12 Best Blogging Platforms For 2024: Ranked and Reviewed

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best blogging platform

Your dream of owning a blog is about to come true, but you don’t know which blogging platform to use.

There are many good ones, and it can be a tough choice. This article will tell you more about each blogging platform so you can choose the best that fits your business..

My recommendation for most people is WordPress with BlueHost, because it is easy to set up without limit of what you can do such as customisation, design etc.

Building a good blog for your business or for the purpose of making money depends on the platform you choose.

Here are the list of the best five blogging platforms and blog sites to help you decide which one is the best for your need.

Top 5 Blogging Platforms and Blog Sites For 2024

WordPress with Bluehost: Best Overall

Wix : Best for beginners to build quality blog

Web.com: Among the popular blogging platform

Hubspot CMS: Is a great plugging platform that provides everything you need for a blogging business

Gator: Gator is owned by one of the best hosts, Hostigator, and it is worth trying.

2024 Best Blogging Platforms For Bloggers

There are many blogging platforms for different needs. Now, let’s see the advantages and disadvantages of each of the best blogging platforms.

But if you re short of time, I advise you to choose among the top listed above and start building your blog and grow your business.

1. WordPress.org

wordpress-blogging platform

WordPress, the most popular blogging platform globally, started in 2003. It has powered more than 43% of all the websites on the internet. WordPress.org is different from wordpress.com because wordpress.com is a blog hosting service.

WordPress.org is an open-source, free blogging platform that helps you build your blog or website.

WordPress.org is a self-hosted service. It means that you need a WordPress hosting provider to sign up to utilise it well. The WordPress software is free but requires buying a domain name and hosting. This is your best bet if you want complete control of your blog.

Pros 

Here are a few reasons why you should use wordpress.org.

  • You can add extra features like an online store, forum, and membership sites as your business grows.
  • Many themes are available on the WordPress platform, both free and paid. This gives you the choice of creating a beautiful website for your business.
  • WordPress.org gives you maximum control over all aspects of your blog.
  • If you want to make money with your blog, then wordpress.org is your best option.
  • You will have access to over 50,000 plugins for your business or website.
  • WordPress is search engine friendly, so your blog can easily rank high in search engines.
  • You can have dynamic content on your site to easily add videos, social media feeds, graphs, Adsense, charts and more without being technically inclined.
  • You can also add Google Analytics to your website. This enables you to see the vital stats about your site.

Cons

  • You need a little time to learn how to use it properly.
  • You will need to manage your security and backups with WordPress.org security.

Blogging With WordPress

Blogging with WordPress is simply the best CMS, and we host this blog on WordPress using Siteground hosting.

If you plan to build a profitable blog that can drive millions of visitors with good monetisation to generate income or use it to grow your business, then WordPress is the way to go.

The only thing is that it requires a learning curve if you re new to blogging and WordPress.But there are many tutorials online that can guide you.

There are thousands of WordPress themes you can find for free on WordPress.org to customise your blog. This is one of the benefits of using WordPress to host your blog.

In addition, Plugins: WordPress makes it simple to create amazing websites with thousands of plugins available to choose.

The new WordPress Gutenberg makes it easy to edit your page with an amazing page editor. Wix and Squarespace lack most of these features, and that is one of the reasons to choose wordpress.org for your blog.

Choosing a Host

To create your website using WordPress, you need two things: Web hosting and domain. After getting domain and web hosting, you need to set up your site, and it only takes a few minutes.

There are many web hosting companies you can choose from, but I recommend starting with BleuHost as a beginner.

With BleuHost, you can host a faster website without extra cost. So, make sure to sign up for an account with Bluehost. Another good thing about BlueHost is that you get a free domain for one year.

In addition, the cost to host your blog is not as high as other hosting platforms, and you can start from just $.3,99 per month.

Final Thought On WordPress

Hosting your blog on WordPress is the best option you can take if you want to build a long-term business. And you can’t go wrong with WordPress, as it gives you everything you need, starting from customisation, design, loading faster, SEO and more.

It allows you to monetise your blog, generate income and build a profitable blogging business for the long term.

2. Web.com

This popular website builder platform has a built-in feature that helps you add a blog to your website. You can also create an online store as the platform is straightforward.

You can choose from dozens of pre-made templates and customise them to your taste, starting from $1.95. Web.com has excellent features like blog security, SEO tools, autosave, backup, website analytics and more.

Web.com offers flexible pricing plans. The starter plan comes with a drag-and-drop site builder, hundreds of templates, a blogging platform, a free domain and thousand of free stock images and costs $1.95 per month.

They have a marketing plan with powerful SEO tools for only $2.95 a month, and an eCommerce plan with features starting at $3.95 a month.

Pros

Here are some of the pros of this blogging platform.

  • It is a beginner-friendly blogging platform with a drag-and-drop website builder that requires no coding.
  • It has affordable pricing. The starting price of $1.95 per month has all the essential features.
  • It has lots of fully customisable templates for your blog.
  • A free domain is included with all paid plans.
  • They offer continuous 24/7 customer service via email, phone and live chat.
  • Web.com has an easy set-up as the website takes care of all the technical details of hosting your site.

