You can build a personal website with free creator tools, and it's easier than you think. Wix, a popular website builder, offers a free plan that allows you to create a website in minutes.
With Wix's free plan, you can choose from over 500 customizable templates to get started. These templates are designed to be user-friendly and can be easily edited using Wix's drag-and-drop editor.
You can also use Squarespace, another website builder, which offers a 14-day free trial. This allows you to test their platform and see if it's a good fit for you.
What is Sites?
Google Sites is a no-code free website builder that allows anyone to create and host simple business websites for free.
The primary mission of Google Sites is to help users "effortlessly create impactful team sites."
Google Sites is suitable for anyone who wants to create a website without needing to learn how to code.
With Google Sites, you can easily create and host a website, making it a great option for small businesses or individuals who want to establish an online presence.
Google Sites is free to use, which makes it an attractive option for those on a budget.
As a Google Workspace customer, you can use Google Sites to develop secure and engaging intranet sites for users.
Features and Benefits
With a personal website creator free, you can create a stunning website in no time. You can choose from a variety of website themes and page templates to give your online presence a professional look.
The drag and drop website builder is a game-changer, allowing you to customize your website without any coding knowledge. You can also embed code directly into your website for your favorite apps.
Some of the features you can expect from a personal website creator free include:
- Drag and Drop Website Builder
- Website Themes Templates
- Free Blog Maker
- Web Hosting
- Custom Domain Connection
- Website Monitoring
- Activity Logs
- Serverless Functions
- Memberships
- Database Driven Content
These features will help you create a website that's both visually appealing and functional.
What Is the Web Platform?
Google Sites is a free web building platform that allows users to create public websites, company intranets, and private portals. It's a versatile tool that can be used for various purposes.
The platform is included within the Google Workspace business productivity suite of applications, making it easily accessible to businesses and organizations.
Google Sites is also available through standalone Google or Gmail accounts, providing individuals with a simple way to create their own websites.
Great Functionality
One of the best things about our Content Hub is its great functionality. You can create and customize your own website with an easy drag-and-drop website builder.
You can also easily customize your online presence with pre-built website themes and page templates. This makes it simple to create a professional-looking website without needing to know how to code.
One of the features I personally love is the free blog maker. It allows you to grow your audience with SEO-friendly content and publish quality content that widens your brand's reach and grows your audience.
Here are some of the key features that make our Content Hub so functional:
- Drag and Drop Website Builder
- Website Themes Templates
- Free Blog Maker
- WYSIWYG Editor
- Free CMS
- Web Hosting
- Built-in CDN
- SSL
With our Content Hub, you can also host your website on a fully managed and optimized infrastructure that scales with your business. This means you can focus on creating content and growing your audience, without worrying about the technical details.
What You Can Make
With a personal website creator free, you can make a variety of websites to suit your needs.
You can create blogs for sharing your news, reviews, and articles with the world.
Blogs are a great way to express yourself and connect with like-minded individuals.
Informational websites are best-suited for Google Sites, as mentioned earlier.
Here are some examples of websites you can design with a personal website creator free:
- Blogs for your news, reviews, and articles
- Bio Sites to compliment your personal brand on social media
- Portfolios to attract new customers with your work
- Websites that you manage yourself without the need for a web developer
These types of websites are perfect for individuals who want to showcase their work or share their expertise with others.
Getting Started
To create a personal website, you can start with Google Sites, a no-code Google site builder that's easy to use. You can access it by going to sites.new to create a new Google Site.
Google Sites is great for creating informational websites and intranet applications, but it's not ideal for shopping websites since it doesn't operate with PHP and other database-driven languages. You can create websites like blogs, bio sites, portfolios, and websites you manage yourself without needing a web developer.
To get started with Google Sites, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the essential parts of the editor, which include Site and Publish Settings, Insert Options for Adding Content, Pages for managing organization and navigation, Themes for customizing style, and Text editing with the toolbar.
If you're looking for a more feature-rich website builder, Appy Pie's Website Builder is a great option. It's designed for small businesses, freelancers, and individuals who want to build a professional site quickly and affordably.
