Wordpress vs Custom Website. Which One to Choose?

Hey there! Thus, you have decided that you need a website, but you do not know if you should choose WordPress or hire a custom developer. Oh! But don’t worry you’re not alone, there can be a way to know your unknown number. In this process, we call it reverse number lookup. It is rather a familiar challenge, and let me assist you in finding your way around it. Let me explain both options to you; that way, we can consider both choices and go through the process of elimination. 

Why WordPress is Unlikely to Be Your Worst Enemy

Ease of use

WordPress is like a friend who is always there to support him or her when the friend most needs the support. That is rather easy to use and the operation can be managed with no need for additional programming skills. 

Imagine this: you have a great business plan, a great concept and you’re all set to launch your business online as soon as possible. WordPress allows you to have a functional site either online or hosted within a few hours. This site builder has an easy-to-use dashboard where one can easily upload more pages, posts, and media. 

For those interested in how simple WordPress is, here are the step-by-step instructions on getting started with WordPress. 

But let me not be confined to that. WordPress includes updates for a block editor known as Gutenberg which defines the layout of the content on the site. This means that you get to design the site’s appearance as it is being built which saves guesswork and avoids surprises. This is perhaps a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor where even people with the least knowledge of computers can easily work on it.

 

Themes and Plugins Galore

Another aspect, which can be observed as a boon for WordPress is a vast variety of themes and plugins. While Themes define the interface of your site, that is, the look and feel of your site, Plugins add ‘features’ to your site. 

If you need a professional design for a corporate firm or a childish and playful design for a fun site, there is a theme for that. It has a library of thousands of free and paid themes that you can look at and select from if none of the free ones appeal to you.  

In contrast, plugins are nearly as flexible as you want them to be because they can add almost any feature possible. 

Need a contact form? It is flexible because there is always a plugin for that. Interested in SEO and how you can change your site to meet the requirements of search engines? That one is also well-solved with a plugin. 

Indeed, most likely there is a plugin for any function you can imagine now. Wondering which plugins have to be installed? You can view the list of most used WordPress plugins here.

Moreover, the WordPress community is enormous and very responsive to fellow members’ needs. If you encounter any complications or have some queries, it may not be impossible to meet a fellow with the solution to the problem. 

Step-by-step instructions, forums where people discuss the technology in question, and tutorials and online courses where people learn are not hard to come by meaning that help is never far off. 

 

Cost-Effective

Still being on a tight budget does not have to be a problem, especially if one chooses WordPress. Presently there is an enormous variety of free themes and plugins, and the cost of paid ones is rather reasonable. 

For instance, you can purchase a theme for $60 and this is considered paypal compared to the level of customization as well as support you are going to enjoy. It goes as low as $3 hosting for each month. 95 USD per month and due to this, WordPress is ideal and highly recommended for startups and SMBs. 

It's time to invite in some more specifics regarding the costs. As your virtual assistant, I was able to obtain a basic domain for about $10-$15 on average annually. Occasionally, for web hosting, the cost could be very low, and this is the best chance for marketers to grab it since it is cheap. 

However, they can always change to a more expensive host when their sites are popular. Extra expenses are the themes and plugins of higher quality which are not compulsory but provide more options and assistance. 

To paint the picture even more clearly, this article on ‘How Much Does It Cost to Build a WordPress Site?’ provides more detail concerning the financial aspect of creating a WordPress website.

 

SEO Friendly

Competitor attraction or visibility depends on which we can look at Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and as we know WordPress is SEO enabled. Tools such as Yoast SEO also assist in guiding you when developing your content, meta tags, and keywords for easier indexing by search engines. 

Also, WordPress is based on clean code, and such things as the responsive design of themes also play an important role in SEO. 

 

Community and Support

The community behind WordPress is massive and people are so helpful. For instance, it is possible to get forums, meet-ups, online classes, and tutorials for beginners as well as those who are already developed.

Being an open-source platform, WordPress is developed by a community and hence new updates, improvements, and new features are introduced frequently.

