[Exact Guide] WordPress.com vs WordPress.org, Which is better & Why?

Are you totally confused about which WordPress platform to choose: WordPress.com or WordPress.org?

Yes, it can make you think twice because look wise, they are quite similar. But function-wise, a hundred percent different.

Don’t worry. We are going to eliminate your conflict by providing a thorough and complete guide on WordPress CMS site builder comparing its two platforms i.e. WordPress.com versus WordPress.org.

So, what are you waiting for? Have a cup of coffee and let’s get started. ☕😀

What is WordPress?

WordPress is a CMS Platform, a site builder by which you can create, set up and launch your website on the internet without writing any single code.

What is a CMS Platform?

A CMS (Content Management System) is a virtual system or platform that enables you to manage your websites and their content easily, providing a great digital experience to the customers.

Having a very easy-to-use interface, WordPress is a king of all CMS Platforms. 

From creating a website to designing, everything gets easier in WP due to its promising features. You need just a bit of time and energy, and it will be enough to build your website.

At the present moment, there are around 1.3 billion websites across the internet, and WordPress is powering 455 million Websites, meaning 39% of site owners use WP.

Why Choose WordPress?

According to the stats, WordPress is the favorite CMS platform. But why is it so? Let’s learn.

Benefits Of WordPress Platform : 

User-friendly:

Running a website on WordPress is just like driving a car without knowing anything about the mechanical parts of an engine.

Yes, you don’t have to learn anything about coding, web development to set up and launch a website for your business, or personal use.

Easy To Manage :

Just imagine: You are wasting all your productive hours just to handle pages, posts, designs of your site without focusing on real business.

Simply unacceptable. But with WordPress, you can handle every single thing, from designing to doing SEO to content creation easily due to its super easy WordPress admin dashboard.

 Themes:

Once you install WordPress, the foremost thing you want to do is install a lightweight, pre-built, dashing website theme.

Now, if you use WordPress as a site builder platform, you will get unlimited themes from dominant developer companies, as per your business absolutely for free. 

Thus, publishing a blog or starting an eCommerce Store online or a personal website, everything is easy on WordPress.

Plugins:

Using a plugin is like installing apps on your phone in order to enhance the functionality. 

After installing some powerful plugins like RankMath SEO, Google Analytics, Elementor, Woocommerce, etc. you can increase user interface and experiences like SEO, Website designing, optimizing content, handling traffic, and many more.

There are thousands of free themes and plugins in the WordPress directory.

SEO:

Let’s imagine You have created a new website, by spending all your money, time, and effort. Also, hired a group of designers.

But, there are hardly any visitors coming to your website. 

Guess what? Everything will go in vain if that ever happens to you. 🧐

But, doing Search Engine Optimization with WP is a piece of cake. There are valuable SEO Plugins like RankMath, Yoast SEO, W3 Total Cache, Broken Link Checker, etc. 

Moreover, these tools are absolutely free and time saver.

Additionally, You don’t need an SEO expert to do that. You can do that on your own.

Using all those SEO plugins, your website can rank on every search engine, not only that it will get lots of traffic and authority from search engines like Google, Bing, etc.

Flexibility:

If you are an owner of a small or big business or want to create a personal blog or want to launch an ECommerce business, you can use this platform without any doubt.

Its amazing features will let you generate a massive amount of revenue online for sure.

Freelancer:

While managing a website, often you get problems: changing minor things like adding custom CSS, PHP codes, creating a child theme. Then you need to do some coding work

At that point, you can reach out to any freelance developer and get your work done easily

Now, let’s talk about the real business, the main differences between WordPress.org versus WordPress.com.

If you assume that WordPess.com and WordPress.org are the same platforms, then it is a totally wrong belief. They are totally different.

Advantages of WordPress.com

• WordPress.com is totally free. Even, it is a free hosted platform where WordPress.com takes care of your site itself and provides security.

• Here, you need zero money to pay for any hosting provider. It is our self-hosted platform.

• Very easy for beginners and those who don’t know any coding.

• Before purchasing a hosting or a premium theme, it is the best option to learn about website building with a CMS platform.

• You will get 3 GB of storage space for your blogs. To get more, you have to purchase plans like Personal, Premium, Business, eCommerce, VIP.

• It lets you launch from small to big business websites like Personal Website, E-commerce Store, etc.

• Don’t have to take any stress about updates or backups. WordPress.com does it itself.

Disadvantages of WordPress.com

• You are not the owner of your site. WordPress.com owns it. They can turn down your site any time without notifying you.

• It has limited features for eCommerce websites. You can’t integrate payment gateways until or unless you buy the E-Commerce plan which is very costly. 

• You cannot add the WooCommerce plugin.

• Furthermore, you can’t access hand-made, branded themes that relate to your business types.

• You are limited to uploading useful plugins. There is only a built-in plugin, Jetpack reactivated for free plan users.

• You cannot install analytical plugins like (Google Analytics) to track your visitors.

