Free hosting for your blog

The CMS solution for hosting many types of business and professional web sites that I recommend is self -hosted WordPress, however, that doesn’t mean that free blog sites don’t have their place. Many Internet Marketers even make money on free blogs hosted at various hot spots on the web.

Free blogs, though they are not without their limits, serve many useful purposes to your web presence. One of the easiest ways to generate massive amounts of free backlinks pointing back to your web site is by starting lots of free blogs in related niches and peppering those blogs with links to your main site. You can set up small blogs that don’t need to be updated often and serve as traffic outposts to your money site. Here is a list of sites which offer free blog hosting.

1. LiveJournal has been around as long as the word ‘blog’ itself. This website has add supported and paid acount types and gives you a profile as well as your own blog. Powered by Danga software.
2. GreatestJournal.com – Based on the same software as LiveJournal, offering voice posts, 1GB of photo hosting, and space for up to 2,000 user icons.
3. Blogger – This is one of the most popular platforms for a free blog hosting service. Blogger accounts are free and easy to use. You can include your own ads and monetize your blog if you choose to.
4. Blogabond.com – A site dedicated to travel blogs with map integration.
5. BusyThumbs.com – A blog site specifically for your text messages and camera phone images.
6. Blogr.com – Allows you to blog, host photos & videos, and podcasts.
7. Blogster.com – Offers free image hosting in addition to free blogs.
8. Bloki.com – Lets you build a blog site and even open it up for collaboration.
9. ClearBlogs.com – Free blog hosting and offers templates, friends only posts, IP-Banning and more.
10. Freevlog -A free site dedicated to video blogging.
11. Multiply.com – Mixes blogging and social networking, with photo galleries and more.
12. Myspace.com – Myspace has a somewhat minimal blog capability compared to the others on this list but it does have a far reach as far as potential readers. Also music and video uploads are part of what you get with a Myspace page
13. Netcipia.com – Free blog and wiki for private or public display with 2GB of storage.
14. Open Diary.com – Blogging on a free host with unlimited storage and posts, low cost rates for advanced features.
15. PureVolume -  PureVolume is more catered to musician and listener accounts but it does include a blogging function as well as photo and video uploads. Paid accounts are also available.
16. ShoutPost.com – A platform for creating blogs with a focus on generating traffic.
17. SnapVine – Snapvine lets you keep an audioblog and allows your readers to leave you voicemail. You can update it online or via your mobile phone.
18. Squarespace.com – Lets you build your blog with numerous themes, also allows you to add other site features.
19. SideTick – SideTick is a paid social network that works on a points system. You are awarded points for posting photos, blogs, events and, of coarse, inviting friends.
20. Terapad.com – Offers blogs as well as an integrated store + other features.
21. Tooum.com – Fully integrated blog and forum which allows for seamless discussion between the two.
22. Twitter – Mobilish blogging. Integrates with Wordpress and many other platforms. Constant updates.
23. Windows Live Spaces – Free blogging with your MSN account, only drawback is readers have to have an account also.
24. Word Count Journal.com – A new blogging site with an interesting challenge: Write one word on the first day, two words on the second day and so on, at the end of the year you’ll have written 66,795 words.
25. Xanga.com – Part social network, part blogging, all free.
26. Yahoo 360 – Part of your Yahoo account and features easy publishing. Integrates nicely with MyBlogLog.
27. Zoomshare.com – Free blog hosting with 250MB of free storage.

WordPress Powered Blogs

The following are websites that will host a free wordpress blog for you.

Wordpress.com – Wordpress is a fantastic piece of software for both blogging and content management. Wordpress.com allows you to use the software hosted for free on their own server. They also allow for website monetization.

Today.com – Today is a fairly new blog service that not only hosts your blog, but they pay you a buck a day to write in it. Today handles the advertising for you, so you don’t have to get your own ads, they pay by the post and allow you creative control over your blog. Get paid to blog,$1 a day plus impressions.

BlogRox.com – Runs on WordPress and offers 50MB of free online space.

Blogsome.com – Based out of Ireland, this site uses the WordPress MU (multi user), large choice of themes.

Edublogs.com – WordPress powered blogging for educators.

There are still plenty more places that offer you a free blog  just a small part of their user experience. These are just some of the more feature rich ones I have uncovered. What are some of your favorite blogging sites?