Best free web hosting: Jump menu

For those on a shoestring budget, the allure of free web hosting can be hard to resist. However, the old adage "you get what you pay for" often rings true in the world of web hosting. Many free hosts come with a slew of limitations and hidden costs that can quickly turn your dream of a free website into a nightmare.

That's not to say there aren't any decent free options out there. After rigorous testing, we've identified a handful of providers that manage to offer a surprisingly robust free hosting experience. These hosts deliver a balance of features, performance, and reliability that sets them apart from the sea of subpar free options.

Whether you're a blogger looking to share your thoughts with the world, a small business owner in need of a basic online presence, or a developer seeking a testbed for your latest project, these hosts have something to offer. Let's explore the cream of the free hosting crop.

The quick list

Searching for top-notch free web hosting without delving into specifics? Here’s a brief rundown of the best free hosting services, emphasizing their unique offerings. For detailed insights, explore the complete reviews. 

1. Byethost

The best free web hosting

Byethost delivers premium free web hosting on a freemium basis, enticing users to upgrade. The free package boasts 1GB storage, 50GB bandwidth, and no ads.

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2. InfinityFree

The best “unlimited everything” free web hosting

InfinityFree offers an “unlimited everything” free hosting solution, ideal for sites with fewer daily visitors. It provides unlimited storage, bandwidth, and domain connections, with a daily cap of 50,000 hits.

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3. 000webhost

The best free hosting from a well-known company

Managed by hosting giant Hostinger, 000webhost offers a robust selection of tools. Users get a cPanel control panel, a free website builder, and a 99% uptime guarantee.

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4. GoogieHost

The best free web host for advanced features

GoogieHost stands out for its advanced features in free hosting. Users enjoy 1GB storage, 100GB bandwidth, and the Softaculous one-click installer. It also offers free subdomains and SSL certificates.

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5. AwardSpace

The best free web host for startups

AwardSpace offers a solid free hosting option with user-friendly management tools, but its limited resources and lack of
a standard control panel might deter some.

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The top 3 best web hosting services right now

These three options below are our top selections when evaluating the best web hosting services, and while not free, they provide cheap shared hosting and a range of other hosting packages, backed by reputation, security, and strong performance.

If you're set on going ahead with a free host—which we don’t recommend—make sure you check our list of the best free web hosting services below. We comprehensively tested 18 supposedly free services, and the four we've listed are the only providers offering reliable, functional hosting for free.

The best free web hosting of 2024 in full

Best overall

1. Byethost

The best free web hosting

Specifications

Disk space: 1GB

Bandwidth: 50GB

Control panel: VistaPanel

One-click installer: Softaculous

Reasons to buy

Fast email support

Reasons to avoid

Byethost offers high-quality free web hosting based on a freemium model. That is, it encourages you to upgrade to a paid subscription after signing up for a free plan. But the free plan is excellent. With 1GB of storage, 50GB of bandwidth, and absolutely no advertising to speak of, there really is a lot to like here. 

On top of this, all users will have access to the beginner-friendly VistaPanel control panel, which is designed to make ongoing management easier than ever. Take advantage of the built-in FTP (file transfer protocol) account and online file manager to upload and organize files. 

Other noteworthy tools include the Softaculous one-click installer, which makes it extremely easy to install programs like WordPress and Joomla. There’s also a free site builder and a selection of free domains is available if you really want to keep costs to a minimum. 

While Byethost promises 100% uptime – which is great for ensuring your site is always available – we found the response time is a bit on the slower side at around 300ms. This means your website might not load as quickly as you or your visitors would like, especially if it's heavy with content.

During the setup process, we found some of the steps and recommendations a bit outdated. For example, there's advice against using Internet Explorer and some instructions that haven't been refreshed in a while. This won't be a big deal for everyone, but if you're not too tech-savvy, it might make getting started a bit more challenging.

Also, be aware that some communications from Byethost, including your control panel and support links, may not use secure HTTPS connections. This could be a security concern and something to think about, especially if you're handling sensitive information.

Best unlimited

2. InfinityFree

Reasons to avoid

InfinityFree stands out as an excellent all-around free hosting option for sites that won't receive many visitors each day. It offers unlimited bandwidth, and domain connections, although you will have a daily limit of 50,000 hits. But if you’re getting this many visitors, you should probably be using a premium host anyway. 

