Have you heard that WordPress powers 43% of all websites? This includes both big companies and small businesses. Although WordPress is the leading platform for content management, several alternatives still exist. Numerous users are searching for simpler WordPress alternatives that are mostly recommended for their needs.

For those wanting to create a basic website, there are easier and more cost-effective solutions out there. Here, we will look at the best WordPress alternatives that are available in 2025. You'll find popular content management systems(CMS) and website builders, along with their main features, advantages, and disadvantages, including whether they offer hosting, SEO tools, and other important website launch essentials.

10 Best WordPress Alternatives for 2025

WordPress is the most popular tool for managing content online. However, it's not the easiest or the best choice for everyone. WordPress needs you to have a domain and hosting in order to create a website. This has a steep learning curve, which is why there are many different website builders available. Let us look at the 10 best WordPress alternatives and choose the best options for small business websites by considering their pricing along with the pros and cons.

1. Neo

While WordPress is a popular choice for creating websites, Neo offers a budget-friendly WordPress alternative for website development. Neo distinguishes itself by offering a comprehensive suite of features, which includes AI-based tools, the availability of custom domains, professional email services, and hosting options for building websites. With Neo, you can take advantage of useful email marketing tools that let you verify email engagement and deliver emails to numerous individuals at once. Even though it’s not completely free, it has low-cost plans and a free trial for you to test the service.

Key Features:

Neo is one of the most efficient WordPress alternatives because of its range of features, which include: 

• One-Page Website Builder: Neo's drag-and-drop functionality enables users to create stunning single-page websites easily. This feature enables users to create webpages without requiring any coding experience.
• Email Marketing Services: Use integrated email marketing tools to communicate with your consumers intelligently. You may reduce the amount of work needed to keep your customers engaged by scheduling email campaigns and newsletters to run automatically.
• Advanced Analytics: Using Neo's extensive analytical features to monitor your website is also important. Make sure that your marketing campaigns, sales patterns, and visitor behavior are all regularly monitored and assessed.
• Smooth Payment Integration: Neo enables a variety of payment gateways, improving your customers' experiences.

Pricing: 

Neo's pricing plan starts at $3.59 per month when billed annually. However, there is a 15-day free trial available.

Pros

• Quickly create professional pages that are tailored to your requirements.
• Select themes and make layout, color, and font changes.
• Include forms for newsletter sign-ups and queries.

Cons

• This platform is relatively new. However, support and documentation are available.

2. Webflow

Webflow is an increasingly popular WordPress alternative, particularly liked by designers for its extensive control and customization options. It is an online platform that lets users create responsive websites without coding. Webflow offers a blend of creative design flexibility along with valuable integrated tools. It includes built-in SEO, security, and eCommerce features and works with third-party plugins created by the community.

Key Features:

Webflow has some important features, including:

• Powerful Visual Editor: The drag-and-drop functionality provides a user-friendly layout and a straightforward customization experience.
• Webflow University: An extensive collection of instructional content designed to assist users in creating, managing, and enhancing their online sites.
• Content Editors: Allow team members to access and work together on writing and revising content.
• Logic Flows: Utilize triggers, actions, and parameters to streamline workflows automatically.

Pricing:

Building a test site where you can get 2 pages to publish is free. However, paid plans begin at $14 per month.

Pros

• Options for advanced customization with code access for your website.
• Provides a huge number of user accounts for content that is restricted.

Cons

• Email assistance has a 24-48 hour response time and is only accessible on work days.
• Fewer options for themes and extensions than WordPress.

3. Drupal

Drupal is another popular WordPress alternative. It is a free system for managing content that helps create different types of websites. This platform accommodates numerous languages and is employed by over 17 million sites, including those of governments, educational institutions, and major enterprises. Even though using Drupal might be more difficult than using WordPress, it offers a powerful framework that can be personalized and developed according to individual specifications.

Key Features:

Let’s take a look at the notable features of Drupal:

• Security Features: These consist of regulating user access, securing data through encryption, and preventing harmful data entries.
• Multilingual System: Drupal is capable of translating various aspects of the site and recognizing the preferred language of users according to their geographical area and browser configuration.
• Advanced Permission Control System: Drupal has a better system for managing user permissions than WordPress.
• Distributions: Drupal distributions are special packages that include the main Drupal software along with extra tools designed for specific types of websites.

Pricing:

Free and open-source, but with related expenses (such as development, domain registration, and hosting) starting from $2.99 to $7.99 per month

Pros

• Flexible content workflows to establish multi-phase publishing approval procedures.
• Unlike WordPress, you can set up custom user roles and permissions by default.

Cons

• It has a steep learning curve.
• Coding skills are required for website optimization and maintenance.

