How to Start a Food Blog and Make Money Online in 2024

Are you curious to know how to start a successful food blog in 2024? You’re in the right place.

Food blogging can be a rewarding way to share your love of cooking, food, and more with others. 

But, it’s hard to know where to start. 

Finding the right niche, setting up the site properly, finding new content ideas, structuring your posts, and promoting it correctly is not easy tasks. 

I’ve been blogging for about four years now and have learned a lot along the way. 

That’s why I decided to write a post that will help you kickstart a new food blog of your own.

So, without much ado, let’s dive into the details.

  • Save

How to Start a Food Blog in 2024 [Beginner’s Guide]

Here are the essential steps you should follow to start a food blog and make your blogging journey a breeze.

Step 1: Choose Your Food Blog Niche

How to become a food blogger? This is the primary question I get to hear every day.

Well, the right answer would be – Start by choosing a suitable niche for you.

You know there are millions of food blogs available on the web. 

So, rather than competing with all of them, as a beginner, it’s better to narrow down your niche and come up with a specific topic to write about.

This way, not only competition will be less but also you will be able to get more targeted traffic that converts easily.    

Though you can pick a niche based on your interest and passion, here are some of the most popular food blog types and niches you can consider for starting your food blog.

  • Recipe blogs 
  • Home cooking food blogs
  • Trending food blogs (vegetarian recipes, gluten-free recipes, vegan recipes, etc.)
  • Cuisine-specific blogs such as Indian, Italian, Chinese, French, etc.
  • Wine & drinks blog
  • Food travel blogs
  • Cookbook review blogs
  • Food photography and blog monetization

Step 2: Decide Domain Name and Web Hosting Provider

Next, you need to find a reliable web hosting provider where you can register your domain name and buy a web hosting plan. 

wp hosting
  • Save

The domain name is your blog’s home address that people will use to find your blog on the Internet.

Not only this but your domain name is also crucial for your blog’s reputation and ranking on search engines.

So, make sure to come up with a good food blog name by following best practices;

  • Keep it short and simple
  • Make it unique and memorable
  • Easy to pronounce
  • Keep it relevant to your niche

Web hosting, on the other hand, is the place where all your website files are stored and keep your blog connected to the internet.

And when it comes to choosing a web hosting company, Bluehost is always my first pick.

It is also recommended by WordPress.org on its website and hosts over 2 million domains.

This blog is also hosted on Bluehost for the last couple of years and I’m extremely happy with their services.

Some more reasons to choose Bluehost for your food blog

Ready to start your food blog on Bluehost? 

Click this link to visit Bluehost’s official website. 

bluehost homepage
  • Save

Hit the “Host Your Site” button. You will be displayed all Bluehost hosting plans starting from $2.95/mo. You can choose any based on your requirements.

bluehost pricing plans
  • Save

For beginners, the Basic plan is the best fit as it will cost you ONLY $35.40 for 12 months.

Set up your domain name by keeping all the tips mentioned above.

bluehost new domain
  • Save

Finally, enter billing details, choose a package (12 months or 36 months), and check out via credit card or PayPal account.

bluehost basic plan cost
  • Save

After successful checkout, you will see a message as shown below;

bluehost payment success
  • Save

Congratulations, you have successfully subscribed to a Bluehost hosting package.   

Step 3: Choose a Blogging Platform 

Gone are the days when coding skills were required to design a website. 

These days, all you need is to pick a blogging platform also known as the Content Management System, and let it take care of everything. 

And when it comes to choosing a blogging platform, self-hosting WordPress is the best option by far.

Because of its powerful features, WordPress has a market share of 43.3% on the internet. 

So, without ado, let’s install WordPress on your fresh Bluehost account.

Click on the “Create Account” button available on the purchase success screen.

Provide your domain name and desired password, and create your account. 

Once your account is ready, log in by entering the domain name and password you just used to create your account. 

  • Save

Then you will be asked for basic details like your website name and tagline which will be visible on your blog. You can change this information anytime you want after your website goes live.

Enable the blog and online store feature.

After that, you will be given a choice to select a theme, skip this step as of now.

As soon as you go ahead, WordPress will be installed and you will see your Bluehost dashboard which looks like this;

bluehost dashboard
  • Save

Click on the “Log into WordPress” button to explore WordPress CMS and start customizing your blog.

wordpress dashboard updated
  • Save

But before that, change your password by accessing the Users section from the left side of your WordPress dashboard so that you can access your WordPress working area directly. 

