Step By Step Tutorial for Starting a Self-Hosted WordPress Blog
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase using one of the links in this post, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, Thanks for your support! That said, I choose what to write about and what to promote on this blog. I would never recommend something to you that I didn't think was completely worth it.Consider this your No Bullsh*t Guide to Starting a WordPress Blog. If you're here, it's because you know you want to start a blog. You probably also know you want to completely own the blog and all of its content yourself - this way no one can take it down unexpectedly, and you can potentially monetize your blog in the future.If you're not sure if you want to start a blog, this one question test might help, and if you need a quick pros and cons list of going with a self-hosted site or a Wordpress hosted site, check out this post. 
Ok, no time to waste. Let's get that WordPress Blog up and running. Right click here, and click open in a new tab. Then you can follow along in the tutorial as you go. Ready? Ok, let's go!
- For your hosting service, I strongly recommend Bluehost. They are super affordable (one of the best out there and cheaper than GoDaddy, which I'll show you below), have great customer service, AND have a 30-Day Money Back Guarantee, not that I ever think you'll need to use that. From the main page, Click “get started now”
2. Choose your package. I strongly recommend going with Prime for a few reasons, the most important of which is Domain Privacy. Once upon a time, I purchased a domain without Domain Privacy to save $8. That was 3 years ago, and I'm still getting DAILY junk mail to my home address. Credit card offers, insurance offers, financial planning offers - all addressed to my business name. Save yourself the hassle and all the trash.
3. Next up, domain time! If you don't already have a domain through GoDaddy or some similar site, get your domain through Bluehost! This is one of the top ways I could have saved money as a new blogger. I purchased my domain through GoDaddy before signing up for a hosting service, and I could have easily saved myself $20. Again, my newbie mistake is just one more trial you don't need to deal with (Where was all of this info when I started?? I'll tell ya - it was hidden in 57,648 thousand different websites and blog posts. Not one easy place to look. Which I guess is why I started this post....). Anyway, type in the domain you'd like to use. If it's available, it will take you to step 4. If not, try again to find a site that is up for sale.P.S. You can search for domains on GoDaddy first. I find their search function to be a little more user friendly.P.P.S. I know that those .us and .info sites are tempting, so you can keep the name you have your heart set on. BUT .com sites offer the most credibility, and you don't want to lose credibility with your readers before they even read anything! Stick with .com sites and you won't have to worry about that.
4. Fill in your information.
5. Next, we're going to select your hosting package. Here's a quick comparison:36 month package: $238.08
24 month package: $202.68
12 month package: $119.28
For reference, I paid $147.95 for a 12 month hosting service through GoDaddy. Needless to say, once I did the cost comparison and started working with Bluehost, I hosted all of my websites thereafter through them with longer contracts. Speaking of which, I KNOW $238.08 is a lot of money, especially if you are just starting out. If you aren't totally sure if this is going to be your thing, then by all means, go with the 12 month package. BUT, if you select a 12 month package and then extend it, you'll be paying at the standard monthly rate, which is $14.99. Sooooo let me calculate that for you...That means each year at the standard rate is $179.88. But if you sign up for 24 months at one time, you're actually only paying $60.60 for your second year. And if you sign up for all 36 months at one time, you're getting your second AND third year of hosting for only $59.40 each year! Compare that to two years at $359.76, and you're going to end up saving yourself over $240. It's a big bite to chew at first, but in the long run, you're looking at some significant cost savings.Moral of the story: pick the plan that makes the most sense for you and your budget, but make sure you have all the facts and numbers in front of you when you do it.6. Make your payment, then create a password. We're almost done!
7. Log in and select a theme - any theme will work for now. I show you how to find one that really fits your brand and aesthetic in this post.
8. Then, it's time to log in to WordPress launch your blog!
9. Select "Personal"
10. Click "Launch"
11. Adjust your site title and description (this is what will show up on search pages - it can be adjusted later).
12. Next, you should see the page below. You're blog is officially LIVE!
As a final step, click "Log in to WordPress", and you'll be redirected here:
This is the view for your main dashboard. You can create pages (like an "About Me" and a "Contact" page) and posts from here! You can continue to log directly into this page by bookmarking www.yourdomain.com/wp-admin. You'll log in there with the username and password you just created!That really wasn't so bad was it? I hope it took you 30 minutes, tops - unless you got stuck in the themes library agonizing over the choices... it happens to the best of us. If you found a free theme you love, then GREAT, you're all done.But if none of the themes really spoke to you, stay tuned for my next tutorial on finding and uploading a BEAUTIFUL theme.