 

When a Custom Website Might Be the Way to Go

Full Control and Flexibility

Understand a custom website as the same as a tailored suit – made especially for you. You can organize and plan everything to the last detail. It must be understood that when you have a particular notion or a requirement to fulfill, a custom website development allows it to be made, sometimes WordPress might not. 

Also, custom websites are developed from scratch, and that raises the point that every idea a person may have about the website’s layout, appearance, and features may be incorporated into its development. 

For instance, if your focus is the close interaction between the user and the content or if your website has some sophisticated functions that cannot be added as the plugins in WordPress, you better turn to a custom website. 

Technology stack selection is one of your defining choices; you can select an option that would fit your specifications and dreams for the future.

 

Scalability

Planning for massive growth? As for different web solutions, as you grow custom websites are usually a better fit from the standpoint of scaling. It means you can create a solid corset that can sustain the growing number of visitors and more script-heavy activities. 

With a custom solution, one can make his website in a position to load faster and at the same time give the users a good experience even with the increased traffic. 

 For example, if you are expecting a large number of visitors or need much-sophisticated database integration, a custom website lets you design for scalability right from the ground up. This guarantees that your site is capable of evolving together with your business without experiencing radical restructuring or redesign. 

 

Unique Branding

Regarding this aspect, one can state that a custom website lets you build a unique brand image if this is an important goal. There are no strict rules on the layout and structure of a website so the result is as distinct as the company.

This is even more relevant for branded objects and for firms that desire to set themselves apart from others in the marketplace. 

In turn, custom design implies the ability to change absolutely everything, from the colors used to the layout and the typography that will match the brand. 

 

The Challenges of Each Option

WordPress Challenges

Yes, WordPress is very easy to use, but all the same, it has its problem areas. In this sense, changes in the domains of the WordPress themes, plugins, or the WordPress core itself can be rather exhausting. 

If updates are not well managed, there are likely to be compatibility problems or even the entire site may end up being non-functional. Furthermore, plugins are numerous, therefore their interference can cause issues with conflicts or sluggishness if properly managed. 

The second drawback of WordPress is related to the same issue; security. Being one of the leaders among CMS platforms, it is often exposed to hacker attacks. Some of these measures include the recommended passwords, always updating, and the recommended use of security plugins. 

Backups are essential also to be in a position to rebuild the site in case something goes wrong. 

 

Custom Website Challenges

Even though custom websites provide the ultimate freedom and the ability to tweak anything to the owner’s liking, they also present some issues. 

First of all the cost facts are to be pointed out. Custom contracts are much more costly than having to use some open platforms like WordPress. There are costs for the setup, the maintenance, and possible later changes or redesign of the website. 

Development time is the third parameter that has to be taken into account. Getting a web from the ground up or a fresh website development process is also time-consuming compared to making a WordPress site. This in turn may compromise your time to market which depending on your business strategy may be very essential. 

Another disadvantage of custom websites is that regular maintenance and updates are also a little more tricky than standard website designs. As compared to WordPress, most custom sites do not have a large community base and are not frequently updated and these two aspects can only be done either by you or you hire the services of a web developer to do so.

 

Making the Decision

So, which is better? That is very much dependent on the kind of use and purpose that the specific software is intended to serve or meet.

WordPress is great with usability, affordability, and getting started. It is ideal for anyone who wants to start, small to medium-sized businesses, bloggers, and just anyone getting online and doesn’t want to spend a lot of money. 

However, having one’s website is very flexible, can be more easily adjusted, and is surely more personal. That makes it suitable for any enterprise that needs a tailor-made image to reflect its needs, for enterprises that are planning vast growth, or for anyone who wants to start building a differentiated image for the new brand. 

WordPress is good to start with if you are still in doubt. It enables one to have a taste of the business without having to deal with a large amount of capital. In this circumstance, you can always upgrade it, once your requirements are great, and you need a unique website for your business.