WordPress.com vs WordPress.org

Confused between WordPress.com and WordPress.org? Here is a simple explanation:

  • wordpress.com – WordPress will host your website for you for free but it comes with a hefty price tag of a horrible looking domain like thisdesigngirl.wordpress.com.
  • wordpress.org – You host your own website. Your domain would be like thisdesigngirl.com.

But of course, there are pros and cons to both. Keep in mind that both options are essentially free. WordPress is a free open source software. But it’s OTHER things that you need to pay for to get them to work, like hosting, domain name, plugins, premium themes etc.

wordpress.com

PROS

  • FREE.
  • Get your website up in minutes.
  • Don’t have to deal with backend issues or databases.
  • Can switch themes in an instant without praying first.
  • Are a part of their community which makes it really easy to connect with other blogs and get your name out there.
  • Maintenance Free. They do it all for you.

CONS

Well I mean, you are getting this all for free so there shouldn’t be any complaining…

  • Does not allow you to install your own custom theme from places such as Envato. You must use their themes or upgrade to their premium themes for a fee. I personally find their themes look very similar and cookie cutter and you can’t customize simple things like fonts in some instances. Which makes any designer want to rip out their hair.
  • Does not allow you to install any custom plugins.
  • Cannot monetize with ads like Google Adsense unless you upgrade.
  • Stuck with their ads which you cannot monetize on.
  • Cannot run an ecommerce or membership website.
  • Only 3GB of storage.
  • Are forced to use domains like yoursite.wordpress.com. You can upgrade this for a fee to get your own custom domain, but you must go through them and their prices are horrendous with the lowest price being $5/month ($60/year) when I can just go to Godaddy and pay as little as $2.99 for a domain per year.

WordPress.com is good for
This route is good for those who want a website/blog/personal blog up in mere minutes, and doesn’t mind that it looks a tad bland with not a whole lot of options for  customization. It is also great for those who aren’t that tech savvy and need a little help along the way.

I’ve used this method for a couple of personal blogs that I wanted to throw up real fast and successfully ran it for a number of years. Besides the fact that it was completely free, I also loved that I was able to remain anonymous with the domain and hosting not tied to any of my personal information other than a generic Google email. Yes there are ways to privatize all that but this route made it really easy to just get it done fast. Not only that, I didn’t have to do a ton of marketing, as other blog users were able to connect with me very easily and I got a ton of readers. It organically marketed itself. The only downside was the domain name had .wordpress smack in the middle. But as this site was just a personal thing, and I wasn’t making any money off of it, it didn’t bother me.

wordpress.org

PROS

  • FREE
  • Very easy installation of software, most web hosts will have a one click install from their dashboard.
  • Customizable.
  • Ability to install free and premium custom themes, making your site very unique.
  • Ability to install plugins.
  • Many options that comes within the themes themselves.
  • Monetize your website in a variety of ways like Google Adsense and affiliate partnerships.
  • Set up an ecommerce store or membership site by using plugins.

CONS

  • May seem daunting to those who aren’t tech savvy.
  • You must get your own web hosting.
  • You must get your own domain.
  • Do your own maintenance.
  • You may need to fiddle around with databases and such, which I don’t recommend if you have no idea what you are doing. Even for myself. To avoid making huge mistakes when it comes to anything with the word Database, I make sure to holler at Cher Fitchett, my tried and trusted Web Developer whom I have been working with for the past 11 years. If I don’t, I will for sure end up crying in the corner and asking why there was no COMMAND Z for my life.

WordPress.org is good for
Anybody, anything, any business. You don’t need to do any of this yourself, you can of course, hire a web designer to do it all for you.

Bottom line

I mean hands down to WordPress.org. Even if you were to upgrade to the WordPress.com business plan at their current rate of $33/month to make it at the same level of perks as a WordPress.org, that’s still a whopping $396 USD a year! And that is for only ONE website. I can get all this for about a 1/3 of that price with UNLIMITED domains by hosting it myself!

But you know what? If I wanted to start a quick website for my nephew’s wedding or showcasing my aunt’s knitted scarves for her cat, then I would probably do WordPress.com.