The Best Blogging Platforms: A Comprehensive Guide in 2023

Table of Content

1. Introduction
2. Tips to Choose the Best Blogging Platform
3. The Best Blogging Platforms
   • WordPress
   • Squarespace
   • Wix
   • Joomla
   • Blogger
   • Medium
   • Tumblr
   • LinkedIn
   • Drupal
   • Write.as
4. Conclusion
5. FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions

Introduction

Are you considering starting a blog but are unsure which is the best blogging platform you should use? You don’t need to worry about a thing.

You should choose a platform that enables you to easily build up your website without requiring you to know how to code if you are just starting out. It needs to be SEO-friendly, provide numerous customization choices, and be flexible enough to allow for future expansion.

In this article, I will evaluate and contrast the best blogging platforms that meet the requirements. Because it is such a significant choice and there are so many different choices available, making a decision can be challenging.

Let’s get started.

Tips to Choose the Best Blogging Platform

The question of how much does it cost to start a blog is the first consideration for many people. The software used to start a blog can often be downloaded for free. Therefore, it is important to evaluate what plans are offered by each provider and how many tiers are available. Examine their most prominent and distinguishing characteristics next. When comparing add-ons to the features that come standard with a product, pay particular attention to the value that the standard features provide.

Some other tips to help you choose the best blogging platform for your needs:

• Consider your goals: Before choosing a blogging platform, you should consider what you want to accomplish with your blog. Are you looking to monetize your content through advertising or e-commerce? Do you need a platform that’s easy to use and maintain, or are you comfortable with a more advanced platform? Do you want to use your blog primarily for writing or for selling products?
• Analyze the features: Each platform offers different features, so you’ll want to compare them to see which ones best meet your needs. Look for a platform that offers built-in analytics, customization options, and integration with other tools, such as eCommerce platforms, email marketing, and more.
• Look at the design: The design of your blog can have a big impact on your audience, consider platforms that offer a variety of templates and customization options so you can make your blog look as professional as possible. Also, consider the design of the ecommerce features, like checkout and cart.
• Evaluate the cost: Some platforms are free, while others require a monthly or yearly fee. Consider your budget and determine how much you’re willing to spend. In general, you’ll often get more features and support with a paid platform, but free options can be a good starting point.
• User Experience: Evaluate the ease of use, how hard is it to navigate the platform, how fast is the platform, and how well it functions.
• Community support: Research the size and helpfulness of the community behind the platform, as well as the number of tutorials, guides and resources available for the platform, it can be helpful for troubleshooting and for inspiration.
• Check for scalability: Consider if the platform can grow with your needs and if it can handle the traffic increase.
• Look at the integrations: Review which integrations the platform supports. Some platforms allow for easy integration with social media, email marketing tools, analytics platforms, and more, which can save you a lot of time and hassle.

Remember, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to blogging platforms, but evaluating and comparing your options based on the above criteria will help you make an informed decision about which platform is the best for your needs.

The Best Blogging Platforms

Wix or Squarespace is highly recommended  if you are just getting started in this field. Both of these options do not require any prior knowledge of coding, and both offer a drag-and-drop interface that makes it simple to put together a website.

Below, I’ve listed the best of the best blogging platforms to choose from.

1. WordPress

The flexibility and scalability of WordPress are key contributors to the platform’s extensive use. You will have total command over every facet of your blog thanks to this open-source content management system (CMS), which is specifically designed to do so.

Due to the fact that it is open-source, anyone has the ability to design their own WordPress themes or plugins and make them available for other people to install on their websites. As a direct consequence of this, the WordPress plugin library contains close to 60,000 free plugins and an infinite number of premium plugins in addition.

You can extend the functionality of your site and modify it to your liking by using these plugins. For instance, do you want to incorporate a real-time chat box into your blog? There is a plug-in available for that purpose.

Or, perhaps you’d be interested in developing and adding some lead collection forms to assist in expanding your current audience. There is also a plugin available for that purpose.

In addition to its adaptability, WordPress is advantageous for a number of other reasons as well. For instance, because it comes pre-packaged with a plethora of SEO features, it is the greatest option when it comes to SEO.

In addition, you have the option of utilizing plugins such as Yoast in order to assist you in optimizing both the written content and the website itself. This is of the utmost significance if you intend to attract readers to your site through organic search engine results.

