Why WordPress is the #1 Content System for Business Websites
WordPress remains the most widely adopted content system on the web, thanks to its unmatched ecosystem, ownership model, flexibility to operate, and abundance of plugins for extended functionality. WordPress has a 62.8% share of the CMS market and is used by 43.3% of all websites worldwide as of April 2024. Â
In this forwardlooking guide, we cover modern website building approaches, when and why businesses pick WordPress over alternative CMSs and custom builds. The goal is a fair, evidencebased comparison to help technology and marketing leaders make confident platform choices.
Over 478 million websites worldwide use WordPress. WordPress powersthe vast majority of websites.Â
Why do businesses choose WordPress?
- Massive install base means abundant plugins, themes, integrations, and battletested patterns across industries.
- Plugins & integrations: Tens of thousands of extensions cover SEO, CRM, ecommerce, memberships, multilingual, LMS, event ticketing, payments, and more.
- You own your stack: choose any host, export content, version themes/plugins, and avoid SaaS lockin.
- Licensing freedom: No perseat CMS licences. Invest in value (build, content, growth), not platform rent.
- WooCommerce turns WordPress into a fullstack commerce engine, with subscriptions, multicurrency, B2B price lists, warehouses, and marketplace addons.
- Security model focuses on updates, least privilege, and minimal plugin surface area. Managed hosts and security suites automate much of the heavy lifting.
- Lower fixed costs than most proprietary CMSs. You can start small and scale spend with traffic and business value.
Where WordPress is a great fit
- Marketingled business sites: Product/solution pages, gated resources, blogs, SEO content, landing pages.
- Contentheavy orgs: Publishers, universities, NGOs needing flexible editorial workflows.
- Commerce + content: Brands that blend storytelling and transactional experiences.
- Multisite networks: Franchises, multibrand portfolios, internationalisation.Â
| Capability | WordPress | Shopify | Webflow | Squarespace | Drupal | Custom build |
| Primary strength | Generalpurpose CMS + vast ecosystem; own your stack | SaaS ecommerce with superb ops & app store | Visual design control with CMS; hosted | Simple, elegant site builder | Enterprise/structured content, strong taxonomy | Maximum control for complex apps |
| Ownership/Portability | High (open source, any host) | Low–Medium (SaaS) | Low–Medium (SaaS) | Low (SaaS) | High (open source) | Highest |
| Timetomarket | Fast (themes/blocks) | Fast for commerce | Fast for design sites | Fast for simple sites | Medium (steeper learning) | Slow |
| Ecommerce | WooCommerce (highly flexible) | Native bestinclass | Basic (extensions exist) | Basic | Commerce modules exist | Custom |
| Headless option | Strong (REST, GraphQL via plugin) | Strong (Storefront API) | Limited | Limited | Strong | N/A (build your own CMS) |
| Performance | Competitive; hostdependent | Strong CDN/edge by default | Good; designdependent | Good | Strong with tuning | Depends entirely on build |
| Security | Strong core; plugins require governance | Managed by Shopify | Managed by Webflow | Managed by Squarespace | Strong with governance | Your responsibility |
| TCO | LowMedium; scales with needs | Medium (SaaS fees + apps) | Medium | Medium | MediumHigh (specialist devs) | MediumHigh+ |
Takeaway: If you want ownership, flexibility, and a deep ecosystem with the option to go headless later, WordPress wins. If you’re pureplay ecommerce and prefer full SaaS, Shopify is outstanding. For designled, lowcode sites, Webflow/Squarespace are excellent. Drupal shines when complex content models and enterprise governance lead the decision.Â
Snapshot: CMS Market Share (Global)Â
| CMS | % of All Websites | CMS Market Share |
| WordPress | 43–45% | 61–63% |
| Shopify | 4–5% | 6–6.7% |
| Wix | 3–5% | 5–5.4% |
| Squarespace | 2–3% | 3–3.3% |
| Joomla | 1–2% | 2–2.3% |
| Drupal | 1% | 1–1.3% |
Practical guardrails for successful WordPress buildsÂ
- Plugin disciplineÂ
Keep it clean. well maintained, widely used plugins; retire anything unneeded. Consolidate overlapping functionality. - Managed hostingÂ
Use a reputable WordPress optimised host (object caching, PHP workers, CDN, automatic updates, WAF, backups). - Performance budgetÂ
Set CWV/INP targets, image policies, critical CSS, and third party script limits. Test on real devices and throttled mobile. - Security baselineÂ
Least privilege roles, MFA/SSO, automatic core/plugin updates, routine vulnerability scans, and staging roll outs. - Design system + blocksÂ
Adopt a design system and block patterns for consistency and velocity. Avoid one off page builders where possible. - Governed content modelÂ
Define content types, taxonomies, and URL structures early. Use custom fields (ACF/blocks) intentionally. - ObservabilityÂ
Monitor uptime, errors, slow queries, and search/SEO health. Treat it like a product, not a brochure.Â
Looking ahead: WordPress in the next 24 monthsÂ
- Deeper block first ecosystem: More native blocks, pattern libraries, and theme JSON control.Â
- Better performance by default: Continued gains in CWV/INP via core improvements and image/layout tooling.Â
- Headless maturity: Firstclass DX around WPGraphQL, Next.js/Remix starters, and edge rendering patterns.Â
- AIenhanced authoring: Structured AI assistants for outlines, summaries, alttext, translations, and internal linking.Â
- Composable commerce: WooCommerce + headless checkouts; ERP/PIM connectors outofthebox.Â
Conclusion
For most business websites where content, search, and marketing agility are primary—and where ownership matters—WordPress remains the pragmatic, future proof choice. It offers the broadest ecosystem and the most ways to evolve without re-platforming. Choose it deliberately, run it with discipline, and it will scale just right for your business.