Blogger vs. WordPress: Which Blogging Platform is Right for You?

Blogger and WordPress are two well-known platforms used to post content online. If you’ve heard of both, maybe you’re wondering which is better suited to your priorities. It’s likely one of the two systems will be a significantly better fit.

Picking the right content management system is vital. And out of all forms of content, blogs still earn the highest return on investment (ROI) of any marketing channel (tied with influencer marketing and social media shopping tools).

This makes blogging a gold mine, but you can only capitalize on that ROI by using a platform that is approachable, includes the tools you need most and caters to your content goals.

This in-depth Blogger vs. WordPress guide will lay out the differences between each platform and describe the similarities they share, providing all the information needed to choose the ideal platform for you.

Blogger vs. WordPress: Introducing each

Before jumping into a detailed comparison, consider a brief overview of each platform.

Blogger explained

Blogger.com is a user-friendly, straightforward, open-source blogging platform that’s been around since 1999. It’s used by less than 1% of all websites, but it’s still a reliable option to easily and speedily start a blog.

Is Blogger a good platform?

Yes, if you’re interested in a free website with a super easy setup, simple (yet elegant) functionalities, straightforward monetization options and basic security.

On the other hand: If you’re interested in growing your business, building an advanced website, implementing a range of features or optimizing your site for SEO, Blogger might not be a good platform for you.

WordPress explained

WordPress is the most popular website platform, used by 43.1% of all websites. There are two versions of WordPress: WordPress.com and WordPress.org.

WordPress.org is an open-source software you can download to build a self-hosted website. That means you’ll need to buy a domain name and a WordPress hosting service like Bluehost. The WordPress.org software supports a ton of features and options to personalize your themes, add-ons, web code and hosting plan.

In contrast, WordPress.com is more comparable to Blogger — it’s free, web-based, comes with a domain name and you can create a website in minutes, albeit with limited customizability.

To be clear, this guide will primarily compare Blogger to the web-based service WordPress.com.

Is WordPress good for blogs?

Yes. WordPress is undoubtedly a reliable, high-quality platform to start a blog with and manage it. If you use WordPress.org or the paid version of WordPress.com, you’ll have access to a practically endless range of functionalities, customization options and SEO tools.

WordPress is a viable option for running virtually any type of website, as the more robust versions give you control over custom add-ons, the code of your website and the server it runs on.

Setup and ease of use

How simple is the setup process for Blogger vs. WordPress, and how user-friendly are the services each one provides?

Blogger

Blogger provides a more effortless out-of-the-box setup, making it an excellent option for beginners who don’t want to build a website with advanced functionality. The simple design and Google integrations make Blogger super easy to use.

To create your blog on Blogger, sign in through your Google account and use the Create New Blog option.

You can then select a display name and pick a title for your blog. Next, choose whether you’ll stick with a free URL within the Blogspot subdomain, buy a domain through Google, or use a custom domain name you own.

Decide which design theme you’ll use. After that, you have the option to add widgets, build pages and alter layouts.

Blogger is part of the Google ecosystem. This means Google handles updates, security patches, hosting and more, making the blog setup and management process less intensive.

WordPress

WordPress requires a bit more effort on the front end. It’s still decidedly user-friendly and you won’t need any coding knowledge — but you’ll have to make more decisions and customize more elements before your WordPress blog is ready.

First, you’ll fill out a signup form and create an account. Next, you’ll enter your goals, select a website name and pick a free domain name, within the WordPress subdomain. The paid version unlocks using a custom domain you own.

Then you can decide on a homepage design and navigate to your dashboard. From the dashboard, you can choose a great theme, build your pages and start customizing each element. Don’t forget to integrate your social media accounts.

While the process is simple, there are more options for you to choose from. For help with these steps, you can reference tutorials from WordPress; use the free webinars, tutorials, courses and other resources.

Design and customization options

How much control will you have over your blog with Blogger vs. WordPress? Which elements can you alter on each platform, and what style options do you have?

Blogger

Blogger is designed for simplicity rather than control; it’s light on customization and flashy style options.

