5 Best Alternatives to WordPress as CMS Solutions

WordPress Alternatives
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WordPress is currently the most popular CMS for blogging as evidenced by the fact that nearly 30% of all websites in the world are built with WordPress.

When you think of how many websites there are in the world, 30% is a huge number.

WordPress was started as a blogging platform, but over time, it has evolved as a full-fledged content management system (CMS).

Now, you can do various things on WordPress:

  • Build an E-commerce portal.
  • Create a membership site.
  • Integrate forums.
  • and so much more.

Must Read: The ShoutMeLoud Ultimate WordPress Guide

But it’s always a good idea to keep an eye on all the other CMS alternatives to WordPress, as they are equally as good, and could be picked up for your next project.

So on behalf of all those who are flying the flag for less popular or well-known CMSs, here are our top 5 alternative CMS solutions:

5 Simple CMS Alternatives to WordPress

1. Umbraco

Umbraco
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Umbraco now boasts more than 85,000 installations and is in the top five most popular server applications.

It is built on Microsoft’s .NET technology and is a CMS for .NET developers.

Umbraco states on their website that:

  • “Umbraco is the choice of many organizations because of its no-cost, open-source licensing, its simplicity, and its unlimited potential.”

You probably wouldn’t use Umbraco for a personal blog; it is a CMS solution better suited to organizations running large sites.

Among their users are wired.co.uk and asp.net

2. Joomla!

Joomla
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Joomla! is one of the biggest rivals of WordPress.

The community for Joomla! is very active and there are over 7,000 Joomla! extensions. You can find an extension for just about anything and there are lots of themes to choose from.

The biggest stumbling block about Joomla! is that you’ll need to pay for most plugins and themes.

But it’s still a very good CMS.

3. Drupal

Drupal
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This list would not be complete without Drupal.

Drupal 8 has recently been launched providing what they say will be an “easier, more flexible, and more scalable” CMS.

Their community is great; if you ever get stuck or have a question, it will be answered very quickly on the Drupal forum.

4. SilverStripe

SilverStripe
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SilverStripe is similar to WordPress, but it is more suitable for content management rather than blogging.

They are currently working hard to translate their CMS and application framework into dozens of languages which will perhaps see this CMS’s user base grow much more rapidly.

SilverStripe has a reputation for being particularly good on the SEO side of things as well.

5. GetSimple

Getsimple
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GetSimple is an XML based CMS that has a brilliant user interface which is extremely simple to use.

It’s easy to install and customize, and although it may not have all the features that large companies require, it does more than enough for the needs of most SME companies.

There are many simple CMSs being released at the moment and while it is a busy market, I think GetSimple offers enough to stand out from the crowd.

Alternatives to WordPress

These are the 5 best alternatives to WordPress at the moment, but there are many others.

It’s best to experiment and find which one works for you.

For more on this topic check out:

Which CMS are you using? Do you prefer WordPress or a WordPress alternative? Let us know in the comments!

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Authored By
My name is James and I'm the Social Media Coordinator at Fasthosts, the UK's #1 Web Hosting company. Check out our Fasthosts Blog for advice on everything from B2B Marketing to Web Design.

23 thoughts on “5 Best Alternatives to WordPress as CMS Solutions”

  1. Kris

    I have wordpress site for 5 years, and now I want to try another option. When I was want to try a drupal, after talked to some of drupal developer, the truth is they’re expert at building website interface and coding for design purpose, but when I asked about security, which is the most important part, mostly they’re beginner in security and they just told me something like “Don’t worry hacker target is wordpress site, drupal is secure”, this is kindergarten level of answer.

    After that I talked to my friend which is ex-hacker, his told me that if I’m using drupal, the hacker targeting drupal site is “Another level” hacker, rarely beginner try to hack drupal. And I was search dozens case of a lot of websites got hacked and no solution for it, it’s very hard to find security expert in Drupal industry. I found one company which is security expert, the price range to setup the security is $10.000-20.000. OMG I shocked when read their price.

    WordPress developer only cost $2000 for complete package from design and coding, setup VPS, etc. And to fix hacked site, only cost $100. And there’s tons of wordpress developer out there, close my eyes and I got a developer or security expert in 10 second.

    But no matter what, I’m still curious about Drupal, it sounds cool because it’s rare. lol

    1. crafter

      Your response from someone that lacks the skill to support your requirements should not be seen as a reflection of the product itself.

      My own experience shows that my Clients WordPress sites get hacked more often than others.

