Choosing between the best blogging platforms comes down to three questions. Do you want to own your site? How do you plan to make money? How much setup will you put up with?
A newsletter writer, a niche affiliate blogger and someone who just wants to share ideas on LinkedIn need different tools. Picking the wrong one usually means a painful migration a year later.
This guide compares 11 platforms with current pricing, a side-by-side table and a clear recommendation for each type of writer. WordPress still wins for most money-focused blogs, but it isn’t the right answer for everyone.
Quick answer: For most people who want to build a blog that makes money, self-hosted WordPress.org is the best blogging platform: you own it, it supports ads, affiliate links and stores, and it has the best SEO options. Ghost is the best choice for paid memberships with no revenue cut. Substack and beehiiv are best for newsletter-first writers (Substack takes 10% of paid subscriptions; beehiiv takes 0%). Blogger and Medium are the easiest free options, but you have far less control. Wix and Squarespace suit people who want a design-first site with hosting included.
Best Blogging Platforms Comparison Table
Prices checked on each platform’s site. Annual-billing prices shown where available.
| Platform | Free plan | Paid from | Own your site | Ads/affiliate | Paid subscriptions | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress.org | Software free | Hosting cost | Yes | Yes | Via plugins | Serious bloggers, affiliates |
| WordPress.com | Yes | $4/mo | Mostly | Paid plans | Yes | Beginners who want WordPress without hosting |
| Ghost | Self-host free | $18/mo (Ghost Pro) | Yes | Yes | Yes, 0% fee | Membership publishers |
| Substack | Yes | Free (10% of paid revenue) | Partly | Limited | Yes | Newsletter writers |
| beehiiv | Yes (2,500 subscribers) | $43/mo | Partly | Built-in ad network | Yes, 0% fee | Newsletter businesses |
| Medium | Yes | Free to write | No | No | Partner Program | Writers who want an audience fast |
| Blogger | Yes | Free | No (Google owns platform) | AdSense | No | Free hobby blogs |
| Wix | Yes (with Wix branding) | ~$17/mo | No | Yes | Yes | Design-first small businesses |
| Squarespace | No (trial only) | $19/mo | No | Yes | Yes (with fees) | Creatives, portfolios |
| Hugo / Jekyll | Free | Free | Yes | Yes | No | Developers |
| Yes | Free | No | No | No | Professionals building authority |
How to Choose a Blogging Platform
Before the list, decide what matters most to you:
- Ownership. On WordPress.org or Ghost, you own the site and can move it any time. On Medium or LinkedIn, the platform can change its rules or reach.
- Monetization. Ads and affiliate links need a platform that allows them. Paid subscriptions need built-in or plugin support. Check the revenue cut.
- SEO. If you want Google traffic, you need control over titles, URLs, speed and structure.
- Effort. Self-hosted options need some setup and upkeep. Hosted ones don’t.
- Cost over time. Cheap intro prices often renew at a higher rate.
11 Best Blogging Platforms
WordPress.org (self-hosted)
WordPress.org is free, open-source software you install on your own hosting. It powers a large share of all websites, including OnlineDecoded.
Why it’s the top pick: you control everything. Install any theme or plugin, run ads (see our AdSense guide), add affiliate links, sell products with WooCommerce, or build a membership.
SEO plugins like Rank Math or Yoast give you full control.
Downsides: you pay for hosting and handle updates, backups and security yourself. There’s a learning curve in the first week.
Cost: the software is free. Hosting starts at a few dollars a month, plus about $10 to $20 a year for a domain. See our best WordPress hosting providers and cheap WordPress hosting lists.
Best for: anyone who wants to make money from a blog long term. Our guide to starting a blog and making money walks through setup.
WordPress.com
WordPress.com is the hosted version run by Automattic. Same core software, but hosting and updates are handled for you.
Pros: no server to manage; free plan to start; paid plans from $4 a month (billed annually) let you install plugins and themes; higher plans add ecommerce.
Cons: the free plan shows ads and uses a WordPress.com subdomain. Costs rise quickly on higher plans compared with self-hosting.
Pricing: Free, Personal $4/mo, Premium $8/mo, Business $25/mo, Commerce $45/mo (annual billing).
Best for: beginners who want WordPress without dealing with hosting.
Ghost
Ghost is an open-source publishing platform focused on writing, newsletters and paid memberships. You can self-host it for free or use Ghost(Pro) hosting.
Pros: fast, clean editor; memberships and email newsletters built in; Ghost takes 0% of your subscription revenue on paid-subscription plans (Stripe fees still apply); good default SEO.
Cons: fewer themes and integrations than WordPress; self-hosting needs technical skills; the Starter plan doesn’t support paid subscriptions.
Pricing (Ghost Pro, annual billing): Starter $18/mo, Publisher $29/mo, Business $199/mo. Starter and Publisher include up to 1,000 members.
Best for: writers and publishers building a paid membership business.
Substack
Substack combines a blog and a newsletter. You write a post; it goes to your subscribers’ inboxes and lives on a web page.
Pros: free to start; very easy setup; built-in discovery and recommendations between Substack writers; paid subscriptions in a few clicks.
Cons: Substack keeps 10% of paid subscription revenue (plus card processing). Limited design and SEO control. You can export your email list, but your audience’s habits are tied to the Substack app.
