| Platform | Recommended Hosting Companies | Public Help Forums | Add Your own Advertising / Ability to Monetize | Blog Traffic Stats | Events Management Calendar |
Post |
Platform | Cost | Multiple Authors | Search Blog Archives | Use your own Domain Name | Blogroll | Static Page Creation |
| WordPress.org [User is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Server/Database setup is pre-installed with these companies |
Yes | Yes | Via plugin | Via Plugin | Yes | WordPress.org [User is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
Movable
Type
|
Server/Database setup is pre-installed with these companies |
Yes | Yes | Via Plugin | Via Plugin | Yes |
Movable
Type
|
Anywhere from free to $279+ depending on personal vs levels of commercial usage | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Via Plugin |
No |
|
TypePad
|
Included in Subscription | Knowledgebase | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
TypePad
|
$5-$15 a month | Yes, in Pro Package only | Yes | Plus and Pro Levels only | Yes | Yes |
| Platform | Recommended Hosting Companies | Public Help Forums | Add Your own Advertising / Ability to Monetize | Blog Traffic Stats |
Events Management Calendar |
Post |
Platform | $$$ | Multiple Authors | Blog Search for Users | Use your own Domain Name | Blogroll (List of Favorite Blog Links in Sidebar) |
Static Page Creation |
|
Blogger |
Included and free | Yes | Limited to AdSense Ads | Via Third Party | No | No |
Blogger |
Free | Yes | No | Yes | No | No |
|
WordPress.com [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Included and free | Yes | Yes | Minimal | Yes | Yes |
WordPress.com [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Free | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
|
Expression
Engine [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Additional Fee $9-$72/month, plus 20% off of blog license fee | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Expression
Engine [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance] |
Anywhere from free to $249+ depending on personal vs levels of commercial usage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
SquareSpace [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance**] |
Included in Subscription | No, but they have tech support included in price | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
SquareSpace [Company is responsible for setup* and maintenance**] |
$7-$17/ month | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
|
Notes |
Notes | - | - | Notes | Notes | Notes |
Notes |
- | - | Notes | Notes | - | Notes |
|
* Setup means database and software setup. All customization is still the blogger's responsibility. ** Maintenance means software and database upgrades and security updates. Check individual hosting company policies - some of them offer the option to do this on behalf of their hosting clients. |
There are always other hosting companies out there. The ones linked here are the ones I know the most about or have the most experience with. | If you don't know how important statistics are, just be sure to plan on needing as much information as possible. :) | You might not need this option | This one, though not critical, is pretty darn important. |
* Setup means database and software setup. All customization is still the blogger's responsibility. ** Maintenance means software and database upgrades and security updates. Check individual hosting company policies - some of them offer the option to do this on behalf of their hosting clients. |
This one, though not critical, is pretty darn important. | Give as much thought as possible to your domain name before finalization.You risk losing visitors if you need to change this at a later date. | Visit Wordpress.org to read more about static vs. dynamic page creation - the explanation is good and is not limited to Wordpress-specific info. |