WordPress powers an incredible 43.4% of all websites on the internet today. The platform serves as the backbone for roughly 541 million websites, which makes it the clear leader among content management systems worldwide.
The numbers paint an even more impressive picture in the CMS space. WordPress holds a commanding 60.8% market share. Recent statistics show between 478 million and 541 million sites run on this versatile platform. The platform's popularity extends deeply into the blogging world, where 97% of bloggers choose WordPress to manage their content.
This piece dives into the remarkable story behind WordPress's market dominance and its impact on the digital world of 2025. You'll discover how WordPress reached this impressive position, spread globally, and why powerful tools like WooCommerce (with its 34.08% e-commerce market share) have established WordPress as the cornerstone of today's web.
WordPress in 2025: The Numbers That Matter
The WordPress statistics for 2025 tell an amazing story of digital supremacy. Raw numbers show WordPress has evolved into the backbone of today's web. The platform stands nowhere near its competitors in the content management system world.
Total number of WordPress websites
WordPress-powered sites keep multiplying at a breathtaking rate. Current figures show 478 million to 541 million websites run on WordPress. These numbers represent a huge chunk of all internet websites.
NetCraft's June 2025 report puts the total worldwide website count at 1.24 billion. This means you'll likely find WordPress running one out of every three websites you visit. Some experts point to even higher numbers, suggesting 518 million or 529 million active WordPress sites.
Growth numbers are remarkable. In the last decade, WordPress websites saw a 27% growth. The platform stays popular even as competition in website building intensifies.
What percentage of websites use WordPress?
WordPress usage has reached record-breaking levels. Latest data shows WordPress powers between 43.4% and 43.6% of all internet websites. These numbers include sites with and without content management systems, plus custom-coded CMSs.
Historical context makes these figures more impressive. WordPress powered just 27.3% of all websites in early 2017. By January 2025, this number jumped to 43.6%. That's a 16.3 percentage point increase in eight years.
The platform saw its first market share dip of 0.1% in 2023 since 2011. Analysts suggest this might signal a bigger trend, with reports showing a possible five percentage point decline in the last three years.
WordPress market share in the CMS space
WordPress dominates the content management system world even more decisively. Among sites using known CMSs, WordPress claims between 60.8% and 62.7% of market share. The platform powers more websites than every other CMS combined.
W3Techs data shows 71.1% of all websites now use some type of CMS. Only 29.1% operate without one. This marks a big change from 2014 when 64.8% of sites didn't use any CMS.
Major competitors trail by wide margins:
- Shopify: 4.8% to 6.7% of all websites
- Wix: 3.7% to 5.5% of all websites
- Squarespace: 2.3% to 3.1% of all websites
- Joomla: 1.5% of all websites
- Drupal: 0.8% of all websites
The competitive landscape shows subtle changes. While WordPress maintains its strong lead, platforms like Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify slowly gain ground. These shifts might reflect changing user priorities or a maturing CMS market.
Small fluctuations aside, WordPress looks set to rule the web ecosystem through 2025. The platform might soon power half of all websites worldwide.
How WordPress Became the Most Used CMS
WordPress has grown from a basic blogging tool to become the world's leading content management system. This remarkable success story shows how steadfast dedication to user-friendly design and innovation has revolutionized website creation.
A brief history of WordPress growth
Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little started WordPress on May 27, 2003. They built it from b2/cafelog, an abandoned blogging platform. The founders created WordPress using PHP and MySQL. Their goal was simple – build an open-source platform anyone could use.
Bloggers worldwide quickly adopted WordPress. The platform stood out because anyone familiar with simple word processing software could use it. This approach changed everything at a time when website creation needed technical expertise.
WordPress's open-source nature attracted developers worldwide who fixed issues and helped improve the platform. This shared spirit helped WordPress grow from a blogging tool into a powerful system that runs almost any type of website.
Key milestones in adoption
WordPress saw its first big success in 2004. Downloads jumped from 8,670 in April to 19,400 in May. The same year brought plugin architecture in version 1.2. Users could now add features without changing core files. This innovation made WordPress a customizable platform.
Version 1.5 "Strayhorn" arrived in February 2005 with Pages feature. WordPress moved beyond just blogging. Downloads doubled to 100,000 in just three weeks after this release.
WordPress powered 14.7% of all websites by 2011. The REST API launch in 2015 gave developers new tools. The Gutenberg block editor came with version 5.0 in 2018. This major update changed how users create content.
These improvements led to amazing growth. W3Techs.com reported that WordPress ran 40% of the top 10 million websites by February 2021. The numbers were even better for top sites – 51.8% of the top 1,000 websites used WordPress.
