What Is WordPress? Build A Powerful Online Website

WordPress (WP) is becoming more and more popular. But many computer users still do not have complete knowledge about what WordPress is. In this article, “What is WordPress?“ I will answer your question in detail. After reading this article, you will have access to general and necessary information about WP.

What is WordPress (WP)?

WordPress (WP) is an open-source content management system (CMS) that forms the basis of millions of websites around the world. It is written in PHP and uses a MySQL database. WP has its roots in the blogging platform b2/cafelog, which was launched by Michel Valdrighi in 2001.

However, WP took its current form when Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little started working intensively on this platform in 2003. Since WP is an open source software, anyone can download, use or customize it for free. WP has a user-friendly interface, extensible structure and powerful SEO features. For this reason, it is used in a wide range of areas, from personal blogs to large corporate sites, from e-commerce platforms to membership sites. One of the biggest advantages of WP is that it makes it easy for users to create and manage websites without needing coding knowledge. Additionally, it can be customized with thousands of themes and plugins, providing a suitable solution for all types of web projects.

WordPress is a platform that forms the infrastructure of millions of websites around the world. However, without a full understanding of what WP is, how it works, and how to use it, working with it can be difficult. In this article, I will cover in detail what WP is, how it works and how to use it. Whether you’re a blogger or a business owner, this guide covers everything you need to know about WP.

WP can be described as an open source Content Management System (CMS). This means that anyone can use it and modify it to suit their needs. WP allows users to easily create and manage websites and blogs. It is based on PHP and MySQL and is usually used through a web hosting service.

One of the biggest advantages of WP is its flexibility. Whether you want to create a blog, an e-commerce site, or a news site, WP allows you to do it. Plus, with thousands of themes and plugins, you can customize the look and functionality of your site.

For SEO Guide for News Sites, please click: SEO for News WebSite

WP has a user-friendly interface, making it accessible even to non-technical users. However, for more technical users, the open source nature of WordPress allows them to edit and customize the code.

Another important feature of WP is that it is SEO friendly. WP offers a number of tools and plugins for search engine optimization (SEO). This allows your site to rank higher in Google and other search engines.

WP is easy to use, flexible and powerful web software. Whether you’re blogging as a hobby or creating a website as a business owner, WP may be the right option for you. In this guide, I will tell you more about how to use WP, so you will find answers to your questions about WP. To understand what WP is, you must have knowledge of how it works.

How Does WordPress Work?

WP is a content management system developed using the PHP programming language and MySQL database. It consists of three components in structure. These components are core files, themes and plugins. Core provides the core functionality of WP. Themes provide a look (interface) and some additional features to the WP site. Plugins provide new functions to the WP site.

To understand its functioning, it is important to first understand its basic structure. Everything starts with you visiting a website. Then, the following processes occur respectively:

• Web Server: When WP starts running, it receives a web server (hosting) request. The request occurs over HTTP to allow the user access to the website. The web server processes the request and starts taking the necessary steps.
• PHP Engine: WP is written in the PHP programming language. The web server runs WordPress’ core PHP file (index.php) using the PHP engine. This file is the main PHP file that executes WP core functionality and manages other components.
• Database: WP uses MySQL database for users to store and manage content. The database stores information such as posts, pages, media files, theme and plugin settings. Upon the user’s request, content (text, basic settings, etc.) is retrieved from the database and processed.
• Theme System: Represents the visual design of WP and determines the design of the website. Themes give shape to the website using web programming languages such as PHP, HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Upon the user’s request, the theme’s files are uploaded and combined with the content to create the website’s interface.
• Plugin System: WP uses plugins to extend functionality. Plugins are special software that contains PHP files and database tables. Users install, activate and configure plugins to add features to the website. In this way, WP developers can add additional functions to their sites that are not available in the WP core and theme.
• User Actions: Users can interact with the website by visiting it. For example, they can read articles, comment, fill out forms or shop. These interactions of users are recorded in the database and processed with necessary transactions. For example, you can later view or edit an order you placed or a comment you made.

In this way, WP allows users to manage and update their websites. The web server, PHP engine, database, theme engine, plugin system and user interaction come together to create a user-friendly and flexible website.

