Debunking the Most Common WordPress Myths and Misconceptions

But hardly any business has the time to sift through multiple websites to find accurate information. This concise guide will help you make the right decisions for your website and eliminate all the doubts about WordPress.

12 Common WordPress Myths

As the fastest-growing CMS in the past ten years, WordPress powers over 43 percent of websites. Yet, both existing and new users may believe at least one rumor they have heard. However, you can only get the best out of WordPress if you know its characteristics and possibilities. The following are WordPress myths and misconceptions, even though you may think otherwise.

Myth 1: WordPress is Only for Blogs

Although WordPress was initially a blogging platform, it has evolved far beyond its origins. At 21 years old, this CMS continuously expands and embraces new features and plugins.

It’s versatile and flexible, allowing you to build different websites instead of just blogs. WordPress is an advanced website builder with various themes and customization options you can leverage to create a site matching your unique criteria. From robust eCommerce to complex membership websites, the internet is your oyster with this CMS.

It meets the needs of both small businesses and large corporations due to its scalability. Custom post types and fields allow for managing diverse content, from portfolios to job listings.

WordPress supports multimedia content, SEO optimization, and integration with various third-party services, making it suitable for virtually any web project. Ultimately, WordPress stands as the best CMS for a business website.

Are you still unsure about what else you can do with this CMS? You can build any of the following (and more) websites using WordPress:

• eCommerce stores
• Portfolios
• Online communities and forums
• Membership sites
• Educational websites and e-learning platforms
• News and magazine sites
• Nonprofit and charity websites
• Government and municipal websites
• Real estate listings
• Job boards
• Social networks
• Online directories

Myth 2: WordPress is Free, So It’s Low Quality

WordPress is proof that free things don’t necessarily exclude quality. It has solid development and extensive capabilities that are more than enough for a reliable website. A large community of skilled contributors is responsible for the core software’s development and maintenance, which ensures robust security.

Keep in mind that you still need to invest in hosting, domain names, and often premium themes and plugins. Otherwise, you may miss out on WordPress’s full potential because these investments can greatly amplify its functionality, performance, and appearance.

Myth 3: WordPress is Too Expensive

Yes, while some people think WordPress offers poor quality because it’s free, others believe it’s too pricey. However, you don’t have to pay a license fee to use this CMS, and you can build a functional and attractive website with free plugins and themes.

Moreover, you may never need premium features. WordPress hosting is highly cost-effective, with numerous hosting companies providing plans for WordPress starting at just $5 monthly. This is much cheaper compared to hosting a site on a commercial CMS platform.

Here’s how much WordPress may cost:

1. Domain Name

• Cost: $10-$15 per year

2. Hosting

• Shared Hosting: $3-$10 per month
• Managed WordPress Hosting: $20-$50+ per month

3. Themes

• Free Themes: $0
• Premium Themes: $30-$100 one-time fee

4. Plugins

• Free Plugins: $0
• Premium Plugins: $5-$100+ per plugin (one-time or subscription-based).

5. Design and Development

• DIY: $0 if you build it yourself.
• Freelancer: $500-$5,000+ depending on complexity.
• Agency: $5,000-$20,000+ for a fully customized site.

6. Maintenance and Updates

• DIY: $0 if you manage it yourself.
• Maintenance Services: $50-$200+ per month.

7. Additional Costs

• Stock Photos: $0-$100+ depending on the number and source.
• Marketing and SEO: Variable, but it can be hundreds per month if you’re outsourcing.
• E-commerce Costs: Additional plugins and transaction fees if you’re selling products online.

Example Budget Ranges

• Basic Blog or Personal Site: $50-$100 per year (if you’re using free themes and plugins and low-cost hosting).
• Small Business Website: $500-$1,500+ per year (premium themes, a few premium plugins, mid-range hosting).
• E-commerce Site: $1,000-$5,000+ per year (premium themes, multiple plugins, higher hosting costs, transaction fees).
• Custom Professional Site: $5,000-$20,000+ initial cost, plus $500-$1,000+ per year for ongoing expenses (custom design, managed hosting, professional maintenance).

Myth 4: WordPress isn’t Secure

It’s a common misconception that software must be proprietary to be safe and credible. Despite having its source code available online for alterations and inspections, WordPress isn’t popular without reason. Devs routinely update and review the core software to pinpoint and address potential vulnerabilities.

This makes WordPress one of the safest platforms. Security issues typically stem from outdated plugins, themes, and poor security practices, such as weak passwords or infrequent updates.

You can improve your WordPress website’s security by:

• Avoiding simple passwords: Minimize the odds of unauthorized access by creating a complex WordPress admin password.
• Enabling auto-updates: Configure WordPress to update for minor security releases automatically.
• Preventing excessive login attempts: Use a plugin that stops force attacks by limiting the number of logins.
• Using application firewalls: Implement a web application firewall (WAF) to filter and monitor HTTP traffic.
• Regularly assessing security: Conduct regular security audits and scans to detect vulnerabilities.
• Ensuring server hardening: Harden your server configuration by shutting off unnecessary services and using secure file permissions.

