Key Takeaways
- WordPress powers 43% of all websites on the internet — more than any other CMS by a significant margin. (W3Techs)
- It holds 60% of the CMS market share globally, with over 587 million websites running on it.
- WordPress has 70,000+ available plugins and 30,000+ themes, making it the most extensible platform available.
- The global CMS market is projected to reach $123.5 billion by the end of 2026 — and WordPress is at the centre of it.
- Sarlie Digital has been building on WordPress since 2005. Here is why we have never left.
If you have ever wondered what your website actually runs on, or why so many businesses choose one platform over another, this guide is for you.
The platform your website is built on affects everything — how fast it loads, how well it ranks in Google, how easily you can update it, how securely it runs, and how much it costs to maintain and grow. Getting this decision right from the start saves a significant amount of time and money down the line.
This is a complete guide to WordPress as a CMS: what it is, why it dominates the web, how it compares to alternatives, and why Sarlie Digital has built exclusively on it since 2005.
What is a CMS?
A Content Management System (CMS) is software that allows you to create, manage, and update website content without needing to write code. Instead of editing raw HTML files or working directly in a database, a CMS gives you an interface — think of it like the “back end” of your website — where you can add pages, write blog posts, upload images, manage products, and change content with a few clicks.
Before CMS platforms existed, every change to a website required a developer to edit code manually. A CMS separates the design and functionality of a site from its content, so business owners can manage their own sites independently.
WordPress is the most widely used CMS in the world — and by a large margin.
WordPress by the Numbers (2026)
The scale of WordPress’s dominance is worth understanding before we explain why we chose it:
- 43% of all websites on the internet run on WordPress (W3Techs, May 2026)
- 60% of all websites using a known CMS are on WordPress
- 587 million+ websites worldwide are built on WordPress
- 70,000+ plugins available (60,000+ are free)
- 30,000+ themes available (14,000+ are free)
- 33% of all e-commerce websites are powered by WordPress + WooCommerce
- $123.5 billion — projected global CMS market value by end of 2026
No other CMS platform comes close to this scale. WordPress’s nearest CMS competitor, Shopify, holds 6.3% of the market. Wix sits at 2.7%. Squarespace at 2.5%.
How Sarlie Digital Ended Up on WordPress
We did not start with WordPress. Like many web professionals of that era, we started with Joomla. Before Joomla, there was Mambo. Along the way there were projects in Concrete5, Drupal, and even a Magento e-commerce build thrown in for good measure. Each platform had its strengths and its frustrations.
WordPress came in through the side door.
A client — a Swedish journalist named Anika — specifically requested a WordPress blogging site. No one in our immediate circle at the time wanted to touch WordPress. So we rolled up our sleeves, built the site, and handed it over. Anika was delighted. Within a few days of working in it, so were we.
That was over 20 years ago. Since then, we have never looked back. Every rand we have invested in tools, training, and platform expertise has gone into WordPress — and the returns on that investment show in every site we build.
Why WordPress Wins: The Key Advantages
1. It is Free and Open-Source
WordPress itself costs nothing to install and use. The source code is publicly available, meaning any developer in the world can inspect it, improve it, and build on it. There are no licensing fees, no mandatory subscriptions, and no platform charges on your revenue.
Your costs with WordPress are:
- Hosting (entirely in your control — choose the spec and provider that suits your budget and traffic)
- A domain name
- Any premium plugins or themes you choose to add
2. Unmatched Plugin Ecosystem
WordPress has 70,000+ plugins — more than any other CMS. A plugin is a piece of software that adds functionality to your site without requiring custom code. Need a contact form? There is a plugin. Booking system? Plugin. Live chat, loyalty programme, Google Analytics integration, GDPR compliance, payment processing, membership portal, pop-up forms, schema markup — there is a plugin for every requirement imaginable.
60,000 of those plugins are free. Premium plugins are typically a once-off or annual licence — far cheaper than the monthly app subscriptions charged by hosted platforms for equivalent functionality.
3. Best-in-Class SEO Performance
WordPress is the most SEO-friendly CMS available, and this is not accidental. The platform was built with clean, semantic code from the ground up. Combined with tools like Yoast SEO or Rank Math, a WordPress site gives full control over every SEO element that matters:
- Custom URL structures (slugs) for every page and post
- Meta titles and descriptions per page
- Open Graph tags for social sharing
- Schema markup for rich results in Google (star ratings, FAQs, how-to guides)
- Canonical tags to prevent duplicate content issues
- XML sitemap generation and Search Console integration
- Full control over Core Web Vitals through hosting, caching, and code quality
In 2026, with Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) and AI-driven search algorithms placing greater emphasis on E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), the flexibility WordPress provides to demonstrate these signals is a genuine competitive advantage.
