You’ve heard the saying “There’s no such thing as a free lunch” right? The same can be said of a free service. If you find yourself in search of the best free web hosting service for your website, read on.
Many hosting companies claim to allow anyone to host and build their websites for free. Although they appear to offer an enticing deal, a closer look reveals significant limitations.
Many small business owners who are starting out often fail to see the true cost of a free web hosting service, realizing later how restricted they actually are.
Free web hosting comes with several downsides such as lack of stability, customisation and not having a domain name of your own. If you are not sure why you should pay for web hosting and a good hosting provider, this guide will elaborate some of the main reasons why it is worth it.
Understanding free web hosting
Before exploring the hidden costs, it's essential to understand what free web hosting is and how it works.
What is free web hosting?
Free web hosting is a service that allows individuals and businesses to host their websites without incurring any financial cost. Hosting providers offer server space at no charge, enabling users to create and publish content online. However, these services often come with certain limitations, such as restricted storage space, bandwidth, and limited technical support.
How does free web hosting work?
When you sign up for a free web hosting account, you're provided with server space where you can upload and store your website files. The hosting provider ensures that the server is accessible to visitors and that your website functions properly. Users typically have access to a control panel to manage various aspects of their website, such as uploading files, creating email accounts, and managing domain settings. It's important to familiarize yourself with the control panel to make the most out of your free web hosting experience.
The appeal of free web hosting for beginners
For individuals and hobbyists, free web hosting can be an attractive option. The cost savings and ease of use make it simple to get a personal blog or website up and running without any financial commitment. These platforms often come with user-friendly interfaces and basic features, allowing users to create and publish content online quickly. For those who are just starting out or want to experiment with website development, free hosting provides an accessible stepping stone into the online world.
Assess your website needs and future growth
It's crucial to assess your website needs and consider your future growth plans. Free web hosting may suffice for personal projects or small-scale websites, but if you anticipate your website growing in size or expecting increased traffic, free hosting may not meet your long-term requirements. Investing in a paid hosting plan can provide you with the resources, support, and flexibility needed to scale your business.
Top reasons why free web hosting is a mistake for your business website
1. It's tough to get a good domain on a free website
Using a free website builder to create your business website is not the greatest idea. Here's why: free website builders will not give you a domain name of your choice. Instead, you get a subdomain that may not reflect your brand effectively.
For example: "yourbusinessname.freewebhostingsite.com"
Not really professional-looking, right? Who wants to type anything that long these days? And on top of that, they're not easy for your customers to remember. This happens because the site address you are provided with is not really your own. Also, these types of URLs can affect your brand's ranking in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). But we'll talk more about SEO below.
Now you must keep in mind that picking the right domain name is a very crucial step to your online presence. It must be catchy, relatable, short and easy to read. In case you’re having a creative block, this guide can help you out by choosing the perfect domain name.
2. Storage & bandwidth limitations
Bandwidth limitation is the next thing you should be aware of. You want your site to attract as many visitors as possible to increase your conversion opportunities.
But chances are that a free site won’t make the cut.
Ideally, you would want your website to grow as your business expands. But in reality, here’s where your free hosting plan will bring some constraints. Free hosting plans typically limit your bandwidth to a few gigabytes per month, which doesn’t sound like a big deal until you realise how quickly those GBs can disappear if you aren’t careful about using images or video on your website.
In other words, once the allotted bandwidth has been used up, your site will take longer to load, or worse, become inaccessible. And nobody likes a slow or unresponsive site. That's why you should consider investing in a premium hosting plan straight off the bat and give your visitors the ultimate experience when they are first exposed to your brand.
3. Poor SEO performance
This is yet another common problem people face with free web hosting plans.
While working with free platforms to build a website, people often overlook the fact that they would most likely perform poorly in terms of SEO. Thus, getting little to no traffic (defeating the very purpose of having a website altogether).
There are two main reasons for this.
First and foremost, most, if not all, of these platforms don’t have any SEO features built-in.
Secondly, most free platforms use limited content management systems which don’t allow you to code properly or add additional elements to your web pages.
Website traffic is one of the most important factors for a website to stand out. If you want higher conversion rates you need to think about how to bring people in organically (Without ads, or buying backlinks).
As you can see, not all websites are created equal.
In this age where everyone is fighting to be in the digital spotlight, SEO is your ally. You can check our thorough SEO guide to understand in-depth how to rank your site at the top of SERPs and get substantial traffic. Unfortunately, search engines like Google tend to overlook free websites, assuming their quality isn't high, which can harm your reach.
4. Unwanted advertisements can harm your brand
One of the hidden costs of free web hosting is the presence of forced advertisements or unwanted third-party ads displayed on your website without your consent. These ads can detract from the professionalism of your site, harm your brand image, and negatively impact the user experience.