• It is impossible to create a membership website with wordpress.com.

• You cannot register a branded domain name because a WordPress subdomain will be included in your domain name, e.g. wpthememonk.wordpress.com. You need to purchase a premium plan in order to eliminate it.

• Your website’s permalink includes powered by wordpress.com. Which doesn’t make a catchy link.

• There are so many restrictions on monetizing a wordpress.com powered website. It requires at least, 25000 monthly Page views to sell ads.

It was an advanced overview of WordPress.com. Now let’s learn about WordPress.org.

Advantages of WordPress.org 

• WordPress.org is a powerful potential platform. You have got absolute freedom over each and every part of your website.

• You are allowed to use free or premium themes. You can use custom themes for your site. Likewise, you can even purchase those from any marketplaces like Themeforest, Studiopress, etc.

• Tracking and analyzing visitors gets easy because of free analytical plugins like Google Analytics.

• Doing SEO in WordPress.org is a piece of cake as they are dominant SEO-free plugins like Yoast SEO, Rankmath, etc.

• You can do SEO on your permalink making it very short and there will be no powered by WordPress keywords.

• You can make your website a brand. A catchy, unique domain name lets you do that because there will be no subdomain included, unlike the WordPress.com platform.

• You can monetize your site with ultimate freedom. You can run ads without any restrictions and there is only one controller. That is you.

• Choosing a perfect hosting plan gives you enough storage for your website’s content.

• With WordPress.org you can build a multivendor eCommerce Store like Amazon, Flipkart, eBay. WooCommerce, a free WordPress plugin, makes your online store customer-friendly and multi-featured.

• Normally, WordPress runs on PHP. Besides, the theme’s core files are organized clearly. Adding any custom codes like CSS or PHP is super easy.

• There are infinite WordPress developers at the present moment. You get full-time support from the developers’ community.

Disadvantages of WordPress.org

Besides numerous advantages, there are a few disadvantages too.

• You have to spend a few weeks in order to learn WordPress. Creating pages posts, adding plugins, themes and designing will take a bit of time.

• Not every plugin is compatible with themes. Moreover, some plugins increase website page load time.

• Using third-party plugins on your website might give you security problems.

• You are responsible for your website’s updates, security, backup, and maintenance.

WordPress.com or WordPress.org, Which Is The Best?

Basically, it depends on you. Do you want to monetize your website?

If not, then you can simply go with WordPress.com’s free versions.

On the other hand, if you are a blogger and planning to monetize your site making your site a brand then our recommendation is to go with WordPress.org.

You get some advanced features with the WordPress.com business plan. But, that costs $300 per year for each website.

But, it is not recommended for beginners. Investing that much money for a beginner is a joke, as you can do that with .org by investing only $45 per year.

So our recommendation is WordPress.org, a self-hosted platform. You can build your website on this platform after purchasing a secure, reliable hosting company. We recommend Bluehost hosting company.

Read more about how to set up a WordPress.org  website on Bluehost. (Step-by-step beginner guide).

WordPress.com or WordPress.org, Which is better for an Ecommerce Website?

WordPress.com has a separate plan for building an eCommerce store, but the problem is it is very limited and too costly, $540 per year.

On the other hand,  WordPress.org provides WooCommerce with which you can build your eCommerce store with multiple features like adding products, shopping cart, payment processing check out options, etc.

Read how to create an eCommerce website like Amazon, Flipkart with WordPress?

WordPress.com or WordPress.org, Which is better For Blogging?

Nowadays, making money online is booming in the market. Why not when there is a great opportunity for every skilled full person.

If you are passionate about blog writing, you can choose WordPress.org and can make thousands of dollars per month.

But to do that, you need to have a proper hosting platform. Read more about how to create a successful blog.

WordPress.com or WordPress.org, Which Is Better For Making a Personal Website?

Look, you can use both platforms. But the problem with wordpress.com is you can’t own your site. They can delete your site anytime permanently.

In contrast, if you go with WordPress.org, you get complete control of your site. And it is not costly. It will charge only $40 a year.

WordPress.com or WordPress.org, Which is better for A Freelancer portfolio website?

Nowadays, freelancing is also one of the great online opportunities to make your career on it.

To make a secure, successful career, you don’t want to take useless risks. Take full control of everything from your website’s ownership to revenue.

Choose a Secure hosting company and install WordPress.org with one click.

How to use WordPress.org For Free?

WordPress.org is a free open source platform and easy to manage.

To use this platform absolutely for free, you need to choose a better reliable hosting company that provides support and security.

Not only that, with that platform, you can access pre-built free WordPress themes and plugins in the WordPress directory.

Conclusion:

Now, it is very easy to understand which platform to select or which not: Without any doubt, WordPress.org. There are no other reasons.

We wanted you to make that decision by yourself. That’s why we have discussed each and every single thing about the two platforms of WordPress.

We give our heart and soul to create that content. I hope it will help you to create your first WordPress website.

So, when are you going to create a branded website for your personal business? 🧐