9+ Best Blogging Platforms For 2024

My Recommendation for Blogs and Websites

If you manage a ton of content, use WordPress.org hosted on WP Engine.

WordPress.org manages content well, and makes creating new blog posts, power pages, and reviews simple and easy. It’s also scalable and many developers have built tons of themes and functionality specifically for the platform.

WP Engine has made setting up WordPress as easy as logging in and pressing a few buttons. It’s literally the easiest and most hassle-free option that I have ever used.

My Recommendation for Simple Blogs You Won’t Scale

If you are trying to set up a simple blog without having to pay anything, and have no intention of scaling it in the future, choose Wix.

As long as you’re not focusing on making money and you don’t need advanced SEO features or customization, this platform allows you to create and promote a simple blog in minutes.

My Recommendation for a Free Blogging Platform

If you want to simply share thoughts and don’t need a separate website, I suggest writing on LinkedIn or Medium as a free blogging platform.

While they are very limited in features and scalability, both options will allow you to get something live very quickly and get content out to the world.

Difference Between Free and Paid Blogging Sites

As the name implies, free blogging sites allow you to create a blog without paying any money. These platforms provide free hosting, free domain names, and the tools required to build a blog day by day.

Some of these options give you a forever-free plan that never requires a paid upgrade to continue writing on your website. Others will encourage you to upgrade to a paid plan to access more features.

The main advantage of using a free blog site is that you don’t need as much technical knowledge.

These blogging platforms keep the blog-building process as minimalist as possible. You shouldn’t run into many problems starting your blogging journey with one of these options.

While free blogging sites are a great way to get started, they do have some limitations. For example, you don’t have much control of the design and features.

And because nothing is free, most free platforms will place ads on your blog. These ads can distract your readers and make it difficult for you to monetize your blog.

In addition, free blogging sites usually don’t offer the same level of customer support as paid platforms.

On the contrary, paid blogging sites are subscription-based platforms that allow you to create and customize your blog without limitations. These platforms usually provide a free trial so you can try it before you buy.

Paid blogging sites offer several advantages over free platforms.

For example, they don’t place ads on your blog, which gives you more control over the look and feel of your site. They also usually offer customer support in case you need help with anything.

Finally, paid blogging sites offer more features and tools to help you grow your blog and revenue.

I’ll only say this once more and then I’ll let it go, but…

… if there’s even a remote chance that your blog will grow into something bigger than you currently have in mind, definitely make the choice to build on a paid platform now.

It’s a lot easier to build on a paid platform from day one than it is to try to try to merge over to a paid platform after you’ve already built a site on a free blogging platform.

Once more – you can view the same proven, reliable tech stack that I use on my own blogs to easily get that set up.

The Best Blogging Platforms [Paid]

If you’re looking to build a blog at scale, skip the free options and go directly for the paid options.

Traditional CMS Blogging Platforms

The first type of blog sites we’ll focus on are traditional content management systems (CMS) – platforms built to easily produce, publish, and manage digital content.

But these platforms do much more than content. In fact, most options in our list allow users to design and build entire platforms.

Features To Look For in a Free Blog Platform

You’ve learned about 22 free blog sites, the similarities and differences between each, their main features, and how much they cost.

It’s now time to help you decide so you can choose the one platform that meets your needs.

Use the following features as you select your favorite free blogging platform.

1. Simple To Understand

You don’t want to spend all of your time learning a new platform. It’s best to focus on creating content and connecting with your audience.

All blogging platforms claim simplicity as a part of their feature suite.

If that’s your main consideration, then you may want to immediately start using the Ghost platform.

2. Low Overhead and Fees

The free blogging platforms will cost you nothing in hosting and domain fees.

The only time you’ll pay is when you want to upgrade your account for more features or a custom domain name.

Different blogging software chooses their specific way to collect payment from their customers.

If you want a completely free blog platform, consider LinkedIn, Medium, and Quora.

3. Functionality That Matches Your Needs

The free blog sites all offer different functionality.

Some are better for simple blogging while others offer more robust features like eCommerce and membership sites.

It’s important to understand what you want to use your blog for before selecting the platform.

Thinking ahead in this area will save you time in the long run.

4. Ability to Customize Design, Posts, and Pages

You want a platform that gives you complete control over the design of your blog.

All free blogging platforms offer some level of customization.

However, some are much better than others.

Choose a platform that makes it easy to change the look and feel of your blog without requiring coding skills.

It’s this consideration that causes us to frequently recommend WordPress.org

5. Strong Open-source Platform and Community

The open-source style of coding continues to evolve.

New features and designs are constantly added by blogging software communities.

Look for a platform with a large, active, and helpful community around it.

You’ll feel confident that your blog interface will remain up-to-date.

As well, it will make it easier to find answers to your questions and get help when you need it.

6. Ability To Get Customer Support

Even with a large and helpful community, you’ll sometimes need direct customer support and assistance.

Look for a blogging platform that offers multiple ways for you to get help when needed.

Jimdo does a nice job in this area.

7. Scalability To Grow Into Your Goals

When your blog becomes successful, you’ll want to add new features and functionality.

Some free blogging platforms make this easy while others do not.

Do some research on the platform’s ability to scale before making your decision.

8. Future-proof Roadmap

Your free blog today might turn into a money-making machine tomorrow.

It’s important to choose a platform with a vision for the future.

Look for a platform that’s constantly innovating and adding new features.

It will help ensure that your blog can grow with you over time.

We’ve covered a lot of ground around the topic of free blog sites.

Frequently Asked Questions

You may still have a few questions.

Here are the answers to two of the most commonly asked questions about blogging success.

Does my blog need a domain name?

A custom domain name isn’t required to run a successful blog.

However, it’s important to consider if you ever want to upgrade your blog or make money from your writing.

A custom domain name will give you more credibility as you work to attract new website visitors.

If you start with a subdomain on options like Quora, Weebly, or Wix, understand that it will take some technical know-how to move your content to a custom domain in the future.

Does Google have a free blog?

Technically speaking, the Google brand doesn’t offer a free blogging platform.

However, Google does own Blogger. If you choose to use Blogger, you’re effectively using a Google product.

Wrapping Up

WordPress.org is our clear winner for the best free blog site.

We rate it as our winner because the platform gives you the most control over your blogging experience.

It wins out in other areas like the following.

• Low overhead and fees
• Functionality
• Customization
• Community
• Scalability

As an open-source CMS, WordPress.org provides a community that stands head and shoulders above the rest.

Millions of website owners trust WordPress.org with their blogs and businesses.

You will find plenty of third-party documentation to help you through any type of technical challenge.

Your WordPress.org blog can use an almost endless supply of plugins to customize its look and feel, eCommerce shopping carts, and lead generation opportunities.

You’ll only pay for hosting and a few premium themes or plugins.

Finally, you can scale a WordPress.org blog from zero to $100,000+ per month in revenue.

Wix is our runner-up winner.

You’re likely looking at the top free blog sites because you’re new to blogging.

Wix is one of the first blogging platforms to use artificial intelligence to help beginners quickly create blogs.

Using the Wix ADI feature ties you within its closed hosting environment.

If you’re okay with that, you can quickly blog your way to success.

Now that you know a bit more about free blog sites, it’s time to choose the platform that’s right for you.

Consider your budget, what you want to use your blog for, how much control you want over the design, and if you need any special features.

With this information in hand, you can make an informed decision about which free blog site is best for you.

Take action now by selecting three to five of the above platforms that interest you most.

Research each free blog site in detail. Finally, select your favorite and start blogging today.