Web hosting can be costly, especially for businesses just starting out. To help, we tested several services to discover which truly offer legitimate, free hosting plans for your small business website. We identified these three best free web hosting sites based on factors such as storage and bandwidth limits, reliability with high uptimes, security with domain control, and extras, such as whether they include email hosting or offer ad-free hosting.
Here are the three best free web hosting sites for small businesses on a budget, and the type of hosting they are best for:
- InfinityFree: Best overall for free web hosting with unlimited storage and bandwidth
- Freehostia: Most reliable free web hosting service for simple small business websites
- ByetHost: Best free reseller hosting services to sell without cost
Best Free Website Hosting Sites (Compared)
 |  |  | |
Price | Completely free | Completely free | Completely free |
Domain Connection Allowed | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Storage | Unlimited | 250MB | 5GB |
Bandwidth (Monthly) | Unlimited | 6GB | Unlimited |
Email Addresses Included | N/A | Up to 3 | Up to 5 |
Ads Display | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Server Uptime | 99.9% | 99.9% | 99.9% |
Customer Service | Forums only | ✔ | ✔ |
Free SSL Certificate | N/A | ✔ | ✔ |
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How We Evaluated the Best Free Web Hosting Sites
We made sure to evaluate different free web hosting providers based on more than just their storage and bandwidth. Each entry on the list had to have a significant uptime, allow domain connection, and most importantly, no ads.
We compared dozens of free website hosting providers based on the following evaluation criteria:
- Reliability: The hosting provider has to have a good track record of reliability based on uptime and bandwidth.
- Ad-free: Ad-free website hosting is preferred.
- Storage limitations: Although unlimited storage is preferred, free web hosting sites should provide at least 1GB of storage.
- Bandwidth limitations: While unlimited bandwidth is preferred, free web hosting sites need to include at least 5GB of storage.
- Additional features: Additional features include free email addresses, SSL certificates, and customer service and technical support.
- Existing customer reviews: Reviews from real customers were used to help identify the best free website hosting services.
Aside from free web hosting sites, another option for startups, solopreneurs, and small businesses with a thin budget is to look at the best cheap options for hosting, which add additional features like easier-to-use interfaces, increased storage, security, and access to customer service.
InfinityFree: Overall Best Free Web Hosting Site
InfinityFree
What We Like
- Unlimited storage and bandwidth
- cPanel provided
- Domain connection available
- Ad-free
What's Missing
- Lack of email or phone support
- No free business email
- No free SSL certificate; must buy premium SSL or perform complicated setup for free external SSL
- Slow loading time despite unlimited bandwidth
Who It's Best For
- Good for test websites like school projects or first websites
- Good for text-based websites like forums
Overall, InfinityFree is a good option for a small business that needs a free web hosting option. Forum-based websites also sit well with InfinityFree since visitors won’t be distracted by ads and there is no need for data-heavy files. While it meets our evaluation criteria for the best free web hosting sites, it does come with disadvantages as far as site loading time, SSL site security, lack of included email addresses, and minimal support.
InfinityFree’s Free Web Hosting Plan & Features
Features | Details |
|---|---|
Price | Completely free |
Storage | Unlimited |
Bandwidth (Monthly) | Unlimited |
Domain Connection Allowed | Yes |
cPanel | Yes |
Free SSL certificate | No |
Ads Display | No |
Uptime | 99.9% |
Customer service | No |
InfinityFree is a free web hosting service that remains a good choice for forums and text-centered websites. A common problem with the hosting provider is that it does not perform nearly as well as its paid service starting at $3.99 per month. The Super Premium plan for InfinityFree automatically migrates to iFastNet (the premium version for InfinityFree). It automatically transfers your website for free if you press the “Account Upgrades” in cPanel.
What It Lacks
InfinityFree cannot support large websites because the provider limits the speed for data-heavy websites, such as news sites that produce content every day and larger business websites. The lack of direct customer support over the phone or chat, unlike Freehostia, makes it hard for beginners to navigate through issues like connecting domains or navigating cPanel.
InfinityFree also does not offer free emails, whereas ByetHost includes up to five email accounts. Unlike both Freehostia and ByetHost, it also does not include a free SSL certificate. To protect your website and its data with SSL site security, you must purchase a certificate separately, upgrade to a paid plan, or undertake the complex process of setting up a free external SSL solution.
Why Upgrade to InfinityFree’s Super or Ultimate Premium Plan
Unfortunately, InfinityFree’s free Site Builder isn’t included until you upgrade to the Super or Ultimate Premium plan with iFastNet, which costs $3.99 and $6.90 per month, respectively, for unlimited storage, bandwidth, and emails. There are positive customer reviews for InfinityFree’s Site Builder, saying it’s easy for users to move elements, replace photos, and adjust almost everything on the website.
Freehostia: Most Reliable Free Web Hosting Service
Freehostia
What We Like
- Best-suited for blogs, small business websites, and one-page websites
- Supports Python, making it more developer-friendly
- Provides automatic website backups
- Dedicated IP support for better user protection
What's Missing
- No cPanel
- Interface isn’t user-friendly
Who It's Best For
- Multilingual small business websites (supports 15 languages)
- Fundraising campaigns
- Class reunions
- Community websites
Multiple websites can be hosted on Freehostia and in terms of quality, the free plan comes close to the premium plan. Another plus with Freehostia’s free web hosting plan is that it includes three free email accounts and can be used for a variety of personal or business website types. The inclusion of Python makes the free web hosting more developer-friendly.
