Thomas Wallace

WordPress

• Market Share: Powers ~43% of all websites.
• Type: Open-source, highly flexible.

Pros

• User-friendly for beginners.
• Extensive plugin and theme library.
• Strong community support.
• SEO-friendly.
• Highly versatile (blogs, e-commerce, etc.).

Cons

• Can become bloated with too many plugins.
• Requires frequent updates.
• Security vulnerabilities if neglected.
• Performance issues if not optimized.

Shopify

• Market Share: Leading hosted CMS for e-commerce.
• Type: Proprietary, hosted SaaS.

Pros

• Excellent for e-commerce setup.
• Fully hosted—no server management needed.
• Easy to use, fast store setup.
• Built-in payment gateway and marketing tools.
• Highly scalable.

Cons

• Monthly fees plus transaction costs (unless using Shopify Payments).
• Less flexible for non-e-commerce sites.
• Customization requires coding knowledge (Liquid language).
• Vendor lock-in to Shopify ecosystem.

Drupal

• Market Share: Popular among governments, universities, enterprises.
• Type: Open-source, highly customizable.

Pros

• Extremely powerful and flexible.
• Advanced access control and permissions.
• Strong security features.
• Highly scalable.
• Built-in multilingual support.

Cons

• Very steep learning curve.
• Higher development and maintenance costs.
• Smaller plugin and theme ecosystem compared to WordPress.
• Complex updates and patching process.

Wix

• Market Share: Top drag-and-drop builder globally.
• Type: Proprietary, hosted SaaS.

Pros

• Intuitive drag-and-drop interface.
• Fast setup for small businesses and portfolios.
• Hundreds of designer templates.
• Integrated SEO and marketing tools.
• Hosting, updates, and security handled for you.

Cons

• Limited flexibility for complex needs.
• Switching templates after launch is difficult.
• Less suited for large, highly customized sites.
• Premium features can be costly.

Joomla

• Market Share: Still significant behind WordPress.
• Type: Open-source, flexible and robust.

Pros

• Flexible and powerful CMS structure.
• Advanced user access control options.
• Built-in multilingual site support.
• Active community and a variety of extensions.

Cons

• Steeper learning curve than WordPress.
• User interface can feel outdated.
• Smaller plugin and theme selection.
• Requires technical skills for best results.

Summary Table