It’s been a couple of years since we ran a poll here on ProBlogger about the blogging platform that readers are using, so I’m keen to see the results on this one.
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Please answer for the platform you use most if you have multiple blogs (one selection per person). I’d also love to hear some of your “why?” responses below in the comments, along with mentions of any other platforms not listed here.
I use MovableType for my main website http://ask-leo.com primarily because it was the better technology when I started years ago. New sites/blogs these days are WordPress. MT got my vote because it’s where I spend the most hours today (literally, was about to go update a template when I checked Google Reader and saw this post :-). Someday I may move – MT’s suffering from serious lack of support and resources (like designers, admins, etc) whereas WP seems significantly better in that regard.
Leo
Blogger has a really easy design interface. Although I haven’t used any of the other platforms, friends have commented to me that WordPress, for instance is a bit more complicated. I like things simple. Since 2008 I’ve been happy with Blogger.
I love Blogger too for its simplicity. =)
I use Blogger mainly because it is very easy to customise and has some great-looking templates. I don’t want to spend the money, and don’t have the time at present, to do that with the WordPress self-hosted version, and the free version is not very pretty! Since it is a hobby I am not worried about the URL not being that professional.
I love Blogger’s templates – so much so that when I got started with blogging I’d spend hours playing around with the different options, but now that I have blogging as a platform for my business, I’ve turned to self-hosted WordPress. Much more complicated.
Not sure if you’re aware, but Blogger allows you to connect your own url to your site. From your Dashboard click ‘Settings’ > ‘Publishing’. There you can ‘point your own registered domain name to your blog’. Just in case you change your mind. =)
Thanks Juli, I had vaguely noticed that but wasn’t sure how it worked. Though if I was to go as far as to pay for my own domain, I’d probably go the whole hog and go to wordpress so I could own my own files and have better-working comments as well :) I think I’d just have to find a nice friend who could design a pretty site for me!
I agree. Blogger rocks! I use blogger mainly because of the trust that it’s a Google product. Blogger may not have too many add-ins or plug-ins like wordpress but one can find almost any plug-in on net and integrate it easily with blogger.
I can already tell you who’s going to win this one! WordPress – more than likely self hosted!
I’ve only just started and I’m using a self-hosted wordpress install. I used a lot of the tips I found here to get it setup nicely so thank you for that :-)
I’m a WordPress developer by day so it only makes sense for me to use the platform I’m most comfortable with. I also love some of its more advanced features like ‘scheduled post’ and how easy it is ( for me ) to customize.
I’m surprised (as a Drupal user) to see Drupal in this list as the last thing myself or many of my colleagues would use it for is a blog.
I use wordpress.com for the moment because it’s free and I was able to get rolling in an afternoon. Ask me again in 2 months and I’ll be on a self-hosted WordPress site, likely using a self-build theme. (Though I’m open to investigating the Thesis and Genesis frameworks.) For someone who doesn’t mind getting their hands dirty with some coding, WordPress is powerful, flexible, and highly customizable.
I use WordPress self-hosted for the flexibility. You can set up a site as a blog or set it up to look like a traditional website with no blog. The number and variety of plug-ins also make it my first choice.
As a second choice, I like Tumbler for quick and easy posting. It’s what I use with my students in the classroom.
Tumblr is great fun and easy to post to. I love how you can ‘heart’ other people’s posts and have it show up on your own timeline. The culture of Tumblr is fun too. =)
I considered WordPress for some time, and still think it’s a great option. But I ultimately choose Weebly because it is a lot easier than WordPress. It also includes several templates, I can use my own URL and I can also customize it with new plugins and templates — both of which are being developed regularly.
I’ve been using the hosted version of WordPress since May 2009. I like the flexibility of WordPress and the ability to customize with Widgets and the templates. While it is a hobby, I am hoping to move to a self-hosted version soon, when I get the time :).
While I can modify themes developed in PHP, I find it easier to use WordPress as a base platform with Headway’s theme builder as a design tool when designing CMS sites for clients.
I just started blogging in May, and started with WordPress because I heard nothing but good about it. I also went with the paid, self-hosted, version so I could have control over ads on the site. I’ve been really happy with it so far.
Wow! WoedPress.org is killing it!
Yes I am still trapped on Blogger Island(With a custom domain, of course).
