Are you thinking about starting a blog or a business website? Then you’ve probably considered building your site through WordPress. WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems out there, powering over 26 percent of the sites currently available on the web. Once you decide to use WordPress, however, you have to make the choice between WordPress.org and WordPress.com. It can be a tricky decision that, if not made carefully, can come back to haunt your progress as a blog or company.
In short, WordPress.org offers a free download for the WordPress software. However, in order to use the software, you’ll have to self-host your site, meaning you rent hosting space from someone else’s servers so that visitors can access your site. Then you install the WordPress software onto your site, and you can get to work building it without any coding experience. Luckily, most web hosting companies offer affordable services as low as $3.50 per month. You’ll also have to purchase a domain name (or website address), which typically costs around $10 per year. [pullquote]Most web hosts also offer one-click installs for WordPress so you can easily get set up without a hassle.[/pullquote]
Using WordPress software for your self-hosted website comes with a lot of power, but also responsibilities. You will have to secure your blog as well as make sure your SEO is up to date.
WordPress.com, on the other hand, offers a limited version of the WordPress software, but your site will be hosted by WordPress, and you’ll get a free WordPress.com subdomain, which means your website address will have “wordpress.com” at the end of it. While you can get started with a WordPress.com site for free, you can always upgrade for more features.
While it may seem logical to choose WordPress.com since it’s free, there are perks to going the self-hosted route as well. There are many websites available today that will tell you, in detail, how to go about installing and running your own website using WordPress software on your own server. However, if you’re wondering how to make a blog but not sure whether WordPress.org or WordPress.com is the right choice for you, start by comparing the differences with the infographic below.
The infographic called “WordPress .ORG vs. WordPress .COM – What Is The Difference?” was created by WebsiteSetup and is a formidable guide to the two ways you can use WordPress as your content management system. If you have used WordPress yourself, whether it is .COM or .ORG, and have a few tips and tricks up your sleeve, feel free to add a comment in the comment section below.
The Differences Between WordPress .COM & .ORG
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