How to Create your first Static WordPress Website

Looking to create your first static WordPress website? This guide will walk you through how to do it in the most straightforward way possible.

Static websites are becoming increasingly popular for speed, tight security, and reduced maintenance. If you want to create, convert existing WordPress sites, and manage static websites with WordPress but don’t know where to begin, We’re here to help.

The process might seem complex at first, but with Simply Static Studio, it’s easier than you think. We’ll show you how this platform works out of the box so you can get a static WordPress website effortlessly.

Here’s what we’ll be covering:

What a static WordPress website is and how it works.
How to convert a WordPress website into a static site.
Step-by-step instructions for setting up and launching a static site with Simply Static Studio.

What is a static WordPress website?

A static website is a type of website whose content is fixed. Each page is already built in advance and stored on a web server. For example, anyone visiting your homepage sees the same content and site design regardless of location. These static pages are usually built with frontend technologies like HTMLHyperText Markup Language. It’s the standard language for creating web pages., CSSCascading Style Sheet. It’s a language used for describing the look and formatting of a document written in HTML., and sometimes JavaScriptA programming language used in web development to create interactive elements on a webpage..

WordPress as a static website

A static WordPress website works similarly but uses WordPress as a content management tool. You can use all the familiar features of WordPress to update and manage content on the dashboard.

But instead of relying on WordPress to display your content dynamicallyActions or processes that occur in real-time, often without requiring a full page reload. For example, a search box that…, the site is converted and deployed as static files. This means the final website is made up of fixed HTML pages that load instantly, are more secure, and require less maintenance.

In simpler terms, a static WordPress site is a different way of using WordPress. You build your site in WordPress as usual, but then ‘export’ it as a collection of static files.

So, how is it different from your standard WordPress website?

Static vs. dynamic WordPress websites

By default, every site you create on WordPress is essentially a dynamic website. That means it will display different content for different users.

What users see when they open your site depends on their location, time of day, preferences, etc. For this to happen, WordPress commonly uses PHPA widely-used programming language especially suited for web development. to pull data from a database to generate a page in real-time for each visitor.

Potential drawbacks in dynamic WordPress websites

If too many people were to visit your site at once, it may slow down when the server has to make repeated calls to the database.

The whole site may crash if the database is overloaded.
You have to keep updating WordPress and plugins.
Hackers can target the database and backend.
Hosting costs more because dynamic sites need more server power.

Generally, it is more costly to ensure a dynamic WordPress site is highly-performant, secure, and well-maintained than a static one. You can avoid these hidden costs altogether by making WordPress static.

A static WordPress website is a leaner, more efficient option, as it doesn’t rely on PHP or databases. Instead, it serves static HTML files, making it faster and more affordable to maintain.

Key benefits of a static WordPress website:

Since a static WordPress website doesn’t need to make repeated database calls, it offers:

Blazing-fast performance. Because there’s no complex processing on the backend, your web pages load incredibly fast for SEO and visitors. Adding a CDNStands for Content Delivery Network. It’s a system of distributed servers that deliver web content quickly to users base… makes load times even faster.
Stronger security. A static WordPress website is more secure since it has no database, vulnerable plugins, or dynamic elements hackers can exploit.
Lower maintenance. Once your static site is live, it requires minimal upkeep. You don’t have to constantly update WordPress, plugins, or themes, as the site runs without them.
Static hosting is relatively cheaper. In addition, static sites don’t need powerful servers, so you can host them on cheaper, simpler platforms and save money in the long run.

Now that we understand why a static WordPress website is the better option let’s see how to make a WordPress static with the help of Simply Static Studio.

How to convert a WordPress website into a static website

Simply Static Studio is a fully managed platform that makes converting WordPress into a static site easy. All you do is sign up to create a new static site or upload an existing one.

The platform automatically handles static site generation and all the technical side of things for you. This way, you won’t have to worry about complex configurations like hosting setups, updates, backups, or security.

The Simply Static Studio approach (the easy way)

With Simply Static Studio, the platform automates everything, so you can easily create, deploy, and manage static websites with WordPress.

Here’s what makes it easy:

No manual configuration whatsoever

With Simply Static Studio, you don’t have to set up static hosting, install WordPress, or configure anything. It is a managed WordPress solution. It also handles security, updates, and automatic backups for you in the background. You don’t have to tweak server settings or worry about maintenance.

