WordPress vs. Joomla vs. Umbraco – which is the best CMS to build your business site?

Choosing the best content management system can help you build and manage a successful website smoothly. The CMS plays a pivotal role in building a website that looks attractive and is simple to manage. 

At chilliapple, an award-winning web development company in the UK, we use our 17+ years of experience to select the right CMS for your needs.  We weigh several factors to select the best content management system.

Many companies with their websites based on Joomla or Umbraco are in favour of switching to WordPress. Some of the key factors driving this change are the platform’s intuitive content management system, vast ecosystem of plugins and themes, stronger SEO capabilities, and an active global community support.

Additionally, WordPress offers easier third-party integrations, improved mobile responsiveness, and lower maintenance costs compared to legacy CMS platforms. For businesses looking to modernise their digital presence and empower in-house teams with more control, WordPress has become the natural choice.

Before we deep dive into the WordPress vs. Joomla vs. Umbraco comparison, let’s have a quick look at these content management systems.

What is WordPress?

WordPress is a popular, free, and open-source software called a content management system (CMS). It helps users to create and manage websites without needing to learn code building. It provides a user-friendly dashboard to build and edit content. Its functionality and appearance can be customised with thousands of themes and plugins. 

As of late 2025, WordPress powers approximately 43.4% of all websites on the internet. Moreover, it holds a 61.4% share of the content management system (CMS) market.

What is Joomla?

Joomla is a free, open-source content management system (CMS) that helps users build and manage dynamic websites and online applications without needing extensive coding knowledge. It is a highly flexible and extensible platform. You can use it to create various types of sites, like small business pages, eCommerce stores, and large community portals.

As of October 2025, Joomla powers approximately 1.4% of all websites. It is used by 2.0% of all websites using a CMS.

What is Umbraco?

Umbraco is an open-source .NET-based content management system (CMS). It is used to build and manage websites and web applications. It provides great flexibility, scalability, and a user-friendly interface. Developers can use it to create customized experiences with simple-to-handle CMS capabilities. 

Over 4,000 businesses in the United Kingdom use Umbraco for web content management.

WordPress vs. Joomla vs. Umbraco – detailed comparison

Usability – which CMS is the simplest to use?

All three platforms are easy to use, but WordPress stands out as the simplest. 

WordPress
WordPress offers a highly intuitive interface. It is easy to learn, even for beginners. The platform allows anyone to quickly create posts, pages, and media. It’s ideal for users who want a quick setup and flexible site management.

Joomla
Joomla provides powerful features but has a steeper learning curve. In simple words, you need the expertise of a web developer to create a website with Joomla. The platform offers robust customisation options, but navigating through them is less intuitive than WordPress.

Umbraco
Umbraco is a developer-focused CMS. You need the help of expert web developers to install, update, and maintain a website built with Umbraco. The platform lacks the simplicity of one-click installations and plugin-based enhancements available in WordPress.

Winner: WordPress

Performance – which one offers the fastest page loading speed?

The actual speed of your website depends on the hosting used, website size, caching setup, and content optimisation. 

• WordPress tends to offer the fastest page loading speeds when optimised properly. The platform’s lightweight themes, combined with a wide choice of performance plugins and strong CDN compatibility, help achieve unbeatable speed performance. 
• Joomla also delivers solid performance, but typically loads slightly slower than WordPress. It comes with built-in caching that helps improve speed. 
• Umbraco can achieve excellent performance. This is particularly evident with enterprise-level websites. A skilled developer can fine-tune caching, compression, and server settings to help you achieve lightning-fast page load times.

Winner: WordPress and Umbraco

Security- which platform can help you build a robust site?

Each CMS offers solid security measures, but the level of protection largely depends on maintenance, updates, and technical implementation. 

WordPress
WordPress automatically applies core security and maintenance updates on newer versions. Businesses can add security plugins to enhance protection. A WordPress development agency can help you build a well-secured site that offers robust protection features like encryption, password hashing, 2FA, and more.

Joomla
Joomla provides strong built-in security, including two-factor authentication, anti-spam features, and comprehensive monitoring tools. Website administrators have fine control over security settings and protocols.

Umbraco
Umbraco runs on Microsoft’s secure .NET framework. This means a solid foundation against threats. However, implementing and maintaining advanced security measures often requires developer expertise.

Winner: Joomla and Umbraco

Personalisation – which CMS platform helps to build a 100% bespoke website?

Each CMS offers strong customisation potential for bespoke web development. However, the level of flexibility depends on your technical expertise and the type of website you’re building.

• WordPress provides extensive customisation through over 59,000 plugins and thousands of themes. 
• Joomla also supports a wide range of templates, extensions, and themes that can be installed directly from its repository. 
• Umbraco offers deep customisation for developers. It allows access to its core functionality and APIs for building complex, tailored solutions. 

Winner: WordPress and Umbraco

SEO – search engine optimisation friendly features

All three CMS platforms can be optimised for search visibility. However, the ease of implementation varies depending on many factors.

WordPress
WordPress is highly SEO-friendly. Its SEO capabilities can be further enhanced using plugins. Businesses can manage most optimisations like meta tags, sitemaps, etc.  

Joomla
Joomla includes built-in SEO features like custom URLs, metadata editing, and page modules. 

Umbraco
Umbraco offers excellent flexibility for SEO, allowing developers to build fully custom site architectures optimised for search performance. 

Winner: WordPress and Joomla

Conclusion

Choosing between WordPress, Joomla, and Umbraco ultimately depends on your business needs, technical expertise, and goals.

If you’re looking for an intuitive, flexible, and scalable CMS with powerful plugin support and strong SEO capabilities, WordPress is the most versatile choice for most businesses. 

Joomla offers more control for users with technical knowledge, 

Similarly, Umbraco provides the highest level of customisation and enterprise-grade flexibility for those with development resources.