For more than 22 years, I-ology has been passionately delivering digital transformation initiatives and building web-based digital products that transform. Our digital experience and expertise rivals the nation’s largest consulting firms. More than two decades of experience in the digital space means we’ve learned quite a bit about how to build a powerful website, and how your Content Management System (CMS) of choice can impact your ability to do so.
Umbraco is at the center of our digital ecosystems, both simple and complex, allowing us to offer our clients a user-friendly CMS that is easily scalable and extendable. As a team of digital experts, we at I-ology value the flexibility that Umbraco provides in crafting a custom site.
It is important, however, to weigh the pros and cons of each contender when deciding which platform to use for your particular website. Three of the most notable CMS platforms on the market are Umbraco, WordPress, and Drupal. Whether you’re an agency tasked with creating websites on a regular basis, or a company looking to level-up their digital presence, you may be wondering: which platform is right for me?
The answer to this question is: it depends. Each of these options will require a different set of resources, skills to create & maintain your site, and budget. Below, we break down the major differences between Umbraco, WordPress, and Drupal, to help you better understand each (and why we have a favorite!).
WordPress CMS
WordPress, originally created as a blogging system, is an open-source platform written in PHP that can be considered one of the most widely known CMS. It’s estimated that WordPress powers about 40% of all websites. Why is WordPress such a popular solution? The simple answer is, it’s simple! WordPress relies on templates that help you create a website, and publish content pages, very quickly. Additionally, WordPress is known for the numerous plug-ins available that allow increased functionality and some customization. If the goal is to launch an out-of-the-box website in as little time as possible, WordPress often gets the job done.
Drupal CMS
Drupal, another popular open-source CMS written in PHP, is known for its ability to manage larger amounts of data and more complex content systems. It also allows for greater flexibility in content creation and customization than WordPress. However, the admin side of Drupal is a different experience from WordPress, usually requiring experienced developers to both build the site and modify content.
Umbraco CMS
The most popular CMS built on the .NET framework, Umbraco is an open-source platform that was designed and built as a Content Management System. While WordPress offers an “starter template” to build your website off of, Umbraco is a blank canvas that allows complete flexibility in designing your site. The tools included in the Umbraco framework serve to guide you through this process as you build your ideal CMS and front-end website.
The focus on customization Umbraco provides may be intimidating to website novices, but a unique benefit provided by Umbraco is how it combines the freedom to customize with a user-friendly CMS. Crafting an Umbraco website is often something that will require an experienced designer up-front, particularly in order to benefit from the flexibility of the platform. However, when your custom site is up and running, you’ll find that managing and updating content is quite simple.