Cons

  • Switching to another website later is difficult as web.com is a proprietary website builder.
  • Their app system or extensions are small, so you won’t have many plugins like WordPress.
  • Its blogging features are not as powerful as WordPress.

3. Wix

Another popular blogging platform is Wix. Wix.com is a well-known blogging-hosted platform for building websites with over 11 million users worldwide. Mix was founded in 2006 as a platform where people can create beautiful websites without the required coding skills.

They have a drag-and-drop website builder that allows small businesses to build a website quickly and add a blog.

The basic Wix website builder is free. But with this plan, you will get a subdomain with the Wix site, for example- yoursitename.wixsite.com. You can add a custom domain for $4.50 per month. They have premium plans that start at $8.50 a month and go up to $24.50 monthly.

Pros

  • The setup for Wix is easy and fast.
  • You can build your site with their easy drag-and-drop builder, with no need for coding skills.
  • With Wix, you can customise your site using various third-party apps and templates.

Cons

  • The free account of Wix is limited and shows the Wix branding and ads only on your site.
  • They have limited third-party apps in their free plans.
  • You cannot change a template once you pick one.
  • You can only get eCommerce features in the paid plans.

4.HubSpot CMS

The HubSpot CMS hub is a blogging platform suitable for small, medium and large businesses. It is built on the popular HubSpot marketing and CRM tools.

You can use the HubSpot CMS platform to create a website, send newsletters, manage your customer list, get more email subscribers.

With their website builder, it is easy for you to customise our website design layout and personalise your content. This means you can customise the content, allowing your readers to see content based on their past behaviour.

The pricing starts at $25 every month with all the features included. You must upgrade to higher pricing tiers for SEO recommendations and advanced features.

Pros

  • With HubSpot CMS, you get a free SSL certificate for your blog.
  • It is an easy drag-and-drop builder that requires no coding skills.
  • It is fully optimised for SEO purposes.
  • You can get it up and running quickly and easily since HubSpot is hosting your site.

Cons

  • The HubSpot CMS does not have a free version even though it offers free tools like contact management, email management and form.
  • They have a steep pricing structure as you go up.
  • If you want to move from another blogging platform to HubSpot, it is a tedious and lengthy migration process.

5. Gator

Hostgator is a famous web hosting company that created Gator as their website builder. With it, you can get a drag-and-drop builder to help you build any website you choose. You can set up a website, blog or online store with it.

If you don’t want to use WordPress and need an all-in-one website builder with a hosting service, you should go with Gator. The starter plan costs $3.46 per month, with all the features for a successful blog.

Pros

  • Hostgator adds backup, security and performance.
  • Gator can easily add an online store to your blog with a few clicks.
  • You have a quick setup with a gator as there is no technical hassle.
  • You will get a free domain and SSL certificate with all plans.
  • It is an easy drag-and-drop builder that helps your blog.

Cons

  • There are a few extensions and apps.
  • There is no free, but they have a 45-day money-back guarantee.
  • You need to pay for higher plans if you want eCommerce features added.

6. WordPress.com

WordPress.com is a blog hosting service that Automattic provides. This is different from wordpress.org as the WordPress.org co-founder Matt Mullenweg creates Automattic. It offers a free, basic blog hosting service.

They started in 2005 to give more people the WordPress experience. It is free to have a blog with wordpress.com, but it will have WordPress ads and branding. You can get more custom options like more storage, custom domain names and other premium services.

If you want to remove the logo and advertisement from your site, you must pay $4 monthly, though it is charged yearly. If you pay $8 per month (also set annually), you will get more features like storage and additional design tools. You will also get a custom domain.

Pros

  • It has easy management and setup.
  • There is no coding skills or technical skill required to set up.
  •  It is entirely free.

Cons

  • There are limited options to extend your site, as you can’t use custom themes or plugins.
  • WordPress.com owns your site and can suspend it against its terms of service.
  • You can’t run advertisements; WordPress will show their ads on your site.

7. Blogger

Blogger offers a quick and easy way to create a blog for people who are not technically inclined. This is a free blogging service provided by the search engine giant Google. Launched in 1999 by Pyra Labs, it is one of the earliest blogging platforms to come out online. It was acquired in 2003 by Google.

Blogger is completely free, but you have a subdomain like this – yoursite.blogpost.com. You can get a custom domain by buying from the third-party domain registrar.

Pros

  • It is free to use blogger.
  • It has the advantage of Google’s secure platform.
  • Very easy to manage and use.

Cons

  • You are limited to a few blogging tools that can not add new features as you grow with a blogger.
  • Its design options are limited as it has few templates.
  • It does not offer frequent updates or features.
  • Google owns it and can suspend your blog if you go against its terms.

8. Tumblr

This is another blogging platform, but it differs from others. It is a microblogging platform with added social networking features. Inside Tumblr, you will find tools for reblogging, sharing, and following other blogs.

The Tumblr blogging platform is free, and you can buy a custom folding name.