I very much wish to go over to WordPress.org(Get Paid Hosting) though, I have heard mixed opinions, of whether WordPress offers any real benefits over Blogger. The other factor is the dreaded Migration process, and my worrying whether or not it can be done as smoothly as many say it can( many people have had trouble migrating over and have lost both data and ranking).
Any knowledgeable WordPress.org People out there please if you wish, give me a quick run down of the benefits of moving over?
The paying for hosting and other reasonable expenses is quite acceptable. I just want to hear of ways a WordPress.org Blog would outperform for example, a Blog done on Blogger(Custom Domain, custom theme, ) ?
Thanks
Daniel
hey I’m also a blogspot blogger. But WordPress.org is best. So I also searched for it. here’s a link that will help. you. this is not a my blog. I didn’t did this. Try this by your own risk.
http://www.labnol.org/internet/switch-from-blogger-to-wordpress/9707/
Here’s the 1st para
The Goal: Your current blog at abc.blogspot.com is hosted on the Blogger platform but you now want to move this blog from Blogger to WordPress (self-hosted) with a personal domain name (say abc.com).
Thanks!
I use a proprietary CMS platform called Elysium that was developed by my company. It is a rapid development system designed to make templating far simpler (and quicker) than any of the open source options out there.
Basically it trades off a ton of often unused complex features for ease of use and versatility. It also has a powerful engine built to support multiple independent blogs networked together.
I have moved most of my blogs and web sites to self-hosted WordPress from Typepad. Typepad service declined precipitously despite increasing costs, and usability became awful. I still have a couple of Blogger blogs, which I like for quick, personal use. But Worpress has it all.
We had been using WordPress for some time. Recently we switched to Posterous. It is very simple to use and we love the ease of posting “from the road” from our iPhone. Pretty pleased so far…
I like the recent updates Posterous has done, especially their group blog interface. Very cool.
I use Blosxom, a Perl-based blogging engine that’s very extensible with plugins, flavours, and more.
I have tried almost everything except Livejournal and Expressions Engine. But I decided to use WordPress (self-hosted) for my blog because it’s easy to use. And also because the enormous support from developers, designers, and community that WordPress has.
Squarespace should be on your list!
I’ve just moved from self-hosted wordpress blogs to blogger. The new dynamic template won me over. Plus, in the long run it’s cheaper :)
Long duration self hosted WordPress. Moved to it 5 or 6 years ago, maybe longer, because it gave me more control than the other platforms – especially blogger, which still gives me fits sometimes when all I’m trying to do is comment on someone else’s blog.. I’m using the Thesis theme, which gives me even more control, though I must confess that I don’t take full advantage of its features.
I’ve used Blogger, WordPress.com and WordPress.org. I started on wordpress.com then went to blogger and finally settled on a self hosted wordpress blog. I like the freedom that this platform brings, the amount of plugins, and the stability of the platform.
I feel that while blogger and wordpress.com are great alternatives for those who want to start out and learn how to blog, self hosted allows so much more freedom and ultimately is where you should end up.
I have used Squarespace from Day 1 – 6 years ago. It is very easy to use, the customer service is unbelievably great and they are always looking to make the platform that much more user friendly.
Yay, me too! Love Squarespace! Very nice peeps, also.
Blogger 4 lyfe! Actually, since it’s what I started using so long ago I stick with it for convenience’s sake.
I use self hosted wordpress, because I didn’t like the idea of someone having control over my content, or being able to decide on a moments notice to shut down your account.
I love the useability.
I use Blogger Mostly because it’s very easy to customize and I’m working on a low budget so free hosting is definitely a plus one. The ability to add a custom URL makes it all the better, the design capabilities are many although it is limited in certain aspects. I use Thumblr also but I feel more at home on Blogger so that is where it’s at for me.
We really prefer self hosted WordPress for the amazing amount of flexibility, customization and stunning number of free and Pay Plugins. We’ve tried other platforms but found clients can get through the easy learning curve of WordPress and become competitive faster.
How about adding all options to the list, like Compendium which is specifically designed for business blogging especially with content from multiple sources?
I’ve used Livejournal for about ten years, and have my personal journal there. Will probably never move it, because there’s a lot of data there now, and I have no complaints. Have used Blogspot for my new ‘public’ blog though, because it seems to get more views.
Self-hosted wordpress for multiple blogs because of flexibility, plenty of plug-ins, lots of choices in terms of free and premium themes and good SEO capabilities.
