Whether you’re a beginner or seasoned blogger, you have probably heard of WordPress – the most popular platform for building websites and blogs. But which option is better for your site? How do you choose between WordPress.org and WordPress.com?
WordPress owns a whopping 64% of the website market share, a distant first from the rest of their competitors.
When you’re building a blog with WordPress, you have the option to choose between two different alternatives:
WordPress.org and WordPress.com
Both of these tools work with the same software and are easy to use, but they’re completely different so don’t make the mistake of confusing them or thinking they have the same functionality.
When we created our first blogs, we assumed these two platforms were the same which led to many headaches down the line as our blogs and sites grew.
Here’s the main gist:
With WordPress.org you own your blog
With WordPress.com you rent your blog
WordPress.org is a free software tool which gives you full control of your blog, but in order to use it, you need to pay for two things:
- A domain name
- Web hosting
WordPress.com is also a free version of the WordPress software. It allows you to build your blog quickly – with some limitations in terms of site appearance, plugins, monetization, etc. You don’t need to pay for a domain or web hosting.
But, how do you choose between WordPress.org and WordPress.com?
Let’s take an in-depth look at the pros and cons of each tool as well as their main differences so you can decide which one is the best option for your blog.
What is WordPress.org? (Self-hosted)
WordPress.org is a free software you can download and use on your self-hosted site. A self-hosted site means you have to pay for a domain name (yoursite.com) and a web host (like BlueHost) to host your site.
A web host can be the biggest expense for bloggers when starting a new site. You have to pay a monthly or yearly fee in order to have your blog hosted on their server.
BlueHost has a special offer where they include a free domain name when you choose one of their hosting plans.
Also, BlueHost automatically installs WordPress.org for you when you sign up for one of their web hosting plans.
Let’s have a detailed look at their pros and cons of choosing WordPress.org:
Pros of WordPress.org:
- You own your blog and all of its content
- You can choose any web hosting platform you want (BlueHost, HostGator, and DreamHost are some popular ones)
- You can create any type of blog content without restrictions (as long as you’re not violating any website laws)
- You have full control over changes and edits to your blog and can customize its appearance without limitations
- You can choose and install any plugins you want to enhance your blog
- You can add a full-functioning store or membership program to your site
- You have the credibility of a self-hosting blog with its own domain name (as opposed to having a blog domain that ends with “wordpress.com”)
- You can install tools like Google Analytics and other tracking software
- You have the option to monetize your blog with display ads and keep ALL of the revenue
Cons of WordPress.org
- You have to pay for web hosting – it can be around $3-$10 per month for the first year or so. The price increases as your site grows
- You have to pay for a domain name (some web hosts like BlueHost include a free domain!)
- As your site grows, hosting can get more expensive since your site might need more space to run it properly.
- You are responsible for maintaining your blog on your own (optimizing your site, fixing any site errors, backing up your data periodically) unless / until you can outsource your site maintenance to experts
- You are in charge of securing your website (installing and reviewing security plugins and dealing with site security issues that may arise)
What is WordPress.com? (Free version)
WordPress.com is also a free software you can download and use on your site.
Your blog will be hosted on the WordPress.com servers.
WordPress.com is the best option for bloggers who want to run their site as a hobby or creative outlet rather than a business.
WordPress.com also has a for-profit software you can download and use.
They can handle the hosting, maintenance and security of your blog for a price (from $12 a year and up to $5000 per month depending on the needs of your site).
Pros of WordPress.com:
- It is free to use – (up to 3GB of space)
- You don’t need a web host since WordPress.com acts as your host – your blog will be hosted on their own server
- You don’t’ need to buy a domain name
- WordPress.com handles your blog maintenance
- WordPress.com handles your site security
Cons of WordPress.com
- Your blog domain will be “yoursitename.wordpress.com” which can be perceived as non-professional or have less credibility than sites with their own domain. Your domain name is not your own – it belongs to WordPress. Your actual site name (URL) might be purchased by someone else.
- You don’t have a lot of control over changes and edits to your blog appearance
- You are limited in the type of content you can publish – WordPress.com has their own Terms of Service (they’re not overly strict, but can limit your content)
- You don’t really own the content on your blog since WordPress can take it down if you violate their terms
- You can’t customize or make changes to your blog theme (on their free version)
- You can’t install any plugins to add more features to your site – unless you pay for their premium plans
- You can’t use the free version if your blog needs a lot of space to run
- You can’t monetize your blog with display ads – ads are displayed on your site, but you don’t make ANY money from them if you’re using the free plan. There are options for ad monetization where you share the revenue with WordPress.com
- You cannot use Google Analytics or any other tracking platforms
- You don’t have any additional features to build stores or membership programs on your site
Which Tool is Right for your Blog? Do you choose WordPress.org or WordPress.com?
Now that you know what they are and their pros and cons, let’s take a look at this summary to help you decide how to choose between WordPress.org and WordPress.com
Choose WordPress.org if:
- You want full control over your blog
- You want to build a brand based on your blog and turn it into a business
- You want the option to monetize your blog with display ads
Choose WordPress.com if:
- You don’t need full control over your blog’s appearance and functionality.
- You are not building a brand so you don’t need your own domain and hosting
- You are not planning to monetize your blog with display ads
But what happens if you change your mind? Let’s say you started your blog as a hobby, with no plans to monetize with ads, but changed your mind and would like to earn money this way…
Can you switch your blog from WordPress.com to WordPress.org?
Luckily, you can!
You can start your blog with the WordPress hosted version – WordPress.com and later on, move your site to the self-hosted version – WordPress.org at any time.
You should know that although you can migrate your blog content whenever you want to, transferring your blog is not an easy task.
It’s better to make the right choice from the start so you can save yourself time and potential headaches that come along with migrating your blog from a free site version to a self-hosted one.
Summary on Choosing WordPress.org or WordPress.com
Are you ready now to choose between WordPress.org and WordPress.com?
My personal recommendation is to always choose WordPress.org (if you can afford to pay for the domain and web hosting fees) unless you’re absolutely certain you don’t want to monetize your blog with ads, at least for some time.
Making the domain and web hosting investment that comes along with choosing WordPress.org can give you an added incentive to keep posting on your blog. This will help you build domain authority over time and who knows? You might want to incorporate ads in the future, especially if you’re running a high traffic blog.
f you are serious about blogging as a business and would like to have all of the options available to monetize your blog content (including the ability to monetize your blog with display ads working with ad companies like Mediavine or Monumetric) then WordPress.org is the software to choose!
WordPress.org gives you more freedom and control.
If you found this post useful, please share your thoughts below! Which tool are you currently using – WordPress.org or WordPress.com?
Why did you choose it?