Comparison with other CMS platforms
WordPress stands out because it combines easy use with powerful customization. The platform offers a simple dashboard and one-click installation for themes and plugins.
The numbers tell a clear story:
- Shopify runs just 4.5% of websites – about 1/10th of WordPress's share
- Wix has only 2.9% market share – WordPress is 22 times bigger
- Other platforms lag further: Squarespace (2.1%), Joomla (1.6%), Drupal (1.2%)
WordPress's reach is three times larger than nine other popular website builders combined. Its success extends to major websites too – 36.28% of the top 10,000 websites run on WordPress.
Technical experts once controlled website creation. WordPress changed that forever. The platform keeps growing because it stays true to its core values: freedom, flexibility, and user control. Anyone can build anything – from personal blogs to online stores and corporate websites.
The Global Reach of WordPress
WordPress's global footprint now reaches almost every corner of the internet, powering everything from small blogs to enterprise websites. The platform's worldwide adoption spans more than 178 countries.
Top countries using WordPress
The United States leads the WordPress digital world with 3 to 3.7 million active WordPress websites. These sites make up 10.92% of all known live WordPress-powered sites. Many prominent U.S. publications like TED Blog, Reuters, The New Yorker, and Vogue trust WordPress as their platform.
German users have built 1.7 million WordPress websites, which represents 4.8% of all live WordPress-powered sites. The United Kingdom comes next with 1.3 million sites.
The complete top ten rankings show:
|
Rank |
Country |
WordPress Websites |
|
1 |
United States |
3-3.7 million |
|
2 |
Germany |
1.7 million |
|
3 |
United Kingdom |
1.3 million |
|
4 |
Brazil |
858,293-1 million |
|
5 |
France |
847,213-975,972 |
|
6 |
Netherlands |
591,526-895,373 |
|
7 |
Italy |
588,468-870,199 |
|
8 |
India |
540,057-724,223 |
|
9 |
Japan |
483,872-710,408 |
|
10 |
Spain |
479,661 |
Japan stands out with its remarkable adoption rate compared to its total website count. WordPress powers 58.5% of all Japanese websites and captures 83% of the CMS market share. This is a big deal as it means that Japanese adoption rates surpass the global average.
Languages and localization support
WordPress's extensive language support plays a crucial role in its worldwide success. The platform started in English but now supports over 200 locales. Users can access fully translated versions in 33 local languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, French, German, and Spanish.
The platform reached a major milestone when non-English WordPress downloads exceeded English downloads for the first time in 2014. Today, most WordPress installations run in non-English languages, making the platform accessible to more people worldwide.
WordPress.com's language distribution shows 71% of sites use English as their main language. Spanish and Indonesian follow at 4.7% and 2.4% respectively.
WordPress usage statistics by region
Different regions show varying WordPress adoption rates. Google Trends reveals highest interest in Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Kenya, showing strong growth in emerging digital markets.
Monthly search volumes tell an interesting story. India and the United States each generate 246,000 searches for "WordPress", showing the platform's appeal to both established and growing developer communities. France and Indonesia follow with 110,000 monthly searches each, while Brazil and Spain record 90,500 searches each.
WordPress has become a global phenomenon. The platform enables content creation worldwide, with users publishing over 70 million new posts and 77 million comments each month. 409 million people read more than 20 billion WordPress-powered pages monthly, showcasing its worldwide impact.
WordPress continues to unite content creators globally, breaking down language barriers and geographical limitations to create a truly international platform.
Themes and Plugins: The Power Behind the Platform
WordPress's market dominance comes from its themes and plugins. These two components are the life-blood of WordPress that let users build any website they want without knowing code.
How many WordPress themes are available?
WordPress users can pick from an amazing number of themes. The official WordPress.org theme directory has almost 13,000 free themes as of August 2025. This huge collection is just the beginning.
ThemeForest, which leads the premium WordPress theme market, adds about 12,000 more themes. These two sources give users access to more than 25,000 themes.
Many independent theme shops also create their own free and premium themes. The total number of WordPress themes goes beyond 30,000, and might reach 31,000. Premium themes cost USD 77.57 on average, so there's a theme for every budget and need.
New developers keep adding themes to this already big selection, making it hard to count the exact total. This massive choice helps WordPress stay ahead of other platforms.
Most popular WordPress themes in 2025
BuiltWith's data from the top 1 million websites shows that Hello Elementor leads the pack. About 18,366 websites use it, which is 1.84% of top sites. Developers love this lightweight theme made for the Elementor page builder.
