Nearly half of the Web is built on WordPress – If you just want the answer: WordPress is the most used, popular and relevant CMS in 2023. Don’t scroll no more.
WordPress increase market share over the years
WordPress stands out as the world’s most dominant Content Management System (CMS), powering 43.2% of all websites globally. It has an even more impressive share of 63.1% among websites built using identifiable CMS platforms.
Since its inception in 2003, WordPress has evolved from a simple blogging tool to a comprehensive CMS used by everyone from small bloggers to large corporations. Its open-source nature offers a high level of customization, and its extensive online knowledge base makes it accessible even for beginners.
Although its market share growth has recently stagnated, its adaptability and the introduction of popular plugins like WooCommerce ensure its continued relevance in the digital landscape.
Source https://www.manaferra.com
Maneferra.com report is very clear: “This number has grown by more than 10% over the years. In 2010, WordPress was known to be used by 51% of the websites, which is still over half. We can also see that back in 2016, usage had a significant drop, during which Joomla was their biggest competitor with a 3.3% market share.”
Why WordPress beats all the other platforms: Wix, Squarespace, Joomla, Drupal, they are all really not good choices for building your online platforms.
We have been building websites using WordPress since 2012 for a wide range of customers worldwide. WordPress has been a key growth tool, providing a scalable, flexible and resilient, low-cost of maintenance software that can do wonders from marketing websites to custom APIs using the WordPress REST API and extending its functionality using the WordPress APIs.
Let’s check the trends of use and interest first, info sourced from Google Trends site:
CMS in Google Trends – Covering 2004 to present
- Joomla had high interest around 2008 but has seen a decline since then, with occasional spikes.
- WordPress has consistently been a leading platform in terms of interest, peaking around 2013-2014 and maintaining a high level of interest since then.
- Squarespace and Wix.com seem to have a rising trend in recent years, with Wix.com surpassing Squarespace around 2016-2017.
- Drupal experienced a significant peak in interest around 2011-2012 but has seen a decline since then, maintaining a steady interest level in the recent years.
What about the last 12 months
22 Oct. 2023
- Joomla experienced a significant spike in interest around October 23, 2022.
- WordPress seems to have maintained a consistent level of interest over the past year, higher than the other platforms.
- The interest in Squarespace, Wix.com, and Drupal has remained relatively steady and lower than WordPress but higher than Joomla (excluding Joomla’s spike).
Why WordPress is a Solid Solution and Beats All the Other CMS and site-builders.
- Maturity and Ecosystem: WordPress has been around since 2003, making it one of the most established and matured CMS platforms. Over the years, it has grown into a versatile tool suitable for all types of websites, from blogs to e-commerce sites. The expansive ecosystem, comprising themes, plugins, and a global community, provides users with limitless possibilities.
- User-Friendly Interface: One of WordPress’s most notable features is its intuitive user interface. Even without any technical knowledge, users can quickly get the hang of the platform, making it accessible to a broad audience.
- Open-Source Nature: Being open-source means that WordPress is freely available for anyone to download, modify, and use. This open nature has resulted in a vast community of developers, designers, and enthusiasts who constantly contribute to its improvement.
- SEO Benefits: Out of the box, WordPress offers better search engine optimization tools than many other platforms. With plugins like Yoast SEO, even those unfamiliar with SEO can optimize their sites.
2. Custom WordPress Development:
- Flexibility with Custom Themes and Plugins: Custom WordPress development means that instead of using pre-built themes or plugins, everything is tailored to specific requirements. This ensures that there’s no excess or redundant code, leading to faster and more streamlined websites.
- WordPress CMS as Backend: By leveraging WordPress as a headless CMS, developers can utilize its powerful backend while creating a custom frontend, often using modern frameworks. This decoupling allows for a more flexible and efficient frontend without compromising the strengths of the WordPress backend.
- Cost-Effective: Custom WordPress development often leads to reduced costs in the long run. With a tailored solution, there are fewer compatibility issues, which means less time and money spent on troubleshooting. Plus, the abundance of developers skilled in WordPress often results in competitive pricing.
3. Other Strong Values of the WordPress CMS:
- Community Support: With its vast global community, finding solutions or getting advice about any WordPress issue is relatively easy. The active community ensures that the platform is continually being improved and security vulnerabilities are promptly addressed.
- Scalability: WordPress is versatile enough to handle anything from a small personal blog to a high-traffic corporate website. With the right hosting and configuration, scaling up as your business grows is seamless.
- Integration Capabilities: WordPress can be integrated with virtually any service or platform. Whether it’s email marketing tools, payment gateways, or CRMs, there’s usually a plugin or API available to facilitate the integration.
- Regular Updates: WordPress is regularly updated to address security concerns, add new features, and improve performance. These updates ensure that the platform remains secure and at the forefront of web technology.
Avoid misleading comparison charts
Often, some websites do wrong comparisons, for example: it’s misleading to directly compare WordPress with Shopify, as they serve different primary functions. WordPress is a Content Management System (CMS) and only becomes similar to Shopify when equipped with specific plugins. If you encounter a report that compares the two as if they are the same, exercise caution and scrutinize the information presented for accuracy.
Wix an unresolved promise
Wix has a growing presence in the website builder market but is still considerably smaller than WordPress. Wix powers 0.55% of the top 1 million websites, a figure that pales in comparison to WordPress’s 29.33%. However, it has shown strong growth, particularly against other hosted website builders like Squarespace and GoDaddy, which are really non professional solutions to build a website and the most regretable choice anyone whan make to build a website for a company, before Wix, which is the second worse.
Users and experts have criticized Wix’s user interface, despite its attempts to be user-friendly through a drag-and-drop design approach. Developers who had been forced to use it, suffered and felt the pain too. Learning the platform its learning how to use a world on its own, it renders ugly results without a lot of learning and fine tuning which requires design knowledge, and they are hidden UI options all around, which can make a senior engineer quit his job, imagine a final user!
Here are some common criticisms.
Complexity:
While Wix aims to make website creation easy, the wealth of features and design elements can overwhelm users, making the interface feel cluttered and less intuitive.
Inconsistency:
Some users have noted that the interface can be inconsistent, with tools and settings not always appearing where you’d expect them to be.
Lack of Fine Control:
The drag-and-drop interface offers simplicity but can be imprecise. For users who are used to pixel-perfect layouts, this can be frustrating.
Learning Curve:
Though designed to be user-friendly, some people find that Wix has a steeper learning curve compared to other “simpler” website builders, mainly because of its plethora of features and customization options.
Limited Undo Functionality:
The platform’s undo functionality has been criticized for not being as robust as some users would like, making it difficult to revert changes.
Performance Issues:
Some users have reported that the Wix editor can be slow, particularly on older computers or with slower internet connections, which can make the design process cumbersome.
These criticisms suggest that while Wix attempts to offer a user-friendly experience, there are areas where it falls short, particularly for those who require more control and precision in their website design.