A recent article by Forbes counts WordPress as one of seven options it labels as a best free blogging platform of 2023. But how free is it?
For years, I’ve been telling you that WordPress is the best platform to use if you’re looking to start a new blog. Forbes recently said labeled it as a best free blogging platform, including it in a list of seven.
Is it free? Well, yes and no.
You have to keep in mind that there are actually two versions of WordPress. Both, in their own way, happen to be free. But you might end up paying for either one. (You’ll certainly pay something to use one of them.)
The article referred to WordPress.com. That’s a free blogging platform that’s similar in setup to Blogger. It hosts everything for you and you have a set of themes to choose from. You can blog from it for free. So, yes, the label applies.
The catch is that if you want to add certain levels of customization, you’ll end up paying some sort of monthly fee to be able to do so. Depending on what you want to add on, the fees may not be much per month. But as soon as you have to shell out money, “free” isn’t free.
This blog uses the version of the platform found at WordPress.org. You can find my take on why I think WordPress is the best option here.
The software you download WordPress.org is free. You then you upload it to your own domain, which you certainly have to pay for. WordPress, even in this form, remains free. But using it isn’t, since you have to pay for a domain and then pay monthly for hosting the web content.
Unfortunately, there aren’t many hobbies that are absolutely free. Even something as mild as reading often requires some degree of expense unless you never buy a book. People who list running or jogging as a hobby will, sooner or later, buy good shoes and some sort of clothing to wear during their journeys. One of my hobbies is sitting around and watching TV; I pay for streaming services that make that possible.
Yes, WordPress is a free blogging platform
Using the hosted version that you find at WordPress.com, you can blog on WordPress for free. You’ll be limited in some options, of course, but it’s free. Beggars, as the saying goes, can’t be choosers.
If you’re looking for a good place to start your blogging journey, that’d be the first place I’d recommend for you.
Eventually, I suspect you’ll want to move to the self-hosted version. Depending on how much you’re willing to pay for hosting, that can run you anywhere from about $5 per month up to $50 or more. (Trust me: I do not pay $50 or more per month for hosting!)
You can also pay for additional options like certain premium services, from security to backups to SSL certificates if you wish. Some of those may be available at no additional cost from the hosting platform, so you’ll want to ask around.
Regardless, I still think WordPress is your best bet for a blogging platform.
