The archive · Developer & Business Tools · Product decision · 2019-2026
1MB free-hosting bet: launched 2019 to 744 HN points, still live in 2026
Solo-made hosting platform launched in an April 2019 Show HN (744 points) still runs in 2026, now with a cloud editor and AI assistant.
1MB
What the business is
1MB is a website-hosting and blogging platform, launched as free static-site hosting with a small attached database, that lets people build and publish from a browser.
How it started
A maker named Dalton launched 1MB in 2019 as free, easy static website hosting with a database, posting a Show HN on 2019-04-28 that drew 744 points and 239 comments; a reviewer quoted on the site says they first heard of it on Reddit and joined midway through 2019.
What happened
Trustpilot reviews dated May 2019 describe users switching from GoDaddy, practicing JavaScript on the platform and watching Dalton keep shipping features. A February 2023 review reports the service "has been up and running smoothly ever since". By the 2026 version of the site, 1MB advertises a fuller platform: cloud code editor, blog publishing, embedded forms with a submission inbox, cloud-synced sessions and an AI pair-programming assistant named Emby, while still leading with "the easy way to host your website or blog".
How it ended up
Still live as of 2026-09-05: 1MB advertises a hosting and blogging platform with an AI assistant and no sign of shutdown, backed by a public Trustpilot trail running from May 2019 into 2023; it discloses no funding, revenue or user counts.
Background
1MB is a website-hosting and blogging platform that lets people build, edit and publish sites from a browser. It launched in 2019 as free static-site hosting with a small attached database, and a Show HN post on 2019-04-28 drew 744 points and 239 comments.
The bet was that casual makers would publish tiny sites and databases if hosting were free, instant and browser-based, and that word of mouth from that simplicity could grow into a real business without sales teams or ads. Reviews on the platform's homepage describe users joining after hearing about it on Reddit and switching from GoDaddy.
The service kept operating while most micro-hosts faded. Trustpilot reviews dated May 2019 praise its speed and interface and credit the maker Dalton with constant feature work, and a February 2023 reviewer who joined in mid-2019 reports it has run smoothly ever since.
As of 2026-09-05 1MB is still live and has expanded from a tiny static host into a fuller platform with a cloud code editor, blogging tools, form submissions and an AI pair-programming assistant called Emby, without disclosing funding, revenue or user numbers.
What has to be true
- The free zero-config tier matched real pain: people who wanted a small site or database to exist had no easy option, so the product spread through Reddit and Hacker News instead of paid marketing.
- The maker kept shipping for years and reviewers noticed, with May 2019 and February 2023 Trustpilot posts both crediting Dalton's steady feature work, the thing small platforms live or die on.
- Survival itself built trust: after more than six years with a public review trail, late adopters stop worrying that a tiny host will vanish, which is the biggest risk for micro-hosting.
- The wedge expanded instead of stalling: the hosting relationship became the base for blogging tools, a cloud editor and an AI assistant, turning a simple utility into a platform.
What can be applied
A tiny, free, no-config product can win a durable niche by word of mouth, and a solo maker who keeps shipping quietly outlives bigger hosts chasing complex customers.
Aftermath
As of 2026-09-05, 1MB is live and positions itself as a website-hosting and blogging platform with cloud-based editing, form handling and an AI assistant named Emby. It publishes no funding, revenue or user figures; its public evidence is the 2019-04-28 Show HN thread and a Trustpilot trail that runs from May 2019, including reviewers who moved from GoDaddy, to a February 2023 review reporting smooth operation since mid-2019. Its open question is whether a word-of-mouth base built on a free tier converts into durable paid use as AI-generated sites change what people need from hosting.
Sources
- Show HN: 1MB - Free and easy static website hosting and database
- 1MB review: Dalton is incredible with adding new features
- 1MB review: This place has been up and running smoothly ever since
spotted an error? The archive wants to know.
Your turn
You just read one. Describe what you are building, and see who is betting on the same thing.
Free account · 3 free questions · no card