WordPress or Drupal? Which of the two content management systems (CMS) should you choose? You can’t say that one is better than the other. The question should rather be: what do I need the CMS for and what requirements do I have for the system?

Let’s take a closer look at both systems:

Both content management systems are “open source software”; so it’s free. 😉 Both systems require PHP and a MySQL database and can therefore run on most web hosting packages.

WordPress

With 140 million downloads, WordPress is currently the most widely used CMS. Installation is straightforward and operation is easy to handle even for users with little technical background. Over 4,000 free “themes” and more than 45,000 plugins are available to WordPress users to adapt the website to their own ideas and wishes. A “WYSIWYG editor” is also preinstalled, which is only the case with Drupal from version 8 onwards. From the original “BLOG” system, it has developed over time into the world’s most popular CMS. Unfortunately, due to its popularity, WordPress is increasingly becoming a target for hackers and security updates should therefore be carried out regularly.

WordPress looks great immediately after installation and is intuitive to use. This is an advantage for anyone who wants to quickly create their own website and the functionality offered meets their requirements. Example: portfolio website, business website, blog. There are plenty of free and paid themes to make the website look good even without design and programming knowledge. The basic SEO settings for WordPress are very good and can be further refined with extensions such as Yoast-SEO. Drupal requires several extensions to achieve the same effect.

Drupal

With far fewer downloads, around 15 million, Drupal is less commonly used, but is still a widely used system, especially for organizational, corporate and government websites. The Drupal user interface is more complex and the learning curve for users and administrators is steeper than WordPress. However, the system is very flexible and expandable. With some training, an administrator can create complex websites without having to deal with much PHP code. With this CMS, you can access over 2,000 free design templates and more than 35,000 modules. Compared to WordPress, Drupal is much more secure. Drupal sites are difficult to hack if configured correctly.

Drupal may be more powerful than WordPress and is therefore often used for larger and more complex projects. But even simple sites can be implemented well with Drupal. This can be particularly interesting if the website is to grow in the future. Installation does not take much longer than WordPress. Drupal relies on the reusability of code, so it is less common for there to be multiple modules for the same problem solution. The standard installation of Drupal is intentionally kept very narrow and is then intended to be expanded with modules according to the respective needs. This may seem like a disadvantage at first glance, but it is precisely this minimalism that makes the system so flexible. It can therefore be tailored and adapted to the needs as desired.

Conclusion: WordPress or Drupal

Both systems have their advantages and disadvantages, just like a coin has its two sides. For beginners, however, WordPress is certainly the better choice, as you can achieve good results quickly and with little stress. WordPress is probably the CMS of choice, especially for smaller sites and blogs. However, if you want to be more flexible in the structure, function and layout of your website, the all-rounder Drupal is better served. However, you should expect to spend more time and energy getting used to it. WordPress and Drupal both have a large community that is on hand to help with problems. If you have any questions about the CMS, this is usually the first point of contact.

Do you need help with your WordPress or Drupal project? We are happy to help: Kleinermann Web Design