Best for: writers whose main product is the newsletter itself.
Beehiiv
Beehiiv is a newsletter platform with a website, built for growing and monetizing a list.
Pros: free Launch plan for up to 2,500 subscribers; 0% cut of paid subscriptions (you pay only Stripe’s fee); built-in ad network and referral program; detailed analytics.
Cons: paid plans get expensive as you grow (Scale is $43/mo); the website side is simpler than a full blog platform.
Best for: people building a newsletter as a business. Pair it with a WordPress blog for SEO traffic, and you get the best of both. See how email lifts affiliate income in this guide.
Medium
Medium is a publishing platform with a built-in readership. You write; Medium shows your work to its readers.
Pros: free to write; no setup; you can get readers on day one; the Partner Program pays writers based on how members engage with their stories.
Cons: you don’t own the platform, can’t run your own ads or most affiliate setups, and have little control over design or SEO. Earnings depend on Medium’s rules, which have changed many times.
Best for: writers who want an audience quickly or want to repost their best work for extra reach.
Blogger
Blogger is Google’s free blogging service. It has barely changed in years, but it still works.
Pros: completely free, including hosting and a custom domain; AdSense integration; no maintenance.
Cons: dated templates; few features; limited SEO control; Google could change or retire it. Many bloggers outgrow it and move to WordPress. If that’s you, here’s how to migrate from Blogger to WordPress.
Best for: hobby blogs and absolute beginners testing the waters at zero cost.
Wix
Wix is a drag-and-drop website builder with a blog feature.
Pros: easy visual editor; hosting, security and templates included; good for small business sites that also want a blog.
Cons: the free plan shows Wix branding and uses a Wix subdomain; you can’t switch templates easily after launch; moving away is harder than with WordPress.
Pricing: free plan available; paid plans start around $17 a month on annual billing (prices vary by region). There’s a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Best for: small businesses that care more about design than blog features.
Squarespace
Squarespace is a polished, all-in-one site builder known for its design templates.
Pros: beautiful templates; hosting and SSL included; solid built-in blog, commerce and memberships.
Cons: no free plan (trial only); fewer integrations; transaction fees on lower plans (2% on store sales on Basic, plus fees on digital content and memberships).
Pricing (annual billing): Basic $19/mo, Core $29/mo, Plus $49/mo, Advanced $99/mo.
Best for: photographers, designers and creatives who want a portfolio with a blog.
Hugo and Jekyll (Static Site generators)
Hugo and Jekyll turn plain text files (Markdown) into a fast static website. You can host the result for free on GitHub Pages, Netlify or Cloudflare Pages.
Pros: free; extremely fast; secure, because there’s no database to hack; full control.
Cons: you need to be comfortable with the command line and Git. No visual editor, comments or forms without extra tools.
Best for: developers and technical writers.
LinkedIn Articles and Newsletters
LinkedIn lets any member publish long-form articles and run a newsletter that notifies subscribers.
Pros: free; built-in professional audience; good for personal branding and B2B leads.
Cons: you don’t own the content’s distribution; no ads or affiliate income; limited formatting; content doesn’t build long-term search traffic to your own domain.
Best for: consultants, freelancers and professionals building authority in their field.
Once the platform is set, the work is writing. See these blog post ideas for beginners, learn how to write a blog post people finish, and grab the free blogging tools we use. For a longer view, read how to become a successful blogger.
Which Blogging Platform Should You Choose?
| If you want to… | Choose |
|---|---|
| Make money with ads, affiliates or products | WordPress.org |
| Start free with zero setup | Blogger or Medium |
| Use WordPress without managing hosting | WordPress.com |
| Run paid memberships with no revenue cut | Ghost |
| Grow a newsletter as the main product | beehiiv or Substack |
| Build a design-first business site | Wix or Squarespace |
| Get the fastest possible site, and you can code | Hugo or Jekyll |
| Build a professional reputation |
A common setup that works well: a WordPress.org blog for search traffic and income, plus a newsletter (Beehiiv or a WordPress email plugin) to keep readers coming back, plus LinkedIn or Medium to repost your best work.
FAQs Related to Best Blogging Platforms
What is the best free blogging platform?
Blogger is the best fully free option if you want your own blog with a custom domain and AdSense. Medium is best if you want readers without building an audience from scratch. Both give you less control than WordPress.
Which blogging platform is best for making money?
Self-hosted WordPress, because it allows every income stream: ads, affiliate links, sponsored posts, digital products, courses and memberships. Ghost and Beehiiv are strong for paid subscriptions.
Is WordPress.com the same as WordPress.org?
No. WordPress.org is free software you host yourself. WordPress.com is a hosted service built on the same software, with free and paid plans.
Can I switch blogging platforms later?
Yes, but it’s work. Moving from Blogger, Medium or Wix to WordPress means exporting content, fixing formatting and setting up redirects. Picking a platform you can grow with saves time.
Do I need to know coding to start a blog?
No. WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, Substack, beehiiv, Medium and Blogger all work without code. Only static site generators need technical skills.
Final Thoughts
That’s all about the best blogging platforms.
There’s no single best blogging platform for everyone, but there is a best one for your goal.
If you want a blog that earns money and that you fully control, start with WordPress.org on decent hosting. If you’re a newsletter writer, Beehiiv or Ghost will save you money as you grow.
