Your costs to start a blog depend upon a number of factors, Here is an in-depth guide covering all the costs to start a blog the right way based on data collected online.
If you are taking blogging seriously now and want to start a full-time blog then this is the time to estimate the cost to start a blog. Starting a blog for full-time income is no joke and definitely not free at all.
I have been in the blogging industry for the past 2 years and I have learned this the hard way “You have to spend money, To make money”.
There is no definitive answer to give you a perfect number for the costs of a blog as it can vary greatly depending on the specific blog, its purpose, and the desired level of professionalism.
However, some potential costs that could be associated with starting a professional blog may include hiring a professional writer or editor, purchasing a custom domain name, and paying for hosting services.
Additionally, depending on the blog’s content and purpose, other associated costs could include advertising, marketing, and public relations.
I myself grew my blog to 242,000+ pageviews from scratch in one year by mostly investing in quality content and a minimalistic blog design approach.
Here is the table of contents. This blog covers tons of useful information. Bookmark this page or save it, don’t get overwhelmed, go through each step, and you will surely succeed.
Table of Contents
- Costs to Start A Blog – The Ultimate Break Down
- Blogging Softwares And Tools Costs
- Estimated Cost To Start A Blog
- Bottom Line:
Costs to Start A Blog – The Ultimate Break Down
For those of you who want to make money online with a blog, In this blog, there is cost estimation info for each and every expense you will make in order to stand out from casual and seasonal bloggers.
Hardware Required (~$1000-$1200)
You will need a reliable laptop for professional blogging. It is recommended to use a laptop to start a blog over a desktop as it will provide you with more portability and ease of work.
You need something reliable, with long battery life, an HD screen, at least 8Gb RAM, at least an i5 processor, and yet nothing too big or heavy.
If you are a macOS user then you should definitely go for Macbook Air M1 or later models. MacBook Air is the cheapest variety and in the latest M1 chipset series and is packed with some serious hardware. I love the battery backup my Macbook Air M1 provides, It can work up to 20 hours of regular use on a single charge. You can easily edit videos and photos on it.
For around $1,200 (or less if you get a little used one In warranty) you will get yourself a severe piece of hardware that will serve you well for at least a couple of years.
If you do not want to use Macare Os and are more of a Windows person, I recommend the HP Envy with a 13.3-inch full HD display that can make this possible for you. It has 8GB of RAM, the latest generation i5 processor, and a 256Gb SSD.
Blog Hosting & Domain (~$50)
The cost of blog hosting and domain should be under $50 per year. Here I won’t be recommending any service provider myself though I do recommend you to note the following:
- Your domain & hosting provider must have a live chat and support facility because you will need it sooner or later.
- Shortlist a domain based on the niche and keep it short and simple.
Blog Design Costs: (~$100-$200)
The design and development costs for a blog vary greatly from person to person. It depends on your skills in technical skills. If you know WordPress well, You can design your blog yourself and save yourself the cost of development.
Designing a blog is not a big challenge. In fact, you can do it yourself by learning the basics from some YouTube videos.
But, if you still need professional help then it may cost you around $100-200 for a one-time fee by a Professional Web Designer on Fiverr or Upwork.
I did a quick search for blog design gigs on Fiverr and found that you could get a blog designed for $80-$200 in an average of 3-7 days. Some sellers might even offer you faster delivery times.
Here are a few pointers to keep in mind when you are designing your blog:
- Keep it decent and attractive. Do not overdo branding or colors.
- Do not install any unnecessary plugins that you may not need.
Blog Theme
Choose the lightest and most user-friendly blog theme for your first blog. Here are a few popular names for blog themes:
- GeneratePress
- Astra
- Neve
- Schema
- OceanWP WordPress theme
- StudioPress Themes
- Divi WordPress theme
- Kava WordPress Theme
Third-Party Plugins
I personally install just a handful of third-party plugins to keep the blog light weights and fast loading. I also believe in the KISS principle of design. (Keep It Super Simple)
- Nitropack CDN (average cost $17.5/ month)
- WordFence (Free version)
- Jetpack (Free version)
- Insert Header & Footer (Free version)
- Newsletter Plugin (Free version)
Blog Content Writing Costs (~ $10-$40)
If you are running a pure blog website, you can grow it organically. You can write one or eventually two high-quality posts per week. Organic blog building takes significant time and effort.
You can speed things up by purchasing the copywriting services of other writers. Just look up the ones who have experience writing in your niche on any of the freelance platforms. The hourly rate of the copywriters goes from $15 to $50.
| Blog content writing rates | |
| Blog post (200-300 words) | $ 6 |
| Blog post (300-400 words) | $ 8 |
| Blog post (400-500 words) | $ 11 |
| Blog post (500-600 words) | $ 13 |
| Blog post (600-700 words) | $ 18 |
| Blog post (700-800 words) | $ 22 |
| Blog post (800-900 words) | $ 28 |
| Blog post (900-1000 words) | $ 32 |
| Blog post (1000-1200 words) | $ 40 |
I have discussed this earlier in detail in How to start a blog post that you must start a blog with milestones and objectives in place. Here I am breaking down the costs of content for a blog in milestones of 130,250, and 500 posts respectively.
| Content Length | Per Post | 130 Posts | 250 Posts |
| 1,000-1,200 Words | $20 | $2,600 | $5,000 |
| 1,500-2,000 Words | $40 | $5,200 | $10,000 |
| 2,000-3,000 Words | $60 | $7,800 | $15,000 |
To write the perfect Blog post you can also take advantage of my Blog Post Planner and Blog Post SEO Checklist. I’m sure these will help you a lot, just like they help me every day.
Blogging Softwares And Tools Costs
Some of the most common blogging software and tools used by average blogger include writing assistant, SEO analyzer tool, and stock photo subscription. With these, you can get started with a professional-looking blog that is working on well-researched keywords that have chances to rank, and writing quality with visuals is professional looking.
In my past 3 years of experience in blogging and SEO, I regularly use the following tools:
Ahrefs
A good SEO research tool is the most important part of your whole blogging journey. If you start a blog based on the wrong niche & keywords then you are destined to fail.
I personally use ahrefs to plan for weeks and shortlist at least 50 major topics for a blogging site before I shortlist a niche. If I can’t find 50_ good keywords within that niche, I drop it and start my research all over the again from scratch.
Grammarly – Writing Assistant
You can make use of the free version of Grammarly but if you are ready to take your blog seriously then investing in this tool is definitely worth every penny.
Envato
You can make the most out of Envato elements by taking advantage of their high-quality stock photos and videos. Without great visuals, your blog won’t be that appealing to your audience.
A visually appealing blog means greater session durations and lesser bounce rates and eventually results in greater RPMs.
Estimated Cost To Start A Blog
| Website Feature | Estimated Costs |
|---|---|
| Domain Name | $12 – $60 |
| Website Hosting | $0 – $30 |
| SSL Certificate | $0 |
| Website Template or Theme | $0 – $200 |
| Website Designer | $0 – $250 |
| Apps and Integrations | $0 – $250 |
| SEO and Marketing | $8.99 – $150 |
| Hardware Costs | $0 – $2,500 |
Bottom Line:
You can expect to spend around $180-$200 as the cost to start a blog and get it live on the internet. For content writing, you can expect to pay around $200-$300 per month (Varies on content length and quantity).
If you are also taking benefit of all the tools I mentioned above then you can expect to pay an extra $140 per month on all tool subscriptions.
But, all this money getting invested is totally worth it in the end when blogs start making money, which is usually from the 6-7th month.