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Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice.
I want to address Wordpress.org because it's very popular. It's a great platform that gives you freedom to create pretty much any type of site that you'd like, and the great thing is that you'd own your site. It's a free, self-hosted content management system (CMS) that allows you to have full control over your site's functions.
According to W3Techs.com, Wordpress(.org) powers more than 40% of ALL websites on the internet! That's nearly half of all websites.
It’s NOT to be confused with Wordpress(.COM), which is a proprietary web builder and host. Even though the Wordpress.org software is free, you’ll need to pay for web hosting. Having a host lets people see your site on the internet.
Although Wordpress.org is user-friendly, there’s a learning curve (as with many new platform!) There is a HUUUGE community of users, so you can find a LOT of resources.
Wordpress is open-source, which means that anyone can view its code, including hackers; this makes it easier for attackers to target Wordpress sites, since it’s the most popular CMS in the world. It’d be your responsibility to take care of your website's security and we’ll discuss this later.
(Being open-source is also good because that means many tech-savvy can identify issues and flaws, and as a community people work together to improve it. That's one cool thing about Wordpress! As opposed to closed-source platforms, you don't know what's going on with its code because it's proprietary .. there may or may not be bugs, issues, etc. Being open or closed source does not inherently mean good or bad, it's just how it's structured.)
Many bloggers choose to go with Wordpress.org because it allows them to have FULL ownership of their site. That means they'd own the code. Many people have Wordpress as their business and main source of income. Example: Let’s say that you decide to host your site on SiteGround, and for some reason you want to switch to a different host. You'd just backup your site on UpdraftPlus, for example, and many hosts will have a migration team that helps you. However, if you were to build your site on a proprietary site like Wix, Webflow, Squarespace, etc. ... even if you’re paying for the domain and own your content, Wix owns the platform therefore the code. You would be bound by Wix’s terms and conditions. I'm not sure how you'd migrate from it but I don't believe that it'd be simple.
🌻 Tip: Having a Wordpress.org site is like having your own place, whereas with a proprietary host, you're paying to use their platform; so, you're pretty much renting. With Wordpress, it's your site, you're just paying for a host that you like. Both options are fine, it just depends on your needs!
🌸 Here’s an overview of what you'd do:
1.) Sign up for a free Wordpress.org site
2.) Choose a host
3.) Install Wordpress on your host
🌻 Tip: If you're not looking to make a blog but need something for your business (for example, you're a professional realtor, own a shop or small restaurant), Wix is one platform with a beginner-friendly website builder where you can create professional websites without having to worry about code or maintenance.
Wordpress.org is *very* powerful and capable - you can build pretty much ANY type of site with it, and it has few limitations, but it's not without flaws. Some people find it too dependent on plug-ins, which can slow down the site (bloat). Also, not everyone needs all the extra features.
Let's talk next about my favorite non-Wordpress.org open-source platform!
Go to next --> Wordpress Alternative