Once your password is changed, simply use your domain name/wp-admin to login into WordPress. For example bloggingbeats.com/wp-admin.

Step 4: Select Your Food Blog Theme 

Now we will be designing your food blog and that’s where WordPress themes come into the picture.

A good theme is not only responsible for making your site appealing but also helps it load fast.   

There are around 3000 themes available in the WordPress themes repository so one should be careful while choosing a theme for their blogs.

Without any research, you may go with the Astra theme which is a lightweight and highly customizable WordPress theme.

It comes with a wide range of pre-built starter templates that will help you design a professional-looking website without any hassles.

In addition to that, it has the following features that make it a good WordPress theme for a food blog.

  • Visual theme customizer
  • Blog Layouts
  • Header and Footer Options
  • Schema Integrated
  • WooCommerce Ready
  • SEO Optimized
  • Colors & Background controls
  • Advanced typography options

All in all, it has everything you need to build a stunning website faster than ever before.

To get started with Astra, click Appearance → Themes → Add New and find Astra from your WordPress dashboard. 

add astra theme
  • Save

Once you see it, install it, and make it look exactly how you want with ease.

Step 5: Adding Plugins 

Even after applying a theme, your website will look like a simple static page.

To enhance the functionality of your website, you will need to install some plugins.

Here are the most highly recommended WordPress plugins to take your food blog to the next level.

1. Rank Math SEO: The best plugin to optimize your WordPress website to rank higher in search engines.

2. WP Rocket: The leading caching plugin to speed up your WordPress websites and blogs.

3. Social Snap Lite: The ultimate WordPress social media plugin for enabling your readers to share your blog to their social media profiles.

4. Table of Contents Plus: Automatically add a table of contents to your blog posts and pages to make your content scannable and easy to navigate. 

5. WPForms: The leading WordPress plugin for creating and adding a contact form.

6. OptinMonster: The best lead generation plugin to turn your site visitors into subscribers, fast.

7. MemberPress: The best plugin to convert your WordPress website into a membership website that generates recurring revenue.

8. WP Recipe Maker: The easy recipe plugin that allows you to add recipes to any post or page with automatic metadata.

9. Recipe Card: The advanced recipe plugin for WordPress & Elementor.

Step 6: Create Important Pages 

Your website is a virtual asset, right? So, to build trust with your readers you need to clearly mention some information about you and your businesses which can be done with the help of pages.

Though the pages may vary from business to business, these are the five pages that every business website should have.

Homepage: This is the most important page as this is the first thing your site visitors see. 

By default, your WordPress website’s homepage will be created automatically where your recent posts are displayed.  

But, I would advise you to create a separate blog page to capture the visitor’s attention and turn them into potential leads.

About Page: This is the perfect place to elaborate on your brand’s vision and goals, and discuss how your blog will help your audience.

Contact Page: Here you can include your email address, phone number, social media handles, or even physical address, depending on your type of business.

Privacy Policy Page: This page is a must if you’re going to use Google AdSense. 

Here, you can inform users what data (name, email address, phone number, etc.) you collect on your site and how that data is being used.

Disclaimer Page: This page is quite useful for those who make money online through their blogs.

On this page, you can tell users how you monetize your blog content for example affiliate marketing, Google AdSense, etc.

Step 7: Content Planning and Promotions 

Content is king. Yes, it’s 100% true.

So, having a proper content strategy and then writing SEO-friendly articles is essential to your site’s success.

And when it comes to a writing app, Google Docs is all you need. That said, make sure you use a proofing tool like Grammarly to write confidently.

Nonetheless, you may also use AI writing software like Jasper AI to scale your content marketing while saving a lot of time and money.

Here, I would also highlight one more crucial aspect of copywriting which is Keyword research which should not be neglected under any condition. 

Right keywords will help your site shine in search results and eventually in more revenue. 

For doing keyword research and performing all other SEO tasks, I highly recommend Semrush to all.  

To promote your food blog and build an audience base, you can use the below-mentioned methods;

  • Focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to boost organic marketing
  • Write long-form content having min 2000 words 
  • Target long-tail keywords
  • Social media marketing (Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest work great for food bloggers)
  • Collaborate with other food bloggers and influencers
  • Make your blog mobile-friendly

Step 8: Tracking Your Website Traffic 

Analyzing your website traffic is another important aspect of blogging. 

With the right data, you get valuable insights into your audience that you can use to improve the customer experience, boost sales, and more.

Now, you must be wondering how to check website traffic.

