WordPress is, without a single doubt, the most popular website creation tool in the world. While there’s an increasing number of website builders that are trying to steal this title, WP still stands tall above them all, to this day. That said, before you jump into the world of plugins and old-school designs, you should figure out whether free WordPress hosting is worth it or not.
Well, I can tell you this straight from the get-go - it’s not. Actual free WP hosting solutions are either a scam, or way too rare to actually consider as being “viable”. This is why, in this article, we’ll be looking at some… Well, let’s call them alternatives. Worry not, since all will become clear in a minute. Our list will look a little something like this:
Free WordPress Hosting: PROS and CONS
So, let’s start by addressing the obvious - what are the actual pros and cons of free WordPress hosting?
Well, as noted in the introductory part of this article, there are mostly cons. However, before we start going into why that’s the case, let’s first take a look at the positives.
The most obvious benefit of free WordPress hosting is the fact that you get the chance to try out and host a website with WP without having to invest a penny into it. There is no financial commitment involved, and thus, you avoid a lot of stress associated with it.
Say, you’re completely new to WordPress - both in regards to creating a website with the CMS, and also with finding a hosting provider that would suit your needs. Naturally, you’ll want to jump into it as soon as possible, and start building a website from scratch.
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Table: The features of WordPress
That’s actually pretty simple - WordPress is completely free to use. Well, at least as far as the site creation process is concerned.
You can download WordPress at any point in time, and start building a site within a few minutes. However, we’re not talking about the best free WordPress hosting services without a reason - your website won’t be reachable (live) up until you actually go ahead and host it.
That being the case, once you’ve mastered the intricacies of WP, and are ready to publish your new creation, this is where the decision-making process starts. At this point in time, you need WordPress hosting. Here, you have two options - pick a hosting provider and start paying for shared hosting plans (or others!), or search for free WordPress hosting.
That being said, though, apart from having the chance to try out a hosting provider before committing to a purchase, there really is no reason for you to go out of the way and search for free WordPress hosting.
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The Dark Side of Free WordPress Hosting
Admittedly, WordPress hosting free services sound quite appealing. However, as much as they might appeal to anyone in regards to you being able to host your WP site for free, there are major cons to consider, too.
The main downside of free hosting is obvious - limitations. No matter what type of free WordPress hosting you might come across, you can expect there to be major limitations in place. Whether it be site storage, bandwidth, daily visitor count, or anything in between, you shouldn’t expect a lot of freedom with free hosting.
This, in turn, poses another issue. Many people search for free hosting for WordPress in order to try out a service provider before committing to a subscription - that’s obvious. However, with so many limitations in place, you won’t actually have a proper chance to comprehend what you’d receive as a paying customer.
Lastly, a major point to consider is one that can be expressed in a philosophical saying - if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. The same can be said about free WordPress hosting, as well.
Admittedly, while there are different free WP hosting options on the market, the vast majority of them aren’t worth the trouble. They are either some scammy services that are looking to farm your personal information, or poorly-made hosting platforms that will give you a chronic headache.
These (and a few other) reasons are the main points of why, in this article, we will be looking at some ‘alternatives’. Namely, hosting providers that aren’t necessarily “free” by the core definition of the term, but are either super-affordable, or offer some amazing free services with their plans. Without further ado, let’s get to our list!
1. Hostinger - The Most Affordable WordPress Hosting Service?
Ranks #1 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Very affordable
- + 99,9% uptime
- + Very fast hosting service
- + Free plan available
- + Easy to use and navigate
- - Customer support may take somewhat long to answer
- - Inconsistent uptime stats
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Hostinger is one of the veteran hosting providers within the industry. The company is often featured in various lists of the best web hosting services on the market, in general - coincidentally, free WordPress hosting is no exception.
Before we get to the WP-specific information, though, let’s cover some of the more-general features that you can expect from Hostinger.
For starters, uptime and site loading speeds. These two aspects often go hand-in-hand, because they are quite related to one another. Uptime refers to the period of time that your site is live and reachable, while site speed is a metric that can be interpreted in a few different ways.
