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Hosting WordPress on Netlify

Is it possible to host a WordPress blog or site on the Netlify platform? Because we already know that Netlify only allows you to host a static HTML site. So, how to do hosting WordPress on Netlify? Is it possible for hosting WordPress on Netlify in the first place?

The answer is yes. It is possible, but with some tricks.

In short

We need to convert the whole WordPress site into a fully working static HTML site.

Details

We haven’t done this ourselves but we do notice that some of the WordPress plugins can generate the static versions of our WordPress site.

This means we can have a fully working static site after the conversion is complete.

Once we have this static site works, we can upload them into a Github, Bitbucket or Gitlab.

Those three providers will let you deploy to Netlify using the “git push” command only. Yes, just like the one on Heroku.

Steps

  • Look for tool or generator or WordPress plugin that can generate a fully working static site of a WordPress site

  • Run it

  • Download the result, which is the files for that static site version of our WordPress site.

  • Set up a private git repository on either Github, Bitbucket, or Gitlab. We prefer Github.

  • Connect this Github to the Netlify service at netlify.com

  • Run “git push” to the Github repository which we had connected it to Netlify service.

  • Wait some seconds.

  • Netlify will quickly process the deployment of our site.

  • Now, the static version of our WordPress site is running on Netlify

Theoretically, this is very possible. But what about the pros and cons? Let’s see.

Pros

  • Free. We can run the WordPress on our localhost and deploy its generated static site version on Netlify

  • Fast. No database is used. It’s fully static, and only HTML, CSS, and maybe some Javascript.

  • Deploy easily. Only with “git push”. If you’re familiar with git source code control, this should be a piece of cake.

  • Secure. Because we don’t run any server-side script here. Only HTML, CSS, and other stuff rendered on the user’s browser.

Cons

  • More hassles. We need to generate the static version of WordPress, copy it and push it to Github to allow Netlify to deploy it.

  • Fewer features. Because we don’t run actual WordPress there.

  • Limited. We are limited to serve static content only. Unless we tinker more with Netlify form.

  • For WordPress users who did not know about Git, this can be a time consuming to just learn how git works.

  • Less practical. It’s not actual WordPress.

Is it for you?

As always, it depends. It may be for you if you are a developer who only needs to post occasionally or even rarely.

But if you plan to post daily or plan to expand the site, I don’t think it’s worth the effort. You may want to look into other options if you want to better your site, such as providing your customers with solid digital experiences.

As for more insights, you may read some of my stories below relating both this WordPress and Netlify:

  • First story: why and how I move from WordPress to Netlify. To put it more clear, in this period, I don’t generate the static versions of my WordPress. Instead, I export and import the content into another CMS: Netlify CMS.

  • Second story: why I move back to WordPress. It tells you why I move it back to WordPress after running the site on Netlify for free, for about six months.


Categories: Web Hosting  

Tags: netlify   netlify wordpress   wordpress