Blogging refers to writing, photography, and other media that are self-published online. Blogging started as an opportunity for individuals to write diary-style entries, but it has since been incorporated into websites for many businesses. A blog is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries. Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order, so that the most recent post appears first, at the top of the web page. There are many blogging platforms available but everyone wants a blogging platform that’s easy to set up, has a low learning curve and doesn’t require any coding skills.
Blogging platforms mostly can be divided into two categories:
- Blog publishing services — a blog-publishing service is a platform where you can sign up and create your blog; you do not need a server and can use an existing subdomain of the platform
- Content management systems (CMS) — a CMS is software that’s hosted on a server, and also needs to be hooked up to a domain name; then, you can take advantage of the CMS’s abilities and edit your blog posts and pages similarly to how you’d do it with Google Docs – via a nice UI
WordPress
WordPress is the world’s most popular content management system (CMS). In fact, It controls more than one-third of the market share and is trusted by more than 60+ million users. At its core, it’s a blogging tool for content creators. Even with all of the extra features, benefits, and flexible use cases today, it’s still the most popular option for bloggers of all shapes and sizes. WordPress offers hundreds of themes, with flexibility in fonts and options for a custom look.
| Features | It is one of the best free blogging platforms that allow you to create webpages for multiple functions of your blog. Offers Backward Compatibility. WordPress Plugins comes with excellent unofficial support other than the main help document. WordPress offers a simple addition of posts or pages on the site. Hosts offer WordPress installation using cPanel with very few clicks. |
| Pros | WordPress is a strong content management system because of its origin in blogging. Excellent social media integration Increased security compared to traditional sites |
| Cons | Premium WordPress themes are updated and improved often. Some updates require additional web design knowledge. |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | $2.74 |
Medium
Medium is a blog publishing platform that focuses on the reading experience. It was co-founded by Evan Williams, who coincidentally also co-founded Blogger before it was acquired by Google. On Medium, you can either create posts associated with your user or create a publication, with a customizable layout. The USP of Medium is an easy to use blog editor that focuses on your content.
| Features | Embedding. Linked Images. Highlights. Sharing Drafts. Note URLs. Social Cards. |
| Pros | Huge readership. Easy to set up and use. You don’t need to worry about technical SEO stuff. |
| Cons | Medium’s traffic is not also your traffic. There’s a lot of competition for attention. You’re building Medium’s authority instead of yours. |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | Customize |
Tumblr
Tumblr is a blogging and social media tool that allows users to publish a “tumblelog”, or short blog posts. Tumblr’s major differentiator is the free-form nature of the site and the ability of users to heavily customize their own pages. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to a short-form blog. Users can follow other users’ blogs. Bloggers can also make their blogs private.
| Features | Blog posts created on Tumblr don’t have to be published immediately they can be scheduled. Tumblr includes tight Facebook and Twitter integration which can be configured from the user dashboard. Tumblr’s servers free of charge Tumblr enables multiple users to have posting rights on a single blog if necessary. |
| Pros | Tumblr is very accessible as a download for cell phones. It’s free to use. It allows for employees who might not otherwise have the opportunity to express creativity at work to do so for the benefit of your business. |
| Cons | Tumblr does not support ads. Tumblr can improve by providing users with more customization options for their posts. |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | Completely Free |
Ghost
Ghost is a blogging platform for publishers, entrepreneurs, and developers. The platform makes it easy to publish content online and monetize your blogs. With Ghost, you benefit from a simple yet powerful content editor. The platform has email newsletters built-in, and posts are automatically optimized for SEO. Ghost Blogging is liked by everyone because it’s so easy to generate revenue from your content. Plus, you can create memberships and subscriptions for readers to access your premium content.
