As we move further into 2024, the debate between Craft CMS and WordPress continues to evolve. While WordPress still dominates the CMS market with a 43% share, Craft CMS has been steadily gaining traction among developers and businesses looking for a more flexible and secure content management solution. Let's dive into the key differences and developments in this ongoing comparison.
1. Security Improvements
Security remains a critical concern for website owners and developers alike. While WordPress has made significant strides in improving its core security, vulnerabilities in plugins and themes continue to be a major issue.
- WordPress : In 2022, there were over 3,000 WordPress plugin vulnerabilities reported. The sheer size of the WordPress ecosystem makes it an attractive target for hackers.
- Craft CMS : Maintains its reputation for robust security with only a handful of minor issues reported since its launch. Craft's smaller, more curated plugin marketplace contributes to this enhanced security.
Craft's proactive approach to security, including regular code audits and rapid response to potential vulnerabilities, gives it an edge in this crucial area.
2. Performance and Speed
With Google's Core Web Vitals becoming increasingly important for SEO, website speed is more crucial than ever.
- Craft CMS : Continues to outperform WordPress in this area, with many Craft sites achieving perfect or near-perfect PageSpeed scores out of the box. Craft's lean core and efficient templating system contribute to its superior performance.
- WordPress : Has improved with features like lazy loading and better asset management, but still often requires additional optimisation plugins to achieve comparable speeds.
The performance gap has narrowed, but Craft still holds an advantage, especially for complex, content-rich sites.
3. Headless CMS Capabilities
Both Craft and WordPress have embraced the headless CMS trend, recognising the growing demand for decoupled architectures.
- Craft CMS : The GraphQL API, introduced in version 3, has matured significantly. It offers excellent flexibility for headless setups and has become a favorite among developers building JAMstack sites.
- WordPress : Has improved its REST API and added full-site editing capabilities. The introduction of the Gutenberg editor has also made WordPress more amenable to headless setups.
While WordPress has made strides in this area, many developers still find Craft's API more intuitive and powerful for headless projects.
4. Developer Experience
The quality of the developer experience can significantly impact project timelines and outcomes.
- Craft CMS : Maintains its edge with a clean, intuitive interface and powerful Twig templating system. The consistency and flexibility of Craft's content modeling approach continue to win praise from developers.
- WordPress : Has made progress with the introduction of Gutenberg and full-site editing, offering more flexibility in content creation. However, the learning curve for these new features can be steep, and some developers find the mix of old and new paradigms challenging.
Craft's focus on providing a top-notch developer experience remains one of its strongest selling points.
5. Enterprise Adoption
The adoption of a CMS by large enterprises can be a strong indicator of its scalability and robustness.
- Craft CMS : Has seen increased adoption by enterprise-level companies, including Netflix, Apple, and Salesforce. This trend highlights Craft's scalability and ability to handle complex content structures.
- WordPress : Continues to power many large-scale sites, including those of major news outlets and corporations. Its VIP service caters specifically to enterprise needs.
Craft's growing presence in the enterprise space is noteworthy, especially given its younger age compared to WordPress.
6. Community and Ecosystem
A strong community and ecosystem can provide valuable resources and support for developers and users alike.
- WordPress : Still boasts the larger community by far, with countless themes, plugins, and resources available. This extensive ecosystem is both a strength and a weakness, as quality can vary widely.
- Craft CMS : While smaller, Craft's ecosystem has grown significantly. The Craft Plugin Store now offers over 500 plugins, and the community is known for being active, supportive, and highly skilled.
Craft's curated approach to its ecosystem ensures higher overall quality, even if the quantity of resources doesn't match WordPress.
7. Pricing and Licensing
The cost of implementing and maintaining a CMS can be a significant factor for many projects.
- Craft CMS : Has maintained its commercial licensing model, with prices starting at $279 for a Pro license. While this represents an upfront cost, many users see it as an investment in ongoing development and support.
- WordPress : Remains free and open-source, which continues to be a major draw for many users, especially for smaller projects or those with tight budgets.
The pricing model choice often depends on the specific needs and resources of each project.
8. Content Modeling and Flexibility
The ability to create and manage complex content structures is crucial for many modern web projects.
- Craft CMS : Excels in this area with its flexible content modeling system. The ability to create custom fields and content types without plugins gives developers great control over site structure.
- WordPress : Has improved its content modeling capabilities with custom post types and the block editor, but still often requires additional plugins for more complex structures.
For projects with unique or complex content needs, Craft's built-in flexibility can be a significant advantage.
9. Updates and Long-term Maintenance
The ease of keeping a CMS updated and maintained over time is an important consideration for the total cost of ownership.
- Craft CMS : Known for smooth update processes and backwards compatibility. The commercial model helps ensure regular updates and improvements.
- WordPress : Updates can be more complex, especially with many plugins and themes. The frequency of updates can also be a double-edged sword, requiring more regular maintenance.
Craft's approach often results in lower long-term maintenance costs and fewer update-related issues.
10. SEO and Marketing Features
Built-in SEO capabilities and marketing tools can be crucial for many websites.
- Craft CMS : While not built primarily for marketing, Craft has powerful SEO plugins like SEOmatic that provide comprehensive SEO controls.
- WordPress : Has a slight edge here with its extensive ecosystem of SEO and marketing plugins, including popular options like Yoast SEO.
Both systems can be optimized for excellent SEO performance, but WordPress may have a slight advantage in terms of available marketing tools.
Conclusion
While WordPress remains the most widely used CMS, Craft CMS has solidified its position as a powerful alternative, particularly for projects requiring custom functionality, enhanced security, and optimal performance. The choice between the two often comes down to specific project requirements, budget, and developer preferences.
Both platforms have their strengths, and the best choice depends on the specific needs of each project. WordPress continues to be a solid choice for a wide range of websites, especially those that benefit from its vast ecosystem. Craft CMS, on the other hand, shines in scenarios requiring custom development, high performance, and robust security.
At DeployHQ, we support deployments for both Craft CMS and WordPress projects, allowing teams to streamline their workflow regardless of their chosen platform. Our tools are designed to work seamlessly with either CMS, ensuring smooth and efficient deployments for your web projects. Whether you're team Craft or team WordPress, DeployHQ has you covered for all your deployment needs.
