Blogger and WordPress both are popular blogging platforms today and “Blogspot vs WordPress” in one of the most debated topics in the blogosphere. Before starting the discussion I must mention that both of the platforms are fully different from the view of coding, designing, etc. So I’ll strongly recommend you predetermine the best platform for you before starting a blog. Migration between these platforms is very easy but sometimes it gets messy.
In this post, I’m going to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of both self-hosted WordPress blog and Blogger.com blog.
WordPress:
First its the turn of WordPress. So what does self-hosted WordPress mean? A self-hosted WordPress means that you have to buy a hosting account and domain to start your blog. Well, WordPress has both versions as open-source CMS and pre-installed in WordPress.com. I have not compared Blogger.com with WordPress.com as this version is limited in some aspects.
It’s the most popular CMS in this world and the first choice for most of the pro bloggers. WordPress gained this popularity as other than it can be used to create professional websites also.
Advantages:
One-Click Installation: Most of the hosting companies offer one-click installation of popular CMS like WordPress. Whether your hosting plan is Linux based or Windows this system works in both.
Plugins: Want to add some cool new features to your WordPress blog without getting your hands dirty with coding? Then plugins are the ready-made solution for you. WordPress comes with a huge plugin repository for almost every feature. Installation of plugins is easier than installing a software in your computer Search > Install > Activate.
Designs: There are loads of amazing free and premium themes available out there. Chose your theme according to your taste or the niche if you are blogging as a professional. WordPress itself has a huge collection of free themes from various open-hearted developers.
Customization: Unhappy with the fonts or the design of your blog? Just use the inbuilt editor to customize your blog according to your wish or do some experiments with Google Chrome Developer tools before making changes. But first, take a backup of your blog to avoid troubles. If you know PHP, HTML, and CSS you can easily create your WordPress theme.
Documentation and Support: WordPress is a well documented open source CMS known as Codex. For support purposes, there is a dedicated support forum for themes and plugins with a general forum. Other than official there are some other leading forums dedicated to WordPress.
Full Control: On WordPress, you will get the feeling that your blog is fully yours and you can take regular backups automatically to Dropbox or Google Drive using plugins. You can change the permalink structures with inbuilt options and much more.
Disadvantages:
Hosting & Domains: For starting a self-hosted WordPress blog you have to purchase a hosting plan and a domain and you have to connect hosting names servers with domain to make that website live. There are tons of tutorials available online for WordPress installation but newbies may find them difficult to understand. While purchasing hosting plans quality and pricing are also a factor for newbies.
Security: WordPress is secure but the overall security of a blog completely depends upon the admin. If you have not taken proper security measures your blog can get hacked without your knowledge.
Loading time: The loading time of your blog completely depends upon your hosting and number of plugins you are running on your blog. If you choose the wrong kind of hosting or install too many plugins people will leave before it loads.
Blogspot.com:
Advantages:
It’s Free: Yes you heard it right Blogger is a fully free blogging service by Google Inc. To start a blog on Blogger you just have to sign in with your Google account in Blogspot.com and start your blog. Primarily your blog will have .blogspot.com subdomain. If you want to associate a domain name with your blog, get one from Godaddy.
No Coding Knowledge Needed: As a WordPress user, you may need some knowledge about PHP and SQL databases. But in Blogger you don’t need to study any coding languages as there is no direct involvement.
Security: Blogger.com is owned secured by Google and you can secure your blogs by securing Google account. You can also add a second layer to security by enabling 2-step-verification and keep your blog secure from any unauthorized access.
Easy to Customize: If you want to personalize the look of your blog, you can do it easily in Blogger. There is a template designer on the Blogger dashboard with which you can change fonts, text size, and color, number of widget columns without messing up with codes.
Ready-Made Gadgets: Unlike WordPress, Blogspot comes with ready-made official and 3rd party gadgets to enable features like a subscription box, Google Custom Search box, and others.
Easy Adsense Integration: One of the best things about this platform is Google Adsense Integration as a monetization system. Earlier there was Amazon Associate as well but for some reason, Google discontinued the service.
Documentation and Support: There a huge community of bloggers dedicated to providing free support to newbie available in Google Forums. So, you will never feel alone as a newbie in Blogspot.
Disadvantages:
Comment Section: The default comment form of Blogger is very unprofessional and drives less amount of feedbacks. You can overcome this problem by using any 3rd party comment system like Disqus, IntenseDebate, etc.
Backup is Tough: Backing up your blog is a little bit tough in Blogger. you can easily back up the article by exporting them regularly but the media files are a headache.
Google Term & Policies: In Blogger yo have to follow the Google Terms and Conditions carefully to avoid suspension of your blog. If some unnatural activity observed Google will delete your account without any notifications.
These are some of the advantages and disadvantages of both blogging platforms. Before starting your blog choose the best platform for you and focus on sharing great quality content. If you have any questions and doubts please share that in the comment section.
Hi Arup,
Nice post for newbie bloggers. This will surely helpful to know about the merits and demerits of WordPress and Blogger. For newbies i always prefer blogspot for blogging. By using this free service, they can learn how to blog. Most of the famous indian bloggers like Harsh Agarwal, Harleena Singh, Amit Agarwal, etc are started there blogging with this blogspot. Even me also started from blogger.
All the best for your blogging.
You can say Bloggers is a risk free investment for a newbie. I checked your blog it is new but loaded with useful information.
I guess this is long lasting discussion. Both the platform are awesome for blogging. It depends on your choice and on your needs. My vote goes with WordPress blogging.
The first question in every newbies mind.
very good differentiation between with Blogger and Self Hosted WordPress.