WordPress vs Elementor: Comprehensive comparison guide for 2024

WordPress vs Elementor: Final verdict

WordPress and Elementor both offer powerful tools for website creation, but they cater to different user needs and preferences.

• 
  WordPress (Overall Grade: 7.1/10)
  
  is an open-source content management system that provides extensive customization options through themes and plugins. It is ideal for users who need a flexible platform for various types of websites, including blogs, business sites, and online stores. WordPress excels in its plugin ecosystem, offering over 60,000 free plugins, and its robust ecommerce capabilities through WooCommerce integration. However, it can be less intuitive for beginners and requires separate purchases for domain, hosting, and website builder subscriptions.
• 
  Elementor (Overall Grade: 7.4/10)
  
  is a website builder plugin for WordPress known for its user-friendly drag-and-drop interface and extensive design functionalities. It is perfect for users who prioritize ease of use and design flexibility. Elementor offers a wide range of widgets and templates, making it suitable for both beginners and professional web designers. It also provides robust ecommerce features and AI capabilities, enhancing the overall user experience. However, some users have raised concerns about website loading times and subscription costs.

Which one is the best for ecommerce: WordPress or Elementor?

Verdict

: Elementor is excellent for design-focused users, while WordPress offers a more extensive range of ecommerce features and flexibility.

• 
  WordPress
  
  : With its integration with WooCommerce, WordPress provides a robust ecommerce solution. It supports multiple payment gateways, abandoned cart recovery, and extensive plugin options for additional features. When comparing WordPress vs Elementor, WordPress stands out for its flexibility and extensive customization options, making it suitable for a wide range of online stores.
• 
  Elementor
  
  : Known for its visual drag-and-drop interface, Elementor excels in customization and design. It integrates well with WooCommerce, offering customizable product pages and ecommerce widgets. However, it may not match WordPress’s extensive plugin ecosystem and flexibility for more complex ecommerce needs.

Which one is the best for informational and business websites?

Verdict

: When it comes to creating informational and business websites, WordPress slightly edges out Elementor due to its extensive customization options and a vast array of plugins. However, Elementor offers a more user-friendly interface and robust design functionalities, making it a strong contender.

• 
  WordPress
  
  : WordPress is an open-source CMS that excels in flexibility and customization, making it ideal for a wide range of informational and business websites. With a score of 9.2, it offers extensive plugins and themes, allowing users to tailor their sites to specific needs. However, it can be less intuitive for beginners compared to Elementor.
• 
  Elementor
  
  : Elementor, scoring 8.9, is a powerful website builder plugin for WordPress, known for its visual drag-and-drop interface. It provides a wide range of widgets and templates, making it easy to design professional-looking websites without coding. Elementor is particularly suitable for users who prioritize ease of use and design flexibility. When comparing WordPress vs Elementor, Elementor’s user-friendly interface is perfect for those starting out.

WordPress vs Elementor: Detailed comparison

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Winner: Elementor.

If you’re looking for a platform that offers more creative control, a wide array of design features, and a higher Design Functionalities Templates score, Elementor is the preferred choice.

WordPress offers an extensive variety of templates and designs, catering to a wide range of website types beyond just blogs or ecommerce. Its open-source nature allows for high customization and creative freedom, appealing to diverse user needs. While WordPress itself doesn’t sell premium templates, numerous third-party theme shops offer sophisticated and specialized design choices, expanding the possibilities for users.

WordPress Themes

Compared to WordPress, Elementor offers an extensive range of templates and designs, with over 100 responsive website kits covering various categories like business, creative, education, and more, directly available through Elementor’s platform. Additional sources like Envato Elements, Template Monster, and others provide a wider selection, including free and premium options, catering to diverse web design needs. These templates are designed to be user-friendly, facilitating easy customization and quick website development across different sectors.

Elementor Themes

🏆 Winner: Elementor

. With a score of 8.8, Elementor is known for its user-friendly interface and drag-and-drop functionality, making it easy for both beginners and professionals to create websites. WordPress, scoring 7.2, offers great flexibility and power, but it can be less intuitive for beginners compared to simpler website builders. If ease of use is a priority, Elementor is the clear winner in this category.

Learning Resources

🏆 Winner: Tie

. Both WordPress and Elementor offer extensive learning resources, making it easier for users to learn and adapt. WordPress is supported by a vast array of learning resources, including detailed documentation, community forums, online tutorials, and courses. Elementor provides an extensive array of learning resources suitable for both beginners and advanced users through its Elementor Academy.

WordPress and Elementor both offer robust ecommerce capabilities, primarily through their integration with WooCommerce. However, they differ in their approach to customization and the range of features they provide.

