Drupal vs. WordPress (and a Look at Joomla & TYPO3)

As a Drupal expert I have been working with Drupal since 2008 and know it inside and out. Drupal is one of the most powerful open-source CMS platforms on the market—but of course, not the only one. It's worth comparing Drupal to other widely used systems like WordPress, Joomla, and TYPO3 to clearly see the differences and strengths.

WordPress vs. Drupal – A Direct Comparison

WordPress is the most widely used CMS worldwide. Originally developed as a blogging platform, it is now also used for simple company websites, portfolios, or smaller e-commerce projects.

The major advantage of WordPress: a quick and easy setup. Within minutes, a website can be installed, a theme selected—and you can immediately start creating content. With thousands of plugins, its functionality can be extended. However, especially for larger and more complex projects, you quickly hit limits. At that point, things tend to become technical—and confusing.

However, with the release of Drupal CMS 1.0 (external link), Drupal now also has a new user-friendly version.  Itself built on Drupal core, it has the same flexibility, but the complete user-experience is geared towards creating websites by non-programmers.  Making building websites more accessible is an ongoing effort, and if so desired, can include many AI innovations to create content and structures.  Anything seems possible! 

Another early advantage of WordPress was the visual Gutenberg editor. Many editors appreciate the block-based layout for designing content. But even this advantage is no longer exclusive: Drupal now also offers Gutenberg as a fully integrable module—in addition to its own Layout Builder, which is often even more flexible for complex layouts. As a result, Drupal users now have several modern editing options available.

Drupal, on the other hand, has been designed from the beginning for scalability and flexibility. Here too, there are extensions—called "modules"—but the architecture allows for implementing significantly more complex requirements in a clean and structured way.

Two examples:

• Data lists and filters: In Drupal, complex lists and filters can be created through a visual interface using the "views" module. In WordPress, such lists often have to be custom-coded.
• Data modeling: Drupal allows you to model content with arbitrary fields in a modular way—without programming. In WordPress, such content types are possible but much more limited or dependent on external plugins.

Why Drupal Is Often the Better Choice – Despite a Steeper Learning Curve

The biggest drawback of Drupal? It used to be,  that it is more challenging to learn. Especially those who have previously worked with WordPress found the onboarding more technical. 

But with the release of Drupal CMS 1.0, this is now quickly changing:  Drupal now offers an easy and intuitive version - built on Drupal Core - that is continually being streamlined to drive the non-developer experience. 

Of course, if you look deeper, Drupal is based on a robust framework with a steeper learning curve, but this is also one of its strengths:

Many developers who master Drupal never want to go back.

Once a project is up and running, the experience for editors and users is just as comfortable as with WordPress—the difference lies in the depth and quality of the technical foundation.

Community and Business Model – A Fundamental Difference

Both WordPress and Drupal are open-source and have large, active communities. But the philosophy and commitment behind the scenes differ significantly.

WordPress has a huge user base with thousands of plugin and theme providers. However, many of these extensions are commercially organized—often under a "freemium" model: basic versions are free, but full functionality requires payment. This means many providers focus on selling their plugins and themes. Support, updates, or enhancements are therefore often subject to commercial interests.

Drupal, on the other hand, thrives on a strong, non-profit community that follows the motto:

"Give something back" 

This means: everyone who uses Drupal is invited to contribute to its development—whether through code, forum support, or documentation. All modules, themes, and extensions are completely open and freely available. There are no hidden costs, no artificially limited versions—just genuine open-source spirit.

This has both practical and ethical consequences:

• Those who rely on paid plugins in WordPress depend on commercial providers—including potential delays in bug fixes, limited transparency, and often no way to contribute.  Yes, you can change the source code yourself, but it can be difficult to get that change adapted back into the official plugin.
• In Drupal, the entire source code is open. If a problem arises or a feature is missing, you or a developer can propose a patch that is reviewed and adopted by the community.

In Drupal, the focus is on collaborative progress—not sales. 

This not only builds trust but also enables long-term, sustainable, and more independent development.

In summary:

Developing with Drupal – From a Drupal Expert and Professional’s Perspective

From both a personal and professional perspective, I clearly prefer Drupal. As a developer and architect, it offers me:

• A modern, object-oriented codebase (since Drupal 8)
• A clear separation of logic and presentation
• Integration of modern development tools (Composer, Symfony, Twig)
• A robust API-first architecture for headless or multichannel applications

In comparison, WordPress—at least at the code level—feels outdated and limited. Especially for larger, custom requirements, Drupal allows for cleaner and more sustainable implementation.

And What About Joomla & TYPO3?

• Functionally, Joomla sits somewhere between WordPress and Drupal. It’s more flexible than WordPress but less powerful than Drupal when it comes to complex data structures or custom extensions. From my perspective: if you're developing professionally anyway, why not choose the system that offers the most?
• TYPO3 is especially common in German-speaking countries. It also targets professional users but is far less international and has a smaller developer base. Technically solid—but with less momentum and community energy than Drupal.

Conclusion: Why I Recommend Drupal

As a professional developer, one thing is clear to me: Drupal is the best choice for demanding websites, or as Drupal states it, or "ambitious digital experiences."

The learning curve is steeper—but the gain in structure, flexibility, and long-term stability clearly outweighs it.

And for companies or organizations with growing demands, the key question and food-for-thought is:

Will your website become more complex in the future?

Then choose a system that grows with you—clean, open, professional.
I’ll be happy to support you along the way.

Why you need my help with Drupal

Drupal is pretty awesome, because you can "wire together" a lot using thousands of modules. And that's a major advantage to you: you can build quite a bit of cool stuff just by configuring the system. 

At explained, Drupal has the most range of all the CMS system (you can do the most with it), but it is also the most complex. And at one point, sooner or later, you will hit the limits of what can be done through simply configuring Drupal, and you have to get into the code.  Or you have specific business logic which needs to be encoded correctly in the software.  Or... you want a Drupal Expert do it for you.

I use Drupal elusively since 2008 and am an expert with 30+ years as a software engineer who knows how to skillfully leverage the strengths of Drupal and avoid its weaknesses: I use Drupal for what it is good at using "The Drupal Way." For the rest, I write code, and do it right!

Please contact me to find out more about how I can help you with your Drupal project.