Securing free hosting and a domain for your WordPress site is a viable option for beginners who want to test an idea without financial commitment. While "unlimited free hosting" is often a marketing term with significant limitations, there are legitimate providers that offer free plans.

Here's a guide to help you get started in 2024.

1. Choose a Free Hosting Provider
Most free hosting services provide limited resources in terms of disk space, bandwidth, and CPU. It's crucial to pick a provider that is known for being reliable and has a straightforward WordPress installation process.

000webhost: Owned by Hostinger, this is a popular choice for beginners. It offers a free tier with 300 MB of disk space and 3 GB of bandwidth, and it doesn't place ads on your site.

InfinityFree: This provider offers more generous resources, including 5 GB of disk space and "unlimited" bandwidth (subject to a fair use policy). It also includes a free subdomain and no forced ads.

AwardSpace: Known for its 24/7 customer support on its free plan, AwardSpace is another strong option. It offers 1 GB of disk space and 5 GB of bandwidth, along with a free subdomain and an ad-free service.

2. Get a Free Domain
You have two main options for a free domain: a subdomain from your hosting provider or a free top-level domain (TLD) from a dedicated registrar.

Free Subdomains: All the hosting providers mentioned above will give you a free subdomain (e.g., yourwebsite.000webhostapp.com). This is the fastest and easiest way to get your site online, but it looks less professional than a custom domain.

Free TLDs: Registrars like Freenom historically offered free domains with TLDs such as .tk, .ml, or .ga. However, these are often subject to stricter rules and are sometimes associated with spam, which can harm your site's credibility.

For a new site, a free subdomain is the recommended starting point because it integrates seamlessly with your hosting.

3. Install WordPress
Most free hosting providers use a cPanel-like interface that includes a one-click installer, making the process very simple.

Sign up and create an account with your chosen hosting provider (e.g., 000webhost or InfinityFree).

Access the control panel. In your hosting dashboard, look for a tool like Softaculous or a "WordPress Installer" button.

Run the installer. The installer will ask you for a few details:

Domain: Select the free subdomain you were provided.

Admin Username and Password: Create these credentials for your WordPress dashboard.

Site Title: Give your website a name.

Click "Install" and wait a few minutes. The installer will set everything up automatically, and you'll receive a link to log in to your new WordPress admin dashboard.

Once you log in, you can start customizing your theme and adding content. This video explains how to install WordPress for free and provides tips for beginners.