ProBlogger Toolkit

Recommended Blogging Resources & Tools

The tools, training, and services I personally use — or have been highly recommended by people I trust — to run my blogs.

Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of them I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Almost every tool listed is one I'm a paid, regular user of.

Blog Platforms

My recommendation is clear — WordPress.org. For the last decade I've not built a blog on any other platform.

WordPress.org

Self-hosted WordPress — the platform of choice for most serious bloggers.

WordPress.com

A free hosted blogging platform — easier to start, less flexible.

Blogger

Another free hosted option, owned by Google.

Hosting

If you're just starting out, BlueHost is a great affordable option. For established sites with traffic, WPEngine specialises in WordPress.

BlueHost

Recommended by WordPress since 2005. 1-click WP installs, 24/7 support, very affordable.

WPEngine

Premium managed WordPress hosting for established blogs that need performance.

Blog Design & Themes

Choose a theme that is updated regularly so your blog stays secure.

StudioPress

The premium theme supplier I've used over the years — beautiful design and great support.

Graphic Design

Canva

An online graphic design tool simple enough that anyone can make decent visuals for their blog.

PicMonkey

Another useful tool for creating visual content.

99designs

Hire pro designers for logos, graphics, and design elements.

Easel.ly

Turn information into engaging infographics — free and premium tiers.

24slides

Professional presentation designers for PowerPoint, Keynote, and more.

Email Marketing

ConvertKit

Built for bloggers — landing pages, lead magnets, tags, and automations. Free up to 1,000 subs.

Drip

The email service ProBlogger uses — advanced automation for monetised blogs.

Feedblitz

A great tool for managing RSS feeds and email delivery.

SumoMe

Collect email addresses with popups, hello bars, welcome mats, and more.

OptinMonster

Powerful lead capture and conversion optimisation toolkit.

LeadPages

Create high-converting landing pages for your blog.

Social Media Management

AgoraPulse

Powerful scheduling and monitoring across all social media accounts.

CoSchedule

Editorial calendar, social messaging, and post publication — all from within WordPress.

Edgar

Recycles your evergreen social updates so your best content keeps working.

Sprout Social

A polished alternative to AgoraPulse for teams.

Productivity & Team Management

Evernote

Where I brainstorm, capture ideas, and draft blog posts.

Slack

What our team uses for internal communications.

Trello

Project management and team coordination.

Fantastical

A great calendar app for Mac and iOS.

Wunderlist

A reliable to-do list application.

Other Blogging Tools

Ecamm Live

Create polished Facebook LIVE videos on Mac.

BuzzSumo

Analyse how well content is shared on any site.

MarsEdit

A Mac blog editor for writing and publishing without logging into WordPress.

Easy Digital Downloads

Sell digital products from your WordPress blog — what we use for our eBooks.

Auphonic

Online audio leveller we use when producing podcasts.

Zoom

Webinars and live streaming with guests and screen sharing.

ScreenFlow

Screencast recording for Mac.

Grammarly

Browser extension that checks your spelling and grammar.

Google Analytics

The free industry-standard metrics platform — install it day one.

Blog Monetization

A few networks and services that are a good starting point if you want to make money from your blog.

AdSense

Google's ad network — one of the most used monetization strategies for bloggers.

Amazon Associates

Earn commissions recommending products from the biggest online store.

Genius Links

Manage affiliate links across regions — great for global audiences on Amazon.

Note: many links on this page are affiliate links and earn ProBlogger a small commission if you sign up. This adds no cost to you and helps keep ProBlogger sustainable.