What is WP Mostly Used For and Its Top Usage Areas

Although WP was originally designed as a blogging platform, it has evolved into much more over time. Today, the uses for WP are almost unlimited.

What kind of websites can WordPress make?

You can create many different types of websites with WordPress. Here are some examples:

• Blog and Personal Websites: Since WordPress was originally designed as a blogging platform, it is ideal for creating personal blogs and diaries.
• Corporate Websites: You can create professional websites for companies. WordPress offers many themes and plugins for corporate sites that can be easily updated and managed.
• E-Commerce Sites: You can create online stores with WordPress thanks to plugins such as WooCommerce. It offers a variety of tools for product sales, inventory management, and payment processing.
• Portfolio Sites: You can create portfolio sites for artists, designers, writers, and other creative professionals. These types of sites are perfect for showcasing your work.
• News and Magazine Sites: WordPress offers ideal opportunities for publishing and organizing a wide range of content. Suitable for news sites, magazines and blogs.
• Community Forums: You can create community forums and social networking sites with plugins like BuddyPress and bbPress.
• Online Courses and Training Sites: It is possible to create online courses and training sites for teachers and trainers. You can create training materials and course management with plugins such as LearnDash and LifterLMS.
• Responsive Websites: You can create sites that look great on all types of devices with mobile compatible and responsive designs.
• Photography Sites: You can create sites that showcase high-quality images for photographers. You can highlight your shots using gallery plugins and themes.
• Nonprofit Sites and Fundraising Sites: You can create websites with informational and fundraising functions for non-profit organizations.

WordPress’s wide selection of themes and plugins allows the creation of almost any type of website. You can easily find solutions that suit your own needs and goals.

WordPress’ usage areas are extremely wide, thanks to the flexibility and extensibility of the platform. Many different types of websites can be created with WP, from personal blogs to corporate websites, from e-commerce sites to forums. However, the usage areas of WordPress are not limited to these only. The uses of WP depend on your needs and imagination. WP is an ideal platform for websites of all types, thanks to its user-friendly interface, wide range of plugins and themes, and active community.

Famous Sites Made with WordPress 🌐

Here are some examples of world-renowned websites built using WordPress:

Blog and Personal Websites

1. TechCrunch: A popular blog providing technology news and analysis.
   • techcrunch.com
2. The Sartorialist: A fashion and style blog.
   • thesartorialist.com

Corporate Websites

1. Microsoft News Center: The news and press release site for Microsoft.
   • news.microsoft.com
2. The Walt Disney Company: The corporate website for Disney.
   • thewaltdisneycompany.com

E-Commerce Websites

1. The New York Times Store: A sophisticated online store offering a curated selection of products inspired by the iconic newspaper, including exclusive prints, books, and unique gifts.
   • store.nytimes.com
2. Bata: The famous footwear brand.
   • bata.com

Portfolio Websites

1. The Official Star Wars Blog: The official blog and portfolio site for Star Wars.
   • starwars.com/news
2. James Brandon Photography: The portfolio site of a professional photographer.
   • jamesb.com

News and Magazine Websites

1. 1. BBC America: The official website for BBC’s American audience, featuring a diverse array of broadcasts, original programming, and exclusive content tailored for viewers in the United States.
      • bbcamerica.com
   2. The New Yorker: A famous magazine covering literature, politics, culture, and more.
      • newyorker.com
   3. War Ukraine: This site is the official website of the Ukrainian government dedicated to providing information about the ongoing war in Ukraine.
      • https://war.ukraine.ua/

Community Forums

1. WordPress.org Support Forums: A support forum for WordPress users. An invaluable resource for the WordPress community, providing a platform where users can seek advice, share solutions, and collaborate on troubleshooting.
   • wordpress.org/support/forums/
2. Mumsnet: A community forum and information source for parents.
   • mumsnet.com

Online Course and Education Websites

1. OpenAI Blog: Articles and educational resources on artificial intelligence and machine learning.
   • openai.com/blog
2. Coursera Blog: The blog of the online course platform Coursera.
   • blog.coursera.org

Photography Websites

1. National Geographic’s Proof Blog: The photography blog of National Geographic.
   • proof.nationalgeographic.com
2. Stuck in Customs: The photography blog of Trey Ratcliff.
   • stuckincustoms.com

Nonprofit and Fundraising Websites

1. UNICEF UK: The United Kingdom branch of the United Nations Children’s Fund. The dedicated branch of the United Nations Children’s Fund in the United Kingdom, committed to advocating for children’s rights, providing humanitarian aid, and supporting long-term development programs.
   • unicef.org.uk
2. Charity: Water: A nonprofit organization raising funds for clean water projects.
   • charitywater.org

These websites demonstrate the flexibility and wide range of applications for WordPress.

