Here's your guide on how to start a blog in Bluehost. WordPress is among the top platforms people think of when they hear the word “blogging.” About 35% of all websites in the world use WordPress (according to CreativeMinds). Bluehost is among the top recommended web hosting service by WordPress.
Web hosting is what can allow you to do all the customizations you want to achieve, make your site SEO-friendly, as well as allow you to insert your affiliate links and monetize thru Ads. Without a hosting service, you are just blogging for fun and for ranking. The income will start when you get a hosting service, as explained here.
Bluehost offers different types of hosting products:
- Shared hosting is best for new websites, small blogs or brochure sites, sites with low traffic, bloggers/owners with low budget.
2. Shared WordPress is for small scale WordPress sites and users only getting started or with limited budget.
3. WooCommerce hosting is best for WordPress users building with WooCommerce, for online stores and for beginners and pro sellers.
4. VPS is for regular sized websites, for those who want better security, features and performance than shared hosting and for growing/professional websites.
5. Managed WordPress (Pro) is for professional WordPress websites, for owners with bigger goals for their site, for those who want improved performance, features and convenience than shared WordPress hosting.
6. Dedicated hosting is ideal for high traffic sites, for large online stores and for anyone preferring/requiring ultimate performance, security and control.
Full Affiliate Disclosure:
Fulltime Blogging is a participant in the Bluehost affiliate program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Bluehost.com. As a Bluehost Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
PROS:
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How Do You Start A Blog in Bluehost?
1. Choose/Buy Your Bluehost Plan
You could purchase web hosting services on monthly or yearly terms, but the latter is more cost-effective and convenient.
Going straight to Bluehost for the first step of choosing and buying a web hosting service will make the process simpler and easier. Upon clicking the green “Get Started” button above, you will see the offered plans by Bluehost. There are different web hosting services on Bluehost and you must pick one according to your needs (more on this below). Click the package you want/need.
2. Enter Your Domain Name
After clicking your chosen package, the next page you will see is one where you may enter the domain name you already have or register a new one. There is also an option to skip domain name registration at the moment.
If you will register a new domain, type the domain without the suffix (.com, .org, etc.) and click “Next.”
Many regard Bluehost for its web hosting services, but this does not mean it only has such products to offer. Incidentally, you can also get a domain through Bluehost. You would even get a domain for free on your first year of subscription if you will buy at least 12 months of web hosting.
3. Provide Account Details, Set Password
Once you have set up your website’s domain name, you need to fill out your account information, such as name, email address and country then choose your web hosting plan. On this page, you will also need to give your payment details (payment method and amount). Tick the box for agreeing to Bluehost’s TOS, Cancelation Policy and Privacy Policy.
After submitting your information, you will see a page where you can set your password. Click “Next” after agreeing to the Terms and Conditions. When you see a congratulations page with a message to log in to your page, check your email first to find your login details. This email will contain the link to your hosted website’s cPanel (control panel).
The page following this will ask you what kind of blog you will create: a business site or a personal site. This is the stage wherein you just installed WordPress. In the traditional way of creating a blog (not starting on Bluehost), some people often refer to this as a separate step for WordPress installation.
At Bluehost, this is the step you skip and you would not even notice it because you go straight to your WordPress dashboard.
Bluehost present you with all the resources, tools and support that you need for managing a WordPress website without the need to install WordPress separately. You can access your WordPress website when you log in to your Bluehost cPanel and can immediately see your WordPress dashboard.
Bluehost Shared WordPress Hosting Plans And Pricing
Basic
$3.95/mo*
Normally $7.99
/mo
plus
$5.95/mo*
Normally $10.99
/mo
choice plus (recommended)
$6.95/mo*
Normally $14.99
/mo
You can see here that you can launch a blog on Bluehost for as low as $3.95 a month with the Basic plan. This cheap price is really enticing. Do not be impulsive when signing up without reading further and understanding the terms.
Moving the cursor below in a rather tiny font size is a disclaimer "promotional prices are only for the first term and that regular rates will apply upon renewal of the plan."
If you click on any of the “Select” buttons, the system will direct you to the Sign Up page within which you will enter your account and payment details. You will find here the term length options and the pricing for each.
For the Basic Plan, for example, I discovered that the $3.95/month is for the 36-months term length.
