Discrimination Between WordPress.org and WordPress.com

As mentioned in the previous article, WordPress combines two types of Top-level domains, which are WordPress.org and WordPress.com. And in this piece, we will mainly discuss each one’s definitions, the differences between these two.

About WordPress.org and WordPress.com

Although WordPress.com and WordPress.org have the same name, they are two completely different platforms. And the main factor to distinguish these two is the hosting.

In the following section, Sosene will explain more clearly what WordPress.org and WordPress.com are.

What is WordPress.org?

WordPress.org is a website containing the famous open-source installer WordPress – the content management system (CMS) software. In short, a CMS is software designed to make it easier to create a website and manage its data and content through a user-friendly management interface.

This open-source platform enables you to build and maintain a website yourself. You can use, modify, and contribute it to the core software for free. Its interface looks similar to WordPress.com, and you’ll have access to a number of plugins and themes for changing the site’s look and functionality.

Though this WordPress is free, you still need to pay for hosting and a domain name. You’ll also have more flexibility over your site, with the ability to customize any aspects if you want.

What is WordPress.com?

While WordPress.org is a self-hosted site, WordPress.com is a hosted blogging version operated by Automattic, the company behind some popular platforms such as the Jetpack plugin and WooCommerce.

In other words, it means you do not own your domain name. For example, when creating a domain name, your URL will be like: yourwebsitename.wordpress.com.

And when having a WordPress.com account, you can access the website builder, domain name, and hosting account all at once. Everything is managed through the software’s dashboard, and depending on the package you choose, you could extend your site with many themes and plugins.

Read more our Comprehensive knowledge of WordPress and Why use WordPress for your website

Discrimination Between WordPress.org and WordPress.com

Depending on the desire and demands of using, you can choose for yourself the most suitable platform. Therefore, below are some differences between these two types that you should consider before starting choosing:

In this part, Sosene only compare WordPress.org and WordPress.com based on these following factors:

Price
Ease of use
Customization
Security
Monetization opportunities.

1. Price

As an open-source platform, WordPress.org is entirely free to download and install. You don’t need to worry about spending any monthly or annual fees to update your WordPress.org website. However, you still have to pay for the hosting, domain name, and SSL certificate cost (per month or year). And up to the package you pick will have different fees as well.

Meanwhile, WordPress.com provides its customers with a subscription-based approach, including multiple pricing levels with additional features. Apart from the open-source version, each of these plans comes with an SSL certificate, web hosting, and a domain name (except the free one). Although WordPress.com has a free choice for users, some advanced features will be limited. To have some premium functions, such as using WooCommerce themes, placing ads on your website, or integrating with Google Analytics, you must buy the upgraded plans.

2. Ease of use

If you are a new user and seeking a simpler CMS platform, WordPress.com can be a good option. In WordPres.com, you will walk through several stages such as signing up, choosing website type, picking a theme, and customizing some other details.

Similarly, WordPress.org will be quite the same process as well. However, within this platform, you must purchase a domain name and hosting before installing the WordPress software via your hosting provider’s dashboard. That is the reason why WordPress.org has a higher learning curve.

In addition, these two platforms’ dashboards have a similar interface. But WordPress.com offers fewer options, so you’re less likely to feel overloaded. Simultaneously, WordPress.org is still designed with usability and user-friendly capability for new beginners.

3. Customization

WordPress.org comes with tons of plugins and theme choices. It is flexible for users to tailor and customize their site based on their budget by providing free and paid options.

Besides, you are able to manually alter your website’s HTML or add more CSS classes to adjust the design and functionality further. Therefore, you can easily modify small details and personalize your website to meet your requirements.

On the contrary, using plugins in the WordPress.com platform asks for the upper plan like Business or higher. The advanced customization features are not available unless you purchase a Premium plan or above. Thus, those who choose the lower plans will be limited in customization ability.

4. Security

WordPress.com will cover all security and maintenance tasks for its users.

Users don’t need to be concerned about updates, plugins, or release notes. Since it’s a self-hosted version, your store will automatically upgrade all the security patches and the latest versions, reducing downtime and ensuring that your sites are always up to date. Plus, WordPress.com has an information security team that will constantly keep your site safe.

In contrast, WordPress.org does not automatically update. You will do it manually, so your responsibility is to keep the website up to date. And make sure that your store’s data is properly backed up and that you stay on top of software changes.

5. Monetization opportunities

WordPress.org is most certainly the better choice if you want to create profit from your website. There will be no limits on the monetization approaches you can employ – for example, adding affiliate links to the articles or building a membership website.

You may also install advertising plugins like Advanced Ads to handle all of your campaigns directly from your WordPress dashboard.

WordPress.com, on the other hand, makes it more difficult to monetize your website. To begin, you must have the Business plan or above to access services like ecommerce and Google AdSense.

Besides, affiliate marketing is restricted to WordPress.com. The platform’s user guidelines state that you are not allowed to use it primarily to promote affiliate items. Despite the policy’s vague wording, WordPress.com emphasizes that any regulations are up to its interpretation.

Websites containing a “vast majority” of sponsored material are prohibited on WordPress.com. Again, these principles are up to interpretation, so take caution while monetizing your site.

Conclusion

For new users, the similarities between WordPress.com and WordPress.org may be confusing. Hopefully, you now have a clear understanding of the differences between the two website builders listed above.

Thank you for taking the time to read our article, and Sosene hopes this article will give you some useful information. If you are looking for WordPress or CMS solution, Sosene is always here to support you. Sosene believes that bringing value to our customers is our mission, so please feel free to contact us. We would be delighted to assist you.