WordPress.org is open-source software that has enabled many people to start blogs. It is so popular given that it powers 24% of all sites on the internet. All blogs created with this tool often perform well for SEO. The fact that this is open-source software means you can modify the code, thus, gaining absolute control over your site. You will be in charge of things such as images, colors, and fonts of your website. However, you need money to hire a designer or coding knowledge to take advantage of this flexibility. With this freedom, you can put an array of features to your site, for example:
WordPress.org is particularly popular among technical bloggers since it enables them to create multiple sites. All said it remains an excellent software that can convert writers into accomplished bloggers over time.
The cost of WordPress.org varies depending on what you want to build. Other things that affect pricing include premium plugins and templates. That said, on the lower end, you can expect to use WordPress.org at $46 per year.
Weebly is one of the top drag-and-drop site builders in the market. Its ease of use interface makes it one of the best blogging platforms. All you have to do is click and point to add a weblog to your site and post content onto it.
With Weebly, you do not have to possess HTML knowledge to create a site and add a weblog page to it. The software handles all of the technical operations in the back-end, ensuring that your blog is accessible to visitors and loads fast.
There are several templates to choose from, and an adequate level of customization is allowed. Other than that, you can add various features to your weblog, such as:
Comprehensive analytics on your weblog’s performance.
With this feature, scheduled publishing is possible and straightforward. You can plan for your weblog to go live at a specific time. Therefore, if you develop it during the day, but the tool’s analytics indicate that your visitors engage in the evening, you can decide to delay the publication.
You can create your site on any of the available pricing plans. There is a free subscription, Connect plan ($5 per month), Pro plan ($12 per month) and the Business plan ($25 per month). If you want to remove Weebly ads to make your weblog professional, you might want to subscribe for the Weebly Connect plan.
It is an intuitive builder that allows you to integrate a weblog to your site in a click of a button. Wix remains one of the top-rated website builders for blogs and currently has an excess of 100 million registered users. Wix has an array of templates to choose from to enable users to create the best personal blogs.
Recently, this builder revamped its content editor. Therefore, you can now do the following with the software:
With the Wix Editor, you will create your weblog with excellent personalization options. It is great on mobile too enabling you to update your weblog on mobile devices without any hassle. This way, this tool becomes useful, especially when you are on the move.
It is also worth mentioning that Wix offers premium assistance on email and phone. Therefore, it is a good choice for those who are new to blog website builders.
Wix has four plans, namely Connect Domain at $4.50 per month, Combo at $8.50 each month, Unlimited at $12.50 monthly, and VIP at $24 per month.
It is a weblog hosting service from the owners of WordPress.org, Automattic. You can start your weblog on the builder for free, but if you need additional features, for example, your domain name and more storage, you have to pay extra. If you want to eliminate the WordPress.com logo from your site, you have to be on a paid plan. It is a drag-and-drop builder that allows you to create the best blog sites by moving different elements on the interface.
It is excellent for SEO and sites built with it have excellent infrastructure as well as load speeds. It is one of the best blog website builders because it is quick to set up and easy to understand. Furthermore, it comes with industry-leading features such as:
WordPress offers several pricing plans- Free, Blogger ($3 monthly), Personal ($5 monthly), Premium ($8 monthly), Business ($25 monthly), and eCommerce ($45 monthly.)
It is the best site to start a blog, especially for designers and artists due to its fantastic templates and professional look. Squarespace is renowned among users for its beautiful models catering to different industries.
Moreover, the templates allow you to post content to your weblog in an excellent way. Apart from that, there are first-rate features like 3D scrolling and grid layout that give your weblog a distinctive look. Some of the features this builder offers include:
Squarespace allows you to start with a free trial. After that, you can upgrade to the Personal ($12 monthly), Business ($18 monthly), Basic Commerce ($26 monthly), or Advanced Commerce ($40 monthly.)
Blogger is one of the oldest blog websites and the most popular blog sites. Launched back in 2003 by Google, it is free, reliable, and easy to use. Like other tools, you are responsible for the hosting and the speed of your site. However, you will get a free SSL security certificate.
Google hosts weblogs created on this software if you do not pay for a custom domain. Your Google account is linked to your Blogger, allowing you to manage both with much ease. You can monetize your weblog using Google AdSense.