WordPress ecommerce features:

• WooCommerce Integration
• Multiple Payment Gateway Support
• Abandoned Cart Recovery
• Ecommerce Analytics
• SEO Optimization Tools
• Extensive Plugin Ecosystem

Elementor ecommerce features:

• WooCommerce Integration
• Customizable Product Pages
• Ecommerce Widgets
• Product Categories and Filters
• Shopping Cart Customization

Ecommerce themes & templates

WordPress offers hundreds to potentially thousands of ecommerce and WooCommerce specific themes and templates, both free and premium. On the other hand, Elementor provides a diverse range of ecommerce-specific templates suitable for various online stores, from free options to premium templates with advanced customization features. These templates are designed to be mobile-responsive and SEO-friendly.

Product page customization

WooCommerce on WordPress offers extensive customization for eCommerce product pages, balancing plugins, page builders, and custom coding. Advanced features like product tabs, upsells, and related products are customizable. On the other hand, Elementor offers extensive customization options for WooCommerce product pages, including custom layouts, WooCommerce widgets for various product elements, and options for styling product galleries and ‘Add to Cart’ buttons.

Payment processing

When it comes to payment processing, WordPress doesn’t handle payments directly but offers plugin options for payment processing. Popular gateways include PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.Net, and Square. Elementor supports several payment gateways, notably through plugins and integrations, with Stripe and PayPal being prominent options for simple and widespread use. These gateways charge their own transaction fees, typically around 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, but Elementor itself does not impose additional fees for transactions.

Considering the features, availability, cost, and flexibility, both WordPress and Elementor offer robust ecommerce capabilities, but WordPress’s extensive plugin ecosystem may provide more flexibility and options for online stores. However, Elementor’s focus on customization and design may be more appealing to users who prioritize aesthetics and user experience in their online stores.

Winner: Tie

. Both WordPress and Elementor score 8.5 for their website editors, indicating that they are equally good in this aspect.

WordPress’ Site Editor offers a user-friendly interface with block-based editing, extensive styles customization, template management, page editing/creation, distraction-free modes, versatile saving options, and accessibility for users of varying skill levels. It provides a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) interface, with a Design panel on the left and a live preview on the right. You can edit styles, manage templates and pages, and use various blocks for customization. Changes can be applied globally, including Header and Footer templates. The editor also offers features like undo/redo, List View, Command Palette, and customization tools.

Elementor’s drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to customize layouts, add content, and style websites visually in real-time. With a wide array of widgets and templates, users can effortlessly design complex elements such as sliders, forms, and animated headlines. Additionally, Elementor provides responsive design options, ensuring websites look great on all devices, alongside advanced features like custom CSS, role-based access control, and integration with a variety of marketing tools. Elementor is designed to be beginner-friendly, providing an intuitive drag-and-drop interface that allows users to create and customize their WordPress sites without needing to code. The platform offers both a free version for basic website building and a Pro version with advanced features for more complex designs. While Elementor is accessible for beginners, it also includes detailed customization options and features that may require a learning curve to fully exploit. Support resources like tutorials and templates help users navigate and utilize the platform effectively.

Mobile editor/app

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Winner: WordPress

. WordPress offers a mobile editor app that allows users to manage their website on the go. Users can create and edit posts, manage comments, schedule content, and analyze website traffic from their phone or tablet. While it offers convenience and basic functionality, it has some limitations compared to the web-based editor, including fewer advanced options, restricted code access, and limited design customization.

On the other hand, Elementor does not have a dedicated mobile editor. Therefore, for users who need to manage their website on the go, WordPress is the clear choice.

Overall Result

:

WordPress wins

. WordPress scores 8.1 in product testing options, while Elementor scores 5.6. WordPress, being an open-source CMS, offers a free version but does not provide a trial version or the possibility to test premium features. Elementor, on the other hand, offers a free version for self-hosted WordPress.org, does not provide a trial version, but allows testing of all premium features during the refundable period and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

WordPress is a free open-source platform, but requires separate purchases for domain, hosting, and website builder subscriptions. Elementor, on the other hand, offers several pricing plans with different features.

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Winner: Elementor

Elementor offers Google Cloud powered hosting included in all their plans, with a 99.9% uptime guarantee and a data center in Belgium. On the other hand, WordPress does not directly provide hosting services, so its hosting quality depends on the chosen hosting provider.

🏆 Winner: Elementor

Both WordPress and Elementor have strategies in place for website speed optimization, but Elementor edges out WordPress with a slightly higher score.

WordPress, an open-source content management system, does not have a specific strategy for website speed optimization. However, it provides numerous learning resources on how to optimize your website. WordPress suggests analyzing Core Web Vitals, choosing a reliable host, optimizing images, minimizing plugins, using lazy loading, and employing a CDN. Tools like Core Web Vitals, WP Rocket, and Hummingbird are recommended, and AMP is suggested for mobile speed. Load times and PageSpeed scores vary widely, influenced by apps and images.

