// from 13 years of running blogs
How much does it really cost to start a blog in 2026? Year 1 vs year 3
Most "start a blog for $2.95" posts stop at the first bill. Here's the full cost, including what happens when the intro price ends, and the $0 route if you'd rather not pay at all.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- A basic self-hosted WordPress blog costs about $50-80 in year one on a 1-year hosting term.
- Over 3 years, cheap hosting with renewals comes to $70-140 total on the hosts we track, plus about $15-20 a year for the domain after year one.
- Themes, SEO and backup plugins can all be free; email on your domain is optional.
- A static blog on free hosting costs only the domain.
What you actually pay for
| Item | Typical cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Domain name | $0-20 year 1, ~$15-20/yr after | Often free for the first year with hosting; if you cancel early, some hosts deduct its fee from your refund (HostGator: $22.99). |
| Hosting | $2-7/mo intro | Renewals are often 2-4× higher. See the table below. |
| Theme | $0 | Free themes are fine; premium themes run $50-100/yr. |
| Plugins | $0 | Free SEO, security, backup and caching plugins cover the basics. |
| Email on your domain | $0-36/yr | cPanel email is included on many shared plans; add-on mailboxes are about $3/mo. |
| Checkout add-ons | $0 if you untick them | Security, SEO tools and backups add $2-6/mo each. |
Hosting: the 3-year number that matters
| Cheapest WordPress hosting we track | Intro | Renews at | 3-year hosting total |
|---|---|---|---|
| AccuWeb Hosting · Budget | $1.99/mo | $1.99/mo | $72 |
| InterServer · Standard Web Hosting | $2.50/mo | $2.50/mo | $90 |
| AccuWeb Hosting · Bootstrap ++ | $2.79/mo | $2.79/mo | $100 |
| UltaHost · SHARED Starter | $2.88/mo | $2.88/mo | $104 |
| HostPapa · Essentials | $2.95/mo | $9.99/mo | $106 |
| Hostinger · Premium Web Hosting | $2.99/mo | $10.99/mo | $108 |
From our pricing database; the 3-year total includes renewals. See every plan in the True Cost tracker.
The $0 hosting route
If you're comfortable writing in Markdown or using a simple static site generator, you can host a blog free on static hosting and pay only for the domain. It's how I'm moving my own small sites in 2026.
How to keep it cheap
- Pick a 1-year term the first time: refundable at most hosts and cheaper than monthly.
- Untick every pre-added extra at checkout (email trials, security, SEO tools).
- Consider registering the domain at a registrar such as Namecheap or GoDaddy instead of taking the "free" one from your host: moving hosts later never touches it, and no domain fee is taken from a refund. Compare the renewal price, not the first-year price.
- Put the renewal date in your calendar and compare prices a month before.
- Grow into managed hosting only when the blog earns enough to pay for it.
FAQ
How much does it cost to start a blog?
About $50-80 for the first year with a domain and a 1-year shared hosting term, and $70-140 for hosting over three years with renewals on the cheapest hosts we track. A static blog on free hosting costs only the domain.
Can I start a blog for free?
Yes, on a free static host with your own domain (about $15/yr), or on a free subdomain from a blogging platform.