Most free blogs come with a catch: a platform address, ads, or a paywall on your own domain. We compared 13 free blogging platforms on what their free plans really include, and picked the best one for each kind of blog.
Disclosure: we make Outrank Blogs, one of the platforms on this page. Every platform is judged on the same criteria, from its own pricing and help pages, last checked October 2026. Where another platform is the better choice, we say so.
HashnodeDevelopers writing inside a tech community
Free
Pro, $5/month
Hashnode branding
Pro headless only
WixSmall businesses that want a whole website, blog included
Free
From $17/month
Wix banner ad
No
KitCreators who sell products and need email first
Free to 10,000 subscribers
Free
Kit branding
Not documented
Bear BlogMinimalists who want a fast, text-first blog
Free
Paid upgrade
No ads
No
TumblrFandom and visual creators who want social reach
Free
Tumblr-bought domains
Ads possible
No
GitHub PagesDevelopers comfortable with Git and Markdown
Free (public repos)
Free
None
Only if the site is on Pages
The full list
The 13 best free blogging platforms
1.
Outrank Blogs
Our product
Best for: Businesses that want search traffic on their own domain
A free hosted blog built for businesses: your own domain or a subfolder like yourbrand.com/blog at no cost, no ads, and the SEO plumbing set up for you. It is one of the few free platforms that lets you use your own domain, and one of the very few that officially supports a subfolder of your website on its free plan, with setup guides for common hosts.
Free plan
Free up to 10,000 visits a month per blog, with unlimited posts and pages and no credit card
Your own domain
Free: a subdomain like blog.yourbrand.com or a domain used only for the blog. You only pay your registrar
Ads and branding
No ads, ever. Free blogs show a small “Published with Outrank” badge in the footer
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Free, with step-by-step guides for Next.js, Vercel, Netlify, Cloudflare and nginx
Why pick it
Your own domain or subfolder on the free plan, so every post builds your site’s authority
Sitemap, structured data, redirects, IndexNow and llms.txt set up automatically
Free blogs on outrankblog.com are indexed too, and Outrank never adds ads
Five templates with dark mode, email sign-up forms and cookieless analytics
3 free AI-written posts, and an optional autopilot plan ($99/month) that writes 30 SEO articles a month
Watch out for
The free plan covers 10,000 visits a month; two months over it pauses new posts until you upgrade (the blog stays online)
Collects email subscribers but does not send newsletters; you send from your own email tool
New: launched in October 2026, with five templates and no plugin ecosystem
Best for: Personal and hobby blogs that must stay free at any size
Google’s free blogging service has no paid tiers, no visit limit, and lets you connect a domain you bought elsewhere at no charge. It feels dated, and it has no built-in email subscriptions since Google shut down its follow-by-email widget in 2021.
Free plan
Free, with no paid tiers and no visit limit
Your own domain
Free: connect a domain from any registrar; Blogger charges nothing
Ads and branding
No platform ads; AdSense only if you turn it on
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: a root domain or subdomain only
Why pick it
Free custom domain with no visit limit
Run by Google since 1999
Built-in AdSense if you want ads
Watch out for
No built-in email subscriptions
Few modern themes; design changes mean editing theme HTML
Best for: Beginners who want WordPress without managing hosting
The hosted version of WordPress. The free plan includes 1 GB of storage and emails every post to subscribers, but shows WordPress.com ads to visitors and keeps you on a wordpress.com address. A custom domain starts with the Personal plan at $4 a month billed yearly ($9 billed monthly).
Free plan
Free forever, with 1 GB of storage and no plugins
Your own domain
Needs a paid plan: Personal, $4/month billed yearly or $9 billed monthly
Ads and branding
Free sites show WordPress.com ads to visitors
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: WordPress.com cannot create a subdirectory
Why pick it
Emails every post to unlimited subscribers on the free plan
The WordPress editor and ecosystem, with plugins on every paid plan
A newsletter platform where every post can land in subscribers’ inboxes, with paid subscriptions built in. Publishing is free with no subscriber cap; Substack keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue, and a custom domain is a one-time $50 fee.
Free plan
Free with unlimited subscribers; Substack keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue
Your own domain
A one-time $50 fee per publication
Ads and branding
No ads; the site is Substack-branded
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: the custom domain must be a subdomain such as www.