| Features | Ghost is an open-source blogging platform. Built-in SEO and social sharing Faster performance Unified integration |
| Pros | It is incredibly easy to use. It’s clean, and it’s fast They allow you to quickly make CSS changes without touching the actual theme code. |
| Cons | There’s no theme customizer. Only two social accounts by default. Facebook and Twitter. To add more you will need to edit the theme code. |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | $29 |
Blogger
Blogger is one of the best free blogging platforms that offer a secure and reliable way to create a blog. This hosted blog platform was launched in 1999 and later acquired by Google. You don’t need a hosting provider to start using it. All you need to do is log in using a Google account – you’ll be asked to follow the simple guidelines provided on the Blogger to make a blog for free. There’s no need for technical knowledge or coding experience as the site is quite intuitive in design and setup. It remains a widely used solution
| Features | Custom domain Easy to use templates Monetize by integrating with Google AdSense. Assess your blog’s traffic and see the content getting the most visits. Store your media files with Google. |
| Pros | Completely free and easy to use. Can place AdSense ads. Access to HTML code, so there are more customization options. |
| Cons | Fewer themes and storage space than WordPress.com. You cannot self-host, so your blog is dependent completely on Blogger’s current offerings. Your site will have .blogspot in the title. |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | Completely Free |
Wix
Wix is a popular blogging platform for beginners looking for hosting and blogging tools in one place. You can start by selecting from over 500 pre-designed templates that any blogger can use, whether you own a retail business or run a food review website. Or you can start from scratch if you know HTML and CSS. Wix is easy to use, beginner-friendly, drag-and-drop website builder. This web editor tool allows you to drop elements anywhere you want on any page.
| Features | Small business owners who need a blog with a website Creative artists who mostly share photos Helps in creating a personalized SEO plan to rank your blog. |
| Pros | Ability to customize your site with templates and third-party apps No coding skills required, you can achieve everything with the graphical interface Quick and easy setup, includes top-notch hosting Lots of design options and everything is built with HTML5 Has a feature to automatically design your blog using an artificial intelligence Comes with free stock images |
| Cons | The free account comes with limited capabilities, traffic, storage and has Wix branding and ads. The number of free apps is limited You are unable to change your site template after choosing it |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | $1.10 |
LinkedIn is the social network for industry professionals. LinkedIn users can choose to publish a post just as they would on their own blog. It’s even possible to publish a complete blog post directly to your LinkedIn home page. When you write an article, LinkedIn will notify your existing connections. If your article is great (and why wouldn’t it be?), they’ll take notice. Write more and more great articles, and they’ll start to see you as an authority. LinkedIn is a social network. Your influence grows in proportion to the size of your network. The more posts you publish, the more connection requests and followers you’ll attract.
45% of LinkedIn article readers are in upper-level positions (managers, VPs, Directors, C-level).
| Features | Creating personal updates that link back to your latest blog post Sharing posts from other blogs that might relate to your site and your network Showcasing your blog’s latest achievements Connecting to other bloggers who are farther along in their blogging journeys |
| Pros | The audience on LinkedIn is premium. It’s Easy to Use. Easy Analytics. Better for B2C Businesses. Potential for Increased Visibility (on LinkedIn)Opportunities to Rank Organically |
| Cons | LinkedIn Controls the Look and Feel of Your Article. It Takes Longer to Show Up in Searches. It Costs More |
| Free Version/ trial | Available |
| Premium Version Starts from | Available on Customization |
Wrapping-Up
Blogging is a great way to connect with the world. Whether you blog to express your passion for your hobbies, to connect on a personal level with others, or to help promote a business, starting a blog can be rewarding in so many ways. We believe that WordPress and Wix perform all other blogging sites. It is powerful, easy to use, affordable, and the most flexible of all available blogging platforms. If you’re looking for the easiest Free blogging platform, you should go either with Medium or Blogger.
Related Posts
- Top Essential HVAC SEO Tips: Local Strategies for Contractors
- Unleashing the Power of White Label SEO: Everything You Need to Know
- Promote Health Products on Facebook: 8 Tips for Effective Ads
Vijay Sood is a seasoned digital marketer with a passion for driving online growth and innovation. With a robust background in developing and executing comprehensive digital strategies, Vijay excels in leveraging SEO, content marketing, and social media to boost brand visibility and engagement. His expertise lies in transforming data-driven insights into actionable marketing campaigns, helping businesses achieve their digital objectives.