10 Best Free Blog Sites

Start blogging; that's what I have to say to you. Because if you have come looking for the best free blog sites, I’m guessing you are interested in starting your blog.

You might have heard the famous Shakespeare saying, “Do What You Love & Love What You Do.”

So, without a second thought or opinion, get on with it, and start blogging. You don't have to do it as a job necessarily. But hey, don't take me wrong, because you can still earn from it while sitting cozy in your bed with a mug of coffee in your hands.

I could motivate you a lot more, but that's not what you're here for, is it?

So, let's talk about the best free blog sites.

What site pops up in your mind whenever this four-letter word “blog” comes up? WordPress, Wix, Medium, right?

Unarguably, these are among the best in our list.

There are several free blog sites, and each of them with their own unique qualities. And the more choices there are, the harder it gets to choose among them.

To eliminate this confusion, I've put together a list of 10 best free blog sites with their pros and cons.

Let’s dive right in

1. WordPress.org

Yes, first, I will unleash the big guns. Among the best free blog sites, the self-hosted version of WordPress is by far the most popular among all others.

It powers about 90 percent of the blogs on the internet and works great with any type of blog:

Works Best For

• Online Businesses (mostly e-Commerce)
• Business Blogs
• Personal Blogs
• It offers control, so it’s also ideal for bloggers who want full control over their websites

Now, let's talk about “who is WordPress.org for.”

Whether you are a beginner or a well-seasoned blogger, this site has all the things you may need to set up and grow a blog. The best thing is, it's open-source, and you can mold it in any way you want.  It also provides fantastic for affiliate marketing.

Secondly, it's absolutely free. Yes, you can pick a premium theme and premium plugins are also available that will cost you, but you wouldn’t need one for your basic blog requirements.

To start off your blog, you would need to purchase domain name and hosting service. However, there are several free WordPress hosting services that allow you to test out the waters before you go for their paid options. Also, there are several cheap services such as bluehost that you can choose from.

WordPress has over 55,000 plugins to extend the functionality of your blog. You can get the most essential ones free of cost.

The poular page builder “Elementor” for WordPress is available as a free of cost plugin, and you can always switch to the Elementor pro version if you feel the need to do so.

While WordPress has a bit of a learning curve, it is quite user-friendly. Most of it’s users are non-technical and you don’t need any coding skills to start off your blog.

PROS

• It is very flexible and offers you absolute control over all the features of your website.
• It is open-source.
• This blogging platform has almost an infinite library of themes and plugins (both free and premium). You can add any functionality on your website using one of these plugins and change your WordPress theme with a single click.
• The platform is search engine friendly that can help you with your SEO and you can easily allow for guest blogging.
• It blends in well with Social Media.

CONS

• WordPress.org has only one hurdle. You need to have a web hosting and domain name.

2. WIX.com

Do you want to build a professional-looking website, but you don't know much about website builders?

Don't worry; creating your stunning website is quicker than ever. This website builder is one of the oldest and biggest players in the website building landscape and hosts a whopping 160 billion websites.

The blogging site is a free, easy to use website builder, which offers excellent, drag, and drop options. You don't require any technical skills to create a blog using this platform.

It can be easily managed from the front end. Whether you are at a beginner level or advanced level, you can easily understand and use Wix.

There is a vast library of templates to choose from, or you can build a site from scratch with some blank templates. The wide range of templates covers a variety of subjects and  they are easily customizable.

Unlike WordPress, with Wix, you don't have to worry about the security and maintenance of your website.

Works best For:

• Small businesses that have a limited budget
• Businesses who want to gain most by spending less
• Businesses who want portfolio driven sites
• Creative artists who want to have a visually rich website

PROS:

• Quick and easy setup
• Free and user-friendly platform
• Ideal for beginners
• Easy customization
• No coding skills required.
• A vast library of templates
• Automatic designing of your website with artificial intelligence
• While there are various places to get free high-quality photos on the web, Wix also offers stock photos you can choose from. You can always edit them using an online photo editor to add relevant text and filters

CONS:

• Wix advertising on your website with the free version
• Limited free apps are available with the website builder
• Once you choose a blog template, you cannot change it
• Limited storage capability
• No site migration offered

3. Blogger

Blogger is often called the grand old man of the internet publishing world. Founded in the 1990s, Blogger has come a long way. Blogger focuses on ease of use, accessibility, and is free of cost. It is hosted by Google.

Creating a blog is pretty easy. You just need to create a profile, and then you can start off with your free blog site. You can easily learn posting, editing, importing pictures, and gain followers quickly.

