5 Best Blogging Platforms That the Most Successful Influencers Use in 2021

In 2021, blogging platforms are changing the way we consume information. Influencers have found these new tools to be more engaging and easier to work with than traditional methods of publishing content. With that said, it’s important for brands to figure out how they can best engage influencers via a blog platform in order for their audience to grow even further.

The “best blog platforms 2022” is a list of the top 5 blogging platforms that the most successful influencers use in 2021.

When it comes to creating and maintaining a blog that is simple to find online and grow a reader base, using the correct blog platform is crucial. We narrowed it down to the five best blogging platforms by looking at which are easy to use, include built-in SEO tools to help your blog get found online, have room to grow as your blog grows, and won’t break the bank. To help you get started blogging faster and make the decision of which to use easier, we looked at which are easy to use, include built-in SEO tools to help your blog get found online, come with room to grow as your blog grows, and won’t break the bank.

At a Glance: The Best Blogging Platforms

Are you looking for something a little more specific? Take a look at these…

• Best website builders for SEO: The site builders on this list make it easy for you to rank your website on Google without having to be an SEO expert.
• Best ecommerce platforms: Take a look at these options if you want to create an online shop (with or without a blog).
• Photographers and other visual designers have unique demands for their websites, so select a website builder that provides the finest portfolio layouts.

The following are the top five blogging platforms:

Squarespace is the best blogging platform overall.

Squarespace

What We Enjoy

• Editor that is simple to use
• Templates that have won awards
• Free trial for 14 days
• Storage and bandwidth are both unlimited.
• SEO tools built-in
• Some plans include marketing tools.
• Customer service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days

What Isn’t There

• Not the most cost-effective option
• Design freedom is limited.
• There will be no template switching.
• There is no autosave feature.

What You Need to Know

• $12 per month as a starting point*
• With the 14-day free trial, you may create your website for free (no credit card required)
• It’s ideal for media-heavy blogs, such as those with a lot of photographs and videos, since it has limitless capacity.

*An yearly payment is assumed.

Squarespace is the greatest blogging platform overall since it is a one-stop shop for all of your blogging needs. It offers a strategy for you whether you’re starting a portfolio-based photography blog or selling products, services, or subscriptions. Its designer templates offer you a leg up on the competition when it comes to creating a professional-looking blog. Squarespace also doesn’t impose any restrictions on how you may monetize your site, from AdSense and affiliate connections to product sales.

Plans & Pricing

Squarespace does not provide a free lifetime subscription, but it does offer a free 14-day trial that may be used without a credit card. You may then look for a template you like, try out the site editor, and start building your blog. You’ll need to upgrade to a premium plan when you’re ready to launch your site and make your blog visible to the rest of the world.

• Personal ($12/month): Includes a free domain, SSL certificate, and unlimited storage and bandwidth. It’s a terrific place to start for any blogger who wants to concentrate on generating and posting SEO-friendly content.
• Business ($18 per month): This plan includes everything in the Personal plan, plus Google business email, Squarespace applications, pop-ups, and a shopping cart. On transactions, you’ll have to pay 3%. (in addition to payment processing fees). This would be ideal for a blogger who is fresh to the world of ecommerce.
• Basic Commerce ($26 per month): This plan includes everything in the Business plan with the exception of transaction fees. You’ll also be able to sell things on Instagram and utilize an in-person point-of-sale app (through Square). This strategy is ideal for bloggers who wish to sell on social media, in pop-up shops, and at marketplaces.

Keep in mind that, although Squarespace is a powerful blogging platform, it cannot pay you depending on the amount of people who read your post. Medium is a better choice if that’s the monetization channel you’re aiming for.

User-Friendliness

Squarespace provides some of the greatest site builder layouts available. Its editor makes it simple to get started with page creation, blogging, and section addition. It’s a WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editor with point-and-click functionality. However, since sites are made out of content blocks, one disadvantage of its site editor is that it is quite restricted in terms of style.

Consider Wix instead of Squarespace if you’re a creative individual with a design eye who wants greater freedom but the simplicity of use of Squarespace.

A word of warning about Squarespace blogs: they don’t have an autosave function. As a result, if your browser crashes or you lose internet access, your blog will be lost. After 30 days, you won’t be able to recover deleted blogs. Learn more about how to use Squarespace to create a website.