Astra and Divi compete for second place. 12,417 sites (1.24%) use Astra, while 11,327 sites (1.13%) run on Divi. GeneratePress powers 8,786 sites (0.88%), and Newspaper runs on 5,164 sites (0.52%).
Premium themes on ThemeForest also do well. Avada has sold more than 675,000 copies at USD 60.00 each. Other popular premium choices include BeTheme, Enfold, The7, and Flatsome.
How many WordPress plugins exist?
The WordPress.org plugin directory lists 59,000 free plugins. CodeCanyon, the biggest marketplace for premium plugins, offers 5,200 paid options.
These numbers tell only part of the story. Many developers and companies sell their plugins directly. The total number of WordPress plugins is at least 70,000, and some sources say it could be 90,000+.
This big ecosystem grows faster as downloads pass one billion. Users want to add features to their websites without custom coding.
Top plugins by active installations
WordPress plugins have reached impressive installation numbers.
The WordPress.org plugin directory shows several plugins with more than 10 million active installations:
- Elementor: 10+ million installations
- Contact Form 7: 10+ million installations
- Yoast SEO: 10+ million installations
- Classic Editor: 9+ million installations
Here are other very popular plugins:
- WooCommerce: 7-8 million installations
- LiteSpeed Cache: 6-7 million installations
- Akismet: 6 million installations
- WPForms: 6 million installations
- All-in-One WP Migration: 5 million installations
- Wordfence Security: 4-5 million installations
All but one of these plugins have passed 1 million active installations. This shows how successful these top plugins are.
WordPress's unmatched ecosystem of thousands of themes and plugins keeps it at the top of the market in 2025.
WooCommerce and E-Commerce Dominance
WordPress's e-commerce strength comes from WooCommerce, a powerful plugin that has changed online selling since 2011. WooCommerce stands as a revolutionary force in the e-commerce platform world. This success has made WordPress a complete web solution.
What percentage of websites use WooCommerce?
WooCommerce dominates the market today. Between 20.1% and 38.76% of all e-commerce websites worldwide use WooCommerce, averaging 33.4% across major tracking platforms. The platform powers about 4.53 million active WooCommerce stores globally. Some sources suggest this number could reach 6.16 million websites.
Think about it – more than 1 in 3 online stores you browse runs on WooCommerce. People have downloaded the plugin 211+ million times. The platform grows by 30,000 new downloads daily.
WooCommerce's reach extends deep into WordPress sites. Over 10% of WordPress sites use WooCommerce. The platform holds an impressive 18.2% market share among the top million e-commerce websites.
WooCommerce vs Shopify and others
The e-commerce platform battle rages on, yet WooCommerce stays ahead. Raw numbers show WooCommerce's 4.53 million stores outpacing Shopify's 2.66 million.
Market projections for 2025 put WooCommerce at the top with 38.76% share. Custom solutions follow at 15-18%, then Wix e-commerce at 8-10%, and Shopify at 10.32%.
Shopify shows strong momentum. While WooCommerce saw a -3.2% decline year-over-year in 2025, Shopify grew 8.2%. This trend shows how some merchants prefer hosted solutions for easier management.
Both platforms push each other to innovate. Together, they power more than half of all e-commerce websites.
Why WooCommerce is preferred by small businesses
Small businesses choose WooCommerce for clear reasons. Cost ranks first – 45% of small businesses pick WooCommerce because it costs less than competitors. The platform itself comes free, with costs only for hosting and optional premium add-ons.
WordPress users find WooCommerce a natural fit. One developer puts it simply: "If you are familiar with WordPress, getting accustomed to WooCommerce is easy". This familiarity helps users learn faster.
Small businesses love the plugin's flexibility. WooCommerce handles everything from physical goods to digital downloads and subscriptions. Stores of all sizes can use it, but small to medium-sized businesses benefit most.
The platform offers extensive customization options. Merchants can find "countless free and premium plugins" to shape their stores. These extensions help manage payments and inventory without needing technical skills.
WooCommerce's open-source nature gives businesses full control of their data – vital for GDPR compliance and avoiding platform limits. This freedom, plus zero transaction fees, makes it perfect for entrepreneurs starting their online store.
Security, Versions, and Developer Ecosystem
Security is a critical concern in the WordPress ecosystem. Its market dominance makes it an attractive target for attackers. The WordPress security and development statistics give us a clear picture of how this powerful platform works.
