Although WordPress runs over 43% of the sites accessible online, it’s far from the only open-source CMS in the market. There are many other well-known software choices, such as Joomla and Drupal.
Each of them has several things they share and numerous important distinctions. Each of them has its website builders with cons and pros.
In this post in this article, we’ll look at the comparison between WordPress with Joomla and Drupal to discover the right alternative for you.
NOTE: We are comparing WordPress.org as opposed to WordPress.com. WordPress.com hosting provider. We have a guide to what is the difference between WordPress.org as well as WordPress.com.
What’s Common in WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal
The three web’s most well-known CMS share the technology used, their philosophy, and the community.
- WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal are free, open-source software licensed under GPL.
- The three are developed primarily in PHP.
- All of them support MySQL as their management of databases. WordPress is the only one that supports MySQL; however, Joomla and Drupal are compatible with other database management systems.
- All three use themes and templates for the visual appearance of sites and plugins, modules and extensions that extend the functionality of functions.
- In the sense of open source software, they’re all communities-driven initiatives.
There are plenty of resemblances; they’re very different in several aspects.
They differ on which features to be added within the software core, how they handle templates and modules, and what to do to handle security issues and security.
Read more: WooCommerce Vs. Magento: Which is The Best eCommerce Plateform?.
It can greatly affect users and what they do with their websites.
With that in mind, let’s examine how WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal are compared to one another and help you pick the most suitable website-building platform to build your website for your company.
Ease of Use and Beginner Friendliness
The majority of people who create websites aren’t web developers designer, programmers, or designers. They’re ordinary people that just want to create an online presence. The ease of use is a major factor for most web users.
WordPress
WordPress has a renowned 5-minute installation. Most WordPress hosting companies also provide the ability to install one-click WordPress. It makes it quite simple for a novice WordPress user to create a WordPress site or blog within minutes, not days.
The user experience for post-install users of WordPress is far superior to Joomla and Drupal. It offers a straightforward, clear user interface with menus that allow you to make pages and articles or begin customizing the layout and themes.
Joomla
Joomla installation might not appear the same as WordPress. However, Joomla installation follows identical procedures. Additionally, several web hosting services offer single-click install options for Joomla and Joomla.
Once the site is installed, users are greeted with the control panel, which is more complicated than WordPress. There are a lot of choices to select and personalize your website.
Joomla supporters would argue that it’s because Joomla is much better than WordPress; however, we do not believe this to be accurate.
Drupal
Drupal’s setup is equivalent to that of Joomla as well as WordPress. Download and install the file and then run the script to install it.
Drupal offers distributions as well. They come in pre-packaged Drupal bundles that include options and configurations that allow you to build particular types of websites.
The process of installing the site for novices can be a little confusing. It can be difficult for users to determine how to alter things on their website. Drupal simplifies how to insert content; however, changing the appearance as well as adding elements that are not content-related isn’t as easy.
Winner: WordPress
Themes and Addons
Each of these three highly-rated CMS includes themes as well as modules/plugins that are ways to improve the capabilities and look of the program.
Themes determine the look of your site and how it appears to visitors. Modules or plugins work as applications to your CMS.
Let’s examine how the three main CMS software works in this area.
WordPress
WordPress lets users change their sites’ appearance through themes. WordPress includes a variety of standard themes that come that are pre-installed.
You can access your account at any time. You can click the add new option from the appearance page and install the free WordPress theme
Beyond free themes, you can get many premium WordPress themes developed through third-party theme retailers like StudioPress, Astra Theme, Elegant Themes, and many others. The themes are premium and include the option of premium support.
The true power of WordPress lies in its plugins. Over 59,000 WordPress plugins are free from the WordPress plugin directory. WordPress plugin directory. Purchasing premium WordPress plugins with paid-for support from the plugin developers is possible.
Joomla
Like WordPress, Joomla also comes with extensions and templates. The extensions are fantastic and can accomplish anything, including creating an eCommerce store and managing emails.
But, the number of templates and extensions isn’t as extensive as WordPress. It can make selecting the ideal template and the right extensions challenging.
By default, Joomla is not equipped with the ability to allow users to search for and install extensions or templates directly from the admin area. Installing an extension that lets you add the “install from web” feature to extensions is possible. However, for templates, users must manually look up templates and add them to their URLs.
Drupal
Drupal also has this issue in terms of the available themes as well as modules. The users will need to quit the site and search for the theme and module they wish to include; after that, they will find the zip file’s URL. Then, they must enter this URL into the Modules or Themes page to add them.
There are modules for almost anything, and more are being added often. But, overall, the number of plugins is not as high as compared with WordPress.
Winner: WordPress.
Support Options
Help and other support services are crucial for novice users. You will encounter issues when you try new programs. It’s okay, provided you receive assistance.
