About to start voyaging off on an expedition into the seas of eCommerce? Nothing will make for smoother sailing than the right choice of CMS for your website. Although there are options-a-plenty out there, it can be tricky to try and whittle down your options from a good handful to the best one.
We imagine that’s why you’re here; to scope out your options and decide which CMS or website builder is the right one. Magento is very highly regarded, especially in the eCommerce sector, due to its specific eCommerce features. There’s also a lot of favorability towards WordPress due to the vast range of features it provides, which is why we here at Milk & Tweed use it.
So, Magento or WordPress?
Both Magento and WordPress are among some of the top choices when it comes to creating a website fit enough to sail through the sea of sales. Both options have a lot to offer and are used by online retailer giants, such as Lenovo who are fans of WordPress and Nespresso who opt for Magento.
In our fifth instalment of CMS vs CMS, we’ll be watching both of these open-source platforms battle it out against each other to see who will come out victorious. With that being said, bear in mind that each of the factors we compare the two against (cost, ease of use, flexibility and so on) is subjective to your business. Pick wisely!
Magento: Let’s map it out
Magento is one of the top eCommerce platforms on the market. It uses open-source technology to allow businesses to create and manage their online shopping empires. Magento was built in PHP and released in 2008. The platform itself is more geared toward individuals that may have a basic level of understanding of coding and programming. Since being purchased by Adobe in 2018, the builder has seen the release of two different versions: Open Source (free) and Commerce (paid). Magento is designed with eCommerce running through its veins, it’s what the platform was built for. Therefore, it hosts a variety of different eCommerce-specific functionalities and features.
WordPress: We’ve been here before
We’re probably going to start sounding like a broken record here just because of how many times we’ve covered WordPress, but we can’t get enough of it! WordPress, also an open-source CMS, works for individuals of all degrees of technical know-how. It’s been one of the longest-standing competing CMS names out there and certainly a popular choice amongst many businesses (us being one of them). WordPress however, was not built for the specific purpose of eCommerce, but does work marvellously with eCommerce plugins and additional features.
It’s certainly an interesting standoff between the two; on the one hand, you have a platform more adept to techie folk, designed with eCommerce in mind. Whereas, on the other hand, you have a platform that powers almost half of all websites, made with simplicity in mind to help anyone of any level build websites. So why are we even comparing the two if that’s the case? Because it’s not just all about which is best suited for usability, there are other factors we want to run through such as value for money, the features of both, and reviewing the general competency of each for your website’s purpose.
Plus, if you’re looking for a suitable option to choose from because you’re wanting to move away from a current eCommerce platform, you can easily migrate to either of these CMS choices.
Now onto exploring the differences between the two. We’ll compare them across 5 different areas that are crucial to the website development process: ease of use, flexibility, value for money, features, and help & support.
Which is the best?
1. Ease of use
Magento: Magento is tailored towards individuals that have more technical knowledge and advanced levels of web development. Therefore, if you have minimal expertise, you may struggle to set up a Magento site. However, once the setup is complete and the site is live, managing the site becomes easier. From inventory to marketing, everything is listed in the sidebar for easy navigation.
WordPress: We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again. WordPress isn’t the easiest of systems to navigate. However, it was designed to be used by both novices and experts, so it does have some easy-to-use features. Adding plugins doesn’t require any development expertise and its drag and drop system and preview capabilities makes designing the layout of the webpage simple.
Winner: WordPress has taken the biscuit on this one, purely for the fact that it’s easier to set up and manage a website than Magento.
2. Flexibility
Magento: Magento is primarily an eCommerce site CMS, meaning that you are not able to create other web types, such as blogs. However, for companies looking to build an eCommerce site, the plethora of features that Magento holds – such as multi-store management, generating reports and mobile commerce – means that it does offer a high level of customisation.
WordPress: WordPress offers the capability to flexibly create any type of website, from a humble blog to a fully functioning eCommerce site. As we’ve said in previous blogs, with WordPress, if you can dream it, you can do it.
Winner: Due to the flexibility of creating multiple types of sites, WordPress wins again!
3. Value for money
Magento: As Magento is an open-source solution, it can be installed for free. However, hosting, domains and some efficiency-enhancing features will cost you. Because Magento is a fully-fledged eCommerce platform that is tailored towards large-scale businesses, instead of offering reasonable prices for all types of users, it focuses primarily on system improvements and extended functionalities.
WordPress: WordPress also offers a free option and you will need to pay for hosting and domain names with them too. The cheapest WordPress paid plan starts at just £3/ month, and that does include hosting and a domain name. The eCommerce package is the most expensive in the WordPress portfolio, coming in at £36/ month, with integrated payment and shipping options included.
Winner: WordPress wins again!
4. Features
Magento: One of the main reasons that Magento is such a giant within online merchants is its powerful range of built-in features. Being an eCommerce CMS system, Magento has a range of attributes, from inventory management, sales & ads, shipping & tax, reports & analysis to payment gateways. As well as this, its built-in CMS also has excellent features including effective SEO, an abundance of themes and extensions, as well as mobile responsiveness.
WordPress: There are almost 60,000 WordPress plugins that you can choose from, and the basic site dashboard and editor is flexible and feature-rich. WordPress plugins are an excellent way of enhancing the functionality of a website without having to code anything yourself, and the range of different plugins means that the possibilities truly are endless.
Winner: Magento takes the win here!
5. Help and support
Magento: Because Magento is an open-source platform, most of the professional help and support comes from the hosting providers or web developers with technical backgrounds through forums and YouTube videos, rather than from Magento themselves.
WordPress: Similarly, WordPress doesn’t have a dedicated support system. However, as it hosts 43% of the world’s websites, it does benefit from a large community of users that share tips and tricks online.
Winner: For once, it is really close here. Both have a huge community of developers that share their thoughts and guides on forums, blogs and YouTube videos. Just Google your query, and you should find answers about both. So, let’s call it a tie.
Our conclusion
In conclusion, the winner really depends on what you’re after. If you’re primarily after sales, Magento is the best choice. If you want an all singing, all dancing website with marketing features, SEO functionality, blogs, and an eCommerce capability, then WordPress will be your go-to.
If you fancy weighing up the other options against one another, we’ve got a few more guides to help you scope out other options:
Looking for a professionally built website? Look no further! Our fantastic team of web designers and developers will be able to build a beautiful bespoke website that will showcase the best of your business. Check out the websites we have built in the past or contact us to discuss your requirements.