For the sake of this review, though, let’s just say that it’s the amount of time it takes for your website to load when a visitor enters the URL into the search bar, and presses enter.
Uptime-wise, Hostinger sways around the 99,9% mark. Using our uptime calculator, we can determine that this results in up to 1m 26s of downtime every day. That’s actually the worst-case scenario, as well - not too bad!
99,9% uptime is actually seen as the industry standard, so Hostinger’s up there with the other top-rated web hosting services. This extends to website loading speeds, as well - the company provides some amazing metrics in this regard.
More specifically, well-managed websites hosted with Hostinger can load up in anywhere around 1,2 seconds - that’s really good, considering that the average is considered to be around 3 seconds!
Hostinger is also rather simple to use. While this might not necessarily be the main point that you’d look into when searching for free WordPress hosting (since WP isn’t all that simple to get into, in the first place), it’s still notable!
What are the Hostinger Pricing Options?
Now, as far as WordPress hosting is concerned, you’ll have two big options with Hostinger. You can either choose one of the shared hosting plans offered by the company in question (there’s even a free plan, too!), or go for the WordPress-specific hosting option.
If you decide to go with shared hosting, the biggest advantages here are that there’s both a free plan, and that the paid plans are some of the most affordable ones on the market. Take a look:
Both of the plans offer things such as a free SSL certificate, managed WordPress, WP acceleration, money-back guarantees, and so on. However, the Premium option comes packed with a lot of extra features - a free domain name, the ability to host 100 different sites, free email support, unlimited databases, and more.
Now, as mentioned earlier, anyone looking for the best free WordPress hosting options will be happy to find out that Hostinger has a free plan in place. As you would probably come to expect, though, it’s very limited.
You don’t receive any free domains, SSLs, or email accounts, and can only expect up to 300 monthly visitors, too. It’s a fun way to try out the general usability of Hostinger’s UI, but other than that, it’s a much better idea to check out one of the paid plans that the company has to offer, especially considering their pricing options.
Now, there’s WordPress-specific hosting, too. The prices for this type of hosting look as follows:
- Single WordPress - $1,99 per month
- WordPress Starter - $2,99 per month
- Business WordPress - $5,99 per month
- WordPress Pro - $11,59 per month
Naturally, you can expect WordPress-specific hosting to be more oriented towards just that - WordPress. The different plans offer support for different numbers of hosted websites, different amounts of bandwidth, multiple data centers, daily backups, SSH access, and much more.
If you’re interested in what Hostinger has to offer, it’s definitely one of the better picks, in regards to free hosting for WordPress!
2. BlueHost - A Feature-Heavy, Modern WordPress Hosting Solution
Ranks #2 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Multiple features
- + Good uptime
- + Easy to use
- + WordPress - available
- + 24/7 customer support
- - Poor site speed for non-US-made websites
- - No backup options with some plans
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Depending on where it is that you look, you might notice that BlueHost is often talked about as being one of the best website hosting solutions on the entire market. This is thanks to a wide variety of different reasons - most of which apply to the topic of best free WordPress hosting, as well.
For starters, BlueHost comes equipped with a wide selection of different features. It allows you to customize your hosting experience to a large extent. This includes domain names and free SSL certificates, unlimited bandwidth, and even one free website transfer.
Following that, BlueHost is also known for having some amazing uptime stats. More specifically, you can expect an uptime of around 99,94%, on average. On a yearly basis, this converts into 5 hours and 15 minutes of downtime. Some of the best numbers in the industry!
BlueHost can be considered feature-heavy both in a general sense, and also as it specifically relates to WordPress, as well. If you choose BlueHost WordPress free hosting, you will expose yourself to a variety of powerful plugins, themes, add-ons, and some other tools that will make your WP experience *that* much more enjoyable.
The support is always around the corner, as well. BlueHost can be reached both via a chat function, and also with a simple phone call. You can inquire about anything related to the hosting of your website, and even get help in regards to actually using WordPress, and building a website with the CMS.
Lastly, you can actually even hire a professional designer team over at BlueHost, and ask them to create the website for you. The hosting provider includes everything from SEO features, all the way to Google Ad services and analytics with your hosting.