WordPress
WordPress has a robust user community. WordPress answers are on support forums, documents and handbooks, codex, Slack channels, Stack Exchange, WPBeginner Engage Facebook group, and almost every online forum regarding the web and its design.
There are websites like WordPress.org, which has numerous tutorials, video tutorials as well as articles geared toward beginner WordPress users. There are various ways to solicit support for free WordPress assistance and receive the help you need.
In addition to the support for free choices, there are other ways to receive paid assistance for WordPress.
Platforms like Codeable, UpWork and Fiverr are just a few sites where you can find WordPress experts to assist you. Thanks to the enormous popularity of WordPress, the search for WordPress developers is simple and inexpensive for small businesses and individuals.
Joomla
Like WordPress, Joomla has a vast and very supportive community. The Joomla website has a wealth of documentation. The Joomla website is an excellent resource for those new to the site. Users can join mailing lists, forums, and groups for additional interactive support.
In addition to community support, third-party sources paid training and development agencies that may help.
In contrast to WordPress, the cost of expert support is not easy with Joomla. Finding a professional developer to assist with Joomla design help, troubleshooting, or support is more expensive than WordPress.
Drupal
Drupal has an extremely active user and fan base. There are all the options for community support on Drupal, like WordPress and Joomla. The comprehensive documentation supports forums, user groups, mailing lists, and irc chatrooms. These are all great places to receive assistance and advice.
Drupal attempts to connect its users to companies and developers providing expert Drupal services. These are usually available on Drupal Marketplace.
However, Drupal developers like Joomla are very costly when compared with WordPress.
Winner: WordPress
Localization & Multilingual Support
The majority of sites that are created every day are not English-speaking or multilingual websites. The likelihood is that many beginners will seek out the CMS, which can work with multi-languages or various locales and languages.
WordPress
WordPress excels in providing a solid platform for building a multilingual website. WordPress does not offer support for multi languages straight out of the box. However, great plugins allow the user to build a multilingual WordPress website.
WordPress is accessible in 57 different languages. You can add languages simply by clicking on the WordPress administration page.
Many of the most well-known themes and plugins are offered in various languages. The developers of plugins and themes are looking for help translating their products into different languages.
These efforts make WordPress the ideal platform for creating a multi-lingual or non-English site.
Joomla
Joomla has an out-of-the-box capability to run a multilingual website without the need to install any extensions. Go to the language manager, choose an appropriate language for your website, and then begin developing multilingual content.
Translators can also be installed for the admin interface in various languages. They can also be added from the admin section.
Drupal
Drupal is built with support for non-English and multilingual websites. It is necessary to activate localization and content translation options. Once done, you can include admin and site interface languages using the Drupal configuration section.
Winner: Tie – All three support multilingual websites, and they are accessible in various languages.
Security
Security is important when deciding on the right CMS to host your website. Nearly every site online is susceptible to security risks.
WordPress
As the most well-known CMS worldwide, WordPress-based websites are frequently at the mercy of hackers. But WordPress is built on highly secure code and can respond immediately to vulnerabilities in security.
WordPress also has an auto-update feature that permits WordPress websites to update automatically whenever there’s a new security patch.
Automatic backups, two-factor authentication, and various WordPress security tips can secure WordPress websites.
Additionally, there are built-in mechanisms to display changes to WordPress themes and plugins. It allows plugin and theme designers to respond quickly to vulnerabilities in security.
Joomla
Joomla is very much like WordPress in terms of security. They are quick to react to security vulnerabilities and quickly fix them. Maintaining the website and installing the latest updates remains entirely up to the users.
There are extensions to protect your Joomla website. It is also possible to increase your Joomla website’s security by adhering to similar best practices to WordPress.
Drupal
Drupal is very careful in its approach regarding security. It publishes security flaws on its site when they’re discovered and fixed. There’s a belief that Drupal is safer because it doesn’t have to worry about Drupal sites getting hacked more often. However, this might be because it’s less widely used than Joomla and WordPress.
The winner is Tie – All three comply with security guidelines.
Conclusion:
Drupal, Joomla, and WordPress are excellent content management systems. Drupal, as well as Joomla, are loaded with additional features that are built-in to WordPress.
But WordPress beats them with its user-friendliness and its huge community of users with plugins, themes, and other features. Most non-developers will appreciate being able to create on WordPress instead of Joomla or Drupal.
With more than 59,000 WordPress plugins, you’ll be able to include almost every function or create any kind of site that you would like (without having to write codes).
Overall Winner: WordPress
How to Get Started With Your Favorite CMS
Whichever you pick, WordPress, Joomla, or Drupal, you’ll need a domain name and hosting for your website.
The good news is that all three of the top CMS softwares have identical requirements, which is why the top web hosting providers have them in their support.
We would recommend either Bluehost or SiteGround. They’re both of the top hosting providers around the globe and specialize in hosting WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal websites.
This article should help you compare WordPress against Joomla and Drupal to determine the ideal CMS for your website.
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