Static site generation is automatic.

Simply Static Studio automatically generates your static site using the Simply Static Pro pluginA piece of software that adds specific features to WordPress.. As soon as you create a site, the system runs the first static exportThe process of saving the files and data from your WordPress site to create a static site. using the best settings. You don’t have to customize anything. The platform installs and sets up Simply Static, then converts your WordPress pages into static HTML.

It works out of the box as well. Dynamic features like forms and search are pre-configured to take the extra work off your hands.

A user-friendly dashboard

The Simply Static Studio dashboard is straightforward to use. Everything you need to create and manage all your static WordPress projects is in one place. You don’t have to dig through menus or guess what to do next. Each static site you create is listed in a table showing its name, status, and actions you can take.

These include actions like:

A magic login link to your WordPress dashboard.
Connecting to a custom domain.
Adding and managing team members.
Deleting your project.

You can also chat with a real person and get the support you need via chat.

High performance with our powerful CDN

All your static WordPress projects will be hosted on a high-performance global CDN. This means your site loads fast no matter where your visitors are.

Instead of relying on a single server, the CDN stores copies of your static site in multiple locations worldwide. When someone visits your site, they get the content from the closest server, reducing load times and improving reliability.

You’ll discover more about Simply Static Studio as we go through the step-by-step process to use it in this tutorial.

How to create your first static WordPress website with Simply Static Studio

Let’s get your static WordPress website set up and running with Simply Static Studio.

Step 1: Sign up for Simply Static Studio

Start by visiting the Simply Static Studio website: static.studio to sign up for an account.

Click the Don’t have an account? Sign up button.
Then, enter your email address and password.
You will receive a confirmation link in your email to verify and activate your account. This will log you into the Studio dashboard, where we’ll create your first static WordPress website.

Note: Currently, users have invite-only access, so you can’t sign up for a free trial yourself. Instead, hop on the waitlist, and you’ll receive an invite from us to be among the first to try it.

Step 2: Create your first static WordPress website

You can create your new static WordPress website from the Simply Static Studio dashboard.

Then, take the following steps to create your site:

Click the Create your first website button in the middle of the screen.

A window will pop up asking you to name your site. Give it any name you want. You can edit it later if you change your mind. Plus, this name is only used within the dashboard and is not shown to your visitors.
After naming your site, click the Create Site button, and a table will appear with your newly created static WordPress website.

You will see the following details in each column:
1. Name. This will be the name you gave your site. If you click the info icon next to the name, you can update it. You can also inspect the credentials we automatically created for you.
2. URL. This is the URL of your static WordPress website. You will also see a little lock icon next to the URL. Click on it to issue an SSLSecure Sockets Layer. A technology that encrypts the data transferred between a user and a website. certificate.
3. Status. This column shows the current state of your website, or rather, the progress of its deploymentThe act of pushing the static files generated by Simply Static to a live environment where users can access them.. It can be pending, migrating, creating, failed, or deployed.
4. Actions. You’ll see four actions when the current state of your site is marked deployed.

How about if you already have a WordPress website set up?

Step 3: Migrate or upload an existing WordPress site

Starting from scratch doesn’t make sense if you already have a WordPress site. Instead, you can quickly upload your existing backup to Simply Static Studio and convert it as follows:

Create a backup of your existing website with a plugin or use one created by your hosting provider and download it to your computer
Extract the ZIP file and remove everything but the wp-content directoryA folder in a computer’s file system used for storing files and other directories. and the SQL file containing your database dump. Rename the SQL file to db.sql. Now, you can zip everything again.
Go to your Studio dashboard and click the Create Site button at the top right.
Give it a name in the window that will pop up.
Then, click on the Upload Site button. You can drop the backup file on the Uploader or browse it on your local computer and upload it.

The Status will read migrating if you use the Uploader to migrate an existing site. During this time, we’ll restore this backup file on Simply Static Studio and add everything you get when creating an entirely new site.

Step 4: Run the first static site export

When you click Create Site in Simply Static Studio, you’re not just setting up a new WordPress site. The platform configures several things behind the scenes to prepare your site for static conversion. Here’s what happens automatically:

WordPress is installed for you

That means you’ll need no separate WordPress hosting provider. The protected WordPress installation will still be served from the ‘static.studio’ subdomain.

