What is WordPress? A Comprehensive Beginners Guide

What is WordPress? You might already know that WordPress is a well-known platform that powers 35% of all websites worldwide. WordPress itself is not a new thing. However, if you are not a blogger or web developer, you might still be wondering what WordPress actually is.

WordPress is a Content Management System (CMS) that allows anyone to create a website easily without requiring coding skills.

In this article, we will help Tonjoo readers understand WordPress inside and out. We will cover everything about WordPress, including:

• Definition and key characteristics
• Types of WordPress
• Functions and benefits
• Advantages and disadvantages

Curious to learn more about WordPress? Keep reading as we break down each of these points, starting with what WordPress is.

What is WordPress? Definition & Key Characteristics

WordPress is a website Content Management System (CMS) developed using PHP as its programming language and MySQL as its database. This CMS is open source and compatible with all types of web hosting.

WordPress was created in 2003 by two developers, Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little. The platform was developed as a replacement for the discontinued b2/cafeblog project.

a. WordPress: Practical, Open Source, and Free

One of the key features of WordPress is that it is open source, free, and user-friendly. Anyone can create and manage a website using WordPress without needing to understand complex programming languages.

Additionally, WordPress is highly flexible and can be modified by anyone. It also offers plugins, which allow users to add extra functionalities to their websites with just one click.

b. WordPress: The Most Popular Website Builder in the World

Thanks to its many advantages, WordPress has become the most widely used website development platform. According to a survey, WordPress powers nearly 35% of all websites on the internet.

Despite being free, WordPress is not a low-quality or inferior platform. In fact, many major businesses and celebrities use WordPress for their websites, including:

• SONY Music
• Mercedes-Benz
• The Walt Disney Company
• The White House
• BBC
• The New York Times
• Bata
• Usain Bolt
• Snoop Dogg
• Rolling Stone
• Hello Health Group

From this list, we can see that WordPress is powerful enough to build high-quality and professional websites. Are you interested in using this CMS? In the next section, we will dive deeper into the different types of WordPress.

What Are the Types of WordPress?

Now that you understand what WordPress is, let’s discuss its types.

Technically, WordPress does not have specific types. However, when searching online, you will come across two different versions of WordPress for website creation: WordPress.com and WordPress.org.

This distinction often confuses many people, especially since each platform serves different purposes and functions. Previously, WordPress used classic editor. Now, WordPress has developed new editor which is Gutenberg or block editor.

So, what are the differences between the two? Let’s take a closer look.

1. WordPress.com: A Web-Hosted Platform

WordPress.com is a free and easy-to-use website creation platform that operates on WordPress’s own hosting service.

This service provides hosting facilities for users, especially those who want a hassle-free website setup. Everything you need—domain, themes, and other essentials—is prepared by the provider.

Since all aspects are managed under WordPress’s server, it is referred to as a Web-Hosted platform. One distinct feature of this service is that your domain name follows the format yourblog.wordpress.com.

2. WordPress.org: A Self-Hosted Platform

WordPress.org offers an open-source and free platform, similar to WordPress.com. However, unlike the hosted version, you need to cover additional costs if you want to develop a website on this platform.

This version is designed for users who want to purchase and manage their own domain and hosting. With WordPress.org, you have full control over your website without relying on WordPress’s hosting services. That’s why it is known as a Self-Hosted WordPress platform.

There are many other differences between these two WordPress versions, including costs, features, management, and even advertising options.

What Are the Functions and Benefits of WordPress?

After understanding what WordPress is and its different types, let’s discuss its functions and benefits.

In its early development around 2003-2004, WordPress was primarily used as a blogging platform for publishing text-based content. However, as technology evolved, so did WordPress, expanding beyond blogging to support various types of websites with different functionalities and purposes.

Here are some types of websites you can create with WordPress:

1. Blog (Personal Website)

The primary function of this CMS platform is to create personal websites or blogs. Whether you use WordPress.com or WordPress.org, setting up a blog is easy and requires no coding skills.

WordPress offers a wide variety of themes, plugins, and features, making it simple to enhance your blog’s appearance and performance.

2. Company Profile Website

WordPress is an excellent choice for company profile websites. As an open-source platform, it allows developers to customize the website freely. This makes WordPress highly recommended for businesses looking to establish an online presence.

3. Corporate Website

Beyond a simple company profile, WordPress can be used to build a fully functional corporate website. Businesses can integrate special features such as administrative systems, financial management tools, and other business applications to streamline operations.

4. Institutional & Organizational Websites

WordPress is also suitable for building websites for institutions or organizations, including schools, universities, government offices, and NGOs.

Apart from serving as an information portal, WordPress-based websites can also function as web-based applications and management systems, helping organizations improve efficiency.

5. Community Websites

Another advantage of WordPress is its ability to create online communities and forums. Whether it’s a discussion forum, membership site, or even a social network, WordPress provides the necessary features to make community engagement seamless.

With its rich feature set, WordPress makes it easy to design an interactive and engaging online community.