Using plugins, maintaining a WordPress blog is much simpler. The vast majority of plugins require zero coding knowledge, as they are accompanied with simple, user-friendly interfaces.

2. Squarespace

For people and organizations who want to create content that is heavy on images, Squarespace is an excellent blogging platform to use. You are able to generate visually appealing and shareable content by utilizing the award-winning designer templates offered by Squarespace in conjunction with integrations with Getty Images, Unsplash, and Google AMP.

To get started, you don’t need any prior experience in design or coding. Choose a website template that has been professionally developed from the wide library that Squarespace provides, add a page for your blog, adjust the design and layout of the template so that it matches your branding and the way that you tell stories, and then begin creating your content.

Each of the templates is highly customizable in a variety of ways. You have access to a plethora of various layout options, color schemes, fonts, and design elements to pick from while creating your website. You can choose to show your blog entries in a variety of ways, such as side-by-side, in a simple grid style, or in a single column, for instance.

Additionally, Squarespace provides you with access to free photographs that are hosted on Unsplash and enables you to modify these images by making use of the in-built photo editing features.

Once you’ve begun the process of creating content, you can begin promoting your blog posts through Squarespace’s integrated suite of powerful SEO tools and tracking your blog traffic through Squarespace’s robust in-built analytics. Both of these features are available once you’ve begun the process of creating content.

3. Wix

Wix gives beginners a way to make their blogs look like they were made by professionals, even if they don’t know anything about coding or web development.

They provide hundreds of templates that may be used for websites that fall into a wide variety of categories. For instance, they offer designs for photographic galleries, straightforward portfolios, and travel blogs. The fact that you do not need any understanding of coding to be able to move things around and construct the blog that you want is one of our favourite features.

Wix provides both live support in the form of a callback service that is available around the clock (if you are located in the United States), as well as an extensive knowledge library filled with articles that can assist beginners when they become stuck.

Wix also excels in security and dependability, as seen by its impressive uptime score and the presence of a team of security professionals that are on the job around the clock to monitor the Wix ecosystem for the presence of potential cyber threats. Because of all this safety, you are able to concentrate solely on producing excellent content for your blog.

Wix is more adaptable than other best website builders; yet, it lacks customization choices and content management features, particularly when compared to WordPress or another CMS. Wix also lacks the ability to import and export HTML and CSS.

4. Joomla

Joomla is an open-source content management system (CMS) that has sophisticated tools for managing both content and users that are incorporated directly into the platform. Because of this, it is an outstanding option for developing community-oriented blogs.

In addition to the comprehensive functionality that is built in, Joomla also offers thousands of extensions. For instance, out of the box, Joomla gives you the ability to publish material in a number of different languages, manage hundreds of users, and build custom post types.

In addition to that, it provides a lot of useful blogging plugins. For example, the drag-and-drop editor that comes included with EasyBlog from StackIdeas is far more aesthetically pleasing than the editor that comes standard with Joomla. With the help of this plugin, you can allow star ratings on your blog as well as automatically publish posts to your various social networking networks.

Joomla does have a higher learning curve than a CMS does due to the rich built-in functionality it provides, and as a result, it will take more time to set up. Additionally, it has a limited number of themes and extensions available, which can restrict the amount of personalization choices you have.

5. Blogger

Blogger has a significant amount of history behind it. Since it was established in 1999, it can be considered one of the early pioneers of online blogging due to the fact that it was first published.

Even though it is not quite as widespread as it once was, Blogger is still widely used as a blogging platform, particularly among enthusiasts. It does not cost anything to use, and getting started won’t take more than a few minutes. Signing up, selecting a format, and getting started writing are the only steps required of you.

Because, much like with other free blogging platforms, you are restricted to a branded subdomain, this platform is not ideal for companies or serious bloggers who wish to host their blog on a website that is branded with their own name. That’s why starting a food blog on this platform is best as a side business.

6. Medium

Medium is frequently considered as the most advantageous blogging platform for authors. It offers businesses the opportunity to create a blog and engage with a wide variety of users who are unique to their sector. On Medium, storytelling has become quite popular, and many companies are taking advantage of this trend in order to grow the readership of their blogs.

This platform for blogging is simple to use and makes it easy to publish information. If you’re just getting started, publishing on Medium can be an effective way to attract readers and followers to your brand-new site.

