When I started getting to know WordPress, I needed to clarify the basic concepts. WordPress is very often associated with blogs, common websites, e-shops, etc. The first thing that interested me was which platform I should choose and what criteria I should take into account in it.
WordPress.com or WordPress.org? Look what I found out.
The price
One of the basic differences is that the WordPress.com platform is hosted on an external server. This means that the web hosting site (server location) is taken care of by WordPress staff. It should also be noted that WordPress.com does not yet allow you to register your own .sk domain. With WordPress.org, you will need to contract with the hosting company yourself. WordPress.org is free, but you will still have to pay for the necessary domain and web hosting.
Topics
The main advantage of WordPress.org is flexibility. You have all the software installed on a server that is also linked to your domain. This allows you to customize the theme and look of the website exactly to your liking.
In contrast, WordPress.com provides a limited number of topics that you choose from the WordPress catalog. However, these topics are no longer editable and you can’t change the code in them. However, this does not apply to the so-called Premium themes. However, even these cannot be modified like themes on WordPress.org.
Modules
Modules work just like themes. There are thousands of modules on WordPress.org that can be easily and quickly installed. You can also find them at codecanyon.net or WPMU.org . WordPress.com provides mostly built-in modules. However, they are only basic and your site will be less flexible.
Costs
Although you can download WordPress.com for free, its range of features is limited. WordPress.com provides basic 3GB space for images and text. If you need more space, you can buy 13GB of space for $ 100 a year. The amount also includes the domain and advanced customizations of the website. For $ 300 a year, you get unlimited space and 50+ Premium themes.
There are also significant differences in costs. There are many companies that will provide you with the best deals. However, these are always associated with monthly or annual fees that you must pay. Although the core of WordPress software is free, you will have to pay for premium themes and modules. However, you can always use themes and modules that WordPress provides for free.
Maintenance
At WordPress.org, you need to take good care of your site. Get ready to regularly update the theme, modules, or the entire WordPress core. You should also not forget to check your spam regularly.
In the case of WordPress.com, you can leave these things out of your head. WordPress employees will take care of that automatically.
Advances
Backing up your site to WordPress.org needs to be done regularly. You can make the backup either manually by downloading all the files on the website or using premium modules. If you have a website through WordPress.com, the WordPress team takes care of the backup.
It is important to choose the right platform on which your website will work. WordPress.org gives you more flexibility, customization of the site, but you have to reckon with higher costs associated with the domain, hosting, themes, modules and maintenance.
The famous 5-minute installation of WordPress. Here you go.
If you opt for WordPress.com, you will become part of the largest blog portal in the world, which can provide you with better search engine results.
It is not clear which platform is better or worse. Decide depending on what you need. If you want to start a personal blog, how a better solution seems W ordPress.com. If you want to set up an e-shop or a standard website, we would turn to WordPress.org. In addition to these differences, read, for example, Petě Nemčoka’s article, 10 facts about WordPress that you may not have known.
Do you know more differences between WordPress.com and WordPress.org platforms? And what is your experience? I would be happy if you share them in the comments.
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