Visitors might find these ads intrusive or irrelevant, which can lead them to question the credibility of your business. Moreover, you have little to no control over the content of these ads, so they might even promote products or services that conflict with your own offerings. Investing in a paid hosting plan ensures that your website remains free of unwanted ads, allowing you to maintain a clean, professional appearance that resonates with your audience.
5. Limited features and scalability
Free web hosting services often come with restrictions on advanced features and functionalities. These limitations can impact the performance and capabilities of your website, especially as your business grows.
Free hosting typically provides limited access to server configurations, lacks advanced settings, databases, server-side scripting, SSL certificates, and email hosting. Without these essential features, it becomes challenging to create a unique, secure, and fully functional website that meets your business needs.
Furthermore, free hosting platforms may restrict scalability, making it difficult to accommodate increased traffic or expand your site as your business evolves.
In contrast, investing in a paid hosting plan offers you full control, ownership, flexibility, and scalability. Paid hosting plans allow for customization without restrictions, accommodating your business growth and ensuring consistent performance. By choosing a professional hosting plan, you can prevent potential revenue loss from downtime, accommodate growth, and avoid security breaches in the long term.
6. Potential security risks
Another downside of free web hosting is the potential security risks associated with shared servers. Free hosting providers accommodate multiple websites on a single server, increasing the risk of security breaches. If one website on the server is compromised, it can potentially impact the security and performance of other websites hosted on the same server.
Investing in a paid hosting service provides enhanced website security with multiple levels of protection, such as SSL certificates, malware scanning, firewall protection, DDoS protection, and regular security updates. These features help protect your website against cyberattacks and data breaches. By choosing a reliable paid hosting plan, you can safeguard your website and customer data, ensuring trust and confidence in your online presence.
Related: What is SSL (Secure Sockets Layer)? A comprehensive guide on SSL certificates
7. Lack of data backup and recovery options
If you're using a free website provider, you may be putting your site at risk. Why? Well, these services often lack proper data backup and recovery options.
In the unfortunate event of a data breach, server outage, or data loss, you might lose your website and all the work you've put in.
Free web hosting services do not make regular backups of their systems to prevent data loss.
With the possibility of losing all your content, database and website at any time, hackers can easily take advantage of this and gain access to your information.
Paid hosting services, on the other hand, often provide regular backups and recovery options to prevent data loss. Sure you can still use these platforms for blogging and other basic tasks, but if you’re running an eCommerce store or selling anything online paying for a hosting service is the safest way to go. They allow you to restore your website to a previous state in case of any issues. This added layer of protection is crucial for maintaining the integrity of your website and business operations.
8. No customer or technical support
When technical issues arise, having reliable customer and technical support is crucial. Unfortunately, free web hosting services often provide limited or no support at all. This means that if your website runs into problems, you may not receive the assistance you need to resolve them promptly.
This lack of support can lead to unresolved issues, possible downtime, and ultimately loss of visitors and credibility. Downtime can negatively impact user experience and hurt your brand's reputation. Without proper support, you're left to troubleshoot issues on your own, which can be frustrating and time-consuming.
On the flip side, paid hosting services offer responsive, round-the-clock support to ensure quick resolution of issues. With a dedicated support team ready to assist you, you can keep your website running smoothly and focus on growing your business.
9. A great web hosting service will only cost you a few dollars per month
While there's nothing truly free, finding a good, affordable hosting provider is very possible! Once you hit a dead end with free web hosting, you will likely have to pay for hosting. If you've read all the way here, you might have come to the same conclusion.
Unfortunately, a lot of people still think that a great website will cost thousands. But this couldn’t be further from the truth! A premium website doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. You can have a great site for a few dollars per month, and you don’t need to be an expert in coding or design.
Remember: There’s a big difference between trying to be frugal and not investing in your business.
Websites have become an integral part of marketing strategies across all industries. Now more than ever, those starting their online business journey should invest in a professional website early on to solidify their presence in the online space. How to choose a web host has never been easier – check out our guide for quick help.
At this point, choosing a premium hosting plan is the logical choice if you want to succeed in the long run and have a thriving business.
Free websites are not the best way to meet your business needs.
The truth is, all free web hosting providers will restrict you in one way or another. They could limit how much traffic you can receive each month or the amount of space that you have to upload files. Some might not provide you with enough tools to increase your visibility.
Your website is one of the most important digital assets for your brand. That's why it's essential to choose a hosting service that meets your needs and supports your growth. Transferring your website to a new web host doesn’t need to be scary – you can move to a secure hosting plan now.
Ready to take your online presence to the next level with a reliable web host? Consider exploring hosting options that provide you with all the features you need to make a lasting impression on your potential clients.
Editor's Note: This article was first published on November 23, 2021 and updated on May 21, 2025.
