20 Pros and Cons of WordPress Websites

WordPress offers everyone a solid CMS solution. The only problem is that it may not be the correct solution for you. Originally developed as a free platform for blogging, it has turned into a massive system of content management. There are plenty of pros and cons of WordPress websites to consider before making the final decision. Here are the key points to look at.

What Are the Pros of WordPress Websites?

1. WordPress offers users an open-source structure.
Programmers often share their code online when using WordPress for websites. This helps many users be able to save a lot of time during the development process. They can just use the code that has already been written to help customize their website.

2. WordPress is really easy to operate.
In many ways, WordPress websites function a lot like a classic drag-and-drop design. Just find the template that works best for you, customize it so that you get the look that you want, and then use WordPress to begin uploading your content. You can also edit your content from the same platform, allowing you to quickly correct mistakes. WordPress even allows you to rollback your content if you made a correction unintentionally.

3. WordPress is relatively friendly for SEO efforts.
This friendliness is based on the plugins that you decide to use. Yoast is one of the most popular because it helps virtually everyone improve their SEO efforts without needing any marketing knowledge to do it. There are a number of plugins that are available that can automatically improve certain optimization functions as well.

4. WordPress offers a convenient interface for multiple users.
It is a system that was designed for the mass market. This means the administrative interface is about as user-friendly as anything you’ll find on the internet today. This makes it easy to add new contributors with customized security levels so you can get the added content and creativity you need without putting your website at risk.

5. WordPress offers lower pre-design costs.
Since it is very easy to construct a website on WordPress, there are much lower pre-design costs that must be considered. You no longer need to characterize your website before constructing it because you can see what you’re doing in real time. WordPress even allows for site testing before going live so that you can see what works and what may need to be changed.

6. WordPress is incredibly affordable.
The cost of WordPress is highly competitive, even beating some of the website builders that offer all-in-one solutions. This makes it easier for everyone to develop their own online presence and scale it to what they need at any given time.

7. You have access to flexible e-commerce options.
Many of the e-commerce options that WordPress offers today can be used with most of the current existing themes. This allows you to add ordering, shopping carts, credit card processing, and shipping to most current websites. They apply to WordPress websites of virtually any size and you’ll find that some of the basic e-commerce plugins are often available for no cost.

8. WordPress is automatically responsive with the right themes.
This allows every site to be automatically viewed in the best possible way, no matter what device or browser a user may be using at that time. Branding becomes more consistent with this responsiveness and most of the time, you don’t have to make any changes to your content plans for it to work.

9. WordPress offers built-in blogging.
Because this platform started as a blogging platform, you can easily add a blog to almost any website with very little effort. The blogs are intuitive and simple on WordPress websites and can add a lot of value to what you’re offering to your visitors and customers.

10. You have the option to limit and remove spam.
You need marketing to get your site noticed, but some black hat marketing techniques involve spamming your content to create benefits for others. WordPress websites make it easy to limit spam and remove it should it appear by blocking comments and users who may have their own interests in mind when they visit your site. Comments that do get posted can be approved before being posted, allowing you the opportunity to trash them or mark them as spam. You can also unapproved comments with one easy click if you change your mind as well.

11. There are numerous forums available to WordPress websites.
This makes it easy to ask questions and get answers for some of the problems you might encounter with your website. Most WordPress site owners work in a collaborative way and are more than willing to help when a problem comes up.

What Are the Cons of WordPress Websites?

1. WordPress offers fewer security guarantees.
Because third-party programmers are involved with plugin and code development with this platform, there are no guarantees on the quality or security of what is being used. The open-source structures can make it easier for some sites to be accessed by unauthorized personnel. This can put your IP or content at risk and potentially lower your overall profits.

2. WordPress can be inflexible for large websites.
It is a solution that was primarily designed for smaller websites with low content levels. If you’re looking for a comprehensive e-commerce solution or are in the middle of a large corporate site build, then you’ll be forced to make several system-wide changes before your site can go live. It’s still possible to do, but your time and monetary investments will be much higher.

3. WordPress can limit the value of your content.
Modern SEO is ultimately based on value. This means search engines are going to look at the complete overview of your site and characterize it from a value standard. Many of the plugins that are offered for SEO improvement are based on keyword inclusion, appropriate meta data, and similar optimization needs that are less important. This causes a lack of overall flexibility from a marketing standpoint.

4. WordPress is constantly updating.
If you don’t keep updating the plugins and core platforms that are being used for your site, you may find it offline. The updates that are offered to provide security enhancements, but each update also creates the chance that a plugin may no longer be compatible. This means your website is at the mercy of WordPress and plugin authors and until repairs are made, the optimization and performance of your site is outside of your control.

5. WordPress reduces the amount of control you have.
WordPress may be consistently improving their platform on a general scale, but that doesn’t always fit a specific need. If you’ve spent hundreds of hours on your site and suddenly an update that helps the entire system comes through, but ruins your site, you’re left holding the bag and will be forced to fix your site based on the new update.

6. WordPress websites tend to look very similar.
Even if you’ve changed your template, altered your color scheme, and made coding changes to your theme, you can pretty much tell which websites have decided to use WordPress. From a personal perspective, this may not matter much, but for a company that is trying to make their brand stand out, it can be very problematic.

7. WordPress can cause websites to be unnecessarily slow.
There is a lot of generic code that is included with WordPress websites because the goal is to be a viable option for virtually everyone who wants to go online. This means there is a lot of code that needs to be examined as your website loads that may not be used. Page loading speeds are a critical component of the user experience today, so WordPress can put some users at a disadvantage before they even publish.

8. WordPress has high hosting requirements.
When you decide to use WordPress, you’ll need to make sure you have a hosting plan that will allow your site to run smoothly. Some hosting plans will even block you from using WordPress for your site because of the requirements it has. The best option is to choose a Linux O/S with an Apache webserver, but even then, you’re at the mercy of the host’s policies and procedures on WordPress for your site. Those can change at any time.

9. WordPress can limit social engagement.
The basic form of social engagement that a WordPress website receives is commenting. You can add Facebook and Twitter plugins for easy sharing or direct platform commenting, but if you need more extensive contact, you’re forced to use email contact boxes, live chat, or other extensions that you may not want to use. This makes it very difficult for those who have the primary goal of developing a network of users.

The pros and cons of WordPress websites show that it is an affordable way to get online. There may be maintenance concerns and hosting requirements that may limit your functionality, but from a total usability standpoint, it is difficult to beat what WordPress is able to provide.