I use Drupal because I like the flexibility of working within a framework rather than a platform per se. Plus it has always been my intention to build a community, and for this Drupal is the best option. And I’m so excited that the community should be going live by 1st Jan 2012!
Hi Darren,
I use self hosted WordPress blogs because I’m free to use whatever theme and plugin I want. In addition to that I can edit my theme in order to get what I want. WordPress.org site let users to take control on their blogs, moreover it’s pretty cheap than WordPress.com blog for the same level of options.
One more thing, you’re free to monetize you blog the way you want, that’s not the case with WordPress.com.
I used tumblr and blogger in the past, but I fall in love with self hosted WordPress blogs, that’s why I created a blog related to WordPress themes :) (it’s in french in case you want to check it out)
I take this comment to thank you personnaly Darren, I learned a lot with ProBlogger and I continue to increase my blogging skills reading your posts. Again, thank you very much Darren !
Alex from France ;)
Self-hosted WordPress for me because I believe it is the best software for bloggers who are serious about making blogging their business.
I love Virb. First I was in Tumblr, next I tried WP, but too complicated. Virb is awesome. Bonus plus for their support.
I Use Blogger Platform ^^ very easy to use for newbie ^^
Let me piss you all off by saying Blogger is better than WordPress! 8D :p
I use self hosted WordPress because it’s easy to mange content, tons of easy plugins available and I would say most novices can use it pretty quickly.
I love Squarespace. Ever since I’m there (2008) I don’t want to go elsewhere. And I’ve been blogging since 2002. Squarespace is powerful, indexates marvellously, you have total control over design (even per page), you can create several blogs synchronically, NO horrible WordPress software updates EVER, safety for your content (back-upped on seven servers worldwide). Usability is top of the bill. Totally worth the monthly fee. *waves with pompons*
WordPress, since I feel it very professional and because such a big platform means a lot of themes, plugins, customization, topics about it, etc.
I’ve used Blogger & Joomla in the past, but I feel blogger a little bit less professional & Joomla made me go rage sometimes.
Best Regards.
Gotta go with Blogger, for ease of use, simplicity, and integration with other Google products and services. It’s not the most versatile, nor is it the best, but it would “cost more” for me to switch to something “better” than to stay with what I’ve got, which I feel is working well enough.
For my main blog i am still using WordPress.org but I am starting to think that I should move it to Tumblr. WordPress is good, no doubt but Tumblr has started to grab my attention because of social features, easy set of blogging options.
Like after such a long time with WordPress, I am still not able to use email to post to my WordPress.org blog. Which is kind of bummer considering the fact that you can do almost anything with email these days provided you use Tumblr or Posterous.
Well, I will wait till end of this year for WordPress 3.3 to get released and then decide.
Till then, one of my blog is on WordPress.org and the other is on Tumblr.
Thanks
Anurag Bansal
i love wordpress because its easy to customize. when i used blogspot it just for fun blogging.
I used to use blogger/blogspot. But you convinced me to move to self hosted WordPress – I’m not sorry I did!
I have to confess, I had a little detour via hosted WordPress but the lack of monetization was a killer. Well, that and not customising my template :)
I use Jimdo Pro. My blog is integrated with my website and looks professional. I only pay $60 for a year of webhosting as many pages as I want, plus EXCELLENT technical assistance (usually a day or less turn around on emailed technical questions.) The domain name comes free with the webhosting. Jimdo is a website editor that you can easily modify with HTML code, so basically you have the best of all worlds. I love Jimdo and am surprised more people don’t use them.
Mine is wordpress self hosting. Blogspot takes some share for hosting, that is why i have shifted all my blogs to self hosted wordpress.
WordPress self-hosted, its looks more professional and i like to have control over my blog.
We use Umbraco (www.Umbraco.org) … a .NET open source content management system with integrated blogging application. It’s a flexible application that allows customization fairly easily and efficiently. We have built integrated blogs, event calendars, video galleries, photo galleries, weather feeds, mapping, ecommerce and more. Not as well known as some other CMS but very powerful and worth a look.
WordPress self hosting
I am using WordPress (Self Hosted) and I must admit that I am not surprised to see that so many people use it. However, I was surprised to see that so few people use Drupal or Joomla and that Blogger is still an extremely popular platform.
Great idea to create this poll, the results are already really interesting!