform for blogging.
But, do we need to pay for WordPress.org?
No, WordPress.org is free to install but you need to pay for domain and website hosting. The website hosting is not usually that expensive. It only costs $3 every month to host a wordpress.org site and that’s all you spend in your blog.
Which is the best web hosting for beginners?
I can suggest many beginner website hosting but I recommend Inmotion. It’s affordable, provide great features and perfect for new bloggers. When you get the yearly plan, you also get a free domain for 1 year. It makes the website hosting + domain cost every affordable for new bloggers.
To be honest, that’s how I started. I even created a step-by-step guide to starting a self-hosted WordPress blog. This guide shows all the important steps to help you get started.
The benefit of choosing a wordpress org is that you can install hundreds of free themes and customize your websites as you want. Moving on, when you plan to monetize your blog, the wordpress.org provides great flexibility.
Pros
- Free to use
- Can be customized
- Hundreds of free WordPress theme options
- Unlimited free WordPress plugins
- Unlimited income-generating opportunities
Cons
- Has a learning curve for newbies
- Cost of domain and hosting (It’s a must investment if you want to make money blogging)
2- Medium
Medium is a new free blogging platform, which is home to many curious-minded souls. If you are looking for a neat and free blog site to share your opinionated content, then Medium is the best to go for. The eye-captivating site has distinctive categories for multiple contents.
From current affairs to humor, you can post anything of your interest. Just sign up and avail the benefits.
I can’t tell you how good Medium has become! The design is clean and simple to use. You don’t have to worry about anything else other than creating content for your blog.
Many bloggers are writing their inspirational blog posts on Medium. Now, medium has become extremely popular for businesses and marketers. Most importantly, you will meet new creative writers there. You can even follow authors on medium to learn amazing content.
There are different articles, ranging from 3 minutes to 11 minutes.
How to start a free blog on Medium?
Create an account using your Google account or social media profile. Complete your profile and upload a photo. Just start blogging! No extra step required.
The website design is neat and clean. As you start uploading content, viewers can clap for your posts. It’s just like a like feature. Instead of a ‘like’ button, they have claps. Medium is now a huge content library with trending content every day. You can read specific content based on your interest. When your content gets more clap, it has a chance for getting into the medium top story. That’s how people explore new opportunities on Medium.
Pros
- 100% free
- Easy to use
- A clean layout
- Excellent profile insight feature
- Great exposure opportunities
- Can be monetized with Medium partner program
Cons
- You cannot make changes to your website. No personalised website.
- You have to abide by rules
3- Wix
Wix is another free blog platform for nontechie. With a simple drag and drop option, you can start a website of your own. Wix gives you a free space to build an online presence and make a stunning website.
A number of templates are free to use. Millions of bloggers are using Wix in more than 180 countries.
As you create a free account on Wix, you can use 100s of free templates and pages to design a blogging site. Your website will look like yourblogname.wix.com. However, if you want to get a personal domain and other features, you will have to get the premium business plans.
How to create a free blog on Wix?
- Sign up for a free account
- Choose a template to design your website
- Publish your website
- Start adding content
- Engage with others and drive traffic
Pros
- The free wix website has 100s of templates
- Modern web design
- Drag and drop features
- Third party app integration
Cons
- Your domain name will have wix.com. You don’t get a personal domain on free version
- Your site will have wix ads
- Not access to other apps like Google analytics, ecommerce on free plan
4- Weebly
With a number of options, Weebly stands out as a high-quality free blogging platform for bloggers. The beginners can opt for the basic free plan to get started. You can create a website, e-store, or blog for free.
Weebly used to be very popular few years back but now, it’s not that popular blogging platform. However, it’s easier to start a free blog on weebly.
Pros
- Free to create a blog
- Lead capture and collect forms
- Search engine optimization
- FREE ssl
Cons
- Branded domain with Weebly
- No ecommerce
5- WordPress.com
WordPress.com is the most popular free blogging site for starting a blog. Almost every blogger must have used the free wordpress blogging platform for blogging at least once.
I created my first personal wordpress blog on WordPress.com too. Until then, I moved to wordpress.org and go self hosted.
Maybe, if you are currently using the free wordpress.com and want to go self hosted, I uploaded a step by step tutorial to transfer a free blog into self hosted wordpress.
Pros
- Easy to set up a website
- It’s free to use wordpress.com
- Premium plans available (But, are too costly)
- Millions of users are on free wordpress.com for hobby blogging
Cons
- The premium plans are too expensive as compared to wordpress.org
- Limited features
- The site may be full with ads you can’t remove
6- Blogger
Give your passion a path to connect with the outside world. Blogger gives you a free blog platform to start a blog of your own. Get a free subdomain and select an impressive design to make the site more attractive. It’s comparatively easy to use.
Blogger is probably the oldest blogging platform for creating blogs and website. It takes you back to old blogging days with simple design.
Google created Blogger. So, if you use google products like google accounts so it’s quick to create an account.
The design is not as intuitive as other free blogging platforms for beginners. It’s still that old school blogging. But, with blogger, you can monetize your website with ads and earn some revenue. However, the site does not provide flexible features for a professional website.
Pros
- It’s a Google product
- Use customized templates
- Indexed by Google
- Google analytics
- Use ads for monetization
Cons
- Limited features
- Old school design
- Not perfect for professional blogging
7- Tumblr
Are you looking for a creative space for blogging? Tumblr is the right choice for you! It is basically a micro blogging site created in 2007 by David Karp.