7 reasons why you should use WordPress

WordPress is a popular choice for a content management system (CMS) when creating websites, thanks to its numerous benefits:

1. User-Friendliness: WordPress is known for its intuitive interface, making it accessible even to users with minimal technical knowledge. Its dashboard allows easy creation, editing, and management of content such as pages, posts, media, and more. This simplicity allows users to focus on content creation instead of dealing with technical complexities.
2. Customization Flexibility: A standout feature of WordPress is its extensive customization options. It offers a vast selection of themes (design templates) and plugins (add-ons) that enhance functionality. Themes allow you to change your site’s appearance quickly, while plugins extend features like SEO optimization, e-commerce capabilities, social media integration, and more. This flexibility ensures that you can tailor your website precisely to meet your specific needs, whether you’re running a blog, business website, online store, or portfolio.
3. Supportive Community: WordPress has a large, active community of developers, designers, and users who contribute themes, plugins, and support.This community-driven approach means there’s a wealth of resources available, including forums, tutorials, and online guides. It ensures that you can find help, advice, or pre-built solutions for virtually any aspect of your website, fostering continuous improvement and innovation.
4. SEO Benefits: WordPress is inherently designed with SEO best practices in mind. It generates clean, semantic code that search engines can easily crawl and index, enhancing visibility and ranking. Additionally, plugins like Yoast SEO or All in One SEO Pack provide tools to optimize your content further, including customizable permalinks, XML sitemaps, meta tags, and more. These features help improve your site’s visibility in search engine results, driving organic traffic and enhancing your online presence.
5. Scalability and Versatility: Whether you’re starting with a basic blog or planning a complex e-commerce site, WordPress scales effortlessly. Its architecture supports growth and expansion, allowing you to add new features, pages, or functionality as your business or website needs evolve. This scalability makes WordPress suitable for businesses of all sizes, adapting to changes in requirements without compromising performance.
6. Security Measures: Security is a priority for WordPress, with regular updates addressing vulnerabilities, robust user authentication systems, and secure coding practices. The platform’s popularity also means a vigilant community that actively monitors and addresses security issues. By keeping your WordPress core, themes, and plugins updated, along with employing best security practices and reliable hosting, you can maintain a secure website environment.
7. Cost-Effectiveness: WordPress is open-source software, meaning it’s free to use, modify, and distribute. This reduces initial costs associated with website development compared to proprietary CMS alternatives. While there may be expenses for premium themes, plugins, hosting, or professional services like design and development, the overall cost-effectiveness of WordPress remains high. Its rich feature set, coupled with community support, offers substantial value for building and maintaining a robust online presence.

WordPress excels as a versatile, user-friendly, and cost-effective CMS that empowers individuals and businesses to create dynamic and engaging websites. Its customization options, strong community support, SEO capabilities, scalability, and focus on security make it a preferred choice for anyone looking to establish or enhance their online presence effectively. Whether you’re a blogger, entrepreneur, small business owner, or enterprise, WordPress provides the tools and resources necessary to build and grow successful websites with ease.

Advantages of WordPress👍

WP is a powerful content management system used by millions of websites around the world. (CMS). So, what makes WP so popular and preferred? In this section, we will talk about the prominent features and advantages of WP:

• Free and Open Source: WP is a completely free and open source platform. This means that anyone can download and use the software and customize it to their own needs as needed. This makes WP an ideal option for both those on a budget and those looking for a customizable solution.
• Mobile Compatibility: Most WP themes feature responsive design to make it look great on mobile devices. This allows mobile users to navigate your site smoothly.
• User-Friendly: WP has a user-friendly interface. Creating and editing content, adding media, and managing basic site settings is pretty simple. This makes WP accessible even to non-technical users.
• Flexible and Customizable: WP comes with thousands of free and premium themes and plugins. This allows you to fully customize the appearance and functionality of your site. Additionally, the open source nature of WP allows developers to create their own themes and plugins.
• SEO Friendly: WP is an SEO friendly platform. Features such as SEO-friendly URLs, tags, and categories make your content easily found by search engines. Additionally, many SEO plugins help you further improve your site’s SEO performance.
• Secure and Updated: WP comes with regular updates and security fixes. This ensures that your site remains secure. Additionally, the WP community responds quickly to security issues.
• Community Support: WP has a large community around the world. This means you can get quick answers to your questions and fix any WP-related issues.
• Scalability: WP suits all types of projects, from small personal blogs to large commercial sites. As your site traffic grows, WP can scale to meet your needs.
• Ease of Integration: WP can easily integrate with many third-party services and platforms. This allows you to integrate many services into your site, from email marketing services to social media platforms, from analytics tools to payment gateways. This feature is crucial for expanding functionality and customizing the site to better serve users’ needs.
• Multilingual Support: WP makes it easy to create content in different languages thanks to its multilingual support. This is a great advantage for sites that want to appeal to a global audience.

These features make WP an ideal option for both individual users and businesses. Whether you’re creating a blog, an e-commerce site, or a business site, WP offers you all the flexibility and features you need.

Disadvantages of WordPress👎

Although WP has many advantages, it also has some potential disadvantages that users should be aware of. These disadvantages often manifest themselves in the form of security issues and performance issues. However, most of these problems can be managed and mitigated by taking the right precautions.

1- Security Issues: Since WP is used by millions of websites around the world, it has naturally become the target of hackers. The open source nature of WP makes it possible for potential security vulnerabilities to be found and exploited by malicious actors. This could result in your site being hacked, your data being stolen, or your site being infected with malware.

For the 10 Biggest Cyber Attacks in History article, please click: HERE

However, WP security issues are often caused by user errors such as neglecting updates, using weak passwords, or installing unreliable plugins and themes. To avoid these problems, you should regularly update your WP version, plugins, and themes, use strong passwords, and only download plugins and themes from trusted sources.

2- Performance and Speed Issues: Another potential disadvantage is that WP sites may experience performance and speed issues. WP can cause slow loading times, especially when using lots of plugins or hosting large amounts of content. This can negatively impact user experience and lower your SEO rankings.

To alleviate performance issues, you should remove unnecessary plugins, optimize your images, and use a quality hosting service. Additionally, using a caching plugin, clearing your database regularly, and using a content delivery network (CDN) when necessary can also increase your site’s speed.

WP has potential drawbacks, but these problems can usually be eliminated or mitigated by taking the right precautions. The flexibility, customizability, and ease of use that WP offers are often reasons enough to ignore these potential drawbacks.

Who Is WordPress Suitable For?👍

The importance of creating a website in the digital world is increasing day by day. Whether you are a business owner, a blogger, or an e-commerce entrepreneur, the value of having a website is undeniable. However, not all website building platforms have a solution that fits everyone’s needs. This is where WordPress comes into play. WordPress is a platform preferred by a wide range of users. So, who is WordPress suitable for?

• Bloggers: WordPress is an ideal platform for bloggers. It provides great advantages to bloggers with its ease of use, wide theme options, high SEO compatibility and advanced features for blogging.
• Small and Medium Businesses: WordPress is also suitable for small and medium businesses. Using WordPress’ customizable features, businesses can create a professional website that reflects their brand at affordable costs.
• E-Commerce Ventures: Thanks to powerful plugins like WooCommerce, WordPress is also an excellent platform for e-commerce sites. You can easily list your products, manage payment options and track your sales.
• Freelancers and Agencies: WordPress is also ideal for freelancers and agencies. They can create, customize and manage websites for clients.

The flexibility and customizability of WordPress offers many solutions to meet a variety of needs. However, it may not fit every user’s needs perfectly. Therefore, it is important to carefully evaluate your needs, skills, and goals to determine whether WordPress is the best option for you. At this point, you can also contact us for consultancy.

Who Is WordPress Not Suitable For?👎

WP is a content management system used by millions of websites around the world. It owes this wide usage to the platform’s flexibility, user-friendly interface and extensive customization options. However, although WP offers an ideal solution for many people and businesses, it may not meet everyone’s needs. Therefore, it is important to carefully evaluate your needs, skills, and goals to determine whether WP is the best option for you. So, who might not be suitable for WP?