Once your chosen term expires, you will pay the regular rates for plans shown in the table below.
Plan | Basic | Plus | Choice Plus |
|---|---|---|---|
12 Months | $8.99 | $12.99 | $16.99 |
24 Months | $8.49 | $11.99 | $15.99 |
36 Months | $7.99 | $10.99 | $14.99 |
The prices are accurate as of writing/updating this post (October 2020).
Bluehost is recommended by WordPress.org. It has earned WordPress.org’s recommendation since 2005 because it is easy to use and it offers substantial support.
Bluehost team (as per other people's feedback) is available 24/7 to provide answers to questions. You may contact them via phone and chat.
In Closing
In comparison to Cloudways ($10/mo. cheapest pay as you go/no commitment hosting), Bluehost does offer a "comparable" plan. The closest and lowest plan is from the "Next-Gen VPS Hosting."
Cloudways | bluehost |
|---|---|
 |  |
Lowest Monthly Price: $10/month | Lowest Monthly Price: $18.99/month (36-months minimum) $29.99/mo. no commitment |
Name of plan/server: Digital Ocean | Name of plan/server: VPS Standard Web Hosting |
Server Size: 1GB | Server Size: 2GB |
Processor: 1 Core | Processor: 2 Cores |
SSD (Storage) Disk: 25 GB | SSD (Storage) Disk: 30 GB |
Bandwidth: 1TB | Bandwidth: 1TB |
IP Address: 1 | IP Address: 1 |
Upfront option to choose a server's location: Yes | Upfront option to choose a server's location: No |
Pay As You Go Option: Yes | Pay As You Go Option: No |
Scale Up Anytime: Yes | Scale Up Anytime: Depends on your plan. If you choose a plan with a lock-in period, read the terms and conditions. You can also contact the company for special consideration. |
Why chose Cloudways: The Pay As You Go Option is good since as you experience the platform, you can change your mind about the add-ons you purchase. When I created another server for tutorial purposes, it appeared in my billing realtime. But when I removed it the next day, it was removed from my billing, too.
If Digital Ocean server ended up not suitable for you anymore, you can change servers without leaving the Cloudways platform.
Billing is one calendar month after consumption. As you need more features, the option to scale up is there. It's an affordable choice for something that you do not need to share anyone with.
Bluehost's VPS Standard Web Hosting is a good option for someone who is looking to transfer from an existing SHARED HOSTING plan. Its higher specs is suitable for anyone with an existing website with an already established traffic (visitors).
Before availing it, know your figures. You should already roughly know how high your specifications should be so you can choose the best VPS plan.
As a newbie, I highly encourage you to get a “Managed” plan. Site Support is important as you can get stuck with technicals, and it can hinder your content creation process.
Managing your own server is ideal if you know the technicals already or are patient enough to get past any technical learning curve. With this, hosting in Wealthy Affiliate is a good starting point.
Here’s a comparable table with Bluehost:
Bluehost | Wealthy Affiliate |
|---|---|
|  |
Lowest Monthly Price: Promo: $9.95/month (36 months minimum) Regular/Renewal Price: $29.99/mo. (36 months minimum) | Lowest All-In Monthly Price: 49/month no commitment |
Name of plan/server: Managed WordPress (BUILD) | Name of plan/server: Wealthy Affiliate Premium/Amazon Web Services (AWS) |
SSD (Storage) Disk: 20 GB | SSD (Storage) Disk: 30 GB |
Bandwidth: 20,000 Visitors | Bandwidth:
|
Premium Site Support: Basic Support: 24/7/365 | Premium Site Support: Included but not priority |
Site Speed/Caching: Multi-Layer Caching | Site Speed/Caching: Included/Built-in |
Site Protect/Website Security: Akismet Spam Protection/Malware Detection and Removal | Site Protect/Website Security: Built-in/Included (up to 10 websites) |
Professional Emails: 30 Days Free Trial Microsoft E-mail | Professional Emails: Unlimited |
Number of Websites Allowed: 1 WordPress Site | Number of Websites Allowed: 10 ($100/mo. value) |
Managed 24/7: Yes | Managed 24/7: Yes |
Dual Server Hosting Redundancy: Not specified | Dual Server Hosting Redundancy: Yes |