Blogging is a great way to connect with others around the world; and with all the different options in blogging platforms, you can choose one that best suits your needs and goals for your blog.
Here is a breakdown of the best blogging selections to help you decide how to get your voice heard.
WordPress
Arguably the most popular open source platform, WordPress offers two hosting options: setting up a WordPress-hosted blog with an associated domain name, or a completely free version to host on your own server (with your own domain name) – which also allows for more control and personalization.
Best Features
With its large team of developers, WordPress continually has countless choices for themes and plugins, enabling easy customization. And with its huge following, it’s easy to find WordPress guides, configuration help, and user-generated themes.
WordPress is also scalable in that it can support a single blog (or a collection of them), as well as create different types of websites like ecommerce and video-based sites.
Disadvantages
For the less tech-savvy users, managing a WordPress blog can get a bit complex when it comes to hosting and customizing.
Who It’s Best For
For those looking to create a stable and sophisticated blog or site, like professional bloggers and small businesses – WordPress is the perfect solution.
Blogger
Google’s Blogger played a part in bringing blogging to mainstream practice, so it’s a solid platform for Gmail or Google account holders.
Best Features
The user-friendly nature of Blogger allows for easy and quick setup. The platform is incorporated into Google’s Adsense, Google +, and Feedburner, which makes it easy for users to monetize their content, receive feedback from followers, and create an RSS feed to encourage consistent readership.
Disadvantages
With limited themes and design styles, extensive customization and sophistication is difficult to achieve, and its smaller community following means fewer plugins and forums.
Who It’s Best For
Blogger is best suited for casual bloggers and small companies who want a simple communication solution for internal audiences.
Squarespace
Blogging on Squarespace is becoming increasingly popular among users looking for a sophisticated, user-friendly and cloud-based solution for commercial content sharing.
Best Features
A package is all inclusive of blog elements and cloud-based hosting, as well as a comprehensive set of features like LayoutEngine – a technology that lets users immediately customize through a drag-and-drop interface.
Besides creating blogs, users of Squarespace can develop and manage other types of websites. It also offers a host of mobile apps that make editing on the go extremely simple.
You don’t have to be an expert developer to use it, as it places a strong focus on facilitating good design, even for beginner bloggers. Plus, if you already have a blog and decide to switch to Squarespace, you can easily import your established blog from a different platform.
It’s well protected against viruses and hacking, making it a safe and stable option.
Disadvantages
There is no available free option; hosting packages start at $8 per month, though the quality of user experience remains consistent whether you pay $8 or $50 for your blog, so you can always expect a good product.
It offers only limited flexibility, as you cannot edit backend code, and its relatively small community of developers makes for fewer plugins and themes.
Who It’s Best For
This business-centric platform is great for creative professionals and businesses that want a solid, beautiful, and personalized blog or website.
Tumblr
With the emergence of Twitter popularity and its capability to share short tidbits of information, Tumblr has been the first blogging platform to merge the nature of Twitter and blogging, culminating in “microblogging.” It enables users to walk the line between sharing short thoughts or images and full-fledged blog posts.
Best Features
Its strong community of users has made it possible to link content by simply reblogging it to your Tumblr site.
It’s incredibly easy to use on mobile, which is great for social media-geared users who like to frequently update and upload photos. It also supports custom domains to make your blog your own. More of a social network, it’s a great way to generate inspiration and interests through images that can be viewed all at once.
Disadvantages
For those looking to publish written content, Tumblr’s image-based platform is not ideal.
Its lack of caching and anti-virus plugins make it more susceptible to viruses.
Who It’s Best For
This is the platform for casual bloggers who want to share and curate content – mainly visually based – rather than create original content. It’s ideal for those who want to expand their brand or simply distribute likes and posts without committing to a time-intensive, full-blown blog.
How To Choose?
Though these platforms differ in popularity, features and drawbacks, the best option depends on your unique goals, needs, and technical skills.
If you’re confident in your coding skills and you want a huge array of theme and customization capabilities, your best bet is WordPress; if you want to simply develop a casual blog for sharing your interests and thoughts, Blogger or Tumblr are great content and image-based solutions; and if you’re looking to expand your professional brand through a sophisticated yet user-friendly blog, Squarespace is perfect.
Assess your needs and explore these great options, and you’re sure to find the ultimate platform to reach your goals.