This blogging platform can also be used as a supplement to a blog on a website; in fact, some companies republish the material of their onsite blogs on this platform without worrying about facing any fines.

Similar to LinkedIn, a Medium blog will not assist you in obtaining the SEO benefits associated with an on-site blog. It also has a big community, which may give more weight to established patterns or long-term members than it does to newcomers. In order to get the benefits of a large community, fashion blogs could be started over this platform.

Even while you can utilize Medium to drive traffic to an internal blog on your website, doing so may put you at danger of having duplicate material on your site if you haven’t properly configured it.

7. Tumblr

Tumblr is a highly visual publishing platform that combines the functionality of blogging and social networking in a single app. Tumblr is a popular platform among personal bloggers as well as brands. Although bloggers might be able to utilize this as their own platform, brands typically use it as just one of several platforms to show off their unique personalities.

Are you thinking about, how to make a website? Without any knowledge of coding, Tumblr provides all of the tools that are needed to develop a website that looks polished and professional. You have access to hundreds of free and paid themes, and you may customize your website with additional features such as numerous pages, sidebars, social sharing buttons, and comment areas.

This is a wonderful tool for engaging people and cultivating an online community because other users can simply like, react, and reblog your content on their Tumblr as well as their other social profiles straight from their dashboard.

You are able to connect with your audience and expand your popularity by making use of the platform’s social networking capabilities, such as the social sharing and reblogging tools. In addition, you are able to produce material on the platform.

8. LinkedIn

When it comes to blogging to increase site traffic and company exposure, LinkedIn is a fantastic platform to utilize. Additionally, it is a useful instrument for the cultivation of thinking leadership. Dialogues regarding your material that help promote growth can be helped along by LinkedIn’s built-in audience, which can also help produce those conversations.

It is also an ideal alternative to complement a blog that is hosted on the site. Keeping a blog on LinkedIn can be a useful tool for developing content that is informative and targeted toward specific types of people. This might help raise awareness of your brand and products inside the industry. Additionally, it can assist in the generation of greater authority for your blog.

You won’t gain the SEO benefits of having an on-site blog because LinkedIn blogs live on their platform. It is also going to be very crucial for you to optimize your blogs so that they may be searched on their platform in addition to search engines. If you don’t make this commitment, it’s possible that only the people who are already connected to you will see the information you create.

Another option like LinkedIn is Facebook. Facebook offers you to post blogs on its platform, read this guide for how to create a blog on Facebook?

9. Drupal

Drupal is a CMS that is extremely customizable and open-source. It is best suited for expert users as well as enterprise enterprises who have complex blogging needs and are seeking for a solution that is self-hosted.

Drupal is pre-packaged with hundreds of different features and modules. Drupal will give you greater power than other open-source systems, provided that you either already know how to use them or have the time to learn how to use them.

To be more specific, Drupal is able to accommodate a broad variety of content kinds, page layouts, blocks, and other elements that are necessary for the creation and management of content. Additionally, it features advanced user rights, which enable you to provide site administrators, content editors, and other stakeholders with individualized access to particular content. You’ll be able to construct and manage large, complicated blogs using this, as well as the platform’s support for several languages, its Layout Builder, and other modules.

If you don’t have the time to understand how to use the out-of-the-box features and modules that come preinstalled with Drupal and you don’t know how to use them, they might be confusing and inhibit your efforts to blog.

10. Write.as

Write.as is a lightweight blogging platform that is perfect for folks who want to create straightforward blogs with a basic layout. Write.as provides users with the opportunity to try writing in a digital journal while using a bare-bones editor that contains nothing more than an auto-save function. 

Because of this, it’s one of the best platforms for blogging available to writers. Write.as does not support advertisements and does not cost anything to use.

It also allows teams to communicate updates, proposals, and works-in-progress in a manner similar to that of Google Docs (for a monthly subscription).

Learning the syntax shouldn’t be too challenging, but getting used to it can take some time. If you would rather build bulleted lists or add hyperlinks by just clicking a button, then you might be better off using a different blogging platform.

Conclusion

Your individual requirements will determine which blogging platform is the best fit for you in the end. I can see how the drag-and-drop blogging tool offered by Wix might be the most convenient option for certain people. However, WordPress provides you with everything you require to make the most of your blogging experience and make it the best it possibly can be.