Myth 5: WordPress Websites are Slow

Whether your WordPress site is slow or not is, to a large extent, within your control. The platform isn’t inherently laggy, but choosing high-quality hosting services can heavily impact load times.

If you’re struggling with this problem, start assessing why your WordPress website is slow, as there may be many reasons. It may be anything, from large images to plugin issues, but these are all possible to solve.

You can take the following steps to ensure nothing is hindering your website’s speed:

• Choose high-quality hosting
• Use caching mechanisms
• Optimize images
• Limit heavy plugins
• Reduce unused JavaScript
• Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
• Choose a lightweight theme
• Reduce external scripts

Myth 6: WordPress Can’t Handle High-Traffic

Contrary to popular belief, this CMS can handle high-traffic websites just fine if you have the right setup. After all, many major news outlets (e.g., The New Yorker) and e-commerce platforms (e.g., Sony Music) successfully run on WordPress, proving its capability to scale.

For instance, you can use caching plugins such as W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache to reduce server load by serving static versions of pages. Meanwhile, CDNs like Cloudflare distribute content across multiple servers worldwide, boosting load times and reducing bottlenecks.

Myth 7: WordPress Sites All Look the Same

This is far from true, as WordPress sites offer extensive customization options, allowing you to create a unique aesthetic and functionalities. You have thousands of themes at your disposal, each offering different designs and layouts.

Moreover, you can use page builders like Elementor or WPBakery to personalize your WordPress website with drag-and-drop interfaces and create custom layouts without coding. You can also modify themes with custom CSS, giving you more control over your site’s appearance. Choosing helpful features and the best AI plugins matching your needs can completely transform how your website looks and feels.

Myth 8: WordPress Requires Coding Knowledge

WordPress is beginner-friendly and among the most customizable platforms that don’t require being a tech wizard. Thanks to its intuitive interface, you can navigate it without any hassle and quickly figure out its menus.

You can customize themes, install plugins, and configure settings the same day you decide to build a website with WordPress. The platform’s block editor enables simple drag-and-drop content creation, making it easy to design pages visually.

Moreover, you can experiment with thousands of pre-built themes and plugins, from SEO optimization to e-commerce capabilities, all configurable without touching a line of code.

Myth 9: WordPress is Difficult to Manage

Navigating WordPress is a straightforward process thanks to its intuitive dashboard. Regular updates for WordPress core, themes, and plugins are just a few clicks away, meaning it doesn’t take much to maintain your site secure and functional.

This CMS has built-in tools that simplify content creation, media management, and user administration. You can also find reliable plugins to automate backup and security. For instance, scheduled backups, automatic updates, and security scans can run in the background without constant monitoring.

Myth 10: WordPress isn’t Good for SEO

Quite the contrary. WordPress has features and extensive plugins that allow you to thrive at SEO. Its clean code and structure ensure search engines can crawl and index content, while themes are often speed-optimized.

If you worry about mobile search rankings, you can rest assured that this CMS supports responsive design. Moreover, you can customize permalinks to include keywords for a higher URL relevance.

Plugins like Yoast SEO and All in One SEO Pack allow you to manage meta tags, generate XML sitemaps, and analyze content for keyword optimization.

You also don’t have to worry about quick indexing, as WordPress automatically pings search engines when content updates.

Myth 11: WordPress Support is Limited

No, you won’t find yourself stranded with WordPress support because this CMS offers various helpful channels. For instance, you can find most information in extensive documentation on its official website, covering everything from installation to advanced customization.

You can also access forums (e.g., Reddit), tutorials, blogs, and online courses when you need practical advice or troubleshooting tips. WordPress’s support ecosystem includes hosting services that can help you address technical issues or optimize performance.

Myth 12: WordPress is Difficult to Migrate

You won’t have trouble migrating a WordPress website with the right tools and preparation. Plugins like Duplicator, All-in-One WP Migration, and UpdraftPlus enable a simple process, as you can export your entire site, including database and files, in a few clicks.

Plus, many hosting providers offer free migration services or have detailed guides that can assist you throughout the process. If you put some time into planning the website migration, you’ll encounter minimal downtime and likely preserve your SEO rankings.

Don’t Let the Misconceptions Stop You from Having a Great Website

WordPress may be open-source and over two decades old, but it isn’t going anywhere. Although WordPress myths can contribute to indecisiveness, this CMS has ample benefits. If you’re stuck in a WordPress vs. custom website dilemma, know you won’t make a mistake by choosing the former.

It’s still among the best options for building a functional, aesthetic, and customized website, regardless of size and industry. Even if you want a more complex custom site, this CMS is cost-effective without sacrificing quality.

Collaborating with professionals and seeking WordPress development services can eliminate doubts and result in a striking website tailored to your needs.