6. E-Commerce Website

WordPress enables users to develop online stores and e-commerce platforms. However, this functionality is only available on WordPress.org, as the free version on WordPress.com does not support e-commerce features.

To build an online store, you can install WooCommerce, a powerful plugin designed for e-commerce. This plugin allows you to create a fully functional online store with essential features such as product catalogs, shopping carts, and payment gateways.

With all these capabilities, it’s no surprise that WordPress has become the most popular website-building platform in the world.

Strengths & Weaknesses of WordPress

From the previous discussion, we have learned a lot about WordPress, including its definition, characteristics, types, functions, and benefits. However, you might still be wondering: what are the advantages of WordPress?

Is WordPress recommended? To answer this question, let’s explore the pros and cons of WordPress below.

a. Strengths

As a popular CMS, what makes WordPress stand out? Here are some key advantages:

1. Free of Charge

Everyone knows that building a website with WordPress is free and can be done without spending a dime. Anyone can download and install a WordPress-based website without paying for a license.

Even though it’s free, the available features in WordPress are not low-quality. This CMS provides users with thousands of advanced features, plugins, and attractive themes—all of which can be downloaded for free.

2. User-Friendly (For Beginners & Experts)

One of the unique advantages of WordPress is its user-friendly nature. This platform is among the easiest to use when it comes to building and managing a website.

Anyone can create a website with a single click and manage it without having to learn coding. Whether you’re a beginner or a professional developer, WordPress makes website management easy for all users.

3. Extensive Plugin Options

To enhance its functionality, WordPress offers additional features in the form of plugins. Plugins are scripts designed to simplify website management and improve site functionality.

There are over 150,000 plugins available, serving various purposes. Some of the most popular ones include WooCommerce, SEO Yoast, Jetpack, W3 Total Cache, and Sleeknote.

4. Wide Selection of Themes

Another strength of WordPress is its vast collection of themes, both free and premium. A theme serves as the visual background of a website, playing a crucial role in making a site look attractive.

WordPress offers thousands of themes with varying designs and niches. Additionally, the CMS allows users to customize their website design freely, enabling them to create a unique and personalized site.

5. Large Community Forums

WordPress powers nearly 35% of websites worldwide, making it the most widely used CMS with millions of users. This has led to the formation of numerous community forums across the internet.

With many active forums, users can easily exchange knowledge and insights about WordPress, from feature development to plugin customization and website management. These communities help users—whether beginners or experts—better understand and master WordPress.

6. Abundant Tutorials

Besides online forums, there are also numerous tutorials available for WordPress, ranging from blog articles to video guides on YouTube.

With the wealth of resources available, anyone can quickly learn how to operate WordPress efficiently.

b. Weaknesses

Despite its many advantages, WordPress also has some drawbacks. Here are a few:

1. Third-Party Involvement

WordPress often requires third-party elements when building a website, such as themes and plugins. However, this reliance can sometimes lead to issues, as some third-party features may contain bugs.

To avoid problems, users should carefully select reliable themes and plugins with good ratings and reviews.

2. Security Risks

With over 40 million users, WordPress is a massive platform, making it a target for security threats such as malware, hacking attempts, and DDoS attacks.

However, WordPress provides security solutions to mitigate these risks. Users can install security plugins like Sucuri, Defender, iThemes, or Akismet to enhance website protection.

3. Performance & Speed

WordPress offers a vast selection of plugins, which sometimes leads users to install too many without considering their impact. While plugins add functionality, excessive use can slow down a website.

To maintain optimal performance, users should install only necessary plugins and consider using speed-enhancing plugins like:

• W3 Total Cache
• P3
• WP Rocket
• WP Super Cache

These are the pros and cons of WordPress. What do you think? Does this information help you decide whether WordPress is the right choice for building your website? If you’re still unsure, let’s explore a brief summary in the next section.

WordPress: The Ideal Solution for Website Creation

Despite some drawbacks, WordPress remains one of the best options for building a website. Whether you’re a beginner with no coding knowledge or an experienced developer, WordPress is a top-tier platform.

Creating a website with WordPress is easy, practical, fast, and, most importantly, free. You won’t have to deal with complex installations, and even if you require additional features, the costs are relatively affordable.

However, if you don’t have the time to build and manage your website for business purposes, there’s no need to worry. Tonjoo, a specialist in WordPress solutions, is here to assist you with any website-related challenges.

For the best WordPress website solutions, you can trust Tonjoo for:

• Website Maintenance
• E-commerce Website Development
• Online Store Optimization
• Custom System & Application Development

Conclusion

Now, do you have a clear understanding of what WordPress is? WordPress is a CMS platform designed to make website creation and management simple and accessible.

With this platform, you can build your own website independently. But if you’re still unsure, you can always rely on Tonjoo’s expert team for professional assistance.

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Read related articles about WordPress, WooCommerce, plugins, and other website development topics by Moch. Nasikhun Amin on the Tonjoo’s blog.

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Updated on March 10, 2025 by Moch. Nasikhun Amin