Launch Your Site with the World’s Most Popular Website Platform

Now that your domain is pointing to your hosting account, it’s time to actually build the website.

The platform we’ll use is WordPress — the most trusted and widely used website builder in the world. It powers everything from personal blogs to big-name business sites and online stores.

And the best part?
It’s completely free and included with your HostGator plan.

Why WordPress?

• No coding needed
• Thousands of free and paid themes
• Endless customization
• Easy to update and expand
• You own and control everything

This is not the same thing as “WordPress.com” — which is a limited, hosted version.
What we’re doing here is called self-hosted WordPress — meaning you own the site, not some platform that controls your features or design.

How to Install WordPress on HostGator (Step-by-Step)

1. Log in to your HostGator customer portal
   Use the login credentials from your HostGator welcome email.
2. Find the hosting package and click “Launch cPanel”
   cPanel is your main control panel for hosting.
3. Scroll down to the “Software” section and click “WordPress Installer”
   You may also see this listed as “Softaculous Apps Installer” or “Website Essentials.”
4. Click “Install” under the WordPress logo
   HostGator uses a one-click installation process — you won’t need to download anything manually.
5. Fill out the basic settings
   • Choose your domain name from the dropdown
   • Leave the directory field empty (so WordPress installs to the main site)
   • Set your site name and description (you can change these later)
   • Choose a username, password, and admin email
   • Leave the theme selection blank for now — we’ll choose one manually in the next step
6. Click “Install”
   That’s it. The installer will run, and in about 1–2 minutes, you’ll see a confirmation screen.
7. Log in to your new WordPress site
   Your admin login will be located at:
   yourdomain.com/wp-admin Use the username and password you just created.

You now have a fully functioning WordPress site!

It won’t look like much yet — that’s normal. Over the next few steps, we’ll customize the design, install essential plugins, and start creating real pages.

What’s Next?

Time to customize your email setup so your emails actually reach your intended recipients–instead immediately get blocked as ‘spam’ by gmail and others. Hostgator does not by default configure these for you. It is on you to do so.

👉 Step 6: Configure Hosting Settings for Email Deliverability