Example

Thomas Stubbs’ blog, Style & Error, is devoted to menswear and style. Despite the low domain authority (32 out of 100), it seems to be a personal blog for the stylist. Stubbs also includes a link to his author/stylist website, which has a portfolio of celebrities he’s dressed as well as essays he’s authored.

Expert Recommendation

For those wishing to start a professional blog, Squarespace is a terrific all-around platform. It’s simple to use, has excellent design, and offers a variety of features and monetization options. Start developing your blog with Squarespace because it’s simple (and free).

Wix: The Most User-Friendly Blogging Platform

Wix

What We Enjoy

• The most adaptable website builder
• There are other applications available for additional functionality.
• It’s simple to set up and utilize.
• Site editor with true drag-and-drop functionality
• 900+ free templates to choose from
• There are several pre-designed pieces.
• Customer service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days
• There is a free plan available.

What Isn’t There

• There is no simple way to swap templates.
• Storage restrictions are strict.
• Editor and site loading times might be sluggish.

What You Need to Know

• Free or $14 per month* as a starting pricing.
• The free package includes advertisements and a Wix subdomain.
• The most user-friendly site editor
• The most adaptable website builder
• Blog drafts may be saved and postings can be scheduled.
• Integrations for dropshipping are available.

*An yearly payment is assumed.

Wix is a great place to start if you’re a new blogger. You can rapidly construct a professional-looking blog even if you have no design knowledge. Furthermore, Wix provides design flexibility, making it a wonderful option for creatives who don’t want to devote time to learning how to utilize WordPress.

Wix gives you a lot of flexibility when it comes to earning money. If you have a lot of site traffic, for example, you may utilize Google AdSense, produce sponsored content, or offer things or services.

Plans & Pricing

Wix is a free website builder that allows you to develop and publish a website without spending any money. Your site will, however, be on a subdomain (yoursite.wix.com), and Wix will show advertisements on your free site. For $5 a month, you can link your own domain, but ads will still appear.

• Wix Combo ($14 per month): The most affordable premium package includes a one-year free domain, SSL certificate, and 3GB of storage. For a beginner blogger, it’s an excellent starting point.
• Wix Unlimited ($18 per month): You’ll gain 10GB of storage, SEO tools, and statistics if you upgrade to this plan. At the very least, bloggers who are trying to create an audience should think about this strategy.
• Wix Pro ($23 per month): Get 20GB of storage, an events calendar app, and a logo creator at this level. This might be an excellent option for you if you’re beginning to develop your blog into a company.

Weebly is a good alternative if you want to sell online but don’t want to spend a lot of money. You may sell things online and link your own domain name for for $6 per month.

User-Friendliness

Wix’s genuine drag-and-drop editor is simple to use, so you can get up and running quickly. Simply choose a design, customize it with your own photographs and content, and you’ve got yourself a fully working, mobile-responsive blog.

It’s the most adaptable website builder available. However, depending on your design sense, this amount of creative flexibility might be an advantage or a drawback. If you’re not a designer, avoid over-customizing a template. Otherwise, your website may seem unprofessional.

Check out this step-by-step tutorial on how to create a Wix website for additional information.

Example

Sophie Hollingsworth, a cook and explorer, started the blog The Sofa Log. Despite the fact that her almost 5-year-old site only has a domain authority of 12, all of her backlinks are of good quality. Some of her entries are external links to stories in which she has been quoted. Her Instagram carousel is also a key part of her blog, with roughly 10,000 followers.

Expert Recommendation

Wix makes it simple for any blogger to get started, and the basic plan is just $14 a month. Wix, like Squarespace, is feature-rich, so whatever you want to do with your blog, you’ll probably be able to accomplish it with Wix.

Weebly: The Best Platform for Bloggers Selling Merchandise

Weebly

What We Enjoy

• Ecommerce plans at a reasonable price
• Templates that are easy to customize
• For blog sites, an easy-to-use editor is available.
• Provides a free plan.
• Changing the theme of your blog is simple.

What Isn’t There

• Support hours are limited.
• For ecommerce, you must utilize the Square editor.
• If you utilize Square, you’ll only have access to a few applications.

What You Need to Know

• Free or $6 per month as a starting price
• Weebly has two sorts of site builders: one for blogs and small company websites, and one for ecommerce firms powered by Square.
• Easy-to-use website editor

Weebly offers a lot of features for a reasonable fee, making it a fantastic bargain when compared to other site builders—especially for online goods sales. You may start a blog or an ecommerce site for free and simply pay for payment processing. The free site, however, does not allow you to utilize your own domain. Your site will have Weebly/Square advertisements. Upgrade to the $6 per month plan to sell online and connect your own domain.

