Drupal vs. WordPress

Choosing the perfect customer management system (CMS) for your website is incredibly important. With Drupal and WordPress leading the CMS market, together holding over 60% of the share, you have two strong options to consider. But which of them is the perfect fit for you? Read on to find out. 

 

Is Drupal CMS Better Than WordPress?

While both Drupal and WordPress are popular content management systems, they have significant differences in terms of functionality, architecture, and target user base. To decide which CMS suits your needs best,  we’ve collected a set of strengths and weaknesses of both content management platforms.

Drupal is known for its flexibility and power to manage complex enterprise-level websites, while WordPress is popular for blogging and is widely implemented for smaller sites. 

Let's compare Drupal and WordPress in several aspects of their use.

Functionality

Drupal and WordPress offer different sets of features. Drupal is known for its flexibility, robustness, and ability to handle complex websites with extensive customization options. It is often favored for large-scale company websites, government portals, and knowledge management systems. WordPress is renowned for its user-friendly interface, extensive plugin ecosystem, and focus on blogging and smaller to medium-sized websites.

Architecture 

Drupal and WordPress have different architectural approaches. Drupal follows a more structured and modular approach, allowing for greater customization and control over the website's functionality. It offers a flexible content model and supports complex data structures. 
WordPress, on the other hand, follows a more streamlined and simplified architecture, making it easier to set up and use, particularly for non-technical users. However, the admin panel is not well-structured, particularly when dealing with a large domain that has a complex architecture.

SEO Tools

Both Drupal and WordPress come equipped with built-in SEO tools and plugins. Drupal employs modules or codes, which consist of PHP or JavaScript files, to introduce new features or modify existing functionalities on a website. Implementing SEO modules for meta tags, site verification, XML sitemaps, page titles, and Google Analytics is straightforward. Also, Drupal has built-in coaching and various extensions similar to Yoast SEO for WP.

WordPress offers auto-generated XML sitemaps and a lot of useful plugins to easily introduce such features as broken links detection, website cross-linking, and tag integration. However, access to its advanced SEO tools, integration with Google Analytics, and the ability to install third-party plugins is limited to users on Business tiers. Moreover, some plugins may conflict with each other, resulting in additional conflicts in the website code. These internal bugs can be challenging to resolve, even for experienced programmers. Solutions to one issue often lead to the appearance of new bugs, creating a chain reaction of problems.

E-Commerce 

WordPress is often promoted as a platform that can be used for small e-commerce projects, but it lacks many features that other dedicated e-commerce platforms offer by default. To set up a shop, you may need to enlist the help of an experienced WordPress developer who can integrate payment channels, set up automated subscriptions, and enable credit or debit card payments. However, as your product assortment grows to about 2000 SKU, WordPress may no longer be suitable. Issues with slow operation, memory limitations, and functionality constraints are likely to arise. WordPress was primarily created as a platform for bloggers and may not be the most flexible e-commerce solution. For larger and more complex e-commerce needs, it is recommended to stick with a dedicated CMS like Magento.

The key advantage of Drupal Commerce is its flexibility to build customized e-commerce websites that cater to your specific needs. Its core features include dynamic product ranges, support for multiple order types, diverse promotion options, a robust payment API, and efficient order management. It can be a trade-off between Magento and WP.

Community and Market Share

Both Drupal and WordPress have vibrant communities, but WordPress has a significantly larger user base and market share. According to various sources, WordPress powers over 40% of websites on the internet, while Drupal powers a smaller percentage. However, it's worth noting that Drupal's market share tends to be higher for complex government, non-profit, and enterprise-level websites.

Learning Curve and User Base 

Drupal has a steeper learning curve compared to WordPress. It requires a deeper understanding of its architecture, concepts, and terminology. WordPress is simpler and beginner-friendly, making it a popular choice for individuals and small businesses.

Customization and Scalability

Drupal excels in terms of customization and scalability, providing extensive control over the website's design and functionality. It is highly adaptable to complex requirements and can handle large volumes of content. The latest versions of Drupal 9 and 10 have an integrated feature that allows you to convert the website into a multilingual version with just a couple of clicks. WordPress, while still customizable, has limitations in terms of handling complex or highly customized websites.

Extendability and Plugins

Drupal offers a wide range of modules to extend functionality, but the number of available modules is generally lower than that of WordPress plugins. WP has an extensive library of plugins, which allows users to easily add various features and functionalities to their websites.

Theming and Design

Drupal provides a powerful theming system, allowing developers to create custom designs and layouts with ease. WordPress is highly regarded for its vast collection of pre-built themes, making it simple to find a visually appealing design for various website types.

Security and Data Protection

Drupal is famous for its strong data protection and security. For this reason, it is used by The White House and other governmental websites. Drupal has a strong security track record and a well-structured approach to handling security concerns. Their security team works closely with the community to quickly address and resolve any security issues that may arise. 
Being a simple and popular CMS, WordPress is often involved in cases with data leakage and malware detection, as the popularity of the platform attracts many hackers, while a variety of plugins and simplicity of operation enabling even non-technical users to create and manage websites without developer support, as a result, they can use non-updated versions of the software or infected plugins. 

 

Conclusion

In summary, the choice between WordPress and Drupal depends on the specific requirements and goals of a project.

If you run a small business and want to set up a website quickly and easily, WordPress might be the best choice. It offers a user-friendly platform with various themes and plugins to create a simple website for showcasing your product or selling to customers.

However, if you're looking for a more customizable and flexible solution, Drupal is the better option. Its extensive theme ecosystem and modules allow you to build the website you envision.