You’ll be able to find what you’re looking for if you use the list and approach that were just presented to you. 

FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions

1. How does WordPress compare to other blogging platforms?

WordPress is one of the popular and widely-used blogging platforms. It’s free, open-source software that can be used to create a wide variety of websites, including blogs. Some of the key features of WordPress include the ability to easily create and publish content, a wide variety of themes and plugins (which can be used to add additional functionality to a website), and strong community support. But how to choose the best WordPress theme? Is the question for everyone. Go through the guide regarding it: How to Choose the Best WordPress Theme? – The Ultimate Guide

There are many other blogging platforms available, such as Blogger, Tumblr, and Wix. These platforms can be a good option for individuals or small businesses who want to create a simple blog quickly and easily, without needing to have technical knowledge about web development. However, they tend to offer fewer customization options and have less robust feature sets when compared to WordPress.

Additionally, WordPress is generally considered to be more SEO-friendly than other platforms, meaning it may be easier for a WordPress-powered website to rank well in search engines.

Ultimately, the best platform for a particular user will depend on their specific needs and goals. WordPress is a powerful, flexible platform that can be used to create a wide variety of websites, but it may be overkill for some users. Other platforms may be simpler and more user-friendly, but they may also offer fewer options for customization and scalability.

2. Are there any blogging platforms specifically for photographers or visual artists?

Yes, there are several blogging platforms that are specifically geared towards photographers and visual artists. These platforms are designed to make it easy to showcase and sell photographs, artworks and other visual materials.

Some popular options include:

• SmugMug
• Zenfolio
• Squarespace

Additionally, There are many other options that are similar, and new platforms are constantly popping up. It is important to research the different options available, and to carefully consider your specific needs and goals as a photographer or visual artist, as each platform will have its own set of features and capabilities.

Also, There are popular social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok and others, where photographers can share and reach large audiences, but they are not exactly platforms that focus on professional photography.

3. Are there any blogging platforms that integrate well with eCommerce?

Yes, there are several blogging platforms that integrate well with eCommerce, allowing users to easily sell products or services on their website.

Some popular options include:

• WordPress with the WooCommerce plugin
• Shopify
• BigCommerce

Additionally, Squarespace and Weebly also allow users to add ecommerce functionalities and sell products in their platform, and Wix has a separate ecommerce plan. 

Each of these platforms has its own set of features and capabilities, so it’s important to research the different options available and consider which one best fits your specific needs and goals. It is also important to note that most of these platforms offer a variety of paid plans with more features and functionalities, so it is important to choose the right one depending on the size and scale of the ecommerce business.

4. What are some blogging platforms that are great for SEO?

SEO is an important consideration when choosing a blogging platform, as it can have a significant impact on how easily people can find your website in search engines like Google.

Some blogging platforms that are considered to be particularly good for SEO include:

• WordPress
• Ghost
• Joomla

It’s important to note that SEO is not only about the platform, it depends on many other factors such as the quality of your content, your website’s design, the quality of backlinks and technical SEO. These platforms can provide a good foundation for SEO, but they’re not a magic bullet. You’ll also need to put in effort to create high-quality, well-optimized content, and to promote your website through link building and other techniques. Speed up the process of discovering and evaluating potential link-building possibilities using the best link-building tools.

5. Are there any blogging platforms that offer built-in analytics?

Yes, many blogging platforms offer built-in analytics, which can help you track and understand how visitors are interacting with your website. Some popular options include:

• WordPress
• Squarespace
• Wix
• Blogger
• Shopify

Additionally, most of the major blogging platforms, including WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Shopify, offer built-in analytics. So, most likely whatever platform you choose will have analytics capabilities, but the level of detail and accessibility of the data can vary.

Keep in mind that these analytics tools provide only a basic level of data about the traffic and some of them may not be as robust as using Google Analytics, but they can be a good starting point for understanding the performance of your website.

6. Are there any blogging platforms that offer built-in monetization options?

Yes, some blogging platforms offer built-in monetization options, which can make it easier to earn money from your blog or website. Some popular options include:

• WordPress with the AdSense plugin
• Shopify
• Medium
• Substack
• Patreon

It’s important to note that each platform has its own set of rules and requirements for monetizing content. Additionally, the way you want to monetize your website is crucial for your choice of platform. So you should evaluate them based on your monetization strategy and how well they align with your plans.