Google Sites vs Drupal: Comprehensive comparison guide for 2024

Final verdict

Google Sites and Drupal cater to different user needs, each excelling in specific areas.

• 
  Google Sites (Overall Grade: 5.6/10)
  
  is ideal for users seeking a simple, collaborative website builder with seamless integration with Google services. It offers a user-friendly interface, making it easy for individuals with no coding experience to create and publish websites. However, it lacks advanced customization options and built-in ecommerce features, making it less suitable for complex websites or online stores.
• 
  Drupal (Overall Grade: 6.4/10)
  
  stands out for its flexibility and extensibility, making it a powerful choice for developers and businesses needing custom functionalities. It offers a wide range of modules and themes, robust ecommerce capabilities, and advanced security features. However, its steep learning curve and need for manual configuration may be challenging for beginners.

Best for ecommerce

Verdict

: Google Sites vs Drupal shows a clear distinction in ecommerce capabilities. Drupal is the superior choice for ecommerce, offering extensive features and flexibility, while Google Sites lacks built-in ecommerce functionalities.

• 
  Google Sites
  
  : Google Sites is not designed for ecommerce. It lacks built-in ecommerce features, making it unsuitable for online stores. Users would need to rely on external integrations or services to add ecommerce capabilities, which can be cumbersome and limited in functionality.
• 
  Drupal
  
  : Drupal excels in ecommerce with its Drupal Commerce module, providing a robust and flexible solution. It offers features like product management, shopping cart, payment gateway integration, and customizable workflows, making it ideal for complex and scalable ecommerce needs.

Best for informational & business websites

Verdict

: When it comes to creating informational and business websites, Drupal edges out Google Sites due to its flexibility and extensive customization options. However, Google Sites offers a more user-friendly experience, making it a solid choice for those who prioritize ease of use.

• 
  Google Sites
  
  : Google Sites is ideal for users who need a straightforward, collaborative platform to create informational websites quickly. Its drag-and-drop interface and seamless integration with other Google services make it accessible for beginners and teams. With a score of 7.2, it provides a user-friendly experience but may lack the advanced customization options needed for more complex sites.
• 
  Drupal
  
  : Drupal, with a score of 7.5, is a powerful open-source CMS that excels in flexibility and extensibility. It is suitable for creating complex, highly customized websites. While it has a steeper learning curve, its vast array of modules and themes allows for extensive customization, making it a versatile choice for various types of informational and business websites. When comparing Google Sites vs Drupal, Drupal stands out for users who need advanced features and are willing to invest time in learning the platform.

Detailed comparison

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Winner: Drupal.

If you’re looking for a platform that offers more creative control, a wide array of design features, and a vast selection of templates, Drupal is the preferred choice.

Google Sites offers a limited number of templates suitable for various purposes, from personal blogs to business websites, with both free and premium options available. These templates are designed for user engagement, simplicity, and functionality, allowing for customization to meet specific needs. However, compared to other website builders like 10Web or Squarespace, Google Sites might offer less variety in templates and design customization options.

Google Sites Themes

Compared to Google Sites, Drupal, as a highly flexible and powerful content management system, offers a vast array of templates and designs to cater to virtually any website need. With thousands of themes available, users can choose from minimalist designs, industry-specific layouts, and highly customizable multipurpose themes. These templates are designed to be responsive, ensuring that websites look great on any device. Moreover, the Drupal community continuously contributes new designs and templates, expanding the options for users to keep their websites modern and engaging.

Drupal Themes

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

. Scoring 8.3, Google Sites offers a user-friendly interface that allows individuals with no coding experience to create and publish websites easily. On the other hand, Drupal, with a score of 5.4, is a powerful platform for building complex websites and applications, but its flexibility comes with a steep learning curve, especially for beginners.

Learning Resources

Both Google Sites and Drupal offer a wide array of learning resources. Google Sites provides practical guides for educators and comprehensive digital skill development programs for the wider public. Drupal offers extensive official documentation, a vibrant community forum, and a variety of online courses and tutorials.

When it comes to ecommerce, Drupal is a clear winner over Google Sites. Drupal, with its Drupal Commerce module, offers a flexible ecommerce solution that can be seamlessly integrated into its content management system. It provides a wide array of features including product management, shopping cart, payment gateway integration, and customizable workflows that cater to complex pricing models and product variations. On the other hand, Google Sites does not have built-in ecommerce features or tools for setting up an online store directly. To have a full-fledged ecommerce platform with Google Sites, you’d need to rely on external integrations or services.

