To create a website with WordPress, work through the setup in the order a visitor will experience the result: establish the site, prepare its content, organize its links and check the finished pages. This guide uses self-hosted WordPress 7.1 with a block theme. It follows the path from the installation form to a small site with pages, posts and a reviewed homepage.
WordPress.org provides the open-source software for installation on hosting you choose. WordPress.com is a hosted service, and what you can add depends on its plan. The instructions below follow the self-hosted route, where you are responsible for updates and backups, often with help from your host.
Steps to create a website with WordPress
1. Prepare the address and install WordPress
A domain is your site’s address, while web hosting stores the site and serves it to visitors. Most hosts provide an SSL certificate and a one-click WordPress installer. A newly registered domain may take a little time, sometimes a day or two, to work everywhere.
In the installer, choose your language and click Continue. Complete Site Title, Username, Password and Your Email. Store the password securely and check the email address carefully. Review the Search engine visibility choice, then click Install WordPress. The completed installation provides Log In; the usual login address is your domain followed by /wp-admin.
2. Set the site’s identity and address structure
After logging in, open Settings → General. Enter the Site Title and Tagline that describe your site, then click Save Changes. The “Settings saved.” notice confirms the change. Use a title that you want visitors to recognize when they move between pages.
Next, open Settings → Permalinks, choose Post name and click Save Changes. Set this early because changing the permalink structure later changes addresses. The Dashboard’s Pages area holds content such as About and Contact, while Posts holds dated blog entries. Knowing that distinction helps you put each piece of writing in the right place.
3. Install and activate your block theme
Open Appearance → Themes → Add Theme → Upload Theme. Click Choose File, select the theme ZIP and click Install Now. After installation, inspect Live Preview or use Activate when you are ready to change the live design. Previewing a block theme opens the Site Editor in WordPress 7.1.
If you need the detailed file and preview sequence, follow the earlier guide to uploading and changing a theme. Once activated, the theme displays your own content. Plan to judge its layout again after adding your actual pages rather than relying only on the theme’s thumbnail.
4. Write the site’s pages
Open Pages → All Pages → Add Page. Fill in Add title, then write a paragraph below it. Use the Block Inserter for additional content. An Image block offers Upload, Media Library and Insert from URL; use Alternative text to describe an image for people who use screen readers.
Prepare an About page that explains the site and a Contact page with the contact route you intend to provide. A Buttons block can use a mailto link to open the visitor’s email app; a working form requires a separate contact form plugin. Preview each page, then click Publish and confirm with Publish again.
5. Prepare a post and choose the homepage behavior
Open Posts → All Posts and use Add Post for a dated entry. In the Post tab, use Set featured image if the post needs one. Assign a suitable category through the Categories panel and Add Category, uncheck Uncategorized, and use “Add an excerpt…” for a short summary. Publish the finished post through the confirmation step.
Open Settings → Reading to choose Your latest posts or “A static page (select below)”. The latter provides Homepage and Posts page menus. Block themes can also include a Front Page template that takes precedence, so review the public homepage instead of assuming a Reading choice determines the complete layout.
6. Connect pages through navigation
Open Appearance → Editor → Patterns → Header and select the Navigation block. Use its add button to choose a page for a top-level link. To place a page beneath an existing link, select that link and click Add submenu. Select the empty link, click Link, search for the destination and choose it.
Click Save, review the navigation menu listed under “Are you ready to save?”, and click Save again. Keep the menu focused on destinations that help visitors understand the site. Open the saved links afterward and confirm that each leads to the page you intended.
7. Adjust shared styles and review the identity
In the Site Editor, Styles → Typography → Headings provides a Font menu for heading typography. Styles → Colors → Edit palette lets you change a palette color through a color picker and hex field. Shared Styles affect the whole site, while a selected block’s settings affect that block.
Under Identity, review Site Title and Site Tagline, and use Choose logo or Choose icon where needed. The Site Icon should be square and at least 512 by 512 pixels. Compare Desktop, Tablet and Mobile previews, then check the finished site on a real phone as well.
8. Check launch and upkeep tasks
In Settings → Reading, make sure Discourage search engines from indexing this site is unchecked when the site is ready for indexing. WordPress notes that search engines decide whether to honor the request. Under Settings → Privacy, edit and publish the draft Privacy Policy page and select it through Use This Page where appropriate.
Remove the sample post and page if they are still present. Use Dashboard → Updates for WordPress, theme and plugin updates. Arrange regular backups through your host or a backup plugin, keeping a copy somewhere else. Revisit the homepage and contact route after these final content changes.
Common problems
Domain not working everywhere
A new domain can take a day or two to work everywhere. Allow for that delay while checking the address you registered and the setup information you entered.
Homepage unlike the selected page
Inspect Appearance → Editor → Templates for a Front Page template. When present, it takes precedence over the homepage selected in Reading and controls that layout.
Color changes across several pages
A palette change can affect every element using that color. Use an individual block’s settings when the intended change belongs to that block alone.
FAQ
Do I need a blog to create a website with WordPress?
Pages can hold your main site content, including About and Contact. You can choose a static homepage and add dated posts when they serve your site’s purpose.
Can I change the title after installation?
You can edit Site Title and Tagline in Settings → General. Click Save Changes to record them.
Does an email button provide a contact form?
An email link opens the visitor’s email app. A contact form is a separate feature that requires its own setup.
Summary
Build the site around finished content, clear navigation and a checked homepage. Record the initial settings, review the public pages and establish an update and backup routine before treating the setup as complete.
The personal blog theme collection offers examples of how a small publication can organize its content.