If you are just starting off you don't have to worry; Blogger provides a number of designing options for your site.

This free blogging site allows custom URLs which can be easily integrated with Google Domains. You can easily monetize your blog as it integrates Google AdSense ads easily.

Works best For:

• Personal Blogging
• Hobby Blogging
• Small businesses

PROS:

• Easy to use
• You don’t have to worry about maintenance, web hosting, and other technicalities
• Free of cost
• Easy integration with Google
• Mobile-friendly templates

CONS:

• Basic blogging tools and you can’t add additional features
• The blog platform offers limited design options
• Display of Blogger Ads on your website

4. Weebly

Just like Wix, Weebly doesn't require coding skills. It has a web-based interface with a modular approach, in which you pick a template and place your content as blocks in different areas.

This drag-and-drop blog site has gained a lot of popularity in recent times due to its ease of use and ability to manage larger websites.

Besides being a popular blogging tool, Weebly is mostly used for building eCommerce sites. It also allows you to build an awesome online portfolio. It may not be an open-source but has many free features to offer. Let's see what businesses best fit with Weebly.

Works Best For

• Building Online Portfolio Websites
• Businesses who need blogging capability
• Non-technical bloggers who do not know even a tiny bit about coding

PROS:

• Just drag and drop elements – It’s easy to use
• It comes with a number of decent mobile apps that help you to run your site on the go
• It offers a trial use; it lets you experience the services before you commit financially
• It integrates with Google Analytics
• It has a good SEO friendly reputation

CONS

• One widely experienced flaw is the difficulty you face when you are exporting your website
• The free blogging site has a very few third-party platforms that it integrates with
• It has a very limited library of integrated features

5. Tumblr

You must have seen a watermark of Tumblr on photographs, images, and mostly GIF files. Often people do not count Tumblr as a free blogging platform, but it is.

It’s not quite like other common blogging platforms, but it does have the capability, and people do blog there.

So, what is Tumblr? Think of it as a middle ground between WordPress and Twitter (or Facebook). Tumblr is a micro-blogging platform optimized for short term content. Just like WordPress, it has a community behind it.

This free blogging site connects perfectly with social networking sites. Most people display their art through this microblogging platform. So, now for who a Tumblr blog is ideal for.

Works Best For:

• Micro Blogging (micro posting)
• Hobby Bloggers
• Personal Blogs

PROS:

• Easy to set up and use
• Integrated social features such as sharing and/or re-blogging
• Inclusive of web hosting, i.e., your blog is located on a subdomain of Tumblr.com
• Compatible with various multimedia and allows you to publish videos, gifs, jpegs, etc.

CONS:

• The free blogging site has very basic and limited features and there is no way to scale up or expand the features
• It is difficult to back up your content, and use or repost it on other similar platforms

6. Joomla

Joomla is another free and open-source blog site.

Supported by a global community of volunteers, Joomla's features are being expanded on a daily basis. It is available for everyone under the GPL license.

Thanks to its global support community, Joomla is available in several languages and it can be used to make a website for any niche.

Joomla has won several awards over the years. Do you know why? If you have ever used this free blogging site, you must know that Joomla's applications are infinite; it is extendable, accessible, responsive, and search engine friendly.

Many eCommerce sites, Content Management Systems for educational institutes, etc. have been built using Joomla.

So, who and what is Joomla best for?

Works Best With:

• Online Stores
• CMS for high profile organizations and institutions
• Business Websites
• Technically Advanced Users (it may not have extraordinary features, but as it is open-source, it is open for add-ons and customization)

PROS:

• It's flexible. You can do a lot more than building just a blog
• Availability of a huge collection of plugins, which helps to add unique functionality to your website
• Hundreds of professional themes, templates, and layouts are available

CONS:

• You don't necessarily have to be an expert, but you must have a little know-how of coding to use Joomla – unlike WordPress (which can be used by anyone)
• The responsibility of security and backup with this free blog platform is on you. There are many plugins available to secure your blog
• However, it's prone to threats and data loss if you don't take steps to secure your Joomla site
• You need to purchase a custom domain

7. Ghost

Ghost is a platform that brings excitement back into blogging. If performance, security, cost to run, and good publishing experience is important to you, then Ghost is the ideal pick to launch your new blog.

Like WordPress.org, Ghost is open-source, which makes it a very flexible platform. It focuses on publishing experiences.

Moreover, everything revolves around your content. Ghost doesn't offer a free plan, yet it provides a 14-day trial. You can upload your own blog theme and content easily.