Plans & Pricing

Weebly has a free plan that is more powerful than most of its rivals, but upgrading to a premium plan will improve the performance of your blog. Weebly’s plans are all less expensive than those offered by most other website builders.

• Weebly Personal ($6 a month): This plan is best for those who want to start a personal blog for friends and family and don’t mind having Weebly/Square ads on their site. You’ll be able to link your own domain, and you’ll obtain a shipping calculator for your online business.
• Weebly Professional ($12 per month): This is the package that most blogs and enterprises will desire. You’ll receive unlimited storage, no advertisements, and a year’s worth of free domain names. You’ll also be able to access phone help at this level.
• Weebly Performance ($26 per month): This plan is more than twice as expensive as the one below it, but it includes everything you need to improve your blog and online shop. You may take PayPal payments, send abandoned cart emails, and view online shop stats with this subscription.

User-Friendliness

The Weebly editor makes it simple to construct a website or blog for a small company. Unlike other site builders, it has a blog editor that you can access from the site editor, where you can add items and write immediately. Other alternatives are significantly less obvious than this one. For example, to add an image, just drag the element block to your post and then upload an image. Although the editor seems to be a little out of date, it is simple to use.

Squarespace is your best choice if you want a more contemporary site editor and the greatest templates on the market.

Learn how to create a Weebly site to discover how simple it is.

Example

Slightly Mad Studios’ Project Cars is a video game franchise. The website was created using Weebly and features several graphic components, a blog, and an online shop that sells both digital and physical versions of the games. The site has a domain authority of 67 and almost 70,000 high-quality backlinks.

Expert Recommendation

Choose Weebly for the simplest method to create a free website, blog, or online shop. To gain additional features and storage, upgrade to a premium subscription. At a modest cost, you can create a professional site that ranks in Google and has everything you want.

WordPress.org is the best platform for creating a complex or one-of-a-kind blog.

WordPress.org

What We Enjoy

• Completely customized
• It is simple to learn
• There are plenty of free themes to choose from.
• There are many of applications available for enhanced functionality.
• The most popular option for blogging

What Isn’t There

• There isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer.
• Updates are necessary.
• The cost of apps, customizations, and security may add up quickly.

What You Need to Know

• It is free to use, however there are costs associated with it.
• Because WordPress is an open source CMS, it’s free to use; if you don’t use a free theme, you’ll have to register a domain, buy web hosting, and pay for premium themes.

WordPress.org is the greatest match for bloggers who are serious about establishing a unique site and want one of the top content management systems (CMS). It’s the most customizable, due to dozens of themes and plugins that let you add just about any feature you can think of—not to mention the flexibility to employ custom code.

Plans & Pricing

Although WordPress is free, there are charges associated with using it. You’ll need to obtain a domain name and web hosting at the very least. A premium theme and plugins, as well as any professional web development work, may be required. Many bloggers use Bluehost because it has reasonable plans beginning at $2.95 per month and includes everything you need to construct a WordPress site.

Learn all there is to know about the true cost of WordPress.

User-Friendliness

You may have heard that WordPress is simple to use, however people who assert this are either expert developers or those who haven’t used the CMS directly. In actuality, WordPress is not the most beginner-friendly platform, and it will take some time to learn how to develop a good site with it.

To begin, choose a web hosting package that includes a free domain and one-click WordPress installation, then personalize your site by installing a theme.

You may save drafts of blog entries, publish them instantly, or schedule them, much like many other site editors. Because WordPress is so forgiving and adaptable, you can do just about anything with it. Check out the whole guide on creating a WordPress website.

Example

Nomadic Matt’s travel blog is one of the most popular in the blogosphere. It has a high domain authority of 76 and over 2,000 high-quality backlinks. By generating e-books, courses, and affiliate marketing, the blogger grew his following to around a million monthly visitors.

Expert Recommendation

WordPress is the most widely used content management system on the planet. However, this does not imply that it is the perfect blogging platform for everyone. It’s great for individuals who have some web design knowledge and have unique or sophisticated blogging requirements (or the time to learn).

Medium is the best free blogging platform with built-in discovery.

Medium

What We Enjoy

• It is simple and free to use.
• The ability to reach a big audience
• There is no requirement for technical expertise.
• Earn money through blogging.

