How to sign up for a WordPress.com account
Are you planning to create your own digital journal or blog? If so, WordPress.com is one of the most popular and user-friendly blogging platforms on the net today. It is a free, open source web hosting service provider owned by a company called Automattic. If you prefer to have your own domain name and your own web hosting account, you may upgrade to a paid service. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to sign up for a free (or premium) blog at WordPress.com.
How to Setup a WordPress.com Account
Step 1. Open your Internet Browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer
Step 2. Type in www.wordpress.com, and click enter.
Step 3. On the bottom left hand corner, you’ll see a large orange button labeled, “Get Started”. Please click on that button now.
Step 4. Type in your e-mail address, and the username & password of your choice. In this example below, I will be using the alias “Mark Adson”. Therefore, I have created a sample e-mail address called “mark.adson1@gmail.com”. For purposes of this example, I will use a username and password that are easy to remember. A Red X means that the username is already taken; and, a Green Checkmark means that the username is available. [Sample Username:markadson & Sample Password: markads0n] – See the image below:
Step 5. Then, choose your blog address. You can change your URL in the future, if you would like. If you prefer not to have the “.wordpress.com” suffix at the end of your URL, you can purchase a domain name for $18/year. A Red X means that the blog address is already taken; and, a Green Checkmark means that the blog address is available.
Step 6. Are you thinking about upgrading to a Premium account? If so, you can purchase one for $99/year by clicking on “Upgrade”. If not, you can now click on the large blue button labeled “Create Blog”.
Step 7. Now it’s time to verify your account! Please check your inbox now. If you didn’t receive a verification e-mail, please click on the blue button labeled “Didn’t get your e-mail yet?”
Step 8. Next, open your verification e-mail, and click on the “Activate Blog” button.
Step 9. You will then be asked to set up your WordPress.com account. Type in the title of your blog, your tagline, and your language. For this example, my blog title will be “Mark Adson’s Blog” and my tagline will be “Awesome Blog!” I have also set my language to “en – English”. When you are ready, click on “Next Step” on the bottom right hand corner.
Step 10. Next, choose your WordPress theme. To view more themes, please scroll down the page and click on “Show More Themes”. For purposes of this example, I will use the first theme entitled, “Ryu”. When you are ready, click on “Next Step” on the bottom right hand corner.
Step 11. If you are interested in customizing your theme, please click on the grey button labeled “Customize It!” When you are ready, click on “Next Step” on the bottom right hand corner. For purposes of this example, I will skip this step.
Step 12. Finally, you can write your first post, or add your first image, video, quote, or link. When you are ready, click on the “Finish” button on the bottom right hand corner. For purposes of this example, I will skip this step.
Congratulations! You have just setup your first WordPress.com account. That was easy, right? Happy blogging!