Join over 60 MILLION people creating great websites and blogs with WordPress!

Use the search box below to search for your blogs new domain name. If you already have a domain name, skip to STEP 2 below.

** You can register a new domain name for FREE when you sign up for a web hosting account at our recommended provider, Bluehost.

For tips and info on choosing a domain name, see our article: How To Register A Domain Name.

To self-host a blog, you just need to sign up for a web hosting account. There are thousands of choices for web hosting, but we recommend that you go with Bluehost: the web host recommended by the developers of the WordPress platform. In fact, Bluehost is the only hosting company officially recommended by WordPress.org that offers 24-hour live customer support and a 1-click WordPress installation.

Bluehost is one of the biggest WordPress hosting providers in the world they host over 1 million WordPress sites. If you ever need help, you can talk to a real, live person: Bluehost has phone support 24 hours a day, chat support, and email support. 

Bluehost offers an anytime money-back guarantee with no contract. You can cancel at any time and receive a full refund of any unused months of web hosting.

Bluehost Plan Features

GO TO BLUEHOST ACTIVATE DISCOUNT $3.95/mo

WPSetupSteps.com Bluehost Discount: Get hosting at Bluehost for only $3.95 per month   a 34% savings off of their regular price of $5.99 per month.

For detailed specs on Bluehost features and a detailed guide to web hosting terminology, see our article: How To Buy Web Hosting for WordPress.

WordPress is the most popular blogging platform in the world and it is absolutely and totally free. It is easy to use and is entirely open-source, meaning it can be used however you like and can be installed as many times as you want. You dont need to know anything technical to install and use WordPress. It installs with one click, keeps track of all your files and content, and you control everything from a user-friendly dashboard in your web browser. And you can publish to your WordPress blog from any computer in the world with internet access!

NOTE: Do not confuse self-hosted WordPress (the subject of this guide) with the free hosted version at WordPress.com. The free version is extremely limited: you dont own your content, you cant make many changes, and they advertise on your blog. For a real blog that you control and own, follow this guide to get a self-hosted blog. Self-hosted WordPress is basically what everyone uses these days for professional blogs, business blogs, blogs that make money, or any blog that is meant to be taken seriously.

WordPress Editor

It is incredibly easy to create and edit a blog or website in WordPress. You can change fonts, add headings, insert pictures, create bullet lists, copy/paste. everything through the user-friendly dashboard. And if you prefer to code directly in HTML, you can simply switch to the HTML code with one click.

Follow the steps below to install WordPress on your Bluehost account. It only takes a few minutes to complete!:

How To Install WordPress On Bluehost

Congratulations! You now have a WordPress blog!

After the install completes, you will see a link to your new WordPress site (Site URL), a link to login to your website (Login URL) and your username and password. This information will also be emailed to you. 

WordPress Default Theme

How To Login To Your WordPress Blog and Access the Dashboard

The WordPress Dashboard

For more detailed information about the installation steps above, read our article, How To Install WordPress In Minutes.

eleven40 Theme by StudioPress

There are thousands of WordPress themes to choose from to start the design of your blog. For example, we use a customized version of the Eleven40 theme from StudioPress (pictured) for this website.

WordPress uses themes to control the way your site looks.

The look and style of your blog begins with your blogs theme. WordPress has themes that snap on to your blog with the click of a button. There are free themes and also premium themes available to provide a template for the look and feel of your blog. You can change your theme over and over without affecting your blogs content. Themes are easy to install (instructions listed below). All you do is download a ZIP file folder from the theme developer, then upload that to your WordPress site through the dashboard, and click a button to install a theme.

Thousands of free themes are available right on the official WordPress.org website. If you opt for a free theme, make sure you get one at the official WordPress.org Themes Directory. Dont get a free theme from just anyone you find in a Google search. Some free themes have malicious code and spyware hidden in the code. Its always safer to get one through the official site. When selecting a theme, take note of the number of downloads, ratings, and the level of support. If you ever need a little support customizing your theme, remember that the bigger the community of users for a particular theme, the better the support and information is going to be.

With premium themes, you are not just purchasing the theme, but also the support and the frequent updates. Premium themes will typically come with better support, better code quality, and more frequent updates than free themes.

You can get premium themes relatively inexpensively. For example, Elegant Themes gives you 12-month access to all 80+ themes they offer starting at $69. StudioPress has a platform, called Genesis, that costs about $60 and child themes that cost about $25 each with a lifetime license that includes support and updates.

Click the theme developers banners below to view their free online theme demos and compare pricing. For more detailed information on themes and theme providers, see the article How To Select a WordPress Theme.

VIEW DEMO

VIEW DEMO