Free hosting for students

How to use this guide

Pick by what you are hosting

• Portfolio, resume site, or class page (static): GitHub Pages, Netlify, or Cloudflare Pages. Free, no student check, custom domain and HTTPS included.
• WordPress or a PHP site: InterServer student web hosting, free for the first year with a .edu email.
• An app with a backend or database: Azure for Students, or Heroku through the GitHub Student Developer Pack.
• A Next.js or React project for yourself: Vercel's free Hobby plan, as long as it is personal and non-commercial.

Free static hosting anyone can use

These need no student verification. Each one checked on its own site on October 22, 2026:

• GitHub Pages: free with any GitHub account. Published sites can be up to 1 GB, with a soft bandwidth limit of 100 GB a month. GitHub says Pages is not meant for online businesses or software-as-a-service sites.
• Netlify: the Free plan is $0 with custom domains and SSL, unlimited deploy previews, and a monthly limit of 300 usage credits.
• Cloudflare Pages: free to start with no credit card, served from Cloudflare's global network.
• Vercel: the Hobby plan is $0, but Vercel limits it to non-commercial personal use. A site that earns money needs the Pro plan.

Student hosting offers

When a free static host is not enough, these programs give students real hosting or credit:

• InterServer: free standard web hosting for the first year for students who sign up with a qualifying .edu email. You can install WordPress and other site apps on it.
• Azure for Students: $100 in Azure credit to use within 12 months, plus free services, with no credit card required. For students aged 18 and up. A separate Azure offer covers students aged 13 to 17.
• Heroku: $13 in platform credit each month for 24 months ($312 in total) through the GitHub Student Developer Pack. Heroku asks for a card on file and charges anything above the credit.
• Appwrite: the Education plan, worth $40 a month, free for six months through the GitHub Student Developer Pack. It includes hosting for static and server-rendered frontends.
• Qoddi: $250 of credit per year for students enrolled in a computer science degree or equivalent.

• Compare free cloud credits for students

How to put a portfolio online for free

1. Build the site as plain HTML or with a static site generator, and push it to a GitHub repository.
2. Turn on GitHub Pages in the repository settings, or import the repository into Netlify or Cloudflare Pages.
3. Check the free address works, such as username.github.io.
4. Add your own domain in the host's settings, then point the domain's DNS records at the host as its instructions say.
5. Turn on HTTPS. GitHub Pages, Netlify, and Cloudflare Pages issue the certificate for you.

Get a free domain to go with it

A free host gives you an address like username.github.io. For your own name, the GitHub Student Developer Pack includes a free .me domain from Namecheap, a free .tech domain, and a Name.com domain, each for one year.

• Free domain for students

Watch out for these

• Free years and credits end. Write down the end date and move or upgrade before the site goes offline.
• Offers change. DigitalOcean's $200 student credit is no longer listed on the GitHub Student Developer Pack as of October 22, 2026, and its student page now sends you to the home page.
• Selling something or running a business site breaks the rules of GitHub Pages and Vercel Hobby. Use a host whose plan allows commercial use.

When paid hosting makes sense

Paying for hosting is worth it when your free year or credits run out, when the site earns money, or when you need email on your own domain. For a WordPress or PHP site, shared hosting is usually the cheapest paid choice.

Before you buy, compare the first-year price with the renewal price, check that SSL is included, and see whether email accounts come with the plan.

Questions students ask