Joomla vs. WordPress: Which One Is Better?

Joomla and WordPress both run on PHP and have SQL databases. They’re also free and open source and provide robust content management systems. But which platform is better?

The choice between Joomla and WordPress comes down to your technical ability. If you have web development experience, you might prefer Joomla. However, WordPress is way more beginner-friendly and still highly customizable.

In this post, we’ll consider five differences between Joomla and WordPress. Then, we’ll show you how to set up a WordPress site. Let’s get to it!

Joomla vs WordPress: 5 Key Differences

WordPress and Joomla are fantastic content management systems. But what are the main differences between them? Here are five factors to consider before making your decision.

1. Ease of Use

Ease of use is crucial in settling the debate between Joomla vs WordPress. For general users, WordPress comes out on top.

The WordPress admin dashboard is easy to navigate. There’s a sidebar that shows the main areas of your website (e.g. posts, pages, plugins, media, etc):

The platform was originally built for blogging, so it’s pretty straightforward to create posts, pages, categories, and tags. Similarly, you can easily install plugins, upload photos, and configure comment settings.

Joomla is a different story. If you’re not familiar with technical terminology and you don’t have coding experience, you’ll have to invest a lot of time in mastering the platform.

For starters, the back end isn’t as intuitive as WordPress. For example, you can’t even click on a new menu without closing the previous one. This can feel frustrating and it slows down your workflow.

You also can’t publish content until you create categories, which is way more complex than it is in WordPress. Unlike WordPress, Joomla offers various admin screens, which complicates the experience further.

2. Content Management System

When choosing between these popular content management systems, you’ll need to consider the content creation and publication process.

Since WordPress was originally developed as a blogging platform, it offers a robust system for managing content and media. You’ll create, edit, and publish pages using the built-in visual editor:

The block editor provides a code-free editing experience. You can easily add, arrange, and style content elements like headings, buttons, images, and other WordPress blocks.

Additionally, WordPress comes with six user roles by default, including author and editor. This enables you to run multi-author blogs, manage user access, and set restrictions.

With Joomla, you have to create a category before you can publish content. There are three types of pages available: single format, category blog, and custom module.

You can create and format content using the Joomla editor. This looks like the Classic WordPress editor (which came before the Block Editor), which can feel a little outdated and make it hard to modify templates.

However, you can install editing extensions, and you have the option to track changes in articles. Similar to WordPress, Joomla offers a robust user management system, which includes an action log to track activity on your Joomla site.

3. Customizability

Another way to decide between Joomla vs WordPress is to evaluate the templates and extensions of each content management system.

There are over 13,000 free themes in the WordPress theme directory, which you can access by navigating to Appearance > Themes:

While you’ll find some of the best WordPress themes here, you also have the option to install premium themes from third parties.

Better yet, you’ll find tons of customization options in the built-in Customizer, and you can even edit themes using page builder extensions and/or CSS code.

It’s easy to extend the base functionality of WordPress with plugins. There are nearly 60,000 free plugins in the WordPress directory, including SEO plugins and ecommerce plugins:

Joomla doesn’t provide an official template library, so you have to rely on third parties like ThemeForest. That said, Joomla lets you use multiple themes across your website.

So while WordPress limits you to one theme at a time, Joomla lets you set different templates for different pages. This means you could use separate themes for your homepage and blog posts.

Like WordPress, Joomla has an extension directory that features SEO plugins, backup plugins, ecommerce plugins, etc. However, you have to download the plugin from the directory and manually upload it to your website, which isn’t ideal.

4. Security

Both WordPress and Joomla provide security extensions and other preventative measures. But which is the best CMS in terms of security?

Due to its popularity, WordPress is a common target for hackers. However, the platform receives regular updates that include bug fixes and performance improvements.

Plus, many WordPress hosting providers offer advanced security features. For example, NameHero provides free SSL certificates, malware scans, and firewalls:

There are also tons of plugins that enhance WordPress security, like Jetpack, Wordfence, and Sucuri.

Joomla offers built-in tools to keep your website secure. These include two-factor authentication, automatic SSL, Google ReCaptcha, and GDPR-compliance.

5. Support

Are you still not sure whether to launch a Joomla or WordPress website? Well, it makes sense to consider the availability and accessibility of support.

WordPress doesn’t have official support channels like phone and live chat. However, there are plenty of free community forums where you can get help with WordPress issues.

Many plugin and theme developers have their own support forums. Plus, you can find WordPress experts for hire (like developers, maintenance services, SEO services, etc) on freelancer sites like Fiverr.

Joomla doesn’t offer dedicated support, either. However, the official website contains a wealth of tutorials, guides, and videos.

There’s also an active community forum, but it can be difficult to find freelance experts to assist with technical issues.

Joomla vs WordPress: Which One Is Better?

If you have little technical knowledge, you’ll want to choose WordPress. It’s more user-friendly, and there are multiple ways to customize your website.

WordPress makes it possible to build all kinds of websites including membership sites, personal blogs, and online stores.

Joomla offers lots of functionality and flexibility from the get-go, but you’ll need to be pretty tech-savvy to unleash its full potential. The admin screen, editor, and many processes are unnecessarily complex.

How to Launch a WordPress Site

As you can see, WordPress is a great choice for non-technical users, whether you’re starting a blog or building an ecommerce site.

That said, you can fast-track the time it takes to launch a website using a powerful website builder like HeroBuilder:

Once you’ve set up an account, simply enter a website name, provide some key details, and define your website goals. You can also determine the right tone for your website (e.g. friendly, professional, persuasive).

HeroBuilder then generates a tailored collection of website templates:

The tool will also add core web pages, but you can add extras like photo galleries, testimonials, team member pages, and more.

Then, HeroBuilder automatically imports all the styles, content, and plugins that your website needs to function. The front page opens in the Block editor, where you can modify the design:

Besides the built-in editor options, HeroBuilder provides various AI-based tools to help you generate new content.

You can use HeroBuilder for free for four days. After that, you can upgrade to a premium plan and connect your site to a custom domain. Your website will be hosted on NameHero’s powerful and secure servers, and your plans will include a free SSL certificate, email accounts, and other essentials.

Conclusion

Both Joomla and WordPress are open-source CMS platforms, but they offer different features and functionalities. Here’s our verdict on the Joomla vs WordPress debate:

• Ease of use: WordPress is more user-friendly.
• Content management system: WordPress offers a more intuitive content management system.
• Customizability: Both Joomla and WordPress provide themes and plugins, but the installation process is more straightforward with WordPress.
• Security: Joomla has more built-in security features but WordPress has better security plugins.
• Support: It’s easier to access community support and find WordPress professionals.

The fastest (and simplest) way to launch a WordPress website is to use a website builder like HeroBuilder. Get started for free today!