4. Weebly

Weebly is an easy tool for making websites and is a popular WordPress alternative. It is known for being simple and easy to use.  You can set it up quickly without requiring many technical skills. Weebly has many features to help users create and manage their websites easily. However, it doesn't have many advanced options for those who want more complex features.

Key Features:

The features that Weebly provides are as follows:

• eCommerce functionality: Use PayPal, Stripe, and Square payments online and improve customer satisfaction with in-store pickup and quick shop options.
• SEO Resources: Offers extensions, built-in tools, and an SEO manual to improve your website's search engine presence.
• Mobile App: Use your mobile device to edit a website and view its analytics.
• App Center: Both free and premium apps can improve the functionality of your website.

Pricing:

There is a free plan available. The monthly cost of paid plans varies from $10 to $26.

Pros

• Strong eCommerce solutions for restaurants and online retailers.
• A large app store and various templates using the section-based Weebly editor.

Cons

• Advertisements and Weebly branding in the free edition.
• Fewer customization choices and code editing are required for more complex changes.

5. Joomla

Joomla serves as the best WordPress alternative, known for its adaptability and numerous customization features. It is highly regarded by developers and companies looking for an effective way to handle their websites and applications. Joomla offers a wide range of features, making it suitable for everything from basic blogs to complex business websites. However, it isn’t as popular as WordPress, so a smaller community of users exists around it.

Key Features:

Features of Joomla include the following:

• Multilingual System: Develop multilingual websites with integrated assistance for organizing multilingual content and more than 70 language translation packs.
• Access Control List (ACL): Manages user access rights, logs user actions, and tracks the activity of specific IP addresses that visit your website.
• Extension Directory: Offers more than 5,700 paid and free extensions to increase the functionality of your website.
• Flexible Design: Allows you to customize a single website by combining different templates to create a distinctive and personalized user experience.

Pricing:

Although Joomla is free, you will need to get a domain name and site hosting. There are some paid extensions. The monthly cost of Joomla hosting ranges from $2.99 to $7.99.

Pros

• It has integrated security, SEO, and other features.
• Templates are easy to find despite the lack of an official template library.

Cons

• Support is only accessible through the forum and community site.
• Technical expertise is needed to scale and manage your site.

6. Squarespace

Squarespace is another WordPress alternative and is a favorite choice for individuals looking for a visually appealing website without the need to learn coding or design skills. It provides all the necessary services in one location, including website hosting, domain registration, design resources, email marketing, and customer assistance. Despite the professional-looking Squarespace websites, their ability to customize and add particular functionalities is limited. Rephrase

Key Features:

Some of its distinctive features include:

• eCommerce Functionality: Sell both digital and physical products with integrated subscription features, online booking, and inventory management.
• Analytics: Learn more about your visitors. For example, examine the terms that lead them to your website.
• Video Maker: Creating promotional films is made simpler with pre-made video templates and editing tools.
• Squarespace's Mobile App: Allows you to manage your website while on the go.

Pricing:

Squarespace does not have a free plan, but you may test the platform with a 14-day free trial. Monthly premium plans start at $16 per month. 

Pros

• User-friendly editor with flexible viewing on mobile devices.
• 24/7 customer service during business hours via live chat and email.

Cons

• It may take some time to adjust to the drag-and-drop editor with sections.
• No revision history or auto-save functionality.

7. Shopify

For those looking to create an online store, Shopify serves as a better WordPress alternative. It helps you set up your shop and start selling quickly. Shopify provides accessible features and diverse ways to handle payment acceptance. It also guides you through every step, making it especially helpful for beginners in online selling.

Key Features:

Here are a few of Shopify's main features:

• Many Theme Options: In addition to a vast collection of both free and premium themes, the hosted eCommerce platform allows you to import themes from other marketplaces.
• Shopify Payments: Offers an in-house payment solution, which includes free processing and fraud detection.
• App Marketplace: Provides over 8,000 free and paid apps to help you expand your site's capabilities.
• Staff Accounts: Create staff accounts to assist with store administration, such as adding products and handling orders.

Pricing:

At $29/month, Shopify's beginning price is expensive compared to other WordPress alternatives on this list. A three-day free trial is available, and your plan will cost $1 per month for the following three months.

Pros

• 24/7 phone, email, and live chat assistance.
• Supports more than 100 payment gateways in addition to its proprietary solution.

Cons

• Only a few countries can use Shopify Payments.
• Third parties process increased transaction costs for payments.

8. HubSpot 

HubSpot serves as a strong WordPress alternative, enabling users to build a personalized website in just a few minutes. It is well-known for online marketing, sales management, and improving search engine results. The HubSpot builder uses templates so that you can choose from different designs for each page.

