6 Best Free WordPress Hosting Options for 2023 (Compared)

You can’t have a WordPress website (or any website, for that matter) without a host. It’s like trying to build a house when there isn’t any land for it — until it has somewhere to go, it can’t exist. But while website hosting is super important, it can also be free. Free hosting has a few downsides, such as limited bandwidth, storage, and other resources. Still, it can be a good solution for beginners looking to learn WordPress before investing in a paid solution. In this article, we will cover the best free WordPress hosting solutions available, so you can determine which host is best suited for your situation.

What is WordPress Hosting?

Web hosting services allow a website or webpage to be posted and viewed online. The website is stored (i.e., hosted) on a server, which is a special type of computer. When someone enters your URL into their browser to access your site, they connect to the server, which delivers your site to the user. You need a domain name to get a hosting plan, but some hosts sell domain names in addition to hosting services. There are also WordPress-optimized hosting plans designed especially for WordPress websites and managed by WordPress experts. We have an in-depth article on that topic if you want to learn more.

6 Best Free WordPress Hosting Providers

When it comes to the best free website hosting, sometimes that $0 price tag comes with a catch (or a few). After all, the web host has to make money, often by displaying ads on your website. There may also be a limit to how much traffic your site can get, or your website may experience a lot of latency or even downtime.

That said, free website hosting may be a good option if you want to take a long time to build your website before making it public or if you have very low traffic right now but plan to upgrade your plan as your site grows. As previously mentioned, free hosting can be a great way to get familiar with WordPress. Here are some free website hosting options to consider.

1. 000webhost

First on our list is 000webhost, a decent option for free WordPress hosting with PHP and MySQL. Their free plan offers 300MB of disk space, 3GB of bandwidth, 24/7 customer support, and the ability to install one website. However, due to the limited storage and bandwidth, it’s best for small informational websites that don’t expect high traffic.

Key Features for 000webhost

• 24/7 customer support
• No ads or banners
• Free SSL
• FTP access

Along with the storage and bandwidth features, the free plan at 000webhost includes CloudFlare-protected nameservers, a 99% uptime guarantee, no site ads or banners, 1 MySQL database, and an FTP account for easy file transfer. If you need more options, you can choose their Single Shared Hosting plan, starting at $1.99 monthly. This plan has 50GB of storage space, an email account, a free SSL certificate, integrated LiteSpeed cache, and DNS management.

000webhost is for you if…

• You need site caching on your website.
• Storage and bandwidth aren’t a concern.
• You don’t mind using an external backup plugin.

000webhost Pricing: Free or Starting at $1.99 per month.

2. AccuWeb

AccuWeb hosting has unique free WordPress hosting that includes no ads or banners on your website and many free features like cPanel, the latest PHP support, and strong security. For even more features, you can opt for one of their paid plans starting at $3.99 per month.

Key Features for AccuWeb

• cPanel
• Runs on the latest version of PHP
• SSD hard drives
• Object caching

AccuWeb has impressive features like servers on pure solid-state drives (SSD) for better performance and Redis object caching integration. With their free plan, you’ll get 2GB of disk space, 30GB of bandwidth, and 25 email accounts. They also offer free backups, multi-layer Denial of Service (DDoS) attack protection, and the option to add a custom domain name with a paid plan.

AccuWeb is for you if…

• You don’t want pesky ads or banners on your site.
• You’re looking for an optimized hosting solution.
• Redis integration is a must.

AccuWeb Pricing: Free or starting at $3.99 per month, with a 3-year agreement.

3. InfinityFree

Next on our list of the best free WordPress hosting providers is InfinityFree. They offer a range of impressive features in their free plan, such as a 99.9% uptime guarantee, unlimited hosting without ads, the option to use your domain, free SSL certificates for every domain in your account, and simple one-click application installs via Softaculous. Additionally, you can add/edit your DNS, enjoy full htaccess support, and use up to 400 MySQL databases. However, one downside to using InfinityFree is the lack of support, which is a trade-off you’ll need to accept for the convenience of free hosting.

Key Features for InfinityFree

• 99.9% uptime
• Free SSL
• Edit DNS
• cPanel

One of the standout features of InfinityFree is the user-friendly control panel. Utilizing the cPanel dashboard, those already familiar with it will have no trouble setting up their website within minutes. Installing WordPress is a breeze with Sofaculous, which offers an extensive selection of over 400 applications, including Joomla, Laravel, and more. However, it’s important to note that you won’t be able to update PHP, as it’s automatically set to 7.4, which is no longer supported as of November 2022. But upgrading to a premium plan is worth considering if you’re looking for a more up-to-date version or additional storage.

