How to make a simple web page in HTML and put it online

Basic HTML website code (save as index.html)

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>My First Web Page</title>
  <style>
    body {
      font-family: sans-serif;
      max-width: 600px;
      margin: 40px auto;
      padding: 0 16px;
      line-height: 1.6;
    }
    img {
      max-width: 100%;
      height: auto;
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Hello, world</h1>
  <p>This is my first web page made with plain HTML.</p>
  <img src="photo.jpg" alt="A short description of the photo for screen readers">
  <p><a href="https://example.com">Visit my favorite link</a></p>
</body>
</html>

What does each line of the starter code do?

Every HTML page uses tags inside angle brackets to tell the browser what each piece of content is. The head section holds page settings, while the body section holds everything visitors see on the screen.

If you prefer starting from a pre-built layout instead of writing tags from scratch, you can find one in our free HTML templates guide and edit the text.

• <!DOCTYPE html> tells the browser this file uses standard HTML.
• <html lang="en"> wraps the whole page and sets the language to English.
• <meta charset="utf-8"> lets the page display standard characters and symbols properly.
• <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> makes the page fit phone screens.
• <title> sets the text shown on the browser tab.
• <h1> and <p> create the main heading and a normal text paragraph.
• <img> shows a picture and needs alt text that describes the image for screen readers.
• <a href="..."> creates a clickable link to another address.

How do I include images, CSS, or extra pages?

If your page is just text and inline styles, a single file is all you need; read more about how to host a single HTML page. When you add a local picture like photo.jpg, a standalone image file is not accepted by itself on ship.page. Put index.html and photo.jpg together inside one folder, then drag the folder onto the uploader (or compress it into a .zip file).

File paths are case-sensitive, so if your tag says photo.jpg, a file named Photo.JPG will not load. Keep a folder you drop directly to about 7 MB and 100 files, or zip it first to upload up to 25 MB (100 MB unpacked) on the free plan.

To add a second page, save it as about.html in the same folder and link to it as about.html. The short address /about only works if you put an index.html file inside a subfolder named about.

Tip: If you only have code on your clipboard, pasting HTML into ship.page publishes it without saving a file.

How long does my web page stay online?

When you turn HTML code into a website without signing in, your link stays live for 30 days. If you sign in with Google or an email link, you can claim the upload and keep it online for 90 days for free.

Free pages cannot be updated in place, so uploading a fixed version gives you a new URL. They also show a small "Hosted on ship.page" badge that visitors can close. This setup works well when you need a quick school project website or a fast draft to show a friend.

If you want your link to stay up forever and keep the same URL when you edit the code, Pro is $4 a month (cancel anytime, no yearly plan). Pro removes the badge, adds optional password protection, and raises the ZIP limit to 100 MB with up to 10,000 files. See full details on our pricing page, or read the broader guide on how to publish a website.