In recent times website creation has become much easier. But due to the large number of options available, it may not be easy to choose among the best content management system.
In this article will help you to choose. We’ll break down everything you have to look for in the best CMS, and we’ll introduce you to eight of the top options below
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A Content Management System (CMS) is a web application that helps you to publish and manage the your content. For example, about 30% of the entire web is powered by WordPress.
However, before that, let’s talk about the features that you should consider when choosing a CMS for your website.
What characteristics should the best CMS have By now, you should already have a solid idea of what CMS are in theory. At this point, let’s talk about some of the specific features they might offer. The best CMS should provide:
A way to easily publish new fresh content. Any quality CMS will include a powerful editor and many options to ensure your content looks top-notch. Content taxonomy options. The more content your website has, the more important it is to keep everything organized. That is why a CMS should allow you to create categories, assign tags to your articles, etc. Page editing functionality.
In addition to posting content, you will need to create various types of pages for your website. Your CMS should provide you with the tools you will need to get the job done. A high level of customization. In our experience, the best Content Management System are highly customizable. That means they allow you to add almost any functionality you want, which in turn allows you to create more advanced websites.
A strong community. CMS with active communities are in constant development, so you will always have access to updates, security patches, and help from other knowledgeable people. These are five main features that you should expect to see in any CMS worth your salt. Other than that, most of the best CMS vary greatly in terms of the functions and types of projects they are suitable for.
In the rest of this article, we’ll take a look at some of our favorite CMS platforms. We’ll take a look at what makes them unique, explore their pros and cons, and help you choose the best CMS for your site.
8 of the best Content Management System options for 2021 There is a great variety among the CMS options that we have selected here for you. But they all have one thing in common: they are all open source and available for 1-click install from Hostinger. That means you won’t have to spend a penny to download and test each one. Find the best CMS with all-in-one web hosting plans .
Here is the list of the best free CMS available in 2021 sorted by popularity and features:
We’re sure you’ve probably heard of WordPress . This Content Management System has the largest market share among its competitors so far, and it’s easy to see why.
Although WordPress was conceived as a blogging platform , it grew well beyond that niche. The platform is easy to use , and you can customize it in great detail using plugins and themes (of which you have thousands to choose from).
pages is simple, and you have access to a powerful editor that allows you to format your content. In addition, the platform also supports user registration, has regular updates, and has a large and helpful community.
Includes intuitive posts and content management options. Provides a powerful editor that allows you to format your content with ease. It is highly customizable, thanks to the thousands of plugins and themes. It has a strong and very active community.
The only downside to WordPress is that sometimes you will have to combine many plugins to add the precise functionality your site needs. There are also other Content Management System options that offer a more streamlined blog experience, though they can’t match WordPress’s level of customization.
When people debate which Content Management System is the best, Joomla! It is one of the names that you hear most often in conjunction with WordPress. The general consensus is that while Joomla may not be as beginner-friendly as WordPress, it can be more flexible in some respects.
For example, Joomla is a great option if you need to manage a lot of ‘custom post types’. That is, it is ideal if you want to run a website that is not heavily based on text content. The platform also offers many more options when it comes to user management. This makes it a fantastic option for membership-based sites, for example.
Besides that, Joomla also includes out-of-the-box multilingual support. That means you don’t have to use plugins or extensions to add more languages to your site. Finally, Joomla also allows you to use multiple templates or themes at the same time, for different types of content.
Offers excellent support for custom post types. Provides advanced user management options. Includes ready-to-use multilingual support. Supports the use of unique templates for each type of page. On paper, Joomla sounds amazing, and it is a strong option. But it is not as beginner friendly as WordPress, so it may take you longer to learn how to create a website using this CMS.
It also doesn’t offer as many extensions or templates as some of its competitors. That’s not necessarily a reason to rule it out, but it does mean that there are some features you may have to apply manually, making this a good option for those who have some web development experience.
Drupal is another name that carries a lot of weight in discussions of the best open source CMS. While it lags behind WordPress and Joomla in market share, that doesn’t make it any less notable.
In practice, Drupal shines in many of the same areas as Joomla. For example, it offers a very flexible system for dealing with custom post types. It also gives you a high degree of control over your users and their permissions, and it can even handle multilingual sites out of the box.
However, there are other areas where Drupal has no equal. Its taxonomy system, for example, is much more powerful than its competitors. Also, Drupal is considered a more secure platform than WordPress and Joomla.
It offers a flexible system of administration and creation of personalized publications. Provides advanced user management and permission settings. Includes support for multilingual sites out of the box. It has a detailed taxonomy system. It has top-notch security for your website. You can build almost any type of website you want using the ‘big three’ CMS platforms, which include WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal. However, Drupal is renowned for its scalability and security, which often makes it a better choice for business and commercial sites.
However, it has a steep learning curve. In most cases, we don’t recommend using Drupal unless you have web development experience. Although if you are comfortable with development, this is one of the best CMS options available today.