4. You Own Everything
When you build a WordPress site, you own the code, the database, the media files, and every byte of content on it. No platform can change its pricing, shut down, or restrict your functionality. If you move hosting providers, you take everything with you. If you change agencies, you retain complete access.
This is in contrast to hosted platforms like Wix or Squarespace, where your site exists on their servers under their terms. If they increase prices, you pay or you migrate — and migration from these platforms is notoriously painful.
5. Scales from Startup to Enterprise
A WordPress site built correctly on day one can scale with your business indefinitely. Add WooCommerce and you have a complete e-commerce solution. Add a membership plugin and you have a subscription portal. Add a booking system and you have service scheduling. WordPress extends in any direction your business grows.
6. A Massive Global Developer Community
With 43% of the internet running on WordPress, the developer community is enormous. Security vulnerabilities are identified and patched quickly, documentation is comprehensive, and finding WordPress expertise is straightforward in any market, including South Africa.
WordPress vs Other CMS Platforms
| WordPress | Wix | Squarespace | Shopify | Webflow | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market share | 43% of all websites | 2.7% | 2.5% | 6.3% (e-com) | 0.4% |
| Cost | Free (hosting only) | R200–R600/month | R250–R750/month | R550–R5,700/month | R400–R2,000/month |
| Open-source | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Data ownership | Full | Platform-held | Platform-held | Platform-held | Platform-held |
| Plugin/app ecosystem | 70,000+ plugins | ~300 apps | ~30 extensions | 8,000+ apps | ~300 apps |
| SEO control | Full | Limited | Moderate | Good | Good |
| E-commerce | WooCommerce (free) | Built-in (fees) | Built-in (fees) | Core feature (fees) | Built-in (fees) |
| Scalability | Unlimited | Limited | Limited | High | High |
| Best for | Any website type | Simple brochure sites | Creative portfolios | Standalone e-com | Designer sites |
The global CMS market is large enough to support multiple platforms, and some are genuinely good for specific use cases. But for South African businesses that want long-term ownership, cost efficiency, SEO performance, and the ability to grow without platform constraints, WordPress sits in a category of its own.
Why We Build with Bricks Builder on WordPress
Not all WordPress sites are built the same way. Many agencies still use page builders that generate bloated code, slow load times, and poor Core Web Vitals scores. We have invested specifically in Bricks Builder — a professional-grade visual builder for WordPress that produces clean, lightweight code.
What this means for you:
- Faster load times — Bricks generates lean HTML and CSS, not the nested shortcode mess that older builders like Divi or WPBakery produce
- Better Core Web Vitals — Google’s speed and performance metrics directly affect your search rankings; Bricks-built sites consistently outperform template-based alternatives
- Pixel-perfect design — complete creative control with no design constraints
- Dynamic content — product listings, team pages, testimonials, and any repeating content can be powered by custom fields and pulled dynamically
- No page builder lock-in — your content structure is clean and portable
WordPress for South African Businesses in 2026
Local developer availability. WordPress expertise is widely available in South Africa, which means you are never locked into a single agency. Finding a replacement who can work in your WordPress site is straightforward — this is rarely true for sites built in proprietary builders.
Rand-denominated costs. WordPress hosting from South African providers (Hetzner, Xneelo, Vodacom, Host Africa) is priced in rands and typically more cost-effective than equivalent international hosting. Platform subscription costs — a major line item on Shopify or Wix — are eliminated entirely.
POPIA compliance. Your data lives on your server, in your jurisdiction, under your control. Managing customer data compliantly under the Protection of Personal Information Act is more straightforward when you are not subject to a foreign platform’s data policies.
AI search readiness. Google’s SGE and AI Overviews increasingly pull from sites that demonstrate real expertise and credibility. WordPress’s SEO flexibility positions WordPress sites to perform well in AI-driven search results in a way that template-heavy site builders simply cannot replicate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Final Thoughts
WordPress became the foundation of 43% of the internet for a reason. It is flexible without being complex, powerful without being expensive, and extensible without being fragile. For South African businesses that want a website that performs well in search, scales with their growth, and remains entirely under their control, WordPress is the right choice in 2026 — just as it was when we first rolled up our sleeves for Anika back in the early days.
We have spent over 20 years building, maintaining, and growing WordPress sites for South African businesses. We know the platform deeply, and that depth shows in every site we deliver.
Ready to build or improve your WordPress site? Request a quote or book a discovery call and we will put together a proposal tailored to your business. For general questions, contact us here.