While the offer of "unlimited" bandwidth and storage catches the eye, know that the actual free storage you get is 5GB. This is fairly generous for a free plan, but it's not unlimited. If your site is heavy with images or videos, you might find yourself bumping up against this limit sooner than you'd expect.

Another point to note is that while InfinityFree supports a range of SSL certificates, including Let's Encrypt and Cloudflare SSL, there's a catch if you're using a free InfinityFree subdomain. Due to limits on the number of certificates issued per domain, you might not be able to secure an SSL for your subdomain.

Additionally, you can either import your own premium domain name or select a free subdomain from the InfinityFree library. InfinityFree includes support for the cPanel administration panel. You will even have access to the Softaculous one-click installer, which makes initial setup easier than ever. 

In terms of support, InfinityFree's approach is quite hands-off. You won't find direct email or phone support here. Instead, you'll rely on a knowledge base and a user forum for help. This can be adequate for solving common issues, but if you're facing a unique problem, the lack of direct support might feel limiting.

Apart from somewhat average performance, we found very few other obvious flaws. You won’t ever have ads placed on your website, you’ll benefit from a 99.9% uptime guarantee and will have access to a suite of other tools. 

Best for reliability

3. 000webhost

Reasons to avoid

If you’re looking for a reliable free host that’s been working in the industry for years, you simply can’t overlook 000webhost. It’s run and managed by hosting powerhouse Hostinger, and it offers a very impressive selection of advanced tools and features. 

For example, you will have access to a cPanel control panel, a free integrated website builder, and a 99% uptime guarantee. However, email accounts are notably absent, there’s no one-click installer, and you will be limited to 300MB of storage and 3GB of bandwidth.

The platform's instant account activation is especially beneficial if you're working on a project with tight deadlines or simply eager to see your digital ideas come to life quickly.

Another aspect to consider is the community support. While 000webhost doesn’t offer the direct customer service found in paid plans, the community forum is a treasure trove of insights, tips, and troubleshooting advice. Leveraging this can significantly enhance your experience, especially if you're new to web hosting or encounter unique challenges.

The absence of forced ads on your website is a noteworthy benefit, distinguishing 000webhost from many other free web hosting services. This ensures a cleaner, more professional appearance for your site, which can be crucial for your brand's perception and user experience.

However, be mindful of the limitations in disk space and bandwidth on the free plan. While suitable for small projects, these constraints might hinder the growth or performance of your site as it attracts more traffic or requires more content. Planning for future needs and considering an upgrade path to Hostinger’s paid plans could be a wise strategy for long-term projects.

Of course, once you've outgrown your free hosting, it's possible to upgrade to a full Hostinger package. Generally, we find Hostinger's products to be priced well, so starting with 000webhost and moving later to Hostinger if you need to seems a reasonable course of action if you're on a tight budget.

Best for advanced users

4. GoogieHost

Reasons to avoid

Although it’s far from our number one choice, some people will like GoogieHost because of its generous server resources and built-in cPanel control panel. Choose GoogieHost, and you will benefit from 1GB of storage and 100GB of bandwidth, and harness the power of the Softaculous one-click installer. 

There are also free subdomains available if you require one, along with access to a free Site.pro website builder, a free SSL (secure sockets layer) certificate, and more.

GoogieHost's performance metrics are promising, with a 98% performance score and a load time of just 1.0 seconds. This suggests that GoogieHost is making sure your site not only stays up but also loads quickly for your visitors. The inclusion of automated constant backups and a 99% uptime guarantee also adds a layer of security and reliability to the service.

However, the journey to set up and manage your site can be quite the slog, thanks to the platform's cluttered interface and intrusive ads. These ads, aimed at subsidizing the cost of free hosting, can disrupt your workflow and detract from the overall user experience.

Another aspect to consider is the platform's limitations on hosting big websites. With PHP disabled, some web applications won't run, limiting what you can do with your site. This is a significant consideration if you plan to use your site for more complex projects or applications.

The poor design of the GoogieHost website certainly doesn’t inspire confidence in its services, and customer service options are very limited. Most customer reviews lament the difficulty of getting things set up on GoogieHost and that there's no real customer support, so it's an also-ran at best.

Best for entrepreneurs and startups

5. AwardSpace