Blogger is free.
Tumblr is a top-rated micro-blogging website that hosts more than four hundred million blogs. Founded in 2007 this site enables you to upload content you create fast, easy, and for free. However, you can also buy a template among the paid ones to add them to your weblog. This tool supports a variety of content type, including articles and images. Tumblr also has a community, much like social media networks. It is, however, most ideal, for short-form content that readers can click and share.
Much like Blogger, the opportunities for growth are limited. For example, the infrastructure available does not allow for social media marketing, building advanced pages, or experimenting with different layouts. It is also tricky to backup blogs that are created on Tumblr. As this tool is primarily for short online content, SEO is also much more challenging to do as compared to using other platforms like WordPress.org.
Setting up blogs and uploading content is free. However, you may incur costs if you opt for a custom domain or add apps and themes provided by third parties.
Overall, Tumblr is one of the best personal blogs, hobby blogs, and micro-blogs builder. It is worth looking at if you are interested in publishing short clickable and sharable posts rather than long text.
For those looking for own simple and stylish blogs but don’t have the technical skills to build one, Strikingly is the best. This platform is not only free but also very easy to use. This builder will help you design and launch a weblog where you can share your thoughts, experiences, or talent in no time. However, Strikingly is best for setting up one-page sites. By adding the tool’s Simple weblog feature, you can enjoy a wide range of site tools such as RSS feed, analytics, subscription, search function, categories, social bookmarking, and comments section.
Though you can only build one page on the Strikingly free plan, adding numerous posts won’t slow down or overload your site. The headings of each post will appear on the site where the reader can click on an article they wish to read, and it opens on a new page. Therefore, your homepage remains clean and easily navigable.
Among the features available on the free package include 24/7 support, unlimited sites to build for free, 5GB monthly bandwidth, and the freedom to sell a single product on each site. However, your domain name will bear include strikingly.com. However, you can choose to upgrade in any of the three premium plans to connect a custom domain. A key advantage of Strikingly is that you can integrate your site with social media.
There is a plan that does not cost money as well as paid plans. The Limited plan goes for $8 monthly and allows up to 5 products on one site (allows 2 Limited sites and unlimited free sites). The Pro plan costs $16/month and offers unlimited bandwidth, 3 pro sites, mobile action buttons, among other features. The most expensive plan is the VIP and includes everything in Pro, 5 Pro sites, newsletter sending options, priority customer service, among others.
If you are looking for a builder that will give you great help as you build your blog, SITE123 is worth a shot. This tool is intuitive and simple to understand how it is used. It comes with a live chat feature that makes it extra convenient to contact support whenever you get stuck. Much easier to handle than most builders you will come by, SITE123 has lots of beautiful templates and intuitive site editor. It also gives you free domain registration and hosting, mobile-responsive designs, SEO tools, and the option to do business by establishing an online store. This platform handles all the technical bits and allows you to focus on creating content for your readers.
With a free website, you can share posts with your social media followers too. Some features you can expect from this tool include blog-specific templates, posts’ scheduling, comments system with a reply tool, comment auto-confirmation, integration with social media, and RSS.
Another great thing about SITE123 is that you get to access to the builder’s App Market. Here, you get lots of additional free and premium features to add to your site. Examples include live chat apps and Google Analytics. Similar to SITE123 builder, the market is also very easy to navigate.
Each year we conduct Website Builder Reviews from the previous years to find the best website builder or the best business website builder that can easily create a nice, functional website quickly. View an At-a-Glance Comparison Chart for each right here!
These website builders require no software download and can easily be used online through your browser. When we do a Website Builder Review, we are also looking for the easiest to use Ecommerce Software Solution integrated with the website builder.
Blogging is an excellent way of connecting with the outside world. Through a blog, you can express the love for your interests, connect with your followers on a more personal level, or promote a specific brand. But how do you get started? In this post, we will review the popular blog website builders in the market right now.
Before anything else, it is essential to appreciate that blogging goes beyond posting photographs and writing content. Also, it is about choosing the best blogging platform to meet your needs. You want a platform that is quite easy to use and offers an array of customization options to provide your readers with the content they need.
