Yes, you can get a free website, but almost never one that costs you nothing forever. “Free” usually means one of two things: a website builder’s free plan, which comes with ads, a long web address and tight limits, or a free design and build where you pay a monthly fee for hosting and support on a fixed contract.

Neither is a scam, and both can be the right choice. The trouble starts when people sign up without knowing which kind of free they are getting. I have run Delivered Social since 2016 and I have seen plenty of business owners caught out by small print, so here is the honest version: what each type of free website really includes, where the costs hide, and what to check before you agree to anything.

Free usually means one of two models

Almost every free website offer you will see in the UK falls into one of these camps.

Builder free plans

Platforms such as Wix, WordPress.com, Google Sites and Square Online let you build and publish a site at no cost. You get a template, a drag and drop editor and hosting. In exchange, you accept limits. Most free plans show the platform’s branding or adverts, put your site on a subdomain (something like yourname.wixsite.com or yourname.wordpress.com) and do not let you connect your own domain name. Storage is small, and features such as taking payments, removing ads or adding plugins sit behind a paid upgrade. Squarespace is worth mentioning here because people often assume it has a free plan. It does not; it offers a free trial, then you pay.

Free build plus a monthly fee

The second model is where a web designer or agency builds the site for free and you pay a monthly fee for hosting, maintenance and support, usually on a minimum term. This is closer to leasing a car than getting a gift. You avoid a large upfront bill, and the business doing the work recovers its cost over the contract. It is a fair deal when it is explained clearly. It is a poor one when the monthly fee, the term or what is included are buried.

The hidden costs are rarely hidden on purpose

Most extra costs are not sneaky. They just are not on the front page. These are the ones that catch people out most often.

• Your domain name. A .co.uk address usually costs somewhere around £5 to £15 a year, depending on the registrar. Free builder plans typically will not let you use it until you upgrade.
• Upgrades to remove ads. A site with someone else’s adverts on it does not look like a serious business. Removing them means a paid plan, and entry plans on the big builders tend to cost the equivalent of roughly £10 to £25 a month, with prices varying by platform, billing period and offers.
• Business email. An address like [email protected] is usually a separate monthly cost.
• Apps and plugins. Booking systems, forms, galleries and shops often need paid add-ons.
• Your time. If you build it yourself, every hour you spend learning an editor is an hour not spent running your business.
• Changes after launch. On a free build plus monthly deal, check whether edits are included or charged by the hour.

Ownership matters more than price

This is the bit I would ask any business owner to read twice. Before you commit, find out who owns three things: the domain name, the content and the website itself.

Your domain should be registered in your name, or your business’s name, whoever sets it up. If a supplier registers it in theirs and you fall out later, getting it back can be painful. Your words, photos and logo should always remain yours.

The website itself is trickier. On most hosted builders, your site lives on their platform and cannot simply be picked up and moved elsewhere. If you leave, you usually rebuild. With a WordPress site built by an agency, the site can in principle be moved to another host, but you should ask how that works and what it would cost before you sign, not after.

Read the contract before you sign

A free build with a monthly fee is a commitment, so treat it like one. Here is a simple checklist.

1. The monthly price. Get the exact figure in writing, and ask whether it is likely to change.
2. The minimum term. How many months are you committing to? Multiply the monthly fee by the term so you know the true total.
3. What the fee covers. Hosting, security, updates, backups, support, content? Get a list.
4. What it does not cover. Extra pages, edits, email addresses or new features may cost more.
5. Who owns what. Domain, content and site, as above.
6. What happens at the end. Ask about notice periods, renewal and leaving, so there are no surprises later.

If a supplier will not answer these questions plainly, that tells you something.

A free web page will not bring you customers on its own

Here is the part most free website offers skip. Publishing a site is the start, not the finish. A brand new website, free or paid, has no history with Google. It will not rank for much until it has useful content that answers the questions your customers are typing in.

That is why a free web page that sits untouched for two years tends to do very little. The businesses that get enquiries from their sites are the ones that keep adding helpful content: blog posts, guides, answers to common questions and pages about the areas they serve. Most free website deals, whether from a builder or a designer, do not include any of that. You are on your own once it goes live.

If you want to understand why content matters so much, our SEO services page explains how search visibility is built over time.

Our free website, and what it really costs

I want to be as clear about our own offer as I have asked you to be about everyone else’s. Delivered Social now offers a free website for businesses. Here is exactly how it works:

• The design and build of a five page website is free. No upfront cost for the website.
• You pay £59 + VAT a month on a 24-month minimum term. So over the minimum term, that is 24 x £59 = £1,416 plus VAT.
• The £59 + VAT a month covers secure UK hosting, technical updates (WordPress, plugin and security updates) and one SEO blog post, written and published for you every month.

That monthly blog is the point of difference. Most free website deals give you a site and leave it there. Ours keeps adding content, every month, which is what helps a site get found. Over the 24-month term, that is 24 blog posts written for your business without you having to find the time.

It is not right for everyone. If you would rather pay once and have no monthly contract for the build, our standard websites start from £895. And if you have more time than budget and only need a simple online presence, a builder’s free plan might genuinely be enough for now.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get a website completely free forever?

You can publish a site on a builder’s free plan at no cost, but it will usually show the platform’s ads or branding, use a subdomain and have limited features. For a business, most people end up upgrading or paying for a domain.

Is a free website bad for SEO?

Not automatically. What matters more is the content on the site, how quickly it loads and whether it answers what people search for. A free site with no new content will struggle, but so will an expensive one.

Who owns a website built on a free plan?

You own your content, but the site itself lives on the builder’s platform and usually cannot be moved elsewhere. If you leave, expect to rebuild. Always make sure your domain name is registered in your own name.

What does the Delivered Social free website cost?

The design and build of a five page website is free. You pay £59 + VAT a month on a 24-month minimum term, which covers secure UK hosting, technical updates and one SEO blog post written and published for you each month.

Get an honest answer about your website

If you are weighing up a free website against paying for a build, talk to us and we will tell you plainly which makes sense for your business. Take a look at our free business website offer (free five page build, £59 + VAT a month, 24-month minimum term), or get in touch with the team in Guildford or Portsmouth for a no-pressure chat.