Are you confused regarding the difference between wordpress.org and wordpress.com? Don’t worry I am here to help you out. Hi everyone, this is Digital Abhi, your digital marketing friend, a contented digital marketer. In this post, we will have a quick battle of wordpress.com vs wordpress.org.
Also, if you are a video person, you can skip directly to the end of this post where I have embedded a video on the same.
WordPress.ORG vs WordPress.COM
We will see each and every factor which creates a difference between wordpress.com and wordpress.org. So that after reading this post, you can decide which one is better for you and your website or blog. So, let’s see the differences:
Hosting
Coming to the first one, wordpress.org is a self-hosted blogging platform where you can create any kind of website. It can be an e-commerce website, a membership website, a blogging website or any other kind of website you want. While on the other hand, wordpress.com is just a free blogging platform.
Almost all of the hosting companies provide the .org version which you can install through Softaculous Apps Installer. If you are just starting, I will not suggest you buy some expensive hosting. You can get good quality hosting from Bluehost or Namecheap.
I have used both of them and found both of them to be great. You can check out both and see which one works better for you.
Themes
The next factor, we have is themes. In wordpress.org you get thousands of themes to choose from. Through these themes, you can change the look and feel of your website. Some of these themes are free while some are paid. You can choose anyone according to your requirements.
While in wordpress.com you have a limited number of themes. So, you can say that there are just limited ways to decide the look of your blog.
Plugins
The next thing is the plugins. In wordpress.org, you have access to hundreds and thousands of plugins. You can use these plugins to extend the functionality of your website. Again just like themes, some of the plugins are free and some are paid.
But in wordpress.com, you don’t get any kind of plugins. Although you can have some paid add-ons and paid themes.
Also, read: Why WordPress is Best?
Cost (wordpress.org vs wordpress.com)
Talking about the expenses, you have to pay monthly or yearly expenses in case of wordpress.org. While on the other hand wordpress.com is completely free.
When it comes to money, there’s a twist also. In .ORG you can put some ads to generate revenue from your website. But you cannot put any kind of ads in case of .COM to earn money. So, it’s kind of difficult in the .com version when it comes to monetizing your blog.
SEO
Now comes the factor which is most important for your website. This is SEO or Search Engine Optimization of your website. When it comes to wordpress.org you can add some great plugins like YoastSEO or All in One SEO to improve the SEO of your website. When I say ‘improve’, I mean a great improvement in the SEO of your website.
But on the other hand, in wordpress.com there’s no such thing as SEO or Search Engine Optimization.
Control and Access
Now, let’s talk about control. In wordpress.org you have full control and access to your website. But when it comes to wordpress.com, you don’t have any kind of control.
Domain Name
Talking about the name of your website, in the case of wordpress.org, the name of your website will be something like yourdomain.com. While in the case of wordpress.com, you will have a subdomain kind of thing, like yourdomain.wordpress.com.
Let’s take an example. Let’s say you have a clothing brand. So, in the case of .ORG your website name will be something like myclothing.com. And in the case of .COM, the name will be something like myclothing.wordpress.com.
Now let me ask you a question, which one looks more professional, myclothing.com or myclothing.wordpress.com? Tell me in the comments.
How to get wordpress.org or wordpress.com?
Now, where you can get these two versions of WordPress? So, as the name suggests, you can get them through the official websites of WordPress which are wordpress.org and wordpress.com.
Another way of getting the paid version is by installing it through the cPanel of your hosting. To get an in-depth understanding of WordPress and how it works, you can check my free WordPress tutorial on the Digital Abhi blog.
Conclusion (wordpress.org vs wordpress.com)
So, in a summarized way, if you are a brand or you want to take blogging seriously, or you want to make a career in the digital world, then wordpress.org is for you. But if you are someone who just wants to blog for fun or for time pass or if you want to have some kind of an online diary, then wordpress.com is for you.
General FAQ
wordpress.ORG vs wordpress.COM – Which one is better?
If you want to build a serious brand or if you want to get serious in terms of blogging, then do a little investment and go for wordpress.org. If you are just playing around and want to blog just for fun and don’t want to pay for it, go for wordpress.com
Now here’s a quick question for you? Which version of wordpress are you going to use: .ORG or .COM?
Thanks for taking out time to read this post. I hope now you know which version of WordPress is better for you. If you have any kind of query, let me know in the comments section. And now if you have any better idea regarding wordpress.org vs wordpress.com, don’t forget to share it.
Also, stay tuned to Digital Abhi. Why? Because I am consistently uploading valuable content for you.
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