Short answer: no, you do not need to pay anyone to "submit" your website to search engines. Google and Bing find new pages mainly by following links from pages they already know. If any indexed website links to yours, it will be found.
That said, there are free steps that help search engines find and understand your site faster, especially when it is new.
Set up Google Search Console
Google Search Console is free. Once you verify your website you can:
- submit your XML sitemap so Google knows every page you want indexed
- use the URL Inspection tool to request indexing of a new or updated page
- see which searches you appear for, and any errors stopping pages being indexed
Set up Bing Webmaster Tools
Bing powers Bing search, parts of Microsoft Copilot and several other search engines. Bing Webmaster Tools can import your settings directly from Google Search Console in a couple of clicks.
Have an XML sitemap
WordPress creates one automatically at /wp-sitemap.xml, and most SEO plugins create their own. Make sure it only lists pages you actually want in Google, and reference it in your robots.txt file.
Get a few genuine links
A link from your Google Business Profile, a trade directory or a supplier gets a new site discovered quickly, and helps it rank. See our guide to safe link building.
What to avoid
Ignore offers to "submit your site to 500 search engines". Most of those search engines barely exist, and the links they create are worthless or harmful.