For a recent website project, we were seeking a specific kind of Content Management System (CMS) and came across Statamic. Instantly, I became a fan of this digital product, impressed by its website and the storytelling used to position and sell it. On Statamic's website, I discovered an interesting fact about WordPress.
Statamic highlights that 96% of hacked websites run on WordPress (source), making it the most targeted and vulnerable CMS on the market. This fact alone made me ponder the future of WordPress.
The web market is clearly shifting towards no-code solutions, with platforms like Framer—one we’re particularly excited about—gaining traction. Additionally, the rise of headless CMS solutions like Statamic, coupled with recent AI disruptions, are changing the website-building landscape.
Over the last two years, we've used WordPress for most of our websites. However, each project often felt costly and time-consuming for us and our clients because we always strive to create unique design and custom experiences. This prompted us to explore new solutions. We've found promising alternatives.
While WordPress is evolving towards more intuitive, block-based content creation with full site editing (Elementor) and the growth of Gutenberg (the block editor), it still seems like this open-source platform moves too slowly.
To put this into perspective: “WordPress is the most dominant CMS on the market and the primary type of site on the web. WordPress is currently used by more than 40% of all websites and more than 35% of the top 10,000 most popular sites by traffic. At 64.9%, its market share is far greater than all of its competitors combined. To put that in context, the second-most widely-used CMS, Shopify, is used by 3.5% of all websites and has a CMS market share of 5.5%. Squarespace and Wix are both used by only 1.6% of all websites. Nothing else comes close to the commanding market share WordPress enjoys—and it’s continuing to rise” (source).
However, we should remember that dominant market positions can change rapidly. Nokia, for instance, was the industry leader in mobile phone sales in 1998. Even when Apple introduced the first iPhone in 2007, Nokia retained 50% of the market. But by 2010, Nokia’s market share had plummeted, and the company never fully recovered (source).
A similar shift could happen to WordPress. I predict that in 10 years, WordPress's market share will drop significantly.
Understanding WordPress's income sources sheds light on this potential decline. WordPress's revenue primarily comes from hosting, premium themes and plugins, and WooCommerce, the e-commerce plugin owned by WordPress. WooCommerce was the dominant e-commerce platform until around 2020 when Shopify overtook it. As of 2024, WooCommerce's market share is 20.1%, second to Shopify's 26.2% (source).
Although WordPress hosting solutions are tailored to optimize the performance and security of WordPress sites, the security aspect has faced criticism. The hosting market may continue to shift towards major players like Amazon Web Services (AWS) or DigitalOcean, which we at Wild Digital also use.
Finally, themes and plugins—especially plugins—will likely sustain WordPress's usage for a while. WordPress themes offer deeper customization through coding, whereas platforms like Wix and Squarespace are more limited but easier for beginners. However, this gap is closing with platforms like Framer, a no-code platform that quickly offers high customization possibilities.
Conclusion
WordPress's dominance in the CMS market is undeniable, but it faces significant challenges from emerging technologies and platforms. The shift towards no-code solutions, the rise of headless CMS, and advancements in AI are changing the landscape. WordPress's slow pace of innovation, coupled with security concerns, may hinder its growth. WordPress must adapt quickly to maintain its leading position, or it may follow the path of former industry giants who failed to innovate. The future of website building is dynamic, and adaptability will be key to survival.
