Content Management System – CMS
WordPress is a Content Management System (CMS), and is the most popular CMS by a wide margin.
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How to read the diagram: 33.1% of the websites use none of the content management systems that we monitor. WordPress is used by 43% of all websites, that is a content management system market share of 64.2%.
Other CMS:
- Shopify: 4.2% of all websites, 6.2% of CMS market
- Wix: 2.3% of all websites, 3.4% of CMS market
- Squarespace: 2.0% of all websites, 3.0% of CMS market
- Joomla: 1.6% of all websites, 2.5% of CMS market
- Drupal: 1.2% of all websites, 1.8% of CMS market
- Adobe Systems: 1.1% of all websites, 1.6% of CMS market
- Google Systems: 0.9% of all websites, 1.4% of CMS
- Bitrix: 0.8% of all websites, 1.2% of CMS market
- Webflow: 0.6% of all websites, 0.9% of CMS market
Open Source
WordPress is open source, which means not only is it free to use, by other programmers are able to use the code to create their own applications. This makes WordPress the most robust platform available for website builders, there are limitless options for design and development, and more importantly, a well established community of support.
Themes
The foundation of the WordPress system uses themes and plugins to construct the website. Themes can be free or purchased and personalized. Depending on skill and interest, there is a theme for every situation. Some themes may fit a particular need perfectly and require minimal changes, but for those that want a completely custom website design, there are theme and plugin options for advanced design and development.
Plugins
Plugins add functionality to a WordPress website by adding bits of code to supplement the WordPress core code. Plugins are required for just about every function, from backups and security scans to contact forms and more. Just about every WordPress website will use plugins, and the average website has anywhere from 5 to 20 plugins. Fewer plugins is better because it leads to more vulnerabilities. You can protect your website by keeping your plugins updated.
Updates
Your core, theme and plugins will need to be updated routinely. Not updating your programs can lead to security breaches, performance issues and may even disable some features. The good news is updating your website is easy, but the bad news is that updates can sometimes break your website, requiring a restoration from a backup or a rollback of the update.