What Isn’t There

• There is plenty of competition.
• You don’t have control over your blog.

What You Need to Know

• Free to begin with
• Platform for traditional blogging
• Blogging on Medium is a fantastic method to raise company recognition and possibly earn money while doing so.

Medium is a good option for bloggers who wish to utilize a classic blogging platform with built-in audience discovery. Unlike professional blogs, which require the purchase of a domain and the creation of a website, Medium allows you to get started right away—at no expense and with no technical knowledge necessary. It’s an excellent option for bloggers who want to establish themselves as thought leaders and build a writing portfolio, all while earning money via its Partnership Program.

Medium’s sole monetization option is via its Partnership Program, thus it’s not the best platform for selling online, using AdSense, or doing affiliate marketing. Instead, utilize Squarespace, which offers a variety of monetization options as well as built-in marketing tools to assist you in growing and expanding your following.

Plans & Pricing

Medium is a completely free service. You can pay to obtain access to all of the articles on Medium, but as a creator, you don’t have to pay anything.

User-Friendliness

(Image courtesy of Kinsta)

Medium is as simple to use as a word processor. Simply choose the page and begin writing. You may also include photographs, videos, and links to embed. The minimalist editor helps in focusing on what Medium really wants: stories. Many people use Medium to advertise their own blogs, social media accounts, or pieces that have been published on other websites.

Read a tutorial on how to build a blog to get started with your own.

Example

It’s not fair to share the domain authority here since the 95 domain authority score belongs to Medium, not Amardeep Parmar’s blog. Nonetheless, the blog we’re spotlighting has 42,000 subscribers. The author adds connections to his newsletter and Substack page, and he’s generating a lot of buzz.

Expert Recommendation

Medium is a fantastic platform for bloggers that just want to write. It’s also an excellent choice for gaining a following. You may send out a newsletter, link to pieces you’ve written on other sites, and even earn money via the affiliate program. It’s completely free to use, and getting started is a breeze.

Runners-up for Best Blog Platform

Of course, there are a plethora of blog alternatives available, and we won’t be able to cover them all in this article. Consider some of these additional suggestions if you’re searching for something more particular for your blog trip. They’re wonderful options, although they may be more specialized.

The runner-ups for the best blogging platforms are as follows:

• LinkedIn: Although this is technically a social networking site, it’s a terrific method to get your blogs in front of a business-oriented audience.
• Constant Contact: You’ve probably heard of Constant Contact as a marketing platform, but it’s also an all-in-one site builder with a digital marketing emphasis.
• GoDaddy: The company’s side builder has a fantastic online booking system. The ordinary blogger, on the other hand, isn’t seeking for an appointment. If you are, it is a fantastic alternative.
• Tumblr: Tumblr is well-known for blogging, however it doesn’t provide adequate help for monetizing blogs.
• Drupal: Drupal, like WordPress, is a free, open source CMS, but it’s a little more complicated, so it’s not ideal for someone just beginning a blog.

Whether you merely want to construct a blog or a site with an online shop, an all-in-one solution is one of your finest options. For any blogger, the majority of the top website builders are a terrific place to start.

Most Commonly Asked Questions (FAQs)

Where can I get a free blog started?

Microblogs on social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook are popular starting points for many individuals. Tumblr and Medium are other popular free blog platforms. Consider purchasing for a site builder and starting with a blog business plan to keep you on track when you’re ready to take the jump and develop a full-fledged site with a blog.

What are the best ways for new bloggers to generate money?

For most bloggers, establishing an audience is the first step. Once your blog has a lot of high-quality material, you’ll want to make sure it ranks well in search engines so that others can find it. Then you may start making money using affiliate links, sponsored content, or even a website. To learn about alternative options, see this guide to make money blogging.

How often should I update my blog each week?

Consistency in your blog postings is the most efficient approach to assure your site’s success. You may publish twice a week or every day, but the most important things are consistency and excellent material. Make sure you’re ready to commit to writing material on a regular basis before you start a WordPress blog, or any blog.

Conclusion

If you want an all-in-one, simple solution, Squarespace is the greatest blogging platform. You’ll be provided with everything you need to get started. There are tools that will help you rank your content, persuade people to subscribe to email lists, and enhance eCommerce sales for any items or services you offer, depending on the package you pick.

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The “free blogging platforms” is a list of the 5 best blogging platforms that the most successful influencers use in 2021. The list includes WordPress, Blogger, Medium, Tumblr and Squarespace.

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