Yes, WordPress.com is a Free Website Builder

It’s important to choose the right website-building platform prior to launching your site. There’s a lot to consider, like how easy the platform is to use, what features it offers, and how much it costs.

Maybe you’ve heard that WordPress.com is a free website builder. If you have, you’re probably wondering if there’s a catch.

Fortunately, there isn’t. WordPress.com is a free platform that provides you with the tools needed to get a site up and running quickly. If you want to build an attractive and functional blog without spending a cent, consider using WordPress.com.

WordPress.com also offers paid plans that come with additional features, if needed — but they are completely optional. The core platform is free, and there’s no pressure to upgrade to a paid plan.

How can WordPress.com possibly be free?

If you still don’t believe that WordPress.com is free, take a look at a breakdown of some of its features that allow it to remain priceless (literally and figuratively):

  • A free subdomain (exmaple.wordpress.com) instead of a domain (yourgroovydomain.com), although you can upgrade your plan for a custom domain name.

  • A small WordPress.com logo in the footer of your site. Paid plans allow you to eliminate the logo in the footer altogether.

  • No access to CSS code for free accounts. WordPress.com offers a visual customizer.

  • Subtle and occasional ads on your blog to help power WordPress.com.

These features are non-intrusive, and won’t get in the way of what your website can accomplish.

Why choose a free website builder?

The biggest benefit of using a free website builder is obvious — it’s free. WordPress.com offers even more benefits compared to paid or self-hosted site builders. This is because WordPress.com takes care of behind-the-scenes tasks that come with running a website, allowing you to focus on growing your site.

When you use a free website builder, you don’t have to learn how to code, deal with spam filters, or updates — all of it is done for you.

WordPress.com takes time-consuming tasks and advanced design options off of your plate, leaving you in control of the most essential tools for building a website. Think of it as outsourcing all of your website management tasks except for content creation.

This saves you time that is better spent creating valuable resources and articles. For example, if you’re a math teacher and want to start a blog to help students around the world improve their math skills, you can spend your time producing more lessons and exercises that will actually serve those students, instead of fiddling with the plugins and updates on your site.

Here are the additional advantages of using a free WordPress.com account:

Fully hosted blog

With WordPress.com, you don’t have to pay separately for web hosting or a domain name. You receive hosting services along with a free subdomain.

Hands-off backup and security

WordPress.com takes care of your site security and backups. Even when you update your content, WordPress.com automatically saves revisions so that you never lose work.

Better search engine rankings

WordPress.com blogs are automatically optimized to rank higher in search engine results. You don’t need to install a plugin or hire an SEO expert.

Built-in plugin functionality

If you used a self-hosted site, you would need to find and set up plugins for functions like security, search engine optimization, and contact forms. WordPress.com provides these necessary plugins by default.

Easy customization options

You can control the design of your website with dozens of free website templates and more than 30 Google fonts.

Is WordPress.com right for you?

Some people prefer to pay for a site builder that offers specific functionalities, but for many people, a free website builder is ideal. WordPress.com is right for you if:

  • You don’t have enhanced technical skills.

  • You don’t have time to fiddle with the behind-the-scenes elements of your blog.

  • You want to test-drive your blogging fantasy for free.

  • You don’t want to worry about backups or security tools.

  • You want to keep things quick and simple, for now.

If these factors apply to you, sign up for WordPress.com and begin reaping the benefits of your free website!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The WordPress.com Team

We're a team of happiness engineers, developers, editors, and WordPress experts. Our team personally curates and serves up the best resources to help you no matter where you are in your blogging or website-building journey. At WordPress.com, our mission is to democratize publishing one website at a time. Create a free website or build a blog with ease on WordPress.com. Dozens of free, customizable, mobile-ready designs and themes.

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