InfinityFree is for you if…

• You’re looking for a highly-rated free hosting provider to install WordPress.
• You are ok with running a depreciated version of PHP.

InfinityFree Pricing: Free or starting at $3.99 per month, with a 3-year agreement.

4. FreeHostingNoAds

We have one more option for free WordPress hosting: FreeHostingNoAds. Despite their simple name, they offer some great features for a free hosting provider. They promise that your free website won’t have ads, text link requirements, banners, popups, or anything else. Plus, they let you use your domain for free, which is something that other free hosting providers on our list don’t offer. They also provide free technical support if you need help.

Key Features for FreeHostingNoAds

• PHP & MySQL
• No ads
• Free technical support

FreeHostingNoAds offers PHP & MySQL support, free email hosting, and an easy-to-use control panel for managing your hosting account, checking your website’s stats, and installing apps like WordPress. The free version includes 1GB of web storage, 5GB of bandwidth, FTP & file manager, a free email address, and a 99.9% uptime guarantee. For more power, the Pro Plan costs $5.99 per month for the first year and offers unlimited domains, disk space, monthly traffic, and a free SSL certificate. Renewal costs for the Pro Plan are $9.99/month.

FreeHostingNoAds is for you if…

• You want a little more disk space than other free WordPress hosting providers.
• You want to be able to use your domain for free.
• Having a professional email account is necessary.

FreeHostingNoAds Pricing: Free with premium plans starting at $5.99 per month.

5. X10hosting

Up next, X10hosting is the only cloud hosting option on our free WordPress hosting list. They offer a one-click WordPress install and optimized cloud hosting for free. Plus, you’ll get FTP file transfer, the ability to manage MySQL databases through PHPMyAdmin, and email configuration – all the benefits of a paid WordPress host.

Key Features for X10hosting

• Cloud hosting
• No plugin restrictions
• 1-Click installs

At X10hosting, you can enjoy lightning-fast speed due to their 100% SSD private cloud, and they have no plugin restrictions. This means you can install backup plugins, cache plugins, and other plugins that are usually not allowed by other managed WordPress hosting providers, such as Bluehost and GoDaddy.

X10hosting is for you if…

• You want complete control over your website.
• Cloud hosting is a requirement.

X10hosting Pricing: Free with premium plans starting at $6.95 monthly.

6. WordPress.com

While WordPress.org is a self-hosted website builder (meaning you create your site using WordPress but have to find a host elsewhere), WordPress.com delivers a similar WordPress experience but with hosting too. There are various plans to choose from, including a free option. (If you’d like a full rundown of WordPress.com vs .org, we’ve got you covered, too.) If you go with WordPress.com, you can also install our Divi website builder, which turns WordPress into a robust design tool that rivals every other website builder on this list.

Key Features of WordPress.com

• Built for WordPress
• Free templates

With the free hosting plan from WordPress.com, you get a subdomain (such as examplesiteurl.wordpress.com), 3GB of storage, and free templates. Ads will be displayed on your website, though. Upgrading will remove the ads when you’re ready to pay for a plan. You’ll also be able to access more features, including using a custom domain name and collecting payments. However, you can remain on the free plan indefinitely.

WordPress.com is for you if…

• The website is mainly for your family and friends.
• You’re a hobby blogger who isn’t too worried about creating a super-popular site.

WordPress.com Pricing: Free or Starting at $4 per month.

Our Top 3 Picks for Free WordPress Hosting

As previously mentioned, free website hosting usually comes with a catch. That said, our top 3 have paid plans with some good features for your price. If the site you need to create is temporary or single-use, 000webhost can be a good way to go. For more features, both AccuWeb and InfinityFree can be good choices for smaller, informational websites.

Final Thoughts on the Best Free WordPress Hosting

While free WordPress hosting can be a good choice for smaller websites or testing environments, we highly recommend a more robust solution, such as SiteGround, Cloudways, or Pressable, which are excellent choices for cheap WordPress hosting.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Before we wrap up, let’s answer some of your most common questions regarding free WordPress hosting. Did we miss one? Leave a question below, and we will respond!