Elementor, a popular website builder plugin for WordPress, uses strategies like lazy loading, code minification, caching, and CDN for website speed optimization. The load times and PageSpeed scores vary depending on optimization and website complexity. However, Elementor does not disclose any information about its Core Web Vitals improvements. Despite this, Elementor scores slightly higher than WordPress in website speed optimization.

🏆 Winner: WordPress.

With a score of 8.8, WordPress leads the way with its extensive range of plugins and seamless integrations. It offers over 60,000 free plugins in its official directory, and thousands of premium plugins from third-party companies and developers. WordPress’s plugins and integrations extend its functionality across various domains, including advanced ecommerce tools, SEO optimization, social media integration, email marketing, website analytics, appointment scheduling, customer support, enhanced media galleries, blogging features, custom forms and surveys, diverse payment processing options, website localization, improved security measures, and the addition of custom widgets.

Elementor, with a score of 7.6, also offers a wide range of add-ons, both free and premium, to enhance website building. These add-ons extend the functionality beyond the base version, offering advanced widgets, modules, and complete theme building capabilities for deep customization. They enable superior integration with WooCommerce, third-party services, and provide advanced marketing tools to enhance conversions and user engagement. However, the sheer volume and versatility of WordPress plugins give it the upper hand in this comparison.

WordPress Applications

Elementor Applications

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Overall Winner: WordPress

. WordPress edges out Elementor with a slightly higher score, thanks to its extensive plugin ecosystem that enhances its marketing capabilities. However, Elementor also offers robust marketing features, especially when it comes to social media integration and analytics.

🏆 Winner: Elementor

. In the comparison of WordPress vs Elementor, Elementor takes the lead with a customer support score of 7.2, significantly higher than WordPress’s score of 5.0. Elementor excels with its 24/7 availability through ticketing and live chat support, ensuring users can get help whenever they need it. This round-the-clock support is a major advantage for users who may encounter issues at any time.

WordPress, being an open-source CMS, does not offer direct customer support. Instead, users rely on community forums, the WordPress codex, and support from hosting providers or plugin and theme developers. While these resources can be helpful, they may not provide the immediate assistance that some users require, especially those new to the platform.

Overall, Elementor’s dedicated support team and 24/7 availability make it a more reliable option for users seeking consistent and accessible help.

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Winner: Elementor

. Elementor’s security measures are robust and comprehensive, leveraging Google Cloud’s infrastructure for high security, including end-to-end encryption. They also have a proactive Bug Bounty program, aimed at harnessing the community’s power for continuous security improvement. This commitment to security is further emphasized by its ISO 27001 certification.

WordPress, while offering numerous functionalities and resources to enhance website security, relies heavily on the use of plugins for security measures such as site backups, monitoring, malware scanning, user activity tracking, permission control, and spam protection tools. The approach to private data storage and protection can vary depending on the hosting provider, which may not provide the same level of security as Elementor’s dedicated measures.

🏆 Winner: Elementor

. With a score of 7.4, Elementor’s AI capabilities are more integrated and advanced compared to WordPress’s score of 6.1. Elementor’s AI builder, eCommerce features, and content generation are all built into the platform, providing a more streamlined and efficient workflow. On the other hand, WordPress relies heavily on plugins for AI capabilities, which may require additional setup and configuration.

Elementor AI feature

🏆 Winner: Tie

. Both WordPress and Elementor offer robust user management features, allowing for a variety of user roles and access levels.

• WordPress user roles range from Super Admin to Subscriber, with each role dictating the level of permissions. Additional controls such as role management plugins and revision control offer further customization for specific editing rights and collaboration.
• Elementor operates on WordPress, so the number of users who can edit or manage a website depends on the roles and permissions set within WordPress. Administrators have full access to edit any part of the site, including Elementor settings, while Editors can manage posts and pages made with Elementor. Authors and Contributors have limited capabilities.

WordPress User Roles and Access Levels:

Elementor User Roles and Access Levels:

Additional Features

WordPress vs Elementor: User Feedback

WordPress receives praise for its user-friendliness, cost-effectiveness, extensive themes and plugins, customization options, and supportive community. However, users mention technical challenges, security concerns, a learning curve, and a lack of direct support. Overall, it remains a widely used and versatile platform, especially beneficial for startups and small businesses.

Elementor is widely appreciated for its intuitive drag-and-drop interface, enabling rapid creation of professional and responsive websites without coding skills. It offers a vast range of templates and compatibility with WordPress, making it a go-to for diverse users. Despite its benefits, concerns arise regarding website loading times, subscription costs, and occasional compatibility issues. Feedback on customer support and legacy plan management is mixed, with some users experiencing dissatisfaction. Overall, Elementor is valued for its efficiency in web development, although some aspects, particularly support services, could be improved.

WordPress vs Elementor: FAQ