Bluehost is one of the three hosts WordPress.org has recommended for years, it installs WordPress for you automatically, and a blog there costs less than a coffee a month on the introductory price. This guide walks through starting a WordPress blog on Bluehost from choosing a plan to publishing your first post, with the current 2026 plans and prices and the add-ons you should untick at checkout.
Updated October 2026. Bluehost has renamed its plans and moved to a new dashboard since this post was first written, so the steps and prices below reflect what you will see today. Screenshots are from the signup flow and may differ slightly in color and layout.
Why Bluehost for a First Blog?
- One-click WordPress: WordPress is installed during signup; you never touch a server.
- Free domain and SSL: a domain name for the first year and a free SSL certificate (the padlock) on every plan.
- Cheap to start: the Starter plan is $3.99 a month on a 36-month term (it renews at $9.99).
- 30-day money-back guarantee on hosting.
- 24/7 chat support and a guided setup with an AI site builder if you want a head start on design.
It is not the fastest host you can buy (see our guide to choosing WordPress hosting for the trade-offs), but for a new blog on a budget it is a sensible place to begin, and moving later is easy.
Step 1: Choose a Plan
Go to Bluehost through the link above (it applies the discounted price) and click Get Started under WordPress Hosting. In 2026 there are three plans:
| Plan | Intro Price (36 months) | Renews At | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $3.99/month | $9.99/month | 10 websites, 10 GB NVMe storage, free domain and SSL, weekly backups |
| Business | $6.99/month | $13.99/month | 50 websites, 50 GB storage, free domain privacy, everything in Starter |
| eCommerce Essentials | $14.99/month | $21.99/month | 100 websites, 100 GB, WooCommerce tools and payments |
For a single blog, Starter is enough. Pick Business if you want domain privacy included (it hides your address from the public WHOIS record) or plan to run several sites. Skip eCommerce unless you are opening a store on day one.
Step 2: Pick Your Domain Name
Enter the domain you want in the Create a new domain box; it is free for the first year. Keep it short, easy to spell, and ideally a .com. If you already own a domain elsewhere, enter it in the other box and you can point it to Bluehost later. You can also skip this step and choose a domain after signup.
Step 3: Create Your Account and Pay
Fill in your account details (or sign in with Google), then look carefully at the Package Information section:
- Term: the advertised price requires 36 months paid up front. A 12-month term costs more per month but less in total; choose what you can afford, since the renewal price is the same either way.
- Package extras: untick everything you do not need. Domain privacy is worth keeping if it is not already included; SiteLock, CodeGuard, and Yoast SEO Premium are not needed for a new blog and can be added later.
Enter your card details (PayPal is under More payment options), accept the terms, and submit. You will get a confirmation email within a few minutes, and Bluehost will ask you to create a password for your account.
Step 4: Let Bluehost Install WordPress
After you set a password, Bluehost opens its onboarding wizard. It asks a few questions about the kind of site you want, offers its AI site builder or a theme, and installs WordPress on your domain in the background. You can answer the questions or click Skip on each screen; nothing here is permanent. When it finishes you land in the Bluehost dashboard with your site listed under Websites.
Step 5: Log In to WordPress
From the Bluehost dashboard, click Edit Site (or Log in to WordPress) next to your site. Later you can go straight to yourdomain.com/wp-admin with your WordPress username and password.
Bluehost adds its own menu inside WordPress with a setup checklist, a staging site, and performance settings; it is safe to ignore for now. Your blog is live, with a temporary theme, at your domain.
Step 6: Set Up Your Blog
A fresh WordPress install needs about half an hour of setup before you write:
- Work through the essential things to do after installing WordPress: site title, tagline, permalinks, timezone, and deleting the sample content.
- Install a theme. Kadence, Astra, and GeneratePress are free, fast, and work well with the block editor.
- Install a few plugins: Rank Math or Yoast for SEO, a caching plugin (Bluehost includes one), UpdraftPlus for backups, and a security plugin such as Wordfence.
- Publish your first post.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to start a blog on Bluehost?
About $144 up front for 36 months of the Starter plan ($3.99 a month), which includes the domain for a year. After that it renews at $9.99 a month and the domain at the standard rate (around $20 a year).
Does Bluehost install WordPress for free?
Yes. WordPress is installed automatically during signup on every plan, and you can add more WordPress sites from the dashboard.
Can I use Bluehost with a domain I already own?
Yes. Enter it at signup under “Use a domain you own”, then update the nameservers at your registrar to ns1.bluehost.com and ns2.bluehost.com.
Is Bluehost good for beginners?
It is one of the easiest hosts to start on because of the automatic install and guided setup. If speed becomes a priority as the blog grows, managed hosts such as SiteGround or Cloudways are a common next step.
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