10 Best Web Content Management Systems for 2022(Free and Paid)
You want to update your website in something that is easy for even a beginner to use, and these great PHP-based CMS platforms are simple to use.
When it comes to finding the right CMS for your site, your needs should come first. Make sure you choose a CMS best suited to what you want it to do. Here are our top 10 picks.
So how do you know if a CMS is right for your website? These are the key features to consider when choosing a CMS.
What Makes A Great CMS For Your Project?
You want to stand out for all the right reasons – with an on-brand site that shows off your business to its full potential. Look for lots of customizable templates and themes or look for a platform that makes it easy to design a website from scratch.
If you’re just looking for a simple CMS, make sure the process is intuitive and easy to use. No coding needed! Block systems and drag & drop editors make it easier to manage content and the whole team.
CMS security is always a hot button topic, especially with tech companies. You should choose the CMS that meets your needs and has the best security strategy. You also want to be sure your chosen vendor keeps their customer service team happy; if you run into any issues, they will solve them for you as soon as possible.
Integrations: Take the hassle out of managing your blog by making sure it integrates with your other applications. Find all the software and systems your business depends on and make sure it’s compatible with these for even easier postings.
Top 10 Best Website Management System in 2022
Now that you know how to evaluate a CMS, here are the 10 best options for you.
1. WordPress
If you’re familiar with WordPress, then it is likely that nearly half of websites on the internet are powered by this CMS. It was published in 2013 and has powered nearly half of all sites ever since.
With its easy-to-use editor, which is intuitive enough for beginners to get up and running. With drag-and-drop options, you can create a website from scratch on their own—you don’t need technical coding skills or a pro to do so.
As one of the most popular CMS’ around, WordPress has a variety of themes and comes with plenty of features to create any type of website you need.
WordPress is easily set up to help your site rank better on search engine pages. It’s a cinch to create URLs, tags and categories as well as install plugins like RankMath that make sure your content is well optimized for SEO.
The WordPress platform is offered for free but things such as a domain name ($9 – $15/year) and web hosting access will cost you around $7.99/month.
2. HubSpot
BigCommerce, a fully integrated platform, is available. In order to gain an all-in-one solution, HubSpot has marketing automation and advertising tools, along with other tools like service and sales to help business owners run their shop.
This easy to use website builder is an all-in-one solution that takes care of every possible editing task, including SEO. It incorporates a drag-and-drop editor and contact attribution, making it user-friendly for new web developers.
With solid contact attribution, you can track content types, sources, and campaigns that lead to more leads. The new web analytic tool helps you accurately measure ROI and increase yours by remaining up to date with trends.
HubSpot provides adaptive testing to constantly optimize your website. You can choose up to 5 variations of a web page, including different layouts and views, and HubSpot will track and serve up the optimal option.
HubSpot has a built-in interface for email marketing and sales, making it easy to send newsletters, track ads, and store customer data.
The one major restriction worth considering is that HubSpot isn’t viable for ecommerce websites. However, it integrates with WooCommerce and WordPress.
The Basic plan, which costs $45/month, removes the HubSpot branding, and is recommended for businesses with up to 1,000 contacts. The Professional plan costs $800/month and supports more integrations and reports. Finally, the Enterprise Plan is recommended for businesses that break 10,000 contacts.
3. Wix
The intuitive drag-and-drop editor makes it easy to create customized web pages in seconds. With the click of a button, you can select any part of the page and start editing.
There are also 500+ website templates to choose from, giving you a chance to create a sleek and professional design right out of the gate. New templates are fully responsive, so they look great on both mobile and desktop.
With the Wix app market, you can integrate lots of apps for your website to give it new capabilities. For instance, there is the integration with Privy for email marketing, pop-ups and SMS automation. There is also the Simple Affiliate app for charities and influencers to make collaborations easier.
Most companies find the Wix website editor to be frustrating for complicated designs. This is because once users choose a layout and design, they cannot change it up if it isn’t working for their business or website content.
A simple, easy to use website builder, it doesn’t have the breadth of features like other websites such as WordPress or WooCommerce. However, if you only want to display a simple online portfolio, Wix could be a good choice for that.
If you want to build a more complex blog site with multiple navigations, then probably another type of CMS will be better suited to your needs.
If you do not mind Wix-branded websites and ad revenue, the company is free to join. The price plans range from $14/month for a Wix-branded domain with ads removed to $18/month for an unlimited plan that includes marketing resources and integrations.
4. Shopify
Shopify is a web hosting platform for retailers who want to open an online shop. This CMS is easy to use, even for those with little-to-no experience. If you are looking for a CMS with a straightforward interface, Shopify can be your go-to app.
Unlike other platforms, you don’t need to install any software, handle updates or backups or put a locked-in contract on hosting with Shopify. They handle all of these elements for you so you won’t have a headache.
Shopify has a broad range of templates to give you inspiration for your brand, from coffee shops to rug stores.
With the flexibility to link from your store, you can also add email marketing, conversion optimization, and payment tools. These apps are also simple for Shopify users to connect with as there is a free Zapier integration.
Shopify allows for the acceptance of credit and debit cards. You can also accept PayPal payments as one of their default providers. One of Shopify’s better features is that there are in-store capabilities, which means you can offer your clients the ability to purchase items at your physical location.
However, the one downside is that your costs, like in this case with Shopify’s extra fees, could end up quite high.
5. TYPO3
TYPO3 is a free open-source content management system with multiple customizable features. It’s best to use an advanced programmer, or someone with a lot of time in programming, because it is a bit harder to learn than WordPress. However, what sets it apart from other CASes are its expansive functionalities for programmers who are looking for a complete website built in one application.
As an enterprise CMS, it’s useful for intranet sites as well as sites outside of a company where content is consistent and important.
You can add over 6,000 applications and extensions to your site. There are no templates pre-built for WordPress, so you will need to hire a programmer if you want it changed.
TYPO3 has language management, enabling you to build a website in multiple languages in just one installation.
With the ability to automatically produce new content, your authors will be freed up to focus on business strategy and other important aspects of the role. Smart content management provides marketing solutions.
You get the benefit of a global team of coders on your side with TYPO3. As long as you download the software, you have access to an entire help staff ready to answer your questions about using the software.
6. Other CSS editor options
Webflow is a customizable, no-code CMS platform. It has templates to start out with but also allows you to choose to interface your code so it looks like HTML or code specific for models like sliders, tabs, and backgrounds.
The Webflow editor is easy to use and has a modern design— even if the appearance of WordPress can be messy.
Webflow handles all the complicated functionality of site optimization. From meta descriptions to URLs, to Open Graph Settings, Webflow helps you optimize your site with ease.
How collaboration tools make it easy to track who’s working on what.
Copymatic offers plans for content creators to start building their website with less effort. The Basic plan is $15/month and is best for a simple site that doesn’t need a CMS. The fee of the CMS plan is best for blogs or other content-focused sites. For a higher traffic marketing site or blog, you can try the Business plan at $45/month.
7. Joomla
Joomla is an open-source platform that professional organizations can use for customization, extensions, and a domain name. As with most open-source platforms, you will need to purchase hosting.
With a strong variety of templates and extensions for beginner, intermediate, and advanced users, Joomla is one of the best CMS platforms for the job. The Joomla software is also user-friendly, even if you don’t have technical skills. With these features, Joomla is perfect for building your own store or creating a site that reflects your needs.
Pricing: Free, but you need to purchase a domain name and web hosting that supports Joomla for proper functionality.
8. Drupal
Another top option for developing a website is Drupal, the open-source CMS. With plenty of customizable templates available, it’s great for building sites that need to handle a lot of data.
You can modify your site to create a unique experience with modules like plugins.
If you want to customize your website according to different segments of the market, Drupal is a top choice. Using this CMS allows you to view geolocation, browser history and device use data to learn more about who they are and what they need.
With a large global community, Drupal is constantly being strengthened by competitive publishing and security standards. Being a reliable CMS platform, Drupal has strict moderation standards for each editor who aims to contribute.
Free. You’ll need to purchase a domain name and hosting that supports Drupal as well.
9. Adobe Commerce
Adobe Commerce is a powerful open-source ecommerce CMS platform
The easy-to-use content editor allows you to create personal blogs and experiences that are responsive and geared towards the consumer. Quickly customize your user experience by choosing from thousands of extensions available in the Google Merchant Center.
With a built-in payment gateway, your website can grow and keep pace with traffic with lots of options to choose from, like PayPal, Stripe and cash on delivery. Adobe Commerce offers customizable pricing and personalization based on user activity that allows you to closely monitor revenue.
With the ability to track business metrics and visualizing your data, you’re able to easily define your success metrics with eye-catching visuals.
Pricing: Free open source software with no plans or options. However, if you’re willing to pay for the platform and have access to assistance, it is worth noting that Adobe Commerce is pricier. Plans reportedly start at around $2000/month.
10. Storyblok
wOf the CMSs around, Storyblok is one of the most popular. A headless CMS, like Storyblok, means you manage all your content on the backend only, which makes it versatile and ideal for use as a website or app.
Content Blocks allow content creators to create reusable features such as features sections, grids, and teasers. The easy-to-use templates save time and effort while also becoming part of their brand.
To be able to control a content workflow and limit the surprise of when you publish your blog posts, Storyblok has a series of stages where you define what gets stylized and published. These stages help reduce any last minute surprises about how your blog post looks until you are ready to submit it.
Storyblok also transforms, optimizes and caches your images with a CDN, on faster sites and apps.