Key Features:

The following features are available through Hubspot:

• User-friendly Interface: Easy drag-and-drop capability makes website creation simple for everyone.
• Various Template Gallery: Get your project off to a great start with a variety of customizable templates.
• Responsive Design: Use the built-in responsive design features to ensure that your website appears great on all devices.
• Search Engine Optimization: Use the integrated SEO tools to increase your online presence and move up the ranks.

Pricing:

A free version is available. Paid options range from $15 per person per month to $1,500 per month for five persons.

Pros

• Enterprise-level tools, capabilities, and security at a reasonable starting price.
• Marketing, operations, customer support, CRM, and other HubSpot products may all be easily integrated.

Cons

• Although the templates are excellent, there might not be many choices for significant changes.
• You should upgrade to a paid subscription to use some advanced features.

9. Ghost.org

Ghost.org is a WordPress alternative for those who prefer to focus only on blogging. Some users felt that WordPress was taking a different turn; therefore, Ghost, which is based on NodeJS, was developed in response. Ghost is solely concerned with giving bloggers and readers a clear, clutter-free writing and browsing experience. Additionally, well-known websites like Mozilla, Buffer, DuckDuckGo, and Unsplash use it.

Key Features:

Here's more information about Ghost's features:

• Full-screen Editor: Enables you to work without distractions, enhancing productivity and efficiency.
• Markdown Support: Allows users to easily create rich, organized material by integrating the editor directly with the Markdown plain text formatting standard.
• Subscriptions and Memberships: Use features like the email newsletter, the native signup mechanism, and comprehensive engagement metrics to manage members and subscribers.
• Team Management: To improve cooperation and task distribution, give your team members varying access permissions.

Pricing:

The monthly cost of paid plans varies from $9 to $199. There is a free 14-day trial available.

Pros

• There are no transaction costs in any plan if you want to build a paid membership site.
• Because Ghost is based on Node.js, it can process requests effectively and load webpages rapidly.

Cons

• There is no support for the self-hosted ghost outside of the community forum.
• Coding is necessary for more complex customization.

10. Jekyll

Jekyll stands out as a widely used WordPress alternative for creating blogs. It differs significantly from WordPress since it does not utilize a database; rather, Jekyll compiles your content into static HTML files for your website. Unfortunately, WordPress is more user-friendly for beginners than Jekyll. As a result, constructing dynamic webpages with Jekyll may be challenging.

Key Features:

Here are a few of its features:

• Content Focus: Make content creation easier without having to worry about updates, databases, or comment moderation.
• Built-In Blog Features: Include permalinks, posts, pages, categories, and layout customization.
• Theme Options: Similar to WordPress themes, Jekyll themes have pre-installed layouts, features, and stylesheets that may be changed based on the content of your website.
• Plugins: You can add unique features to the platform without changing the source code due to its plugin system with hooks.

Pricing:

Jekyll is free, and hosting your website on GitHub Pages is also free.

Pros

• Provides developers with unrestricted theme control over HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
• It is affordable because it can be hosted for free on GitHub Pages.

Cons

• Less user-friendly for beginners because it requires familiarity with command-line tools and coding (HTML, CSS, Markdown).
• It is not suitable for websites that require dynamic content, such as user reviews or customized suggestions.

Comparison Table

Let’s look at the comparison between these service providers to help you understand better:

Conclusion

WordPress websites continue to dominate the global web today. However, a perfect fit is not always guaranteed by popularity. Investigating WordPress alternatives that meet your unique requirements is, therefore, essential. Neo is presently one of the best WordPress alternatives since it provides hosting solutions and is an excellent website development tool. It has advanced the building and management of websites.

Do you know what's the best part? It starts at just $3.59 per month, making it incredibly inexpensive. To make sure your website stands out in the highly competitive marketplace, visit Neo today.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Does WordPress have any drawbacks?

WordPress is well-liked because it offers nearly limitless customization options for the design and layout of websites and may be reasonably priced. However, when you start adding up the prices of hosting, domains, email accounts, themes, and plugins, you'll see that they quickly mount up, which is one of the reasons you shouldn't use WordPress. Additionally, there is a substantial learning curve, making it difficult, particularly for beginners.

2. What is an alternative to WordPress? 

There are numerous alternatives to WordPress, including niche platforms like Neo for website building or email marketing Ghost for blogging, and content management systems, including Joomla and Drupal, that offer powerful features for experienced users.

3. What is a better site builder than WordPress?

Your needs will determine the answer. AI tools and an easy-to-use UI make it simple to create websites using Neo Website Builder. It also offers a one-page website, which consists of a single HTML page that displays all of your content. It's perfect for event pages, portfolios, and small businesses looking to convey clear, interesting content.