Now, BlueHost - same as many other hosting providers on the market - has two different hosting options, as far as free hosting for WordPress is concerned. These are shared hosting, and also WordPress-dedicated website hosting.
What are the BlueHost Pricing Options?
The plans for shared hosting look like so:
- Basic - €2,44 per month
- Plus - €4,51 per month
- Choice Plus - €4,51 per month
- Pros - €10,72 per month
Each of the different plans include different selections of features, and are catered to differing audiences. Naturally, all of them support WordPress, but aren’t necessarily optimized for the CMS in question.
Alternatively, you could go with one of the WordPress-dedicated hosting plans. They look as follows:
- Shared Hosting - €2,49 per month
- Online Stores - €10,93 per month
- Managed WordPress - €8,40 per month
Now, evidently, BlueHost is far from being a very affordable option for WordPress hosting - it’s definitely not “free”, either! However, even the shared hosting plans come with a decent number of features, and can definitely be used by anyone who’s just starting out, and looking for the best free WordPress hosting.
3. GoDaddy - Over 150 Apps + Unlimited Bandwidth
Ranks #3 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Great uptime
- + Decent site speed
- + Knowledgeable customer support
- + Over 150 simple-to-install apps
- - Lacks a lot of essential features
- - Plan renewals are quite pricey
A single look online will tell you all about the reputation that GoDaddy has within the web hosting world, and among its different communities - this service provider is seen as a true industry veteran!
And it should be - the web hosting provider in question has been around since 1997! That’s astonishing!
Naturally, it being around for so long, GoDaddy must be doing something right… Right? Well, yes, obviously - this extends to anyone interested in free WordPress hosting, as well!
For starters, the brand in question offers some of the best numbers within the industry, uptime-wise. Throughout the year, you can expect your WP website that you’ve hosted on one of GoDaddy’s servers to be up 99,93% of the time.
Secondly, websites hosted with GoDaddy are generally considered to be quite fast. If your site is optimized, and you haven’t dumped a huge video file on the front page, you can expect loading speeds in the realm of 1,3 seconds. That’s impressive!
Following that, GoDaddy offers its users over 150 different apps to install and use. That’s a long list of applications! While GoDaddy might not offer its customers WordPress hosting free specifically, the selection of apps surely does make up for it.
These applications include everything from developer support and website building tools, all the way to eCommerce- and analytics-related features. No matter what sort of a website it is that you’re looking to build, you can be sure that some (if not all) of the apps are going to be of good use.
On top of all of that, GoDaddy also offers unlimited bandwidth with all of its plans. This, in turn, means that your website will be infinitely scalable - if you’re looking to create an online business, or want to keep adding to your portfolio forever, this is very notable!
What are the GoDaddy Pricing Options?
Pricing-wise, GoDaddy has both shared, and also WP-specific plans for potential customers to explore and pick from. The shared plans are priced like so:
While the Economy plans is, admittedly, quite limited, it does almost fall into the realm of free WordPress hosting - it’s only $2,99 per month, as of writing this article!
If you were to pick the more-advanced and tailored WordPress hosting plans, as of writing this article, they would look like so:
- Basic - $6,99 per month
- Deluxe - $9,99 per month
- Ultimate - $12,99 per month
- Ecommerce - $15,99 per month
All four of the above-mentioned plans come equipped with free SSL certificates, domain names, and business emails. Then, depending on your plan of choice, you’ll also receive varying amounts of storage, monthly visitor limits, and other high-end features.
Now, as far as WP-specific plans go, GoDaddy doesn’t really provide free WordPress hosting - the price tags can really get “up there”. That being said, if you’re just starting out, and aren’t looking to launch a fully-fledged website from day one, the lower-tier plans might actually be a great fit - and they’re more-affordable, as well!
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Compare Hosting Providers Side by Side With Others
All Hosting Providers may look similar to you but they're NOT all the same!