If you like it, you have to buy it on the 14th day of the trial.

provides the tools that you require to build a relationship with your audience and generate revenue from your work.

Registration forms, payments, subscriptions, email, and member management is a built-in feature. You don't require any additional plugins for this.

With a minimal user interface, Ghost is a pretty easy platform to build your awesome blog or site

While WordPress gives you the whole package, Ghost is a fantastic choice if you are just looking to create a blog.

Works best For:

• Bloggers

PROS:

• Simple interface
• Focus on blogging
• It is super-fast as it is built on JavaScript
• Built-in SEO and social media capabilities

CONS:

• Difficult customization
• Web hosting and custom domain name fees
• Self-hosted version is difficult to set up
• A limited number of themes

8. Medium

Managing your content on Medium is pretty simple.

There are not many editing options, but the tools provided by this free blogging platform are enough to publish your digital content effectively.

Medium provides millions of different plugins and add-ons, which makes it possible to add various functionalities and to improve the user experience for your blog.

The free platform rewards content for its quality, not on popularity. Medium has almost 60 million monthly active users. Just like WordPress.org, Medium is an open space for readers and writers.

This free blogging site does have a number of themes, plugins, and design options, but it allows limited on-page customization. The good part is; you can easily integrate with Google Analytics.

PROS:

• Simple and Easy to sign up
• Import content with ease
• Connect with social media
• Focus on content creation
• Excellent for casual bloggers

CONS:

• Limited marketing features
• Difficult customization
• No monetization options available with the free blogging platform
• Medium has control over your content

9. WordPress.com

Let me guess. You must be thinking, “Didn't we talk about it already?”

Well, what we talked about prior was the self-hosted version, i.e., WordPress.org. On the other hand, WordPress.com takes care of the hosting for you. That's the main difference.

This blogging platform may take away the worry of responsibility from you, but at what cost? It also takes away all the options of customization. Basically, it's not open-source, and you can't reach the backend code.

Let's see who this blogging website is ideal for.

Works Best For:

• Hobby Bloggers
• Those who are testing out the waters in the blogging world

PROS:

• You don’t need to purchase a separate hosting provider
• No need to worry about site maintenance for your WordPress blog
• Extremely easy to set up. Just follow the wizard
• The interface is more simplified (as compared to the self-hosted version)
• Professional support available on paid plans

CONS:

• The free account is very limited, i.e., your account is hosted on a subdomain
• Ads and other promotional material show up on your website. Unless you pay for a premium account
• Very limited customization options
• Monetization is a minimum of your site

The transition from WordPress.com to WordPress.org is quite simple. For more details on differences between the two blog sites, check out this blog post

10. SquareSpace

Squarespace is ideal for all businesses. You can create a professional-looking website or a blog with advanced designs and features.

Squarespace provides 100+ flexible templates, which are mobile optimized. While the platform may take time to get used to, the results are worth your patience.

With this self hosted blogging platform, you have templates, easy customization options, and premium quality features at your fingertips.

This self hosted platform is ideal for non-technical people as it is extremely easy to use. The platform offers hosting, domain registration, and options for eCommerce as well.

Thanks to live chat, you can get the queries of your audience sorted almost instantly.

The user interface of this blogging platform is minimalistic, which gives you a sense of ease and freedom while you are blogging on it.

Works best For:

• Ecommerce
• Portfolio-based sites
• Business owners

PROS:

• Design flexibility
• High-quality templates
• Simple to use
• Free Trial
• Ads-free
• Built-in SSL Encryption
• Hosting and custom domain
• 24/7 customer support

CONS:

• Limited features
• A few third-party tools can be integrated
• It takes time to get used to
• Only one sub-navigation, so it is not suitable for large websites that require a deep menu hierarchy

Conclusion

Ultimately, the blogging site you go for depends on your needs.

You should take into account the features you want, your level of expertise, and your budget.

Choose what will work best for you, not what just seems best to you.

I know choosing among the best can be difficult, especially for beginners. The choices I've mentioned above fall under three basic categories; self-hosted blogging platforms, hosted blog sites, and site builders that also have blogging capabilities.

If you are a beginner, I would suggest you start with WordPress.com, and when you think that you have the basic knowledge, move your blog to WordPress.org. If you compare Wix, Weebly, Squarespace with WordPress.org, – WordPress has it all But again, this is just a suggestion. The choice must be your own. You must choose the one that will be ideal for your business, type of blog, or website.