Drupal ecommerce features:

• Shopping Cart and Checkout Process
• Payment Gateway Integration
• Order Management and Invoicing
• Tax Calculation and VAT Support
• Shipping and Fulfillment
• Promotions and Discounts
• Reporting and Analytics
• Security and Compliance

Google Sites ecommerce features:

Google Sites itself does not have built-in eCommerce features.

Ecommerce themes & templates

Drupal offers a wide array of ecommerce themes designed to cater to different types of online stores, from clean and simple designs to more sophisticated and feature-rich options. These themes are built with responsiveness in mind, ensuring that stores function seamlessly across various devices. Themes like Fiora, DrupalMag, and Storefront highlight the diversity available, offering customization options to match the unique needs of each business. The availability and functionality of these themes underscore Drupal’s flexibility and power as an ecommerce platform. Google Sites, on the other hand, does not have any ecommerce templates.

Product page customization

Drupal offers extensive customization possibilities for product pages through its modular architecture, allowing for detailed content types, flexible displays with Views, and theme customizations. The Drupal Commerce module enriches ecommerce functionalities, enabling tailored product management, checkout flows, and payment systems. With the ability to develop custom modules, Drupal provides a range of possibilities to meet specific ecommerce needs. Google Sites lacks any product page customization features, as the products can be listed with embedding third-party platforms, all the customization can be done within the mentioned platforms.

Payment processing

Drupal supports a wide range of payment gateways through third-party modules, including popular ones like PayPal, Stripe, and Authorize.Net. These modules enable seamless integration for ecommerce functionalities on Drupal sites. While Drupal itself does not charge any commissions or transaction fees, the individual payment gateways integrated with it do have their own fee structures, which typically include per-transaction charges and may also have monthly fees. The specific fees depend on the chosen payment gateway and the terms of service agreed upon by the website owner. You can integrate payment gateways into Google Sites using external tools or links, not through native features. This can be done by embedding HTML code for payment buttons from services like PayPal, Square, or Stripe, or by linking to an external checkout page. Third-party ecommerce widgets also offer a way to add payment functionalities. However, Google Sites doesn’t offer the comprehensive ecommerce capabilities that dedicated platforms provide.

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Winner: Drupal

. Drupal, with a score of 7.5, offers a wide range of features tailored for content creation and management. It supports rich text editing, enabling users to format text, insert links, images, and media, as well as create tables and lists with ease. The editor is highly customizable, allowing administrators to configure toolbars and options according to the needs of their site. Furthermore, it integrates seamlessly with Drupal’s content management system, supporting features like automatic content saving, version control, and access control, making it a powerful tool for building and managing diverse web content.

Google Sites’ editor, scoring 7.0, offers a user-friendly website builder editor that allows users to create and design websites without needing coding knowledge. With its drag-and-drop interface, users can easily add, customize, and arrange elements such as text, images, and videos on their web pages. It also provides a variety of templates and design options to help users get started quickly and ensure their site looks professional. Additionally, Google Sites integrates seamlessly with other Google services, enabling the incorporation of Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Maps directly into the website.

Mobile editor/app

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Winner: None

. Neither Google Sites nor Drupal offer a dedicated mobile editor app. This means that users cannot edit their websites on the go using a mobile device. This could be a significant drawback for users who prefer the convenience of mobile editing. Therefore, if mobile editing is a crucial factor for you, you might want to consider other website builders that offer this feature.

Overall Result

:

Drupal Wins

. Drupal scores slightly higher than Google Sites with a score of 7.1 compared to Google Sites’ 6.9. Both platforms offer a free version, but Google Sites provides a 14-day free trial where some premium features can be tested. Drupal, being an open-source CMS, doesn’t offer a trial version or the possibility to test premium features. However, as there are no payments required for Drupal, it doesn’t need a money-back guarantee.

Google Sites offers a range of pricing plans, including enterprise plans, while Drupal is a free open-source CMS, but requires separate purchases for domain, web hosting, and website builder subscriptions.

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Winner: Google Sites

Google Sites offers cloud-based managed hosting with a 99.9% uptime guarantee and operates 21 data centers globally. On the other hand, Drupal does not directly provide hosting services, and the uptime, uptime guarantee, and data centers depend on the chosen hosting provider. Therefore, Google Sites has a higher hosting quality score.

🏆 Winner: Drupal

Both Google Sites and Drupal prioritize website performance and page speed, but Drupal’s flexibility and extensibility give it an edge over Google Sites when it comes to website speed optimization.

Drupal, an open-source CMS, allows users to optimize almost all aspects of their website, which can lead to better website speed optimization. The load times and PageSpeed scores vary depending on the optimization and complexity of the website. The improvement of Core Web Vitals depends on the users.