Why pick it
Email delivery and paid subscriptions built in
Discovery through the Substack app and recommendations
Free to start, with no subscriber limit
Watch out for
The 10% revenue share grows with your income
Limited design and SEO control, and no subfolder
Posts build substack.com’s authority unless you pay for a domain
Best for: Writers who want readers more than their own site
A publishing network with a built-in audience. Writing is free, there are no ads, and readers can get your stories by email. You give up design and most SEO control, posts live on medium.com, and a custom domain needs a Medium membership ($5 a month or $50 a year).
Free plan
Free to write and publish
Your own domain
Needs an active Medium membership: $5/month or $50/year
Ads and branding
No ads; Medium’s design and branding throughout
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: Medium cannot connect a subdirectory
Why pick it
A large reader network that can discover your posts
Zero setup: write and publish
Stories can be emailed to your followers
Watch out for
Posts build medium.com, not your own domain
No themes, plugins or custom calls to action
Writers no longer receive subscriber email addresses
Best for: Newsletter-first creators who plan to monetize
A newsletter platform with a website, free up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends. It takes 0% of paid subscription revenue, but a custom domain and paid subscriptions start with the Lite plan at $49 a month billed yearly.
Free plan
Free up to 2,500 subscribers, with unlimited sends
Your own domain
Needs the Lite plan: $49/month billed yearly or $59 billed monthly
Ads and branding
beehiiv branding on Free and Lite; removable on Pro
Best for: B2B marketers who already use HubSpot’s CRM
HubSpot’s free Content Hub tools include one blog of up to 100 posts and free custom domain connection, tied into HubSpot’s CRM and forms. Pages carry HubSpot branding until you move to a paid Starter plan.
Free plan
Free: one blog with up to 100 posts and 30 website pages
Your own domain
Free custom domain connection
Ads and branding
HubSpot branding until you upgrade to Starter
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Only through a reverse proxy you run yourself; HubSpot support does not set it up
Best for: Developers writing inside a tech community
A free blog for developers on a hashnode.dev address, with community reach and a built-in newsletter. Since June 2026, new custom domains need Hashnode Pro ($5 a month or $50 a year), which also removes the Hashnode branding.
Free plan
Free, with unlimited articles on one publication
Your own domain
Needs Hashnode Pro since June 2026: $5/month or $50/year
Ads and branding
“Powered by Hashnode” branding until you upgrade
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Only with Pro’s headless mode and your own front end
Best for: Small businesses that want a whole website, blog included
A drag-and-drop website builder with a blog app that works on the free plan. Free sites live on a wixsite.com address with a Wix banner ad; a custom domain starts with the Light plan at $17 a month billed yearly.
Free plan
Free with no time limit, on a wixsite.com address
Your own domain
Needs a Premium plan: Light, $17/month billed yearly
Ads and branding
Free sites show a Wix banner ad at the top
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No documented way to run the blog at /blog of a site hosted elsewhere
Why pick it
Easy visual editor for the whole website
Hundreds of templates
Blog, booking and store in one place
Watch out for
Banner ad and wixsite.com address on the free plan
Best for: Creators who sell products and need email first
Formerly ConvertKit. The free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited broadcasts, landing pages and a newsletter site on your own domain. The site is a simple newsletter archive rather than a full blog.
Best for: Minimalists who want a fast, text-first blog
A tiny, privacy-friendly blog with no trackers, ads or scripts. The free plan is deliberately bare: no image uploads and no custom domain, both of which come with a paid upgrade.
Free plan
Free on a bearblog.dev address
Your own domain
Needs the paid upgrade
Ads and branding
No ads or trackers; a small “Made with Bear” footer
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: a root domain or subdomain only
Why pick it
Extremely fast pages
No trackers or ads
Nothing to configure
Watch out for
No image uploads or email capture on the free plan
Best for: Fandom and visual creators who want social reach
A free blog inside a social network, great for reblogs and community, weak for search traffic. New custom domains must be bought through Tumblr (a .com is $12 a year), and Tumblr has started showing ads on blog sites.
Free plan
Free blog on a tumblr.com address
Your own domain
Only domains bought through Tumblr, such as a .com for $12/year
Ads and branding
Ads can appear on blog sites unless you pay for Premium
Best for: Developers comfortable with Git and Markdown
Free static hosting from GitHub, with your own domain at no cost. Pair it with Jekyll or Hugo for a blog. Everything happens in Git and Markdown, and GitHub says it is not meant for e-commerce or SaaS sites.