With Appy Pie, you can create a wide range of websites, including business websites, e-commerce stores, blogs, portfolios, and more. The drag-and-drop tools make it simple to design, customize, and publish your website.
Here are some of the top features of Appy Pie's Website Builder:
- Drag-and-drop builder for easy design
- Responsive design for a great user experience on any device
- Built-in e-commerce tools for managing products and payments
- SEO optimization for improving search engine ranking
- Custom domains for a professional web address
Keep in mind that Appy Pie's free trial has limitations, so if you need advanced tools and growth, you'll need to upgrade to a paid plan.
Site Setup
Setting up your personal website is a breeze with WordPress. You've got access to all the tools in the Dashboard, but it's up to you to figure out what they all do.
To keep things simple and clean, let's get rid of some unnecessary plugins. On the left side of the Dashboard, click Plugins. Check the box next to Creative Mail by Constant Contact, Jetpack, MOJO Marketplace, OptinMonster, and WPForms Lite, then click the drop-down menu labeled "Bulk Actions" and select Deactivate. Hit Apply.
Now, check the box next to all the plugins – except Akismet. Akismet is a plugin that helps keep blog comment sections free of spam, but you might not need it if you don't plan on having a blog. And maybe Yoast SEO, which you may end up wanting again later anyway.
Let's set your "About Me" page as your home page, since this is a personal site rather than a blog. In the sidebar, hover over Settings and click Reading. In the Front Page Displays section, click the radio button that says A Static Page, then choose your About Me page to be the home page.
You can also create a blank page called Blog and set it as the Posts Page if you want to have a blog. Save your changes and you're all set!
Customizing Your Site
You can change the look of your site without needing to know any CSS or have any graphic design skills by using a theme. A theme is basically a template or skin for your site that changes the look while retaining all the content you created.
There are thousands of themes out there, so finding one you like can be a challenge. To start, check out the theme's homepage for updates and documentation.
You can find free themes on the official WordPress theme repository, which is the biggest source of free themes. You can also check out Themify, which is my current favorite place to find WordPress themes.
Here are some great places to look for more themes:
- Official WordPress theme repository
- Themify
- Elegant Themes
Customize Your Design
You have thousands of themes to choose from, making it difficult to pick one that suits your taste. A theme is a template or skin for your site, changing the look while retaining all your content.
One of the best things about WordPress is the large amount of themes available for use. You can change the look of your site without needing to know any CSS or have graphic design skills.
To customize your site's look, find a theme you like. Check out the theme's homepage for updates and documentation. The huge amount of themes out there can make this step easier said than done.
You can also check out the official WordPress theme repository, which is the biggest source of free themes. Themify is another great place to find WordPress themes, with a wide range of options to choose from.
If you're looking for more flexibility, consider using a builder-style theme like Simple. It's incredibly versatile and lets you customize each page to a huge degree. It's also free and has an in-depth video tutorial to help you get started.
Here are four great theme recommendations to get you started:
Ultra is a great option if you need additional features and flexibility. It's made by the same people who created Simple, so you can start with Simple and transfer everything to Ultra if needed.
Let's Widgetize!
Widgets are elements that you can place on any part of your theme that has been “widgetized” – that is, set up for widgets to display.
There are already a few widgets displaying on your site by default, like Category, Recent Posts, and Meta (though some themes might not display them everywhere).
If you're using a builder-style theme like Simple, you probably won't need to worry about WordPress widgets. Builder themes typically include these types of things in their builder tools.
To edit the widgets that are displayed on your site, follow these steps: hover over Appearance and click on Widgets, then drag the widgets you want from the middle area into the correct boxes.
Widgets are automatically saved when you drag them in or out of a box.
You can use the Widget Context plugin if you want to specify certain pages that a widget will or won't be displayed on. This keeps things from getting redundant.
Here are some specific widgets you might want to show:
- Links – if you have friends who also have personal sites, it can be cool to link to them.
- Text – as it says, this is a widget for “arbitrary text or HTML”. You can put anything in this list, granted that you know a smidgen of code.
