14 Best: Free WordPress Hosting & Top Providers for WP Sites (2018)

Show of hands: Who here has clicked on an ad, made an impromptu 90-degree turn in the store, or signed up for something you later realized was outlandish simply because you read an enticing four-letter word? I think you know the one — it starts with an F and causes rational, decent human beings to lose all sense of reason.

Did someone say FREE?

Yes, the word “free” has a magnetism that’s hard to fight. The word has become especially alluring, though sometimes deceptive, in the world of web hosting. We’ve got your top free site builders, free domain registrations at signup, and then one of my personal favorites: the free site management software that powers legendary WordPress.com. Today, we’ll cover the best services for hosting your site on this fantastic platform, as well as the marketing ploys to watch out for and the opportunities to save on popular plans.

Best Value (5) | Free Plans | Free WP Site Builder
WordPress Hosting Coupons (7)

I wouldn’t be doing my job as an avid WordPress advocate if I didn’t caution you against the perils of free web hosting. Often times, the service comes with more headaches than the $0 price tag is worth. Especially if you’re launching a site for your professional brand and livelihood, we highly recommend investing — and I use the word lightly, as we’re talking about the cost of a cup of coffee per month — in a low-cost, high-quality hosting service.

On average, a shared hosting plan will cost $5 to $10 monthly, which is a mere $60 to $120 annual investment in your business. And for that, you get to eliminate the ads that plague the sites of free hosting customers, you’re awarded a more reliable infrastructure that’s probably backed by a seasoned support staff, and you’re likely to be thanked with a few free perks as well.

We’ve found that some of our favorite cheap hosts back out their customers’ costs by including free domain names, site builders, and marketing credits — maybe even assistance with WordPress updates and plugin maintenance — as standards. Take a look at what some of the most valuable and trusted WordPress hosts have to offer below.

1.

InMotionHosting.com

Monthly Starting Price $4.99

• WordPress pre-installed with NGINX server caching
• FREE SSL certificate and unlimited bandwidth
• Optional automatic plugin, theme, and core updates
• Host unlimited WordPress sites on one account
• Premium themes and plugin subscriptions
• Get started on InMotion now.

WORDPRESS
RATING

4.9

★★★★★

See Reviews

InMotion: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 7 minutes

PJ Fancher (HostingAdvice.com): InMotion, long known for their shared hosting options, entered the WordPress space with a solid option built upon their reputation for great support and reliability. Costing a small premium over other budget-minded options, they do include some nice features... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Hosting Plans
90 days	Unlimited	FREE (1 year)	www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress

2.

Bluehost.com

Monthly Starting Price $2.95

• Formally endorsed by WordPress
• VPS technology and included CDN
• ManageWP pre-installed
• Automated data backups
• 63% discount exclusively for HostingAdvice shoppers
• Get started on Bluehost now.

WORDPRESS
RATING

4.9

★★★★★

See Reviews

Bluehost: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 5 minutes

Ryan Frankel (HostingAdvice.com): Aimed at personal bloggers and first-time users, Bluehost’s WordPress hosting packages are a great alternative to simple shared hosting. These service come at a premium, compared to Bluehost’s standard shared plans, but the WordPress optimization and... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Hosting Plans
30 days	Unlimited	FREE (1 year)	www.bluehost.com/wordpress

3.

A2Hosting.com

Monthly Starting Price $3.92

• FREE Cloudflare CDN and 1-click installs for WordPress
• Turbo Server, SSD speed boost, and A2-optimized caching
• A2-optimized WP plugins for performance and security
• SSL certificates, PayPal integration, and 24/7 support
• FREE HackScan and KernelCare
• Get started on A2 Hosting now.

WORDPRESS
RATING

4.9

★★★★★

See Reviews

A2 Hosting: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 4 minutes

Alexandra Leslie (HostingAdvice.com): If shared web hosting is what you need, A2 Hosting is the perfect host to help launch your site with your choice of CMS, including WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and others. As part of A2's promise to emphasize performance, they've concocted several A2-optimized... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Hosting Plans
Anytime	Unlimited RAID-10	$14.99	www.a2hosting.com/wordpress

4.

HostGator.com

Monthly Starting Price $3.95

• Easy-to-set-up WordPress hosting on shared servers
• Install WordPress with one click via cPanel dashboard
• Unlimited email addresses hosted at your domain
• 99.9% uptime guarantee means your blog stays online
• $100 in Google Adwords credit to kickstart marketing
• Get started on HostGator now.

WORDPRESS
RATING

4.8

★★★★★

See Reviews

HostGator: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 4 minutes

Ryan Frankel (HostingAdvice.com): HostGator is great for all things shared hosting, and application-specific services — such as the classic one-click-install WordPress hosting — are no exception. The team recently updated its already clean and intuitive cPanel dashboard, wherein users can... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Hosting Plans
45 days	Unlimited	$12.95	www.hostgator.com/wordpress

5.

SiteGround.com

Monthly Starting Price $3.95

• Officially endorsed by WordPress.org as a top host for WP
• FREE WordPress transfer or site setup with 1-click install
• Pre-installed Git, 3 caching levels, and FREE CDN
• FREE WordPress setup wizard, staging, and auto-updates
• 99.9% uptime, 24/7 support, and custom chat system
• Get started on SiteGround now.

WORDPRESS
RATING

4.8

★★★★★

See Reviews

SiteGround: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 6 minutes

Alexandra Leslie (HostingAdvice.com): Want a hassle-free, WordPress-compatible hosting service? SiteGround has thought of everything you need to get your site up and running. Starting with the essentials, users get free email accounts, site transfer, Cloudflare CDN, and cPanel license. Then they... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Hosting Plans
30 days	10 GB - 30 GB	New or Transfer	www.siteground.com/wordpress

See more cheap WordPress hosts »

If you weren’t already sold by the premium reliability, marketing and SEO tools, customer support, and WordPress-specific features itemized above, we’d like to sweeten the deal. We know you came here for a bargain, so be sure to capitalize on one of the current promotions happening with some of the top WordPress hosts.

Find more deals for WordPress users »

We tend to do a lot of free hosting bashing — but we’re not alone! All around the web, experts share words of wisdom and newbies share horror stories illustrating why skimping on your web hosting is just not a great idea.

Knowing the walls you’re likely to run into down the road, we have a hard time selling readers on 100% free hosting, but that doesn’t mean we don’t love it when a quality paid host offers their services for free. We love this particular F word, and one of our friends in the hosting industry is known for offering free hosting to new customers for up to a year. Check out One.com’s full review below for more info.

8.

One.com

Monthly Starting Price $2.45

• FREE site builder for easy designing
• Competitive rates based on needs
• 1-click WordPress installs with cPanel
• Unlimited email with POP3 and IMAP
• 24/7 support via email and live chat
• Get started on One.com now.

CHEAP
RATING

4.7

★★★★★

See Reviews

One.com: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 4 minutes

Roberto Sanchez (HostingAdvice.com): Affordability is a major selling point for One.com (which bodes well in the shared hosting space). They offer the bare essentials in domain and email hosting, as well as basic site building, at a cost that's hard to beat. Their pricing ranges from a quarter to... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	Cheap Hosting Plans
15 days	15 GB - 500 GB	FREE (1 year)	www.one.com/shared

Compare with the top WordPress hosts »

To recap: The best hosting providers that offer WordPress services are dirt cheap; the software itself is 100% free and easy to install and set up; and you’re likely to be welcomed into your new hosting family with other free rewards. Does it get any better? Yessiree.

Enter BoldGrid — the first-of-its-kind website builder software that lays on top of the WordPress platform to bring a drag-and-drop, what-you-see-is-what-you-get experience to the interface. Originally created by the InMotion Hosting development team, BoldGrid has become one of my favorite life hacks to recommend to friends, family, and clients. Oh, and did I mention it’s also free?

You can download BoldGrid for free, and while we recommend pairing it with parent company InMotion, the builder’s list of compatible hosting companies is growing. InMotion, Web Hosting Hub (sister host of InMotion), and A2 Hosting are among our top picks for BoldGrid-powered WordPress hosting. Get started below:

8.

BoldGrid.com

Monthly Starting Price $3.99

• FREE drag-and-drop WordPress website builder software
• WordPress pre-installed by the InMotion Hosting team
• Pre-built and customizable content with GridBlocks
• FREE WordPress themes with mobile/tablet editing views
• PayPal integration and shopping carts available
• Get started on BoldGrid now.

WORDPRESS WEBSITE BUILDER
RATING

5.0

★★★★★

See Reviews

BoldGrid: Our Expert's Review

Setup time: 7 minutes

Laura Bernheim (HostingAdvice.com): InMotion Hosting leads in shared, VPS, dedicated, and WordPress hosting, so it’s only fitting the team would craft the web’s first drag-and-drop site-building interface to sit atop WordPress. BoldGrid is a revolutionary platform that welcomes... Go to full review »

Money Back Guarantee	Disk Space	Domain Name	WordPress Website Builder Hosting Plans
90 days	Unlimited	FREE (1 year)	www.inmotionhosting.com/boldgrid

Find more website builder plans for WordPress fans »

As an admitted shopaholic, a wannabe coupon queen, and a former mathlete, I can say with confidence that the only thing better than free is a killer discount. If one of the exceptional hosts we’ve discussed here today has caught your eye and you just need a little nudge, would a coupon code help seal the deal for your business?

We’ve negotiated special pricing tiers with various hosts so we can offer exclusive discounts to HostingAdvice readers. Check out some of the best deals to be had in the WordPress realm below:

See more great hosting deals »

Go ahead — give in to the seductive powers of “free.” You’re in a safe space, and the free and almost-free options we’ve discussed here today are well worth the minimal investment.

Check back often, as we’ve made it our mission to keep our finger on the pulse of the industry. That includes finding the best opportunities to save on hosting needs. ‘Til next time, hosting shoppers!