Freehostia’s Free Web Hosting Plan & Features
Features | Details |
|---|---|
Price | Completely free |
Domain Connection Allowed | Yes |
Storage | 250MB |
Bandwidth (Monthly) | 6GB |
Email Inclusion | Yes, up to three accounts |
Ads Display | No |
Uptime | 99.9% |
Customer Service | Yes, via a fast-response ticketing system |
Freehostia is on our list of the best free web hosting sites as an attractive option for blogging, forums, and community announcement websites. Customer support is also a key factor in web hosting and despite using a ticketing system, Freehostia gives prompt responses.
Freehostia is recommended for more text-based websites instead of media-heavy websites due to the 250MB storage limitation. If your website needs more storage, better to use ByetHost, which can host up to 5GB of data from photographs and videos to other heavy multimedia files.
What It Lacks
Freehostia only includes 250MB of storage. This poses a major limitation for those websites that include complicated functions such as parallax scrolling, multiple multimedia files, and interactive interfaces.
Why Upgrade to Freehostia Premium
In terms of storage alone, your 250MB will be upgraded to 500GB when upgrading to the lowest premium plan. Setting up a professional email address is very important for nearly every business, and Freehostia also includes from 100 email accounts to unlimited email accounts with premium plans ranging from $2.95 to $9.95 per month.
ByetHost: Best Free Web Hosting With Free Reseller Hosting
Byet Host
What We Like
- Ad-free
- cPanel compatible
- Five free email accounts included
- 5GB storage
What's Missing
- No Windows operating system support
- Hard to reach technical support
Who It's Best For
- Startup websites
- Casual bloggers
- Personal as well as small business websites
- Hosting resellers
ByetHost is good for small businesses looking for a free web hosting solution that also includes a handful of free email addresses. ByetHost also has a user-friendly, self-help knowledge library of tutorials and provides ticket-based customer service. The free web hosting also provides statistics showing your site’s bandwidth usage, storage, and traffic.
ByetHost’s Free Web Hosting Plan & Features
Features | Details |
|---|---|
Price | Free |
Storage | 5GB |
Bandwidth (Monthly) | Unknown |
Domain Connection Allowed | Yes |
cPanel | Yes |
Email Inclusion | Yes, up to 5 accounts |
Ads Display | No |
Customer Service | Yes, via a support ticket system |
ByetHost’s free web hosting plan allows domain connection and does not display ads on your website. With 5GB of storage included, its free plan can handle hosting of medium-sized, media-rich websites. In addition to free website hosting, ByetHost also offers free reseller accounts for those planning to make a business out of reselling web hosting.
What It Lacks
ByetHost isn’t good for a small business that plans to scale its website in the future. Users also may not be able to hold on to their websites forever. For instance, there are reports of ByetHost sending upgrade offers and forced advertising when websites start gaining decent traffic. InfinityFree, on the other hand, provides free web hosting forever without storage or bandwidth limitations.
Why Upgrade to ByetHost Premium
Aside from unlimited storage, premium subscribers also get a free .biz, .us, .pw, .in, or .eu domain, and five free OO.GD domain names. The most expensive ByetHost web hosting plan tiers also include unlimited email addresses and unlimited bandwidth. ByetHost premium plans range from $4.99 up to $7.99 per month for unlimited storage, bandwidth, add-on domains, and emails.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Does Google offer free web hosting?
Google does not have free hosting solutions, but instead provides a platform as a service (PAAS) solution called Google App Engine (GAE), which can be accessed through your Gmail account. Your website’s domain name will end up looking something like “yourwebsitename.appspot.com,” which likely isn’t professional enough for most businesses.
Can I host my own website?
Yes. However, it is not going to be easy and you’ll need to do the following: First, set up a WWW (world wide web) server, and make sure you have a good internet connection. You’ll need to keep your computer running at all times, because if your computer is off, your website won’t be up. It is important to note that home internet connections aren’t usually sufficient for hosting websites.
Can Google host my domain?
No. Google does not offer domain hosting. You’ll need to purchase a domain through a separate domain hosting provider or through one of the best free web hosting sites mentioned above. Google does have Google Domains, which helps you register your domain name.
Bottom Line
Even the best free web hosting sites are mostly appropriate only for use as test sites or for smaller websites. There is a distinct difference between the best free hosting sites and the best web hosting companies. Although it may be economical to start with a free web hosting service, this decision could come at a significant compromise.
Large or scaling business websites are better-suited for premium plans, especially for ecommerce sites or sites with lots of media files. If you need web hosting that can scale, either start with free web hosting and plan to upgrade to a paid plan, or choose an inexpensive web hosting plan from the best cheap web hosting providers that fit your budget.
You Might Also Like
- Learn what web hosting is and why it is so integral to a small business website.
- If you’re planning to go all-out, check out the best web hosting companies and choose one that fits your business goals.
- Learn what makes a good website and how to incorporate it into your free or paid small business website.