We are now venturing into the realm of lesser known CMS platforms. But that doesn’t make these options any less valuable. It just means that they have more specific use cases.
Take Typo3, for example. This is a CMS with scalability as its strong point, and it serves enterprise-grade websites. For example, if you want to use a CMS to build an intranet, Typo3 would be an excellent option.
When talking about ease of use, on the other hand, Typo3 isn’t usually the first choice. In our experience, this CMS is best suited for users who have some experience when it comes to web development, and it is not ideal for small, simple websites.
Either way, Typo3 includes a lot of great features, like multilingual support. It also allows you to run multiple sites from a single installation, which can save you a lot of work.
recommend using Typo3 if you need to manage multiple sites that are under the same umbrella. With this CMS, you can share templates, extensions, and even users between your sites, which is something that most other platforms don’t support.
Unlike our previous option, Serendipity is an easy-to-use CMS perfect for small blogs. In our experience, it is one of the lightest CMS you can find.
But that’s not to say that it lacks features. Instead, it offers excellent performance for most websites due to its built-in dynamic cache settings.
When it comes to functionality, you can extend what the platform can achieve by using themes and plugins. Additionally, you can search for specific front-end or back-end plugins, which makes finding the tools you want simpler.
It is perfect for performance-oriented websites. Provides access to a large selection of themes and plugins to help you customize your website. Overall, Serendipity is a perfect option for small websites. It also makes simple and elegant blogging a piece of cake.
However, it lacks a bit of power if you are interested in more ambitious projects. Personally, we would recommend it if you are looking for something that is not as complex as WordPress or Joomla, and is very quick to learn.
Dotclear is another great CMS option if you are looking for a hassle-free blogging experience. Among all the CMS we have tested, few are as easy to use as Dotclear. Despite that, the platform presents an editing experience that is very similar to what WordPress offers.
With Dotclear, you get access to a robust set of publishing, management, and taxonomy options. The platform allows you to write your posts in plain text, HTML, and even Wiki syntax.
In addition to those basic features, Dotclear also allows you to generate RSS feeds. Also, you can add new functionality to your site using plugins and themes.
It is very easy to use and configure. Supports plain text, HTML, and wiki syntax. It allows you to easily generate an RSS feed for your site. Ultimately, we would place Dotclear in the same category as Serendipity. It is one of the best CMS that you can go for if you want a simple blog experience. Plus, they both include all the options you’ll need to start a successful project. The final choice will be due to personal preferences.
Moving on, ImpressPages is a little known CMS. However, it does provide one of the best blogging experiences we’ve seen so far. Its editor is clean and has a modern interface. Also, it allows you to add some elements that other CMS don’t have, at least without extensions, like maps and forms.
Leaving aside the blog and the edition, this CMS stands out for its design. Your desktop has a modern look, is easy to use, and offers many options for customizing the pages and functionality of your site.
ImpressPages is an excellent option if you are looking for a CMS with an interface that does not seem stagnant in the last decade. It also includes an intuitive drag-and-drop builder out of the box, so creating the pages you need is simple. Besides that, you can customize the CMS using plugins and themes.
Despite its many advantages, ImpressPages cannot compete with WordPress when it comes to the large number of extensions. That means that creating a website with custom functions can sometimes be more difficult.
It offers a simple and modern interface that is easy to use. Includes a powerful editor with advanced functionality. It allows you to easily create content using a drag and drop page builder. Provides access to a good selection of plugins and themes. In our opinion, this little-known platform is the best CMS to use if you want to create simple landing pages or if you value ease of use very much.
Finally, let’s look at Chamilo. This platform is different from all the others that we have seen so far because it is geared towards a particular type of website: learning platforms. In fact, Chamilo is what is called a Learning Management System ( LMS-Learning Management System ), which is a specific type of CMS.
With Chamilo, you can create online courses that range from simple to highly complex. Your classes can include text, media, and multiple-choice questions, and you can even set up assignments. If you are looking for a CMS that allows you to assign tasks, look no further.
Comparing Chamilo to the other CMS options we’ve reviewed so far wouldn’t make much sense as this one has a completely unique use case. However, suffice it to say that Chamilo stands out for ease of use. It’s a great option if you need a platform that can handle multiple teachers, and it provides you with the tools you’ll need to create great online lessons.
It offers a powerful platform for creating online courses. Allow multiple teachers to work together. Create quizzes, conditional questions, assignments, and other learning materials. The only drawback with Chamilo is that the development of the platform is not as active as with the other CMS options that we have seen so far. However, there is a strong community of Spanish and English users for this LMS, in case you need help getting started.
Choosing which CMS to use is as personal a decision as choosing an Operating System. All the best CMS have their supporters and detractors, but it’s best not to make a decision lightly. Personally, we are supporters of WordPress due to its ease of use and high level of customization. But you might think differently, so we recommend trying more than one CMS before deciding on a favorite.
Also Read : How We Work In Web Project Management
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