On the other hand, Google Sites, a structured web page-creation tool, focuses on automated optimization, CDN, mobile optimization, browser caching, code minification, and the use of AMP for speed optimization. However, Google does not disclose statistics about website Page Speed scores or load times. The platform emphasizes on LCP, FID, CLS improvements for Core Web Vitals.

🏆 Winner: Drupal.

With a score of 8.6, Drupal outperforms Google Sites (6.4) in terms of plugins and integrations. Drupal’s open-source nature allows for a vast array of over 51,000 modules, significantly enhancing its capabilities beyond core features. Google Sites, while offering a wide array of plugins and extensions, falls short in comparison to Drupal’s extensive offerings.

However, Google Sites’ plugins are easy to use and require no coding knowledge, making it a suitable choice for users without technical expertise.

Google Sites Applications

Drupal Applications

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Overall Winner: Drupal

. Drupal stands out for its comprehensive set of marketing features, especially in SEO, email marketing, blogging, and social media integration. Google Sites, while offering basic SEO and analytics features, lacks in email marketing, blogging, and ads and promotions.

🏆 Winner: Google Sites

. In the comparison of Google Sites vs Drupal, Google Sites takes the lead with a customer support score of 7.2. Google Sites offers a range of support options, including a Help Center, community forums, and 24/7 direct support for Google Workspace customers. This ensures that users have access to assistance whenever they need it, with varying levels of support based on their subscription tier.

Drupal, with a customer support score of 6.7, provides support through its community forums and documentation on Drupal.org. Additionally, professional 24/7 support services are available via providers like Drupal Connect and GreenGeeks. While Drupal’s community and professional support options are robust, they may not be as immediately accessible as Google Sites’ direct support for Google Workspace customers.

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Winner: Google Sites

. Google Sites, part of the Google Workspace, offers robust security measures including SSL encryption, two-factor authentication, automatic malware scanning, and compliance with international data protection standards. Google’s infrastructure also provides DDoS protection and data redundancy, ensuring a secure environment for website creators and visitors.

Drupal, on the other hand, emphasizes security through regular updates, built-in mechanisms for preventing common web vulnerabilities, and advanced security features like two-factor authentication. However, it requires more manual configuration and maintenance to ensure optimal security, making Google Sites the more user-friendly and secure option for most users.

🏆 Winner: Drupal

. Drupal, with a score of 7.5, integrates AI across various functionalities, enhancing e-commerce, content creation, and user interactions. Drupal’s AI capabilities streamline operations and significantly enhance user engagement and satisfaction on Drupal-based platforms. On the other hand, Google Sites does not have any AI capabilities.

🏆 Winner: Drupal

. Both Google Sites and Drupal allow multiple users to collaborate on a website, but they differ in their approach to user roles and permissions.

• Google Sites allows multiple users to collaborate with different roles, including Owners, who have full control, and Editors, who can modify content but not site settings. There’s no strict limit on the number of users who can edit a site, allowing flexibility in management and development. Viewers can only see the site, with no editing permissions. This structure supports collaborative website building with varied levels of access and control for different users.
• Drupal’s flexible permission and role system allows for an unlimited number of users to manage and edit a website, only constrained by server capacity and practical management considerations. Administrators can create various roles, such as “Editor” or “Administrator”, each with customized permissions. There’s no inherent limit in Drupal on the number of users with administrative or editing capabilities, enabling extensive collaboration and content management possibilities.

Drupal User Roles and Access Levels:

Additional Features

User Feedback

Users consistently praise Google Workspace, particularly Google Sites, for its seamless integration, ease of use, and collaborative features, making it a go-to solution for various professional and educational needs. The platform’s simplicity and user-friendly interface are lauded, enabling effortless website creation and sharing of information within organizations. While some users desire more customization options and additional features, overall, Google Workspace remains highly valued for its versatility and streamlined workflow facilitation.

Users appreciate Drupal for its ease of use, security, and flexibility as an open-source CMS, highlighting its ability to scale and support a variety of websites and applications with modern technology tools. The community and documentation are frequently mentioned positives, providing ample support and resources. However, criticisms include a relative lack of plugins and themes compared to competitors like WordPress, the learning curve for customization without coding, and some challenges with installation and updates. The platform is praised for its robust content management capabilities, enabling users to manage content and user access efficiently. Overall, feedback underscores Drupal’s strength in creating secure, customizable, and scalable web solutions, despite some desires for more intuitive UI and easier setup.

FAQ