Improving Your Site
Improving Your Site is a crucial step in creating a personal website that truly reflects you. WordPress is a great system, but its true beauty lies in its ability to work with plugins.
Plugins are small pieces of code that add functionality to your site, and almost every plugin you'll ever need is kept in the official WordPress plugin repository. This means you can search for plugins right from your Dashboard and install them without uploading .zip files.
To install plugins, simply hover over Plugins and click Add New, search for the plugin you want, and click Install Now. After installation, click Activate and take care of any setup required.
There are a few essential plugins that I recommend using, including Ninja Forms for a simple contact form, WP Super Cache to speed up your site, UpdraftPlus for site backups, and WP MyLinks for a links page. These plugins will help you get started and make your site more functional.
Here are some essential plugins to consider:
- Ninja Forms
- WP Super Cache
- UpdraftPlus
- WP MyLinks
Security
Google Sites prioritizes security with encrypted connections to Google's servers, ensuring your site's data is protected.
This level of security is consistent with Google Drive files, such as documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, which also have robust protection.
Google Sites features real-time file save, allowing you to work on your site without worrying about losing any changes.
Simultaneous replicated storage ensures your site's content is safely stored across multiple servers, minimizing the risk of data loss.
Fine-grained sharing controls enable you to share your site with specific individuals or groups, giving you control over who can access your content.
Built-in disaster recovery capabilities help you quickly recover your site in case of an unexpected issue.
Improve Your Site with Plugins and Widgets
Plugins are a great way to add functionality to your WordPress site. You can install plugins directly from your Dashboard by searching for them.
To do this, hover over Plugins and click Add New. Then, search for the plugin you want, usually by typing in its exact name. Click Details to read about the plugin or Install Now to install it.
After you install, click Activate. If there's any setup required for the plugin, take care of it.
Plugins work directly with the guts of your WordPress installation, so be discerning about what you choose to install. Look up plugins at the WordPress Plugin Directory before installing them, and be wary of low-star-rated plugins that might be broken or have security vulnerabilities.
Some essential plugins include Ninja Forms, WP Super Cache, UpdraftPlus, and WP MyLinks. These plugins can help you create a simple contact form, speed up your site, back up your site, and create a links page.
Here are some of the essential plugins with a brief description:
- Ninja Forms - a simple, easy-to-use contact form plugin.
- WP Super Cache - makes your site load faster by caching information.
- UpdraftPlus - a free site backup plugin that lets you manually back up your database or entire site.
- WP MyLinks - a free plugin that lets you create a simple links page.
Remember to be careful when installing plugins, and always check their ratings and reviews before installing.
Get a Domain and Web Hosting
You can publish your website to Google for free by using their free trial to start hosting your website with any Google Cloud product. If you have a Google account, it just takes a few simple steps to publish your website with Google.
Website builders such as Shift4Shop, BranchBob, ConvertKit, WordPress, and Ucraft can help you create a free website with your own domain. This way, you can have a professional-looking website without breaking the bank.
Yes, you can publish content on your website right this moment for free by using various website builders among the ones listed above. Depending on your specific use-case, you can choose the one that best suits your needs.
If you want to host a website for free, you can do so with website builders like WordPress and Google Sites among others. This means you can have a website up and running without paying a dime.
Choosing a Builder
If you're new to website creation, you might be overwhelmed by the number of options available. With dozens of reviews, Shift4Shop and Branchbob are the best free website builders for online stores because they offer the most features.
You can start by trying out a few different options to see which one you like best. With a free account available for the majority of the options listed, what's there to lose?
Some website builders are better suited for certain types of websites. For example, Ucraft is a great choice for creating a personal website with a flexible editor and well-designed templates.
If you want to create a free landing page, ConvertKit is a recommended website builder. They offer pre-made, well-designed landing page templates that can help you get started quickly.
Here are some popular website builders that allow you to create a free website with your own domain:
With Github, you can get a free custom domain and connect it to a website builder that allows custom domains for free. This option is available to students.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Wix actually free?
Yes, Wix is completely free to use, but upgrading to a paid plan unlocks premium features and more control over your site.
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