Since the nature of web development changes constantly, developers especially the novice ones would always be cynical about choosing one framework that helps them overcome the technical roadblocks when a site is in development. Fortunately, the advent content management systems have given web developers the ability to meet their website development needs with ease.
When it comes to choosing a content management system, WordPress is the first name that strikes our mind because of its simplicity and the ease it provides in setting up a website up and running. Irrespective of whether you’re creating a blog/blogging site or a corporate website etc., WordPress can be your best bet throughout your website development process.
However, other than WordPress we have other great content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and others that can also be used for website creation and maintenance. However, in this post we’ll be discussing about WordPress and Drupal content management systems – their similarities and dissimilarities, and which one of these platforms will best suit your needs of setting up a website.
Similarities Between WordPress and Drupal
When it comes to developing a site, most of the companies want to have one with polished features, excellent security, and visually appealing design; however packing everything in a single site seems too unrealistic. But that’s possible with help of CMS systems such as the likes of WordPress and Drupal. Both of these CMS’s have a lot of things in common such as:
- WordPress as well as Drupal are open-source platforms, and thus can be downloaded and used for free.
- When considering embarking on a CMS installation journey, you’ll most likely seek answers or help for completing the installation. Both WordPress and Drupal provides extensive community support to assist you.
- Both these CMS’s makes editing and posting content and/or posts become a breeze.
- Since the need for mobile optimized sites is increasing, we need to pay attention to creating responsive designs. Luckily, both WP and Drupal offers responsive themes using which you can set-up a website quickly. This eventually helps accelerate your development time.
Some of the Major Differences Between WordPress and Drupal
Every now and then, you’ll come across an ongoing debate about choosing the best CMS for website development. Let’s now explore some of the main difference between WP and Drupal platforms:
- WordPress is a better blogging platform compared to Drupal owing to the fact that it was initially created for building blogs and blogging sites. On the other hand, creating a blog page or post via Drupal can be a daunting proposition.
- If you’re a novice, then you’ll probably find Drupal far more complicated than WordPress. In fact, Drupal is suitable for technically inclined people.
- WordPress is more popular in comparison to the Drupal content management system. While WordPress is used by around 23.2% sites across the world, on the other hand, around 2% people uses Drupal.
WordPress vs. Drupal – The Battle to Choose the Best CMS
Let’s do a quick round up of 3 most important questions that will help you understand which CMS will best suit your project needs:
Which One is Easier to Use?
In reality, Drupal is not difficult to use compared to WordPress. But, since Drupal has a steep learning curve it will require you to spend more time in learning in how it can be used. Besides, since Drupal is technically more advanced than WordPress, it is used by experienced developers often more than the novice developers.
Thanks to the simple to use and intuitive interface, WordPress can be used by beginners and non tech-savvy guys as well. Using WordPress, you can easily setup a site and make it running within a few hours.
Which Provides Better Customization?
In order to meet the constantly changing demand of customers and web industry, plenty of website owners are embracing customization today. WordPress gives ample number of customization options like plugins, themes and more that gives you more control on creating a site tailored to meet your specific needs.
Drupal also provides customization ability, however, it is less resource intensive compared to WordPress. Moreover, making simple edits like adding images, changing layout, adding sidebars seems to be easier when using WordPress than Drupal. Simply put, WordPress provides lot of tools, which makes customization a seamless and easier process in comparison to Drupal.
Which CMS is More Secure?
Drupal is a clear winner in terms of maintaining website security. There are solutions that can be used ensure security of Drupal sites such as Acquia and Pantheon.
WordPress sites are more susceptible to vulnerabilities. Hackers find it quite easy to break into WordPress sites. However, you can install plugins such as WP Engine and others to make your WP powered site secure from attacks.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, WordPress seems to score over Drupal in several cases as discussed above. Clearly, WordPress is the most suitable platform for beginners for building customized websites. However, you can choose Drupal when you need to build a highly complex and secure website.
About The Author:
Jason Roiz is a productive author, who brings to the table a quantum of learning around Drupal development services. He meets expectations for OSSMedia Ltd., a CMS development company giving proficient WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and Magento improvement administrations.