Since the beginning of CMS “Open Source” software applications, the tides have turned on how a website development project is approached. Before Open Source code that would handle the back-end approach to a website, users had to rely on developers and web masters to build and add content for their site. This sometimes required full time staff to work on the site around the clock. Open Source applications created a library of code that would handle all of a website editing needs by using a simple tool called a “What You See Is What Your Get”, or WYSIWYG editor. It would save content edited into a database on the server which would in turn be “called for” by the website when a page is opened. This content was not hard coded into a file like it was previous to CMS functionality.
o when we talk about using Joomla!, Drupal and WordPress, we must approach these 3 applications as tools that all basically do the same thing. Manage Content! They each have a database that stores the content needed for display. The difference is only in what we don’t really see as an “end-user”.
The difference is only in ease of use and potential scalability. This means your choice as to what you use should only be based on what you are able to handle. Some folks stay with WordPress because it is known to be simple to install and customize directly from the “Dashboard” or Control Panel. Joomla! and Drupal on the other-hand needs a little more knowledge with regards to using the Control Panel (built into your WebNet Hosting account) to customize and install the product itself.
Someone with experience in web development would probably agree that the power of Joomla! is far superior to WordPress with regards to what can be accomplished in the end.
Here are a few things to consider before choosing your CMS:
- How much knowledge do you have with regards to development?
- How much expansion do you expect to have to do?
- How much custom coding do you expect to perform?
- What “theme” or “look n feel” is desired, and is it available?
- How many different levels of user groups do you expect?
The most popular CMS’s since the time of their launch have been WordPress, Joomla! And Drupal. How have these three CMS’s performed over the years and what is their popularity is something that we will have a look in this article. The war WordPress vs Joomla vs Drupal is still on and we are here to find out which CMS tops the list of being the most popular.
WordPress vs Joomla vs Drupal – Google Trends
Based on Google Insight, here is how the three popular CMS compare to each other on popularity and future forecast. WordPress is the clear winner here, It has been one of the favorite CMS of Developers, Designers, Business Owners from its start and it still continues to be so.
WordPress vs Joomla vs Drupal – Global Monthly Search
Diving more into comparing WordPress vs Joomla Vs Drupal, we look at how many people search for these CMS’s online. Again, WordPress beats both Joomla! and Drupal by taking the first place with almost 30million searches globally.
I came across this very interesting inforgraphic by Devious Media while trying to find more about comparing these cms’s. I would be more than happy to share this infographic with you.
So Which CMS to Choose?
Let’s look at the 3 CMS Applications and discuss what each one seems to be better for. If you are a beginner and this is your first website project on your own, the consensus is that WordPress is the way for you to go. If you have some experience with CMS or web development, then you would find Joomla! has the ability to do more of what you want with greater flow. Drupal falls slightly outside both of these categories because it is not easy to install or use if you are a beginner and requires more programming knowledge than Joomla! or WordPress.
Why Choose WordPress: WordPress is ideal for Blog Sites. WordPress was first CMS designed specifically for blogging. It has a simple page layout unless customized. The 3 basic parts of the page are the Header, The Footer and the Main Body where the Blog would go. It has a built in Navigational System that automatically generates new links as new pages are created. So if you are a writer wanting to share your stories, WordPress on a WebNet Hosting account is for you.
Why Choose Joomla!: So you have a business and you want to set up an online storefront. Joomla! might be the best application to serve your needs. It runs many components that are created independent from the CMS application, thus they are more capable of handling specific tasks. The installation is a bit more challenging than WordPress perhaps, but the final results will not let you down. You can easily scale your site with a Joomla! engine which can run many different components at the same time on the same page of your site.
Why Choose Drupal: Choosing between Drupal and Joomla! can be a difficult decision for businesses that need a large scale site. Both are easily scalable with some knowledge and a clear plan. These would work well within a company where you have a competent staff person to take chargeof the site and its maintenance.
Joomla! and Drupal functionality allows for many more Components/Plug Ins to be installed on the site. These applications are often built for specific tasks and can be free or purchased from third-party companies. Many of them are fully supported and can be maintained by the company that they were acquired from. This can be handy if your site needs specific hi-end and sensitive content. There are literally thousands and thousands of different add-ons for all of the CMS’s, but I have noticed a much bigger community with Joomla!. Joomla! is also internationally recognized as being the most secure in its class.
There are many other metrics apart from these that you can use to compare these CMS’s against each other. Each of them have many pro’s and cons and some people decide to choose one over the other based on cost, flexibility, effectiveness of use, availabilty of themes, modules, plugins and various other reason.However, whichever CMS you decide to use for your project here is how they rank on popularity
Winner – WordPress
2nd Position: Joomla!
3rd Position: Drupal
The Infographic and other information provided in these illustrations below reflect a summary not necessarily true to your needs or ability. It is only for informational value and should be treated as such. For example Joomla! is now running Version 3.0 beta which is several builds since the versions listed in these illustrations. Although I would tend to agree that WordPress is a more widely used platform, it might not be the one for you. Please enjoy the following illustrations as general information for consideration only.
