# Starting – Kreativblogger

> WordPress or builder, hosting, domain, theme: the technical foundation.

- [How to Start a Blog: 7 Steps and What It Really Costs](https://kreativblogger.de/en/starting-a-blog/how-to-start-a-blog/): To start a blog, define one audience and topic, choose a platform (self-hosted WordPress suits most people), register a domain, buy hosting with HTTPS and backups, install a lightweight theme, add the legal pages you need, then publish three to five in-depth posts. Hosting costs under $50 in year one and often over $200 after renewal.
- [Best Blogging Platform in 2026: WordPress, Ghost, Substack](https://kreativblogger.de/en/starting-a-blog/best-blogging-platform/): The best blogging platform for most people is self-hosted WordPress, because it gives you full control, portability and the widest choice of themes and plugins. Ghost is better if you sell paid memberships, Substack if you only want a newsletter, and builders like Wix if you value convenience over cost and flexibility.
- [Web Hosting for Blogs: What You Need and What to Skip](https://kreativblogger.de/en/starting-a-blog/web-hosting-for-blogs/): A new blog runs fine on shared hosting, as long as the plan offers PHP 8.3 or newer, MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.11, free SSL, daily backups you can restore yourself and support that answers. Compare hosts on the renewal price, not the introductory one, and if you have EU or UK readers, sign the host's data processing agreement.
- [How to Choose a Blog Name That Still Fits in Five Years](https://kreativblogger.de/en/starting-a-blog/choosing-a-blog-name/): To choose a blog name, brainstorm 30 to 50 candidates, cut anything hard to spell aloud or tied too tightly to one sub-topic, then test the last three to five: domain available, no confusingly similar trademark in the USPTO, UK IPO or EU registers, and matching social handles free. Only then register the domain.

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