Most used WordPress versions
WordPress version 6.x leads the market with 85% of all WordPress websites running this latest major version. 62.4% of sites run WordPress 6.5 while 8.9% use WordPress 6.4. Some older versions still exist – 11% use version 5.x and 3.7% run version 4.x.
WordPress 6.7 "Rollins" launched on November 12, 2024. The name comes from jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins. This version comes with the Twenty Twenty-Five default theme, better query loops, and improved accessibility features that include over 65 fixes.
Common vulnerabilities and security stats
Researchers found 7,966 new security vulnerabilities in the WordPress ecosystem during 2024. This shows a 34% increase from the previous year. The vast majority of these vulnerabilities (96%) appeared in plugins rather than WordPress core.
Cross-site scripting (XSS) leads the vulnerability types and makes up 47.7-53% of all WordPress security issues. The numbers show that 10-12,000 WordPress sites get hacked daily. This highlights why security alertness matters so much.
How many developers work with WordPress?
The WordPress ecosystem runs on a global community of volunteer developers who keep improving the platform. WordPress has no CEO since it's an open-source project that no single company owns.
Average earnings of WordPress developers
WordPress developers earn competitive salaries. Recent data shows U.S.-based WordPress developers earn about $33.22 per hour. Other sources point to annual earnings around $84,500. WordPress development remains an attractive career choice in 2025 despite growing competition from other platforms.
Conclusion
WordPress has become a 2025-old powerhouse that runs 43.4% of all websites on the internet. These numbers translate to somewhere between 478 million and 541 million websites worldwide. This massive adoption shows the platform's versatility and intuitive design. The platform's success story goes beyond just numbers. WordPress has changed website creation from a technical skill to something anyone can do.
The CMS market tells an even more impressive story. WordPress holds a 60.8% market share.
It powers more websites than all other content management systems put together. Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace have grown over time but are nowhere near WordPress's dominant position.
The platform's rise from a simple blogging tool in 2003 to today's internet giant didn't happen by chance. WordPress grew because of its open-source nature, constant breakthroughs, and steadfast dedication to intuitive design. The platform supports over 200 languages and reaches users in more than 178 countries.
The platform's huge ecosystem plays the most important role in its ongoing success. Users can choose from about 30,000 themes and 70,000 plugins to customize their sites without coding knowledge. This makes it easy to build anything from basic blogs to complex online stores.
WooCommerce deserves a special spotlight. It powers about 33.4% of all online stores globally.
This free plugin turns WordPress into a complete online store solution. Small businesses find it especially useful when they want an economical alternative to platforms like Shopify.
Security challenges exist. About 10,000-12,000 WordPress sites get hacked daily. Plugins cause most problems (96%) rather than the core software. This highlights why regular updates and security measures matter so much.
WordPress keeps growing strong in 2025. The latest 6.x versions now run on 85% of all WordPress sites. Despite small market share changes, WordPress remains the backbone of today's web.
The WordPress community's team spirit and developer-friendly environment will keep it at the top for years. The platform works great for bloggers, small business owners, and big companies alike. It offers flexibility, value for money, and growth potential that other platforms can't match.
FAQs
Q1. How widespread is WordPress usage in 2025?
As of 2025, WordPress powers an astounding 43.4% of all websites on the internet. This translates to approximately 478 million to 541 million websites worldwide, demonstrating its overwhelming popularity and market dominance.
Q2. What portion of the CMS market does WordPress control?
In the content management system (CMS) space, WordPress holds a commanding 60.8% to 62.7% market share. This means WordPress powers more websites than all other content management systems combined.
Q3. How is WordPress evolving to maintain its leadership position?
WordPress continues to innovate with regular updates, improved user experiences, and integration of new technologies. The platform's latest 6.x versions, running on 85% of all WordPress sites, introduce features like enhanced block editors, AI integration, and mobile-first
experiences to keep it at the forefront of web development.
Q4. Why is WordPress particularly popular among small businesses?
Small businesses prefer WordPress, especially its e-commerce plugin WooCommerce, due to its cost-effectiveness, ease of use, and flexibility. About 45% of small businesses choose WooCommerce specifically for its lower costs compared to competitors, while its extensive customization options and seamless WordPress integration make it an attractive choice for entrepreneurs.
Q5. What security challenges does WordPress face?
Despite its popularity, WordPress faces significant security challenges. Approximately 10,000-12,000 WordPress sites are hacked daily, with 96% of vulnerabilities occurring in plugins rather than the core software. In 2024, researchers discovered 7,966 new security vulnerabilities in the WordPress ecosystem, emphasizing the need for regular updates and robust security practices.
