How to Build Your First Website in 2026 (Step by Step)
By Nexray Team · March 29, 2026
You don't need years of experience to build a website. You don't need to pay for a course. You need HTML, a text editor, and 2 hours. By the end of this guide, your site will be live on the internet — for free.
Step 1 — Install VS Code
VS Code is the editor ~90% of web developers use. It's free and made by Microsoft. Download it from code.visualstudio.com. Install it like any normal program.
Once installed, open it and press Ctrl+Shift+P → type "color theme" to pick a theme you like.
Step 2 — Write Your First HTML
Create a new folder called my-site. Open VS Code → File → Open Folder → select that folder. Create a new file called index.html and paste this:
<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8" /> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" /> <title>My First Website</title> </head> <body> <h1>Hello, World!</h1> <p>My first website is live.</p> <a href="https://nexray.in">Learn more at Nexray</a> </body> </html>
Now open the file in your browser (just drag index.html into Chrome). You'll see your first website!
Step 3 — Deploy It Free with Vercel
Now let's put it on the internet — free, no credit card.
Create a GitHub repository
Go to github.com/new, create a public repo called my-site. Upload your index.html file.
Connect to Vercel
Go to vercel.com → Sign up with GitHub → "New Project" → Select your repo → Deploy.
Your site is live!
Vercel gives you a URL like my-site-abc123.vercel.app. Share it with anyone in the world. You can also connect a custom domain later.
What's Next?
You have a live website. Now it's time to make it look good. Stage 2 covers CSS — how to add colors, fonts, layouts, and animations that make your site look professional.