{"id":15256,"date":"2024-10-21T19:09:07","date_gmt":"2024-10-21T17:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web-mate.gr\/what-is-wordpress-beginners-guide\/"},"modified":"2026-10-29T13:33:54","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T11:33:54","slug":"what-is-wordpress-beginners-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web-mate.gr\/en\/what-is-wordpress-beginners-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"What is WordPress: a beginner’s guide"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WordPress is the most popular content management system (CMS) in the world, powering over 43% of all websites in 2026. It is open source, free in its basic form, and lets you build websites without any coding knowledge. In this guide you will learn exactly what it is, how it differs from Wix and Shopify, how much it costs and how to get started in 6 steps.<\/p>\n\n\n

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What Exactly Is WordPress?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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WordPress is an open-source content management system (CMS) that powers over 43% of all websites worldwide. It works as an intuitive dashboard where you can create, edit and publish content without any coding knowledge. It uses a theme for the design and plugins for extra features, and stores its data in a MySQL database.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Is WordPress free?<\/h2>\n
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Yes, WordPress core is 100% free and open source. You only pay for: hosting (\u20ac5-\u20ac30\/month), a domain name (\u20ac8-\u20ac15\/year) and, optionally, premium themes or plugins. The total first-year cost of a DIY WordPress site is usually \u20ac100-\u20ac500.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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What is the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org?<\/h2>\n
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WordPress.org is the open-source software you install on your own hosting, so you have full control. WordPress.com is a hosted platform that uses the WordPress software with restrictions (specific themes, plugins only on the Business+ plan, ads on the free plan). For business sites we prefer WordPress.org.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Is WordPress secure?<\/h2>\n
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Yes, as long as you keep it up to date. WordPress core is updated regularly with security patches. We recommend: automatic WordPress updates, a security plugin (Wordfence or Solid Security), strong passwords plus 2FA for the admin, regular backups (UpdraftPlus) and an SSL certificate (usually free with Let’s Encrypt).<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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How long does it take to learn WordPress?<\/h2>\n
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For a basic site (a blog or a simple company presentation): 1-2 weeks at 1-2 hours a day. For an e-shop with WooCommerce: 3-4 weeks. For advanced custom theme development: 3-6 months. Many beginners start with a ready-made theme and plugins, and in 90% of cases you do not need to know any code.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Can I move my site from Wix\/Shopify to WordPress?<\/h2>\n
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Yes, although moving from Wix is harder because of Wix’s closed format. For Shopify there are dedicated migration tools. With Wix, content usually has to be moved by hand or with scraping tools. This is one of the main reasons we prefer WordPress from the start: there is no vendor lock-in.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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