      Drupal is indeed ‘cool”, but it is more barebones than WP. However it soars in areas where wordpress fails, so you really have to look at both and see what serves you the best.

  2. Mike Lee

    I have tried both WordPress and Joomla.

    WordPress is a user-friendly CMS and comes with many free plugins. Many of the free plugins are developed with high quality.

    For Example: Yoast SEO, UpdraftPlus, WordFence, etc

    Besides, it is SEO friendly and suitable for blogging purpose.

    Joomla is more complex and it takes time for beginner to learn. It consists of plugin, module and component. Joomla is great for a “Website” because of its extensibility.

  3. akismet

    Good article. I would also add Expression Engine and Social Engine on top of the above list of CMS’s.

  4. Raheel Mushtaq

    Joomla is a nice CMS but it’s really hard using it unless you have a good developer with you but there are many good options in it.. A good portal made on Joomla can go for a long time without much changes..!

  5. Jason

    WordPress is good blogging platform, but if you want a full on CMS it just doesn’t fit the need. The whole thing becomes a mess. Joomla and Drupal are nice but use lot of resources eespecially the newed versions. If you don’t believe me check a site made in YII framework and Drupal and see the comparisons.

    Anyway Modx is really good open source CMS. Sites like gawker and others also use it.

  6. Deepanshu

    wordpress stands apart eespecially for a newbie 🙂

  7. Sanjay

    I’ve heard a lot about Joomla and Durpal but the rest of three are new to me, thanks for sharing them..

  8. Anubhab

    From the comments I see, and I also believe. Wp hasn’t got much competition in the blogging platform. However using a cross of another cms with wp could really work out charm i guess.

  9. Wasim Ismail

    My top 3 are WordPress, Joomla and Drupal, I believe choosing a CMS all depends to what you are looking to achieve from your site. Before choosing a CMS, see if it will be compatible and what your looking to get out of it, does it offer such features.

  10. techntuts

    There are many CMS on the web today. But, WordPresss, Joomla and Drupal are the best in today’s market.

    WordPress is best suitable for blogs and its not pretty good for business and ecommerce sites… But joomla is best for such sites which has ecommerce and shopping site, but joomla is bit difficult to learn and it requires time to learn than wordpress…

  11. Mosarrof

    I think Joomla! is No. 1 in CMS World

  12. rohan @techlunatic.com

    Cool compilation, will checkout “get simple” looks very cool with the minimal interface, sleek and powerful.

  13. Glitz @ Glitzyblog

    I have never heard about these two Umbraco, SilverStripe. thanks for sharing this. and as for me I am very much comfortable with wordpress and its features. its very easy to use.

  14. Sujith

    Actually there is no much competition for WordPress as a blogging platform. WordPress is very simple and easy to use platform even for common people also. To develop a full dynamic business site WordPress may not be good.
    I am using Drupal and Joomla. Joomla now available with some core design changes and good features (Joomla 1.6)

  15. BLOG404

    What about tumblr ? Though people use it as micro-blogging platform , it still is very powerful CMS platform for pro bloggin , what say ?

  16. Michael Aulia @CravingTech.com

    Hm.. haven’t heard of SilverStripe and GetSimple. I have my church’s website CMS in Joomla but to be honest, I’m not really a fond of it. The theme is great (premium) but hate the administration panel, eespecially when writing new posts

  17. shashank

    Great to see SML added this blog !
    Wish people realise that there are many other CMS in market!
    Else scores of bloggers went on thesis with SML theme 🙂
    Drupal,Joomla are the best alternatives !
    Drupal 7 got a drastic change hope to see other bloggers give them a shot:)

  18. Nick

    I know about drupal and joomla already but not about umbraco thanks dude and if you had included some advantages and disadvantages it would be appreciated

  19. Vivek Parmar

    Apart from jomla, drupal all are new to me. thanks for letting me know more CMS

  20. Sharat

    3 years ago I started a portal on Joomla and created one portal for my client by using Drupal CMS. But according to me they are most complicated.

    WordPress is easy, best, huge plugin list, fresh look, fast loading themes.

    Still I am having a News Portal running on Joomla from last 2-3 years. But It’s loading speed is too slow. I am confused that either it is slow because of Joomla CMS or Joomla theme 😉 .

    I always prefer WordPress. I cant say anything about Umbraco, GetSimple and SilverStripe because I have Zero experience with them.

    Thanks

    1. Sandeep Singh

      I agree with you sharat ! WordPress is simple and reliable, the best thing is the customization power and plugin supports you get with ease on the net !!!

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