Important note: Every website running on Simply Static Studio can be exported and hosted anywhere else. You’re not locked in the platform forever.

It also:

Creates DNS records for WP and the CDN.
It sets up the CDN and applies various rules to ensure the best performance.
It sets up an NGINX web server and applies our highly secure configurationThe setup process where you specify the settings and options for how a software or system will operate..
It installs WP CLICommand Line Interface. This is a text-based way to interact with your computer or specific software, like Simply Static… and configures a server-side cronA time-based job scheduler that runs specified actions at certain times or intervals. job that runs every minute.
It installs, configures, and activates licenses for the free version and Simply Static Pro plugin.

It runs a static export

Studio will automatically run a static export based on its optimizations. Just wait for the system to convert your WordPress site into a static version and deploy it.

If you migrated an existing WordPress site, the wait time will depend on how many WordPress pages will be converted to static HTML files.

Note: Studio also installs Ollie and WPForms and pre-configures them for you. OllieWP is a WordPress theme.
We won’t install anything beyond our own plugin when migrating an existing website.

Step 5: Manage your new static WordPress website

When the Status reads deployed, your site is ready to be used. You can perform any of the following four actions per site:

Log into your new WordPress dashboard

The first icon in the Actions column is the magic login link. It’s a secure passwordless login. You don’t have to provide login credentials to open your WordPress dashboard. We don’t store your credentials anywhere.

When you click this link, it will automatically open WordPress in a new tab and let you manage content. Use the familiar features in WordPress CMS.

Note: Basic Authentication and our firewall protect WordPress installations.

Other three actions you can do include:

Connect a domain. We’ll handle this in the next step.
Invite team members to help you manage static sites.
Delete the site. There is an additional confirmation prompt before we delete your site.

Note: You will also see your details in the account box within your dashboard. Details like your email, the next payment date, and the status. You can also upgrade your subscription and pricing based on the number of sites you can create.

Let’s narrow it down to connecting a custom domain.

Step 6: Connect a custom domain to your static site

Connecting to a custom domain allows you to take your static site live.

To connect your domain, take the following steps:

Click the Link icon under the Actions column for the project you want to connect.

A pop-up will appear asking you to provide the domain name you want to add.
Copy your CNAME record. This will be the value that ends with the static.studio subdomain. It will appear in the pop-up window.
Copy it and add your CNAME record to your DNS settings. For this tutorial, we’ll use CloudflareA company that provides services like security and website speed improvement. It acts as a protective layer between the … as our DNS tool. However, the following steps should be easily replicable on any DNS tool.
In Cloudflare, go over to your project and click on DNS. Here’s what you should do:
1. Type: CNAME
2. Name: www
3. Target: your static.studio subdomain. This is the CNAME value we copied.
4. Proxy Status: disabled (only relevant for Cloudflare).
Click the Save button once everything is set up. Then, go back to your Studio dashboard and your Connect Domain settings.
Type in your domain, for example, www.mystatic.site. The domain should start with www and not https://. Click on Connect Domain once this is all done.

Other considerations

Depending on your DNS tool, your site may take a while until your website is available under the new domain. Otherwise, your site will be live once it is connected. Here are some of the things you can do to ensure your site works correctly and has a secure connection:

Click on the link icon next to your URL to ensure your site has an SSL certificate for secure connections. Simply Static Studio provides this automatically.
Test your site. Go through different WordPress pages. Check links, forms, and other interactive elements (if any) to confirm everything works as expected.

Launch your first static WordPress website today

Simply Static Studio simplifies the entire process of making a static WordPress website in three significant ways. Instead of handling web hosting, setting up a CDN, and installing a WordPress static site generator separately, you get everything in one place.

Before this, you had to handle these steps on your own to set up a static WordPress website. You had to install a plugin, configure export settings, manually set up deployment services, and check if everything worked well.

Now, you don’t have to worry about any of that. Simply Static Studio is a managed WordPress solution that handles all the technical setups and configurations, saving you time and effort.

So, create your first static WordPress website today with Simply Static Studio for an ultra-fast, highly secure, and maintenance-free experience.

Your first Static WordPress website with Simply Static Studio