Pros

  • It is free, though your site will have a subdomain like yoursite.tumblr.com. You can also purchase a custom domain name.
  • It is integrated with a social media component.
  • You can set it up easily.
  • Since it is a microblogging tool, you can quickly make blog videos, images, and audio.

Cons

  • This blogging platform has limited features, and you can’t extend it as your blog grows.
  • It isn’t easy to back up your Tumblr blog or import it to other platforms.
  • There are many themes available, but you can’t offer more features.

9. Medium

The medium was launched in 20212 and has grown into a community of writers, journalists, experts and bloggers. Medium is an easy-to-use blogging platform with added social networking tools.

It works like an asocial networking site to create and start publishing content. When you sign up, you will get an address like medium.com/yoursite. However, you cannot have a custom domain name.

It is an entirely free-to-use medium, and you can start writing immediately after you create an account.

Pros

  • Medium helps you to focus entirely on writing instead of designing a website.
  • It is effortless to set up, manage and use.
  • It allows you to reach a large online audience, usually people of similar interest.

Cons

  • It has limited features in terms of building a brand or designing.
  • You cannot run your ads
  • You cannot get your custom domain name
  • Medium owns your audience if you lose your blog, you’ve lost all your followers.

10. Duda. co

Duda was launched in 2008 as a professional website builder. It offers a flexible and customizable platform for business sites, blogs, and eCommerce stores.

The basic plan price is $14, while the agency plan is $44. They also have an enterprise plan that can be customised as requested.

Pros

  • It has full backups for your blog posts.
  • It is easy to use.
  • You can make stylish sites with it.
  • There are millions of images for you to use.

Cons

  • It has a higher cost than others
  • It is not easily customised.
  • It costs more to add eCommerce to your blog.

11. Squarespace

This website builder allows the use of drag-and-drop tools to build beautiful sites. Squarespace is focused on small businesses that need a way to create an online presence. It started in 2003 and currently powers millions of websites on the internet today.

Square has different pricing plans, starting at $16 monthly for the personal plan. The business plan costs $26 per month or $18/month if you pay for a year. It comes down to $12 monthly if you pay for a year. If you want an online store, the price is $26 to $40 a month.

Pros

  • It has beautiful and professionally designed templates.
  • It is simple and easy to use.
  • It offers domain names separately with SSL/HTTPS and eCommerce stores.

Cons

  • Its integrations are limited to a few services and tools.
  • It is limited to the features built into their system.

12. Ghost

This minimalist blogging platform, focused on writing only, started in 2013. Ghost is available as a hosted platform and comes as software you can install yourself. You need a custom domain and hosting with the self-hosted version.

The price for the hosted version starts from $29  a month for 2 users. And there is a 100k page limit. Your blog will be a subdomain of Ghost unless you buy a domain name from a third-party registrar.

Pros

  • It is entirely focused on blogging.
  • They built the Ghost with JavaScript, which makes it fast.
  • There is a clean, clutter-free user interface.

Cons

  • Not easy to customise the apps.
  • If you install it yourself, the setup is complicated.
  • There aren’t enough themes to change the appearance of the site.
  • The simple user interface means limited options.

13. Zyro.com

This is a blogging platform that is designed with SEO in mind. It is a drag-and-drop platform with many beautiful templates to choose from. It is a do-it-yourself website builder with excellent features and tools for a great blog.

Pros

  • Easy to set up and accessible.
  • It helps small businesses start an e-commerce store quickly.
  • It has incredible AI-powered tools.
  • It has unlimited storage and bandwidth in all the plans.
  •  

Cons

  • It is not easy to customise.
  • There is no free option.
  • You can’t switch templates with Zyro.

Best blogging platforms: Conclusion

Now that you have read about the list of the top blogging platforms, if you’re ready to start a blog, I recommend building your blog using wordpress.org.

You only need to register for a domain name and get web hosting to get started.

If you’re ready to start a blogging business, you can start with WordPress and host one of the best web hosting sites to make your blog load faster and rank well on search engines.

Steps to make money from a blogging platform

After going through the above list and picking a blogging platform, the next thing you should think about is how to monetise it. There are many ways to make money from your blog.

However, before we get to the ways, you must know you cannot monetise your site with a free platform. It would help if you got your domain name and hosting for you to be able to make money from it.

You can monetise using Google Adsense. To do this, choose a good niche and start writing blog posts on different topics in that niche. Then, you can apply to Google Adsense, and if you are approved, they will lapse links and advert images on your site.

You can also promote affiliate offers on your site. When people buy the products and services you recommend in your blog, you will get a commission.

If you need the list of affiliate programs, you can check the blog post on the best affiliate programs and networks to find more affiliate offers that can convert very well.

All you do is write a review of a product you have used and a link on your site where those interested can buy the product. After reading your blog, they will buy if they like the product.

You can sell a service or skill to people. You can also sell your products and services to those visiting your site.

Create an ebook, course, or any digital product to explain what your subscribers want to know and sell it to them. You can also become a consultant and sell advice based on your chosen niche.

Another way to use this platform is to sell advertising space to business owners. When your blog gets enough traffic, you can let businesses place their banners on your site and collect money from them.

If you have any questions about the list of the best blogging platforms, kindly let me know from your comments.

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