It gives you a free online space where you can share content of any type. Build an online presence on Tumblr. It’s simple and easy. With few steps, you can share images, GIF, links, jokes, stories, videos, photos etc.
Tumblr is more popular for micro blogging and visual content.
Pros
- Free to use
- Can seamlessly work on your phone
- Perfect for micro blogging and visual content
- Can enable ads
- Google analytics
Cons
- Not fit for professional blogging
- No personalised domain
8- Quora
Have you heard about Quora before?
Yes, Quora also allows you to create a free blog. It basically gives a space for writers, bloggers, entrepreneurs, and the common men to share their life experiences and thoughts with the world.
It is a bit different, unique, and interactive.
Quora is popularly known as a question and answer website. It’s where people ask questions and every one can give their opinions. In the same way, you can create a free blog on Quora.
People use Quora for a lot of purposes including sharing their personal life, achievements, success stories, and even, marketing. You can learn about using Quora for getting clients, traffic and new leads.
I do use Quora for reading fun stories and also, for my blog. If you are consistent there, you can grow your audience on people. You don’t have to write long-form content. Just the right answers with visuals also work.
9- Hubpages
It is an open community, enabling writers, bloggers, and passionate people to share their words with others. The free site is open to ask questions and receives answers.
A huge number of people use Hubpages every month to marvel audience through a recipe, a conversational topic, a hot debate, or even a travel guide.
Must-Read Blogging Guides
Step by Step guide to start a blog to make money blogging
How To Start A Successful Lifestyle Blog From Scratch
How To Transfer Free Blog Into A Self Hosted Site To Make Money
Top 28 Blogging Tools And Resources For Your New Blog
Difference Between WordPress.com and WordPress.org
Thoughts on Free Blogging Platform For Beginners
I started my first free blog on WordPress 3 years ago when I was asked by my Professor to secure some marks (as it was an assignment). Yes, he asked all students to create a blog and write posts. On that day, I promised to write something occasionally and I figured out that blogging is not just a hobby, but a passion for me.
I quit the free blog and moved on.
This blog, Shemeansblogging, is on WordPress.org and I absolutely love using it.
You can always go for other options too. Every site has a friendly web-design and slightly different features. Make sure, you pick a good one and start practice blogging.
You can start a free blog on almost every site you like. Medium, Wix and WordPress.com are great free blogging platforms you can try out. They provide excellent interface and are user-friendly.
But, if you want to create a professional site and make money blogging, then investing in a domain and hosting is the best ever decision. Trust me, it’s not a lot of money! Only $3/m.
If you’d like to go more professional then here is the tutorial to start a self-hosted blog on WordPress. This is the exact tutorial I have followed to create my own blog.
For more, you can even check out;
- 5 Best Website Hosting For New Bloggers
- How to Make Money Blogging? Most Profitable Methods
- 21 Reasons You Must Start a Blog Today
- How much does it cost to start a blog? [Blog Expense]
What free platform are you using for blogging?
I would love to read your comments.
Ana says
I believe that if you are serious about blogging and building your own “online identity”, there is no better option than WordPress, as it leaves you in full control of everything!
Hanna says
Thank you for an awesome post! I had no idea there were so many free blog platforms out there! But I think I’ll do the same as you and stick to wordpress
Ethe; onyejekwe says
Wow. very informative.Thank you.
http://makychurchill.blogspot.ca
Ashley Cummings says
Nice! I prefer paid platforms, but free is a great way to start.
Joleene Moody says
Lots of good stuff here for new bloggers. It can be overwhelming at first, but this is a great list of tools. I’d like to share this to0!
Journous says
Greta list of free blogging platforms. Even though Squarespace is not free to go live, it’s worth every penny! I’ve played around with it and it’s extremely easy to create pages.
Arfa Nazeer says
Definitely WordPress. Thankyou Ana.
Arfa Nazeer says
Appreciate your comment π WordPress is definitely awesome.
Arfa Nazeer says
Paid has their own perks. But for beginners, free works. Thankyou for sharing your views.
Arfa Nazeer says
Appreciate your interest π
Arfa Nazeer says
That’s great! I have been reading that bloggers are loving Squarespace but got no experience in using it.
Mummy Times Two says
A really interesting post thank you. I had no idea there were so many free places to blog out there.
Arfa Nazeer says
Thankyou.
Farwa says
I didn’t know about some of these blogging platforms. Thanks for this post, it’s really helpful.
Arfa Nazeer says
I’m glad farwa it helped π
Meaghan Rae says
I use wordpress as well, though it’s a shame to me that, with all of the options available, wordpress isn’t a little more user-friendly.
Taylor says
I have just recently launched my blog using WordPress. I’ve read a few of your other posts about how to start a blog and have done so successfully so thank you for all the informative info! Its helped a lot π I would also love to join your Pinterest group board “Blogging Tips + Tricks collab board” if you could please add me that would be awesome. Thanks again!
Arfa Nazeer says
Thanks, Taylor! I’m glad these tips are helping you. Could you please follow the details on the pinterest group board and send me an email on that email address?
susan s visaya says
Hi Arfa,
Awesome. I found your post very informative and thorough. Simply written too. You have answered all my questions on blogging about which I was completely ignorant!!!! And I am no techi too!!! Many thanks.