Free plan
Free for public repositories
Your own domain
Free: root domains and subdomains
Ads and branding
No ads or branding
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Only when your main site is also on GitHub Pages, or behind your own proxy
These have no free hosted plan, but they come up in every comparison, so here is how they fit.
14.
WordPress.org (self-hosted)
Best for: Teams that want full control and plugins
The open-source WordPress software is free, but you pay for hosting and run updates, security and backups yourself. In return you get every theme and plugin, and you can install it in a subfolder like yourbrand.com/blog.
Free plan
The software is free; hosting and a domain are not
Best for: Independent publishers running paid memberships
A polished publishing platform with built-in newsletters and memberships, and 0% fees on paid subscriptions. Ghost(Pro) has no free plan: Starter is $15 a month billed yearly and cannot take paid subscriptions, which start with Publisher at $29 a month billed yearly. The open-source version is free if you run your own server.
Free plan
No free hosted plan; a 14-day trial, or self-host for free
Your own domain
Included from Starter: $15/month billed yearly
Ads and branding
No ads on any plan
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
A +$50/month add-on on the Business plan, or self-hosted behind your own proxy
Best for: Design-focused small businesses that want polished templates
A website builder known for its templates, with a capable built-in blog. There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial; Basic costs $19 a month billed annually ($25 month to month) and includes a free domain for the first year on annual plans.
Free plan
No free plan; a 14-day trial with a private site
Your own domain
Every paid plan, from Basic at $19/month billed annually
Ads and branding
No ads on paid sites
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
No: it cannot run at /blog of a site hosted elsewhere
Best for: Designers who want full visual control plus a CMS
A professional visual builder. The free Starter plan stays on a webflow.io address with a “Made in Webflow” badge and a 50-item CMS. A blog on your own domain needs the Premium plan at $25 a month billed yearly; Basic ($15) has no CMS.
Free plan
Free Starter plan: 2 static pages and 50 CMS items
Your own domain
A blog on your domain needs Premium: $25/month billed yearly
Ads and branding
“Made in Webflow” badge on the free plan
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Possible with your own reverse proxy on a paid plan; Webflow support does not set it up
Best for: Startups building visual marketing sites fast
A design-first site builder with a built-in CMS. The free plan is meant for non-commercial use, on a framer.website address with a “Made in Framer” badge. A custom domain starts with Basic at $10 a month billed yearly, which allows 2 CMS collections.
Free plan
Free plan intended for non-commercial use
Your own domain
Needs a paid plan: Basic, $10/month billed yearly
Ads and branding
“Made in Framer” badge until you connect a domain
Blog at yourbrand.com/blog
Only on Pro with the Advanced Hosting add-on, or Enterprise
It depends on the job. For a business that wants Google traffic on its own website, Outrank Blogs: your own domain or subfolder is free and there are no ads. For a personal blog with no traffic limit, Blogger. For a newsletter, Substack or beehiiv. For reach inside an existing audience, Medium.
Which free blogging platforms let you use your own domain?
Only a few, as of October 2026: Outrank Blogs, Blogger, HubSpot’s free CMS (up to 100 posts, with HubSpot branding), Kit (a newsletter site rather than a full blog) and GitHub Pages (for developers). WordPress.com, Medium, Wix, beehiiv, Hashnode and Bear Blog need a paid plan, and Substack charges a one-time $50 fee.
Is there truly free blog hosting?
Yes. Blogger, Outrank Blogs, WordPress.com, Substack, Medium and others host your blog for free. The catches are the address (often the platform’s domain), ads on some free plans, and limits: Outrank Blogs is free up to 10,000 visits a month, and WordPress.com gives you 1 GB of storage.
Can a free blog live at yourbrand.com/blog?
With Outrank Blogs, yes: a subfolder is supported on the free plan, with setup guides for Next.js, Vercel, Netlify, Cloudflare and nginx. Self-hosted WordPress and Ghost can also run in a subfolder, but you pay for hosting. Ghost(Pro) offers it as a paid add-on on its Business plan.
Will a free blog rank on Google?
It can. On a platform address, though, your posts build the platform’s authority rather than yours. If the blog exists to bring customers to your business, publish on your own domain or a subfolder of your website.
Which free blogging platforms have no ads?
Outrank Blogs, Blogger (unless you turn on AdSense), Substack, Medium, Bear Blog and GitHub Pages show no platform ads. WordPress.com and Wix show their own ads on free sites, and Tumblr can show ads on blog sites.
Start today
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