Best Free Web Hosting Options?

What free hosting services do you guys use? I want to build a web dev portfolio and share my links. Any recommendations?

For static sites: GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

Cole said:
For static sites: GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

Can you explain the difference between static and dynamic pages?

Hallie said:

Cole said:
For static sites: GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

Can you explain the difference between static and dynamic pages?

A static page is just HTML, CSS, and JS with no backend processing. A dynamic page interacts with a database or backend server.

Hallie said:

Cole said:
For static sites: GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

Can you explain the difference between static and dynamic pages?

Static sites are pre-built and delivered as-is to users, while dynamic sites generate content on the fly using a backend (like PHP, Node.js, or a database). If your site doesn’t need a backend, static hosting services will work fine.

Hallie said:

Cole said:
For static sites: GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Vercel, and Netlify.

Can you explain the difference between static and dynamic pages?

Static sites don’t change once they’re loaded. Dynamic sites pull content from a database or API to update content dynamically.

@Ivey
So a database makes a site dynamic?

Hallie said:
@Ivey
So a database makes a site dynamic?

Yes, a site that fetches content from a database or API is dynamic.

For dynamic sites, Render.com is a good free alternative now that Heroku dropped its free tier.

Shane said:
For dynamic sites, Render.com is a good free alternative now that Heroku dropped its free tier.

Would Render work for a React app?

Ezra said:

Shane said:
For dynamic sites, Render.com is a good free alternative now that Heroku dropped its free tier.

Would Render work for a React app?

Yes, but if your React app is purely frontend, it can be hosted on GitHub Pages or Vercel instead.

Ezra said:

Shane said:
For dynamic sites, Render.com is a good free alternative now that Heroku dropped its free tier.

Would Render work for a React app?

If your React app doesn’t rely on a backend, GitHub Pages is a great option. If it does, Render might be better.

@Shane
It’s just frontend, no APIs or database.

Ezra said:
@Shane
It’s just frontend, no APIs or database.

In that case, GitHub Pages, Vercel, or Netlify would be perfect.

The difference between free and a low-cost paid option (like $49/year) can be huge. Don’t be afraid to invest in a good service.

Dempsey said:
The difference between free and a low-cost paid option (like $49/year) can be huge. Don’t be afraid to invest in a good service.

What makes a paid service better?

Corey said:

Dempsey said:
The difference between free and a low-cost paid option (like $49/year) can be huge. Don’t be afraid to invest in a good service.

What makes a paid service better?

Reliability, better backend support, and more control over your hosting environment.

Oracle offers free VPS hosting if you’re comfortable setting up your own server.

I use Firebase, but I don’t see it mentioned often. Thoughts?

Evangeline said:
I use Firebase, but I don’t see it mentioned often. Thoughts?

Firebase is great, especially for analytics and real-time databases. Works well when combined with Cloudflare for better performance.