Well, start using Google Search Console and Google Analytics from day one.

Both tools are from Google and are completely free to use.

Google Search Console shows a detailed overview of the organic traffic of your website. 

You will get to know about your site performance including total impressions, total clicks, and Click Through Rate (CTR).

In addition to that, it will help you with indexing your posts, rectifying coverage issues, submitting sitemaps, Core Web Vitals, etc.   

In a nutshell, GSC helps increase your site visibility in Google search results.

This is what Google Search Console looks like;

bloggingbeats google search console data
  • Save

Google Analytics (GA) is a more advanced tool that performs an in-depth analysis of your website traffic and helps you with several other aspects such as:

  • Understanding user behavior
  • In-built data reports 
  • Improving online ads 
  • Conversion tracking 
  • User segmentation
  • Understanding Target Group
  • eCommerce performance analysis

All in all, this is the best tool to optimize your business website and take your entire marketing strategy to the next level.

This is what Google Analytics looks like;

bloggingbeats google analytics data
  • Save

Now, let’s move to the money-making aspects of a food blog.   


Incredible Ways to Make Money From a Food Blog in 2024

Here are several ways you can take advantage of to make profits from your food blog.

1. Selling Your Own Cookbook

Publishing your cookbook (ebook or even hard copy) is one of the best ways to monetize your food blog. 

But before publishing a book, make sure you have a loyal audience base that would be interested in buying your book.

2. Joining Advertising Network

Ads can be another great source of income.

For that, you can join any advertising network like Google AdSense or any AdSense alternatives that will show relevant ads to your audience, and in exchange, you will get paid based on the number of views and clicks on those ads.

3. Selling Ad Space

You can also find advertisers in your niche and generate upfront revenue by placing their ads on your blog. 

4. Affiliate Marketing

This is an ideal solution to make money blogging

Simply find some suitable products to promote and earn huge passive income for each referral.

Have a brief glance at our most recent affiliate earnings, a substantial $3500, all attributed to a single affiliate network.

bloggingbeats impact earnings
  • Save

It’s quite an accomplishment, isn’t it?

Some of the best affiliate programs for food bloggers in 2024.

  • Sunfood
  • Home Chef
  • Learn Cake Decorating Online
  • Universal Yums
  • Art of Tea

5. Membership Program

In addition to producing free content, you can also sell premium content at a specific price with the help of a membership plugin like MemberPress.

6. Sponsored Content

You can work with brands to increase their exposure via your blog posts, Instagram Videos, Instagram Stories, and so on at a reasonable amount of money.

7. Donations

Last but not the least, you can add a donation button on your website so that your readers can donate easily if they feel like doing so.


FAQs About Starting a Food Blog 

Have a quick look at the most frequently asked questions on how to start a food blog and make money.

Is food blogging profitable?

Indeed food blogging can make you thousands of dollars every month. For doing so,  you will have to create a content plan that drives massive traffic and after that, you can reap the benefits of your food blog in various ways. 

What do you need for a food blog?

To start any niche blog, you primarily need a domain name and web hosting.  

How to start a food blog?

Start by choosing your food blog niche, finalize your domain name, choose a web hosting provider, install WordPress, select a theme, publish & promote your content plan, and finally monetize your food blog.

How do food bloggers make money?

To monetize your food blog, you can sign up with any ad network like Google AdSense, sell your own recipe book, and try affiliate marketing.  

Where do food bloggers get their recipes?

You can get inspiration for your recipes from friends & family, restaurants, magazines, seasonal produce, and other blogs.

List some food blog examples for inspiration.

Pinch of Yum, Sailu’s Food, IAmAFoodBlog.com, Cookie And Kate, and AllRecipes.com are some of the best food blogs you should follow in 2024.


Also Read:

Final Thoughts on Starting a Food Blog 

Starting a food blog can be one of the most rewarding things you’ll do in your life.

At the same time, it is one of the most challenging jobs, especially when you have never professionally done anything like this before.

That’s why I’ve compiled all the essential steps and proven tips for starting your own successful food blog without much effort.

This can help anyone who’s considering starting a food blog.

So, follow the steps I’ve mentioned above and launch your food blog today.

Did you like this post? Have more questions about food blogs? Let us know in the comments!

A seasoned blogger with over four years of experience, has crafted a successful online journey and generated an impressive revenue surpassing $50,000. His expertise lies in creating engaging content and navigating the digital landscape, making him a go-to source for those seeking insights into the world of profitable blogging.

Leave a Comment

0 Shares
Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap