15 Best: Web Hosting for Artists & Art Portfolio Builders (2024)

The woes of the struggling artists are nothing new, but the best web hosting for artists are setting out to reverse the stereotype. By enabling more and more painters, photographers, sculptors, and other visual artists to quickly and easily showcase their work online, hosting providers and website builders are helping them bypass galleries on the way to success.

Whether you opt for a website builder and template or a do-it-yourself web hosting plan, the platforms come with the gallery space and shopping carts needed to exhibit and sell your work — all without exorbitant fees or headache-inducing technology configurations.

Although not all artists have the opportunity to exhibit in the Met or the Guggenheim, millions are finding fame (and sometimes fortune) by showcasing their works on the web. Having an online presence has become essential for today’s creatives. So, here, we’ll walk through the top hosts in the industry that can help artists of any type reach modern connoisseurs in a digital medium.

Best Value | Site Builder | WordPress | Ecommerce | Themes | Domains | Free

The image of the starving artist is a long-standing trope in Western society. For some, sacrificing health, wealth, and social status for creative works seems a noble and romantic way to live. But, famed author of tales of the everyday man, Charles Bukowski, disagrees. “A man could write much better after eating a porterhouse steak and drinking a pint of whiskey than he could ever write after eating a nickel candy bar,” he wrote. “The myth of the starving artist was a hoax.”

In today’s web-centric environment, artists now have an opportunity to break from the shackles of working menial jobs and eke out a good living through their true passions. An increasing number of creatives are making money off their work, and, for many, cheap hosting is making this a reality.

Below you’ll find our top-rated price-friendly hosts. But don’t let their low cost fool you. These providers are not only easy on the wallet, but they also offer feature-rich hosting plans that give site owners the ability to construct professional-grade websites to showcase portfolios in the best possible light. Be sure to read the full reviews linked in the tables below to learn how each of these hosts can help you develop your online exhibition hall.

See more cheap host reviews »

It’s probably safe to say that most creatives, by nature, have a keen eye for design. It takes precise attention to detail to create compelling works of art. However, there’s a huge divide between sculpting, painting, or shooting a masterpiece and being able to leverage effective web design to your advantage. And, if your site is poorly or improperly designed, your online audience won’t be sticking around for long.

Not to worry — if you’re a prodigy with a brush and canvas but have no idea what HTML and JavaScript are, the top-rated hosts below provide intuitive web builders that allow the creation of aesthetically pleasing sites without the need to code. In a drag-and-drop environment, artists can build out galleries, portfolio pages, and online storefronts on which to share and sell their work.

In many cases, getting up and running online only takes a few minutes. Check out the full reviews in the following tables to see how these tools and artist-specific templates can project your art to online patrons.

See more website builder reviews »

Artists have come to love WordPress because of the more than 52,000 plugins developed for the open-source blogging platform that allow for the full customization of sites. And hundreds of these plugins were built specifically for portfolios. Nearly 30% of the web is powered by WordPress; so, to set your site apart from the pack and ensure it’s performing at optimal levels, it’s integral to partner with a host that offers full compatibility with the software.

Not all WordPress hosting is created equal. When looking for an effective provider, site owners need to consider feature sets that include one-click installs of the platform, plugin compatibility, and the number of WordPress sites that come as part of hosting packages.

Below are our top-three rated hosts for site owners running WordPress. The reviews in the tables provide valuable insight into all the features that make these providers the cream of the crop when it comes to WordPress and will help you decide where you’re going to power your creative work much easier.

See more WordPress host reviews »

What good is your online portfolio if you can’t sell a piece or two? Thankfully for artists who may not be comfortable with setting up and securing an online store or shopping cart software, the hosts we list below take care of all the nitty-gritty details like payment processing and inventory management.

These all-in-one solutions cover your store’s design, product listings, and checkout process, with ample support available as questions arise. Installing a shopping cart is not nearly as difficult as you may fear, as the hosts will ensure your customers’ and patrons’ personal and financial data is protected and give them the confidence to return and acquire new pieces.

See more ecommerce host reviews »

In the early days of the web, deep wallets and technical proficiency were prerequisites to get professionally designed sites up and running. But these are no longer barriers to entry into the web’s business space — and artists should take note.

Many of today’s web hosts offer beautifully designed templates to act as foundations for a creative’s online presence. As a result, artists can get their ideas and work on the web without needing programming knowledge.

The themes offered by our top-rated host for site design below give site owners more than a blank canvas. The site builder’s drag-and-drop environment, coupled with the theme’s paint-by-numbers-like platform, offers a road map to create effective web designs that will wow prospective clients and buyers. Give our full review in the table below a read and learn how this host’s themes make site design a simple, intuitive process.

See more template-friendly host reviews »

We’ve covered the basics of why it’s integral for artists to build web presence in today’s digital-centric landscape. However, a fundamental component of carving out a niche online is your site’s domain name.

Custom domains help boost name recognition and credibility and help your fans find you. Your domain is usually a web consumer’s first encounter with your brand, and this can make or break how they view your business and you as an artist.

Below is our most highly ranked host offering custom domains as part of its basic packages. If you’re looking to differentiate yourself with a domain tailored to your brand, read our full review in the following table to see how this host can help.

See more domain host reviews »

Steady, paying work for creatives has always fluctuated with the economy. When things are booming, people are buying wall hangers. If we’re in a bust cycle, consumers tend to hesitate when it comes to buying art.

As a result, most artists seek creative ways to manage their budgets no matter the state of the economy, and leveraging free web hosting is one of the tricks of the trade. Many creatives are finding Wix’s free hosting service as a solution to help them stay in the public eye without breaking the bank. Wix’s free plan includes a Wix.com subdomain and host-branded ads. Site owners going the no-cost route get access to one of the industry’s premiere site builders, 500MB of storage, and a mobile version of their site.

For artists looking to build out their brands and deliver a more professional appeal, Wix offers premium plans for only a few bucks. Just $0.00 per month gets you a custom domain — the benefits of which we’ve discussed above. Wix’s pricing tiers vary by need, and the more you spend, the more features you’ll get. Click on our full review in the table below to see if Wix’s free or premium plans are right for your budding art site.

See more free host reviews »

When his exhibit The Weather Project premiered at London’s Tate Modern art gallery, Olafur Eliasson had people talking. They weren’t just granting one another the daily cordialities of how sunny or cloudy it was outside. These patrons were conversing on what the artist’s creations meant, sparking existential discussions on humanity’s place in the cosmos and what, in fact, the weather had to do with anything.

And, if you’re an artist, that’s really the point — to get people to see your perspective on life and think about the way we live it. However, modern artists don’t have to have massive displays in the world’s most prestigious museums to do so. All that’s needed are ideas, compelling work, and a website. And the top-rated hosts presented here are the ideal starting points to invite patrons to visit your personal gallery.

Getting going is just a few clicks away, and you don’t need to worry about breaking the bank. Starving artists can create their online gallery space for just a few dollars per month and enjoy immense exposure. Leverage open-source technologies and search for free themes to stretch your money further.

If you’re a newbie to the web development game and still apprehensive about creating a platform to showcase your work, take a look at our beginners’ guide. This will give you peace of mind that getting online’s easier than talking about the weather.