If you are only starting, it makes sense to settle on a platform that is suitable for beginners. In most cases, it means you do not want a tool that requires you to work on CSS and HTML code. However, if you have been blogging for some time, it is okay to want a platform with a code editor to give you more personalization capabilities.
Moreover, you have to decide if you want to pay for the functionalities of various paid platforms or work with the limited features availed by free builders. Here, your decision will be influenced by what your site will focus on and whether you want to earn from it.
Today, there are many website builders for blog with paid and free plans that are useful, especially when your site becomes big. That said, below are reviews of top blog sites providing an overview, the pros, and cons of each.
Here are things to consider to ensure that you pick the best blog sites:
Assessing these factors will depend on your goals, requirements, and skills. Have them at the back of your mind as we review the popular blog sites in the market. Now, here is the list of blog sites we will compare:
These are the most popular blog sites. But how do you know which ones to choose? Here are answers to a couple of vital questions you should ask yourself when comparing different blog websites:
If you are not a software developer, there are only two straightforward ways of building a blog. One, you can hire a website developer. Developers are people who are skilled and qualified in website creation. Prices for developing a site through a developer vary greatly depending on who you hire. The other, much simpler and cheaper method, is using a website builder.
These tools usually come with drag-and-drop editors that allow you to personalize pre-designed blog templates to your preferences. You can pick from among the builders reviewed here. To know which one is the best for you, think about your preferences, the features, number of pages you want to add to your website, and most importantly, your skills. Also, note that some builders are not specially created for blogs but may support a blog within site.
You can turn your blogging venture into a money-making gig by monetizing your site. There are many ways to earn money from blogging. The most common way of making money from a weblog is by placing ads. With ads, you register your site to a digital advertising program such as Google AdSense.
Ads are placed on your site, and you earn a fixed amount of money for a certain number of views or through pay-per-click basis. Pay-per-click means that you earn some money every time a visitor clicks on an advert on your site.
Another way to make money through blogging is by adding affiliate links in your posts. In this case, a seller permits you to advertise a product they are selling on your site. For every sale they receive from your site, you earn a predetermined commission. Additional ways to make money include selling private ads, selling digital products such as eBooks, online courses, etc.
If you plan to monetize your site, make sure you choose a builder that supports such growth. Good suggestions include WordPress.org, Weebly, and Blogger.
There are several ways you can spread the word about your blog, and as a result, drive more traffic to it. Some popular methods include:
Even word of mouth and encouraging your friends to share your posts can go a long way in increasing your site traffic. When choosing a blog builder, check that it supports the avenues/ channels you intend to use for marketing (email, social media, SEO, etc.).
What you intend to concentrate on should influence the website creation platform you choose. For example, a photographer needs a handy tool that allows them to showcase their talent to potential clients. Therefore, the tool you pick should not only support high-quality images, but also offer lots of storage space, good visuals, and photography-related templates. For photography, you could try Squarespace, as it offers high-quality features. Different tools shine in different niches. So, check what is available in your specialization.
Your blog’s success will start with the building process. If you, for example, choose a limited tool, scaling later can become a problem. The same case with making changes to your site once published (some builders don’t provide this option). So, to be successful, outline your goals first. Then, compare these platforms to see how they align with what you want to achieve from blogging. Also, take advantage of promotion functions, if the site developer offers any, to reach more people. As a bonus tip, for growing your new blog, post and share your content often. Fresh content can bring more people to your site and earn you more subscriptions.
For the most basic blogging site, Blogger is ideal. Weebly and Strikingly are great for building beautiful but simple blogs. Wix is a good choice for those who wish to integrate blogs into websites. For clickable content, pick Tumblr. If you want a builder that provides high-quality images and professional templates, Squarespace is the way to go.
WordPress.org and WordPress.com are wonderful choices for those who are a little experienced and are looking for a more powerful and technical tool than the ones mentioned above. Finally, those who need support in building their blogs can go for SITE123. The overall best blogging platform is WordPress.org because it can be fully customized and has built the many blogs you see today. But it is not as easy to use Weebly or Wix.
While these are the best blog sites suggestions available in the market, each has both pros and cons. Remember, these sites come in different types. There are those that are referred to as self-hosted blogging platforms, there are also site builders that support blogging, and then there are hosted blog websites. The ideal choice, therefore, will depend on your goals, expertise, preferences as well as needs for your blog.