• Non-Technical Users: WP requires a certain level of technical knowledge. Especially to design a professional site, it is necessary to have advanced knowledge of WP. Some basic technical skills are needed to install, customize and manage themes and plugins. If you are unfamiliar with technology or have no experience with web development, WP may be challenging for you.
• Large-Scale Businesses: While WP is a great solution for small and medium-sized businesses, it may not always be the best option for large-sized businesses. Larger businesses often have more complex website requirements. Therefore, they may prefer to rely on a custom web software solution or work with a WP specialist.
• Users with High Security Requirements: WP is a frequently targeted platform because it is used by millions of websites worldwide. If the security of your website is a top priority for you, you may want to look for an alternative solution that is less subject to attack.
• Performance-Oriented Projects: Since WP is a general-purpose CMS, it may be limited in performance in some cases. Especially in the case of large databases and high-traffic sites, a more customized solution may be required.

WordPress’s wide user base and flexibility make it an ideal solution for many people and businesses. However, it may not meet everyone’s needs. Therefore, it is important to carefully evaluate your needs, skills, and goals to determine whether WP is the best option for you. Determining whether WP is right for you depends on your needs, skills, and goals.

How to Use WordPress? Tips for Beginners

Using WP effectively and making your site as efficient as possible requires some basic knowledge and skills. In this section, I will explain the basic information on how to install WP and what you should pay attention to to keep your WP site running in a healthy way.

How to Install WP?

WordPress’s user-friendly interface, extensive customization options, and powerful features allow users to easily create their own websites. The process of setting up a website with WP is generally as follows:

Hosting and Domain Name Selection: The first step to your WP website is choosing a hosting provider and domain name. Hosting is where your website’s files are stored, and the domain name is the address that users will enter into their browser to find your website. Turhost, one of the popular hosting providers in Turkey, offers special hosting services for WP.

WP Installation: After setting up your hosting account and purchasing your domain name, you can install WP. Most hosting providers offer a feature that allows you to install WordPress in one click (Softaculous Auto Installer etc.). You can follow these steps to install WP.

Basic WP Settings: After installing WP, you will need to make some basic settings. These settings ensure that your website functions correctly. For example, by clicking ‘General’ from the ‘Settings’ menu, you can adjust your site’s title and description, WP address (URL), site address (URL), admin email address and time zone. Under ‘Writing’ settings, you can set post types and category and tag structures. Under ‘Reading’ settings, you can adjust the appearance of your home page and the appearance of the post page. Under ‘Discussion’ settings, you can manage comments and link notifications. Under ‘Permalinks’ settings, you can adjust your URL structure. These settings ensure that your website is SEO friendly.

To learn How to Remove Category Tags in WordPress, please click on the link: Remove Category

Theme Selection: WP comes with thousands of free and premium themes. The theme determines the look and feel of your website. Choose the theme that best suits your needs and tastes. For more information about WP theme selection, you can review the Wpbeginner guide.

Installing Plugins: Plugins extend the functionality of WP. Install plugins for SEO, security, social media integration and more. But don’t download any plugins you don’t really need. Increasing the number of plugins will cause technical problems and site loading speed problems.

Content Creation: Creating content with WP is quite simple. WP allows users to easily add and edit various types of content such as posts, pages, and media. WordPress’ built-in editor allows users to format text, add links, insert images and videos, and more. Gutenberg, one of WordPress’ most popular editors, allows users to create their content in blocks. This allows users to edit and customize each block independently. However, Gutenberg is not appreciated by the WP community.

Despite 300 thousand discounts, it received two points out of five. Other popular editors, Elementor, WPBakery Page Builder, Divi, Bricks, and Beaver Builder, allow users to easily create web pages with a drag-and-drop interface. These editors help users create professional-looking web pages without any coding knowledge.

Publishing the Website: Once you have made all your settings and created your content, you can publish your website. WP offers a ‘Publish’ button to go live on web pages and posts. Once you publish your website, you can reach millions of users worldwide.