Yes! Show me the Comparison Chart4. HostGator - A Beginner-Friendly Website Hosting Provider
Ranks #4 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Great uptime stats
- + Decent site speeds
- + Easy to use
- + An integrated website builder
- + Good customer support
- + 45-day refund
- - Pricey
- - Many features locked behind a paywall
HostGator is likely going to be among the first names that pop up when you google “best free WordPress hosting”. This isn’t the case because the brand would offer actual free hosting - no. Rather, the “what you pay” VS “what you get” ratio is so good, that you can’t really ignore it!
The provider in question seemingly has it all - amazing uptime statistics (99,95%), top-tier customer support services, a website builder tool for anyone who isn’t quite sure about creating their websites with WordPress, and much more. There’s even a 45-day money-back guarantee, as well!
One of the most notable features of HostGator, though, is the fact that it’s super-simple to use. This is true even if you don’t have any prior experience with web hosting, and have never used a cPanel before.
Evidently, it’s likely going to be a very important point to anyone who’s looking for free hosting for WordPress. This is because most wannabe-free users are beginners who are still looking for an optimal option, and are trying things out. The ease of use of HostGator is going to be quite notable in this regard!
Following that, if you’re not exactly a beginner, and are simply looking to change your hosting provider, HostGator’s got you covered in that regard, as well. The brand offers users the chance to transfer their website from another hosting service, free of charge!
The only major complaint that users have in regards to HostGator is the fact that many of the features are locked behind a paywall. Say, if you’d like to use things such as SEO tools or site backups, you will need to pay up. This can, for a fact, dissuade some potential users, and force them to go search for an alternative hosting solution.
What are the HostGator Pricing Options?
Same as most other hosting companies on this list of WordPress hosting free options, HostGator offers both shared hosting plans, and also those that are dedicated to WordPress. The shared plans look like so:
The plans are actually rather affordable! Each of them come with their own, designated benefits and perks.
WordPress-wise, the plans and prices look like so:
Each of the plans allow you to create an increasing number of websites (up to 3 with the Business Plan), have monthly visitor caps (which isn’t ideal), up to 3 GB of backup space, and all three include free SSLs and domain names.
In short, if you’re interested in a simple-to-use, yet high-end website hosting provider for your WordPress ventures, do make sure to check out what HostGator has to offer!
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5. Hostwinds - Incredible Uptime Stats
Ranks #5 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Variety of Services
- + 99,97% uptime
- + Unlimited bandwidth & disk space
- + Helpful customer service
- + Attractive prices
- - Limited server locations
- - Not the best results when it comes to speed
Admittedly, Hostwinds might not be the very first hosting provider that you think of when debating about and looking for the best free WordPress hosting options. While it may not be as popular of a pick as some other names on this list, though, the company behind the hosting service has a lot to offer to its customers, nonetheless!
Probably the most notable aspect of Hostwinds is the uptime that it provides. All throughout the year, your site should be up and running 99,97% of the time. This places Hostwinds among the very best hosting providers, speaking strictly uptime-wise!
The service is also quite simple to use, as well. Hostwinds won’t encumber you with various high-end features that you may or may not need. Instead, the platform in question is beginner-friendly, and allows you to explore WordPress and site hosting at your own pace.
If you do find yourself stuck on some features, or facing difficulties with certain aspects of your dashboard, you can rely on the customer service agents of the brand. Users Hostwinds reviews point out that the customer support team is both knowledgeable, and always ready to help out.
While Hostwinds might not offer WordPress hosting free of charge, the plans do come with free SSL certificates and unlimited bandwidth & disk space. That’s very notable, and quite appreciated! Lastly, if you start building a WP site, and feel that it’s not for you, Hostwinds allows you to use the Weebly website builder instead. Great!
What are the Hostwinds Pricing Options?
The pricing options for Hostwinds’ shared hosting plans are:
As far as managed WordPress hosting goes, the plans look like so:
The plans include WordPress installers, 24/7 customer support, unlimited email accounts and databases, cPanel updates, and a wide variety of additional features.
6. SiteGround - Decent Site Speeds, Great Uptime
Ranks #6 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + Amazing uptime
- + Decent site speeds
- + Multiple hosting types
- + Easy to use
- + Wide variety of free features
- - Pricey shared hosting plans
- - No free domain name
- - Limited site visitor counts
SiteGround is part of the older generation of web hosting providers. It’s a veteran in the industry, and this alone can tell us a few things - most notable of which is the fact that the company must be doing something right, if it has managed to remain a giant within the industry for so long.
