How to Make a Private Website

By Kara Page

Updated September 28, 2017

Create a private website with limited access for readers.
i website layout image by 6922Designer from Fotolia.com

Websites can be useful for sharing both personal and business information with others in an efficient and professional manner, but in some cases you may not want the entire online community to have access to your website. Most web hosts allow you to create a website complete with customizable templates, plenty of storage space and multimedia capabilities, and then select privacy settings to allow access only to those you identify.

Weebly

Go to Weebly.com. Enter a new username, a password, and your email address to register, then click "Continue." Click and drag a template you like from the top window into the space below to apply the design, then drag and drop the boxes with text and photo options into the template.

Click inside a text box to enter text, or a photo box to upload pictures from your computer. Click the Pages tab at the top to add pages, then click the "Password Protect" box.

Click the Settings tab and enter a password in the "Site Password" field. Click "Save." Proofread your website, then click "Publish." The website will be accessible only to those with whom you share the password.

WordPress

Go to WordPress.com and click the "Sign up now" link. Enter your username, a password and your email address to register, then click "Create blog." Click "Appearances, choose a template or theme for your website," and select "Apply."

Click "New Post" and enter text and/or upload pictures to add content to your website. Click "Preview" to proofread and check your website.

Click "Privacy" under the Settings tab on the left side of the dashboard. Check the option "I would like my blog to be private, visible only to users I choose," and click "Save Changes." Click "Publish" to publish your website.

Blogger

Go to Blogger.com and click "Sign me up," then enter your email address, a username and a new password to register, and then click "Create blog." Click on a template and click "Apply to blog."

Click "New post" and enter text and/or upload pictures to add content to your website. Click "Preview" to proofread and check your website, then click "Publish."

Click "Settings," then "Permissions." Scroll down to the "Blog Readers" section and check the option "Only people I choose." Enter the email addresses of those you wish to invite to have access to your website, then click "Invite."

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