Building a website with WP is possible with the right tools, resources and WP usage knowledge. In this section of my article, I shared the basic steps of setting up a website with WP. However, the features and customization options WP offers are almost endless, so you should always be open to learning new things.

Tips to Keep Your WordPress Site Live

Once you’ve completed WP installation, your next step is to effectively manage WP, keep it secure, and make your site as efficient as possible. However, running a WP site properly requires some basic knowledge and skills. Here’s what you need to do to run your WP site healthily:

• Follow WP Updates: WP is updated regularly. These updates usually include security fixes, bug fixes, and new features. Using the latest version of WP increases the security and performance of your site. Therefore, it is important to regularly check and install WP updates. In some cases, upgrading to the latest version may cause problems. You should definitely check whether the themes and plugins on your website are compatible with the latest version of WP. Incompatible plugins and themes may cause problems with the functionality and appearance of your site or cause your site to crash.
• Update Plugins and Themes: WP plugins and themes are also updated regularly. These updates may include security fixes, bug fixes, and new features. Using the latest version of plugins and themes increases your site’s security and performance. Therefore, it is important to regularly check and install plugin and theme updates.
• Take Security Precautions: You can take various precautions to ensure the security of your WP site. These precautions include using strong passwords, using two-factor authentication, installing security plugins, and taking regular backups of your site.
• Take Regular Backups: Taking regular backups of your site allows you to restore your site quickly and easily in case of possible data loss. This is an essential step to ensure the security and continuity of your site.
• Apply SEO Best Practices: Use SEO best practices to attract more visitors from search engines. Choose your keywords carefully, make your URLs SEO friendly, improve your site speed and create quality content. These steps make your site easier to find by search engines like Google.
• Optimize Your Site Speed: The speed of your WP site has a huge impact on user experience and search engine rankings. You can use various techniques to optimize your site’s speed. Among these techniques, using caching plugins, optimizing images and removing unnecessary plugins are the first to be done.
• Create Quality Content: The success of your WP site largely depends on the quality of the content. Quality content attracts visitors to your site and turns them into regular visitors. Therefore, it is important to publish quality, interesting and valuable content on your site.
• Use Social Media: Social media is a powerful tool to increase your site traffic and expand your brand awareness. Being active on social media platforms can help you attract more visitors to your site and deliver your content to a wider audience.

Running WP properly takes some time and effort, but that effort is rewarded with a safer, faster, and more successful website. These tips will help you manage your WP site effectively. However, remember that managing WP effectively requires constant learning and improvement. Staying informed about new plugins, updates, and SEO trends is important to improve your site’s performance.

However, all these processes can be complex and time-consuming. If you are new to WP management or want to devote your time to more strategic tasks, you may consider hiring a professional WP management service. WordPress specialist take care of the technical maintenance of your site, allowing you to focus on your business. They also provide expertise on things like security, speed optimization and SEO, ensuring your site is at its best. Whether you choose to manage it yourself or use a professional service, the important thing is to ensure your site is up-to-date, secure and user-friendly. I continue my article with the most popular paid and free WP plugins.

What is a WordPress Specialist and What does it do?

WordPress Plugins: Most Popular Free and Premium Options

WP is a content management system used by millions of websites around the world. But the real power of WP comes from its plugins that allow users to customize and extend their sites. These plugins perform a variety of functions, from SEO to security, social media integration to e-commerce. In this section, we dive into the world of WP plugins and review the most popular free and premium options in 2023.

Top 10 Free WordPress Plugins:

