What is WordPress?

WordPress is a content management system (CMS): software that stores your content in a database and lets you build, edit, and publish a website from a dashboard instead of hand-coding every page. The name covers two platforms that people often confuse, so that's the place to start.

WordPress.org vs. WordPress.com

They aren't two versions of the software; both run the same WordPress. WordPress.org distributes the free, open-source software that you install on web hosting you control. WordPress.com is a commercial hosted service built on that same software, with a free tier and paid plans. On its own, the term "WordPress" usually refers to WordPress.org.

The short decision rule:

• Choose WordPress.org when you want full control of your files and data, any theme or plugin you like, and hosting you pick yourself.
• Choose WordPress.com when you want a hosted start with updates and maintenance handled for you. Installing plugins and custom themes there requires a paid plan; the free plan limits you to the built-in theme options.

For the full breakdown, read our guide to the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org.

How popular WordPress is

WordPress runs 41.2% of all websites, which is 59.1% of the websites whose CMS can be identified, according to W3Techs' daily survey (August 7, 2026). That popularity is self-reinforcing: it's why so many themes, plugins, tutorials, and hosting plans exist for WordPress specifically.

The scale covers every kind of site. W3Techs' examples include Microsoft.com, Mozilla.org, and Walmart.com, each running WordPress on a subdomain, alongside blogs, portfolios, business sites, and the online stores built on WooCommerce, the e-commerce plugin used by 19.8% of WordPress sites (W3Techs, August 2026).

How WordPress works

WordPress is written in PHP and stores your content in a MySQL or MariaDB database. You install it on a web server, log in to the wp-admin dashboard, and create pages and posts in the block editor, known as Gutenberg. Themes control how the site looks; plugins add features.

You rarely have to build either from scratch. The official WordPress.org directories list over 69,000 free plugins and more than 15,000 free themes (as of August 2026), most of them built by the community, to change how your website looks and functions.

Open source in practice

WordPress is open-source software licensed under the GPL (v2 or later), meaning anyone is free to use, study, modify, and redistribute its source code. That freedom is why thousands of developers, designers, and content creators contribute improvements to the platform.

For a site owner, the practical benefits split in two. The license grants rights, not a price tag. GPL-covered software can legally be sold; WordPress costs nothing because WordPress.org distributes the source code for free. Self-hosting is what adds control: you manage your own installation and the original content you create, while third-party themes, plugins, and media keep their own licenses. You can also move the site to any host that meets WordPress's current server requirements, including compatible PHP and MySQL or MariaDB versions.

The trade-offs

With self-hosted WordPress, maintenance is yours: core, theme, and plugin updates, backups, and security all fall to you. The risk to watch is vulnerable or abandoned plugins, since an extension that no longer gets updates can leave a known hole in your site. Managed WordPress hosting shifts much of that work to the host: plans commonly handle core updates, backups, and malware scanning, but coverage varies, so check what yours includes for plugin updates, malware cleanup, and restore limits.

WordPress also isn't always the right tool. A one-page site that rarely changes doesn't need a CMS, a database, and a plugin stack. A static page loads faster and has nothing to patch.

Getting started

The fastest route is a hosting plan that installs WordPress for you. You can also install it manually on any server that meets the requirements: our manual WordPress installation guide covers that step by step, and our beginner's guide to WordPress walks through what to do once it's running.