Probably the very first thing that you’ll hear about in regards to SiteGround, though, is the uptime stat that it boasts. SiteGround offers users an uptime of 99,98% - a likely contender for the best uptime in the entire industry!
What this means is that you won’t need to worry about your website being down for prolonged periods of time. If you’re planning on creating a site that is very sensitive to uptime fluctuations, this is surely a major point to consider.
Apart from WordPress hosting (albeit not exactly free WordPress hosting, though), SiteGround also offers its users a selection of alternative hosting solutions, too. You have shared hosting plans, WooCommerce hosting (WooCommerce being one of the best-known eCommerce plugins for WP-created sites), and cloud hosting.
Basically, no matter what type of a website it is that you’re going to create, you should be able to find viable hosting options for yourself!
Site speed-wise, SiteGround is at the top, as well. A well-made and functional website hosted on SiteGround’s shared hosting servers will load up in around 1,1 seconds. That’s very good! Anything below 3 seconds is considered to be in the “good” category, and SiteGround has got this part covered, no sweat.
What are the SiteGround Pricing Options?
The shared hosting plans offered by SiteGround are, admittedly, far from “WordPress free hosting”. They look, as follows:
As you can probably imagine, each of these plans come with their own perks and benefits. They include things such as monthly visitor caps, free CDNs, emails, and SSLs; backups, unlimited databases, and so on.
When it comes to WordPress hosting, SiteGround offers the same plans, with the same price tags attached to them. Meaning, you can experience managed WordPress hosting for an affordable price tag. Great!
7. WP Engine - All-Things WordPress
Ranks #7 out of 7 Hosting Providers
- + 99,96% uptime
- + Extensive features
- + Strong security measures
- + Reliable customer support
- - On the more expensive side
- - Can be difficult to use for beginners
I mean, do I need to say anything about this brand, really - they are literally called WP Engine!
All jokes aside, though, the company in question is surely one of the better choices for anyone who’s interested in hosting a website that they’ve created with WordPress. The core reason behind that is rather self-explanatory, too - all of the services offered by WP Engine are catered towards WordPress-made sites!
While not offering free WordPress hosting, WP Engine still gives users a pretty significant bang for their buck. This includes things such as 99,98% uptime (which is astonishing, really), polite and helpful customer support, onboarding, automated backups, and so, so much more.
There are WordPress core updates, free CDN and SSL certificates available, as well. The plans that WP Engine provides are super-extensive, and thus, anyone should be able to find one that would suit them perfectly, no matter what site it is that you want to host.
Obviously, you can expect things such as StudioPress themes and plugin support, too - these are some of the core aspects of WordPress! Also, WP Engine allows you to truly protect your website from potential hacks and breaches. There’s a firewall in place, various disallowed plugins, disk write limitations and protections, and more.
The only real complaint that’s rather prominent among online-based user WP Engine reviews is the fact that the service isn’t all that simple to use. This is especially true if you’re a complete beginner, and have never hosted a website before. In short, WP Engine is aimed at a more-experienced website maker audience.
What are the WP Engine Pricing Options?
Price-wise, the options are such:
Evidently, WP Engine is definitely far from being a WordPress free hosting provider. That said, as with any other hosting service on this list, there’s a money-back guarantee involved, so you can try the service out and check to see if it fits your wants and needs.
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Conclusions
Thank you for reading this list of the best free WordPress hosting options on the market! As you might have seen, most of the services we talked about weren’t exactly “free” - far from that. That being said, though, all of them have some great free features, or refund policies - meaning, you can try them out, and get your money back if you’re not satisfied.
As mentioned earlier in the article, actual free WordPress hosting isn’t worth it - whether it be from the supported feature list, or the potential of your data leaking, and your website being hacked.
All things considered, if you’re still not positive about WordPress hosting, or feel like you might change your mind about WordPress, in general, you can also check out our list of the best website builders out there. Perhaps taking an easier and more-straightforward approach to website creation is just what you need?
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