1. WooCommerce: It is a free and open-source e-commerce plugin for WP users and allows turning websites into online stores. This plugin allows you to add products, categorize them, manage stock, and accept payments. Additionally, integration with various payment methods allows you to easily use e-commerce functions such as shipping options and tax calculation. Thanks to WooCommerce’s extensive plugin and theme support, it is also possible to customize your website and adapt it to your needs. Therefore, WooCommerce allows users to conduct e-commerce effectively and helps them manage their online sales successfully. Check out WooCommerce
2. Yoast SEO: It is a popular SEO plugin for WP users and aims to improve the search engine optimization of websites. Yoast SEO is a popular SEO plugin that helps your website achieve better rankings in search results by optimizing your content with keywords and creating SEO-friendly title and meta descriptions. It also increases your website’s visibility by offering SEO functions such as creating a sitemap and managing internal links. Review Yoast SEO
3. Wordfence Security: Wordfence Security is a security plugin developed for WP users and aims to protect websites against various threats. This plugin provides firewall to block malicious traffic and detect and block attacks. It also detects harmful content by scanning for malware and offers various other security features to increase the security of your website. Wordfence Security is an important tool for users to protect their websites and protect themselves from attacks. Check out Wordfence Security
4. LiteSpeed Cache: It is a caching plugin developed for WP users and aims to increase the speed of websites. It offers features such as page caching, browser caching, CDN integration to improve the performance of your website. Thus, it reduces your site’s loading times and positively affects the user experience. Check out LiteSpeed Cache
5. Jetpack: It is a versatile plugin for WP and aims to make websites more secure, faster and interactive. This plugin offers features such as caching, CDN integration, spam protection that improve site performance. It is also enriched with additional features such as social media sharing, visitor statistics, automatic backup and firewall. Jetpack makes website management easier and more efficient by allowing users to use many different functions under a single plugin. Check out Jetpack
6. Site Kit by Google: It is a plugin developed for WP users and allows you to integrate Google services with your website. This plugin allows you to manage Google’s popular services such as Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Google AdSense and Google PageSpeed Insights in one place. Thus, you can track your website’s performance, analyze traffic, monitor your ranking in search results and track your advertising revenues. Check out Site Kit by Google
7. Rank Math SEO: It is a popular SEO plugin for WP users and aims to improve the search engine optimization of websites. This plugin helps users optimize their content with keywords, allows them to create SEO-friendly titles and meta descriptions, and offers tips and suggestions to help your content rank better in search results. It also offers SEO functions such as automatically generating sitemaps, managing internal links, and 404 monitoring, providing a comprehensive solution to improve your website’s SEO performance. Check out Rank Math SEO
8. WPForms: It is an easy-to-use contact form plugin for WP users and allows creating various form types on your website. This plugin allows you to easily create customizable form fields, surveys, requests for quotes, and other contact forms thanks to its drag-and-drop interface. It also helps you communicate more effectively by allowing your visitors to send you messages. WPForms helps your website achieve its goals with its user-friendly interface and integrable third-party tools. Check out WPForms
9. Complianz: It is a compliance plugin developed for WP users and aims to make websites comply with various data protection and legal requirements. This plugin can be used to meet legal requirements such as the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and various other data protection regulations. Complianz facilitates your website’s data protection compliance by offering features such as cookie consent management, privacy policy creation, cookie notification and tracking opt-out options. This helps you ensure legal compliance while protecting visitor data. Check out Complianz
10. Contact Form 7: It is a free and popular contact form plugin for WP users and allows adding simple and customizable contact forms to websites. While this plugin does not have a drag-and-drop interface, it does offer a tag-based form design that is easily customizable. Users can create a variety of forms that include basic fields such as name, email, message, or include more complex fields and messages. It also offers support in multiple languages, making it easier to appeal to international users. This plugin, which allows your website to communicate with users more effectively, simplifies and manages the contact form creation process. Check out Contact Form 7

The 10 Most Popular Paid WordPress Plugins:

1. Bookly PRO – Appointment Booking and Scheduling Software System: Bookly PRO is an appointment booking and scheduling software system developed for WP users. Customers can easily book appointments from your website, making your business’ appointment management easier, and business owners can effectively manage their appointment calendar. Check out Bookly PRO
2. FileBird – WordPress Media Library Folders: FileBird is a plugin that allows creating media library folders for WP users. Thanks to this plugin, you can better organize your media files and organize them in folders. You can easily move, copy or rename files into folders by dragging and dropping them. This way, your media content becomes more organized and accessible. FileBird helps you manage your WP media library more effectively and simplifies your website’s content management. Check out FileBird
3. Filter Everything — WordPress/WooCommerce Product Filter: It is a plugin that provides product filtering feature for WP and WooCommerce users. Thanks to this plugin, you can easily filter the products on your website and help visitors find what they are looking for faster. It is possible to sort and filter products by price ranges, categories, features or other special filtering options. Filter Everything is an effective tool to improve users’ shopping experience and increase sales. Check out Filter Everything
4. WordPress Automatic Plugin