ZIP hosting is a direct way to publish a website that already works on your computer. Instead of configuring a server or connecting a build pipeline, you package the files your browser needs into one ZIP file and upload it.
The important distinction is that you upload the finished website folder. For a plain website that usually means index.html, CSS, JavaScript, images, fonts, and any other assets. If the site was made with a tool such as Vite, Hugo, or Eleventy, run its build command first and zip the output folder such as dist/ or public/.
Prepare the right ZIP structure
Open the ZIP before uploading it. At the top level, you should see the entry file immediately:
website.zip
├── index.html
├── assets/
├── styles.css
└── images/
A common mistake is zipping the parent folder. That produces website.zip → website/index.html. The host then cannot find the homepage at /index.html. Select the contents of the folder before compressing them instead.
Publish, then test the live URL
- Create a ZIP website deployment in ZipHost and upload the archive.
- Open the hosted URL after publishing.
- Check the home page, one deeper page, images, and browser console errors.
- Connect a custom domain once the preview is correct.
Use relative asset paths such as assets/logo.svg or ./assets/logo.svg. Paths beginning with a local drive name or file:/// work only on your computer. ZIP hosting does not change the website; it makes the files in your archive available at a public URL.