I know many are confused about this and I used to be like you. What is the difference between WordPress.Org and Wordpess.Com
I mean they are both named WordPress right?
The short answer is WordPress.ORG is self hosted and WordPress.COM is hosted on …well.. WordPress.COM
I know it’s confusing and I’ll try to explain as simple as I can so by the end of this very short post you will be able to tell the difference between these two platforms.
Let’s start with WordPress.org
WordPress.org is a website where you go and download a zip file, the wordpress application.
Then you need to buy a domain name and a hosting package. Your domain name is www.yourname.com and your hosting package is a space where you will be hosting your website and all its files.
The next step is to take the files you downloaded from WordPress.org, upload them to your server and go through a short installation which will lead to a brand new and clean WordPress website.
Some hosting services offer that inside their control panel which means you don’t need to download anything yourself. Just click on the WordPress logo in your control panel and it will install it itself.
And this is what a WordPress website is all about. Your only expenses are a domain name and a hosting package. The actual WordPress files are distributed for free.
What is WordPress.COM ?
In WordPress.com you don’t need to download anything or buy a hosting package or even a domain name (more on that in a while). All you need to do is open your browser, type in WordPress.com, create a new account, select a name for your site and that’s it.
You don’t need to worry about servers and downloading/uploading anything. Everything is already set up and all you need to think is adding content to your website.
The interfaces in both platforms are almost identical. One difference is that on wordpress.com, once you login you don’t see your dashboard but instead you see your reader feed, which is posts from other blogs that you follow as this is a feature of the .com version. It has a community and this is a way to share and read other people’s content. If you want to know how to reach your dashboard in wordpress.com see this extremely short tutorial.
So basically the main differences are:
.Org (self hosted)
Need: domain name, Hosting package, WordPress files
.Com (hosted on wordpress.com)
Need: a browser, domain name (optional).
I say optional because you can have everything for free but your website will have a domain name like this:
yourname.wordpress.com but you can purchase your own domain name, connect it and use on your wordpress.com. Additionally .com offers – if needed – extra features for a monthly fee.
Both platforms have their advantages and disadvantages. This website here is a self hosted wordpress.org site but I have worked with wordpress.com ones as well.
I love both.
It’s a matter of personal preferences and what you actual need.
If you have questions I’ll be more than happy to answer them so make sure you leave them in the comments 🙂
And if you are using WordPress.com I would appreciate if you could answer these following questions- Thank you so much in advance!
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