You can choose from a small library of basic templates and change a few elements. There are no built-in premium themes, but you can pay for third-party templates, then import them.

Examples of things you can alter include:

• Color schemes.
• Layouts.
• Backgrounds.
• Fonts.
• Column width.

That being said: If you have some coding experience, you can edit HTML and CSS directly on Blogger. Doing this gives you far more possibilities for personalizing your free blog.

WordPress

WordPress truly shines when it comes to customization. You can choose from over 10,000 looks from the WordPress theme library. Customize those themes to your heart’s desire with the Gutenberg Block Editor — an impressive drag-and-drop page builder that unlocks unlimited variation.

You can only add custom code to the back end of WordPress if you pay for a subscription to WordPress.com or upgrade to WordPress.org.

WordPress is incredibly flexible. It allows you to alter almost any aspect of your website on the front end to match your vision, without coding expertise.

WordPress is incredibly flexible. It allows you to alter almost any aspect of your website on the front end to match your vision, without coding expertise.

Think banner sizes, custom menus and visually appealing widgets — all customized to fit your brand.

Due to the flexibility and range of options this platform offers, there’s a steeper learning curve. So when choosing between Blogger vs. WordPress, consider whether your priority is ease or control of your blog’s design.

Features and functionality

What can you do with each platform? Are one platform’s tools better than the other’s?

Blogger

This platform offers a limited range of features, which you can implement via premade “gadgets.” Think search bars, Google reviews and contact forms.

This works best for basic blogging rather than overall content management, as it offers far less support for alternative types of content. For example, it doesn’t have built-in integration for image galleries or media players, and it disallows mobile photo uploads over 250KB.

Blogger doesn’t support plugins (add-ons that enhance a website).

There’s also no option for self-hosting, so you’re stuck with Google’s hosting services whether you like it or not.

It does, however, present a great analytics system driven by Google Analytics. With this automated data collection framework, you can easily:

• Get real-time reporting on your website’s performance.
• Gain insights on which content increases metrics like engagement, conversions and retention.
• Learn about emerging trends, crucial pattern shifts and future growth opportunities.
• Increase your understanding of how your audience prefers to consume content.

WordPress

WordPress.com offers many features with its free version. Here are some:

• Contact forms.
• Time machine for post edits.
• Spam protection with Akismet.
• Newsletters and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) are built in.
• Visitor statistics via the dashboard.

If you opt for the paid version, the range of available features expands exponentially. For example, you’ll get access to subscription and post-scheduling tools, real-time backups and premium themes.

And if you pay for a business or commerce subscription to WordPress.com, WordPress plugins provide even more features. Some are free and simple add-ons, and others are paid systems that completely alter your website’s design and purpose.

You can create, publish and promote various content types, from slideshows to videos to curated text blocks. Or maybe you want to integrate audio files, build an eCommerce store and start effective email marketing campaigns.

The possibilities really go on and on. This platform’s functionalities are more comprehensive.

SEO and marketing capabilities

How does each platform help you reach an audience? Which aspects of marketing, promotion and search engine optimization (SEO) can be accessed by Blogger vs. WordPress?

Blogger

This blogging platform has standard SEO features but isn’t tailored to help you rank on search engines.

Some of the SEO tweaks it does offer include:

• Permalink customization.
• CSS tag alteration.
• Page element tag personalization.
• Widget tag personalization.

Blogger won’t hold your hand through SEO — if you want to boost your page rank, you’ll need at least a basic knowledge of search engine optimization. If you can code, altering CSS tags will also help optimize your blog.

Blogger does have some helpful marketing capacities. It has built-in media-sharing features. You can add email subscription links and other engagement tools by using gadgets. And Blogger has a direct connection with Google AdSense, so you can earn money from page views.

WordPress

This platform wins when it comes to both on-page and technical SEO. It’s fast and optimized for mobile. Even if you use the free version of WordPress.com, you get SEO-enhancing elements such as:

• Permalink customization, custom titles and descriptions.
• Website verification.
• Streamlined smart URL redirects.
• Automatic social media shares.
• Auto-generated XML sitemaps, which help search engines crawl and index your blog.

With any paid plan, you can download a range of useful plugins that instantly optimize your website. For example: HubSpot’s SEO plugin will boost a blog’s page rank, as will Yoast and MonsterInsights.

Since organic search is by far the most important source of traffic for bloggers, optimizing your blog content is vital.

WordPress.com has a great range of free marketing-oriented features such as: Automatic social promotion tools, contact forms and newsletters.

Security and customer support

How secure are websites on Blogger vs. WordPress? How much customer support will you get while using each platform?

Blogger

With a Blogger site, Google will manage security specs for you. This makes it more reliable and secure than WordPress since Google has very few vulnerabilities.

Google handles updates and fixes bugs for you, leaving fewer opportunities for malware attacks. That being said, you will need to do backups yourself.

You won’t get any one-on-one customer support for your Blogger blog. You can search the Blogger Help Community forums for support, but that’s limited due to the smaller number of Blogger users. You can always do a trusty Google search, which is likely your first instinct anyway.

WordPress

If you use the free version of WordPress.com, the default security specs aren’t as comprehensive as Blogger’s. WordPress will give you a few key protections like brute-force protection and strong encryption. Otherwise, you’ll need to manage security yourself.

If you pay for a business or commerce account, you can access real-time backups and add a vast range of security-oriented plugins that level the playing field.

Customer support isn’t provided with the free version. On the other hand, WordPress has a massive community of users who create webinars, forums and tutorials. These valuable resources will help you enhance website security, fix errors and handle most changes you’ll ever make.

Pricing and monetization

Both platforms are free to start, but what will your actual costs be if you opt for Blogger vs. WordPress?

Blogger

Blogger gives you everything it has, completely free. There are no hidden costs. It also offers a free custom domain name if you’re okay with the URL ending in .blogspot.com. And because it’s part of Google’s framework, hosting, security and analytics come free of charge.

Additionally, Blogger offers a quick route to monetization. It’s easy to integrate Google AdSense, which puts ads on your pages and automatically handles which ones show. Then you get paid. Even if you’re a beginner to monetizing your blog, you can certainly do it with Blogger.

WordPress

WordPress.com is free, unless you upgrade to a paid version. If you pay annually, plans start from:

• $4 per month for personal.
• $8 per month for premium.
• $25 per month for business.
• $45 per month for commerce.

Free hosting is included in all plans, and your custom domain will be free for the first year if you pay annually or biannually.

While WordPress doesn’t immediately integrate with a monetization platform, it can be easily monetized with the right approaches.

With paid versions, you can sell branded products, make your blog subscription-based, require payment for certain content, start an affiliate program or offer sponsored posts. You also have the option to apply for WordAds, WordPress’s version of AdSense.

Blogger vs. WordPress: Which platform is right for you?

The best blogging platform for you depends on your needs.

Choose Blogger if you:

• Want your blog launched and monetized with unrivaled speed.
• Prioritize simplicity and ease of use above all else.
• Prefer using HTML and CSS to personalize your website.
• Plan to alter only basic SEO elements.

Choose WordPress if you:

• Plan on expanding your business, your audience and your services.
• Want a rich set of features and don’t mind the subscription prices.
• Prioritize control over your blog.
• Enjoy customizing webpages to the maximum.
• Intend on boosting SEO for your website.

Final thoughts: Blogger vs. WordPress

The Blogger vs. WordPress debate is tricky because both are free, simple, customizable and monetizable. But when you get into the details, the differences become clear.

If you want the easiest setup, a simple blog and you have some coding knowledge, then Blogger might be the best fit.

But if you’re seeking more customizable elements, expansion tools and SEO features — and you want to alter your website from the front end — you should go with WordPress.

WordPress.com is great for starters, but WordPress.org offers far more functionalities and designs. It also gives you total control over your website — making it the optimal choice for anyone wanting to get the maximum ROI from their blog.

If you decide that WordPress.org is perfect for you, the next step is getting top-notch WordPress hosting services through Bluehost. Our team of experts is available 24/7/365 to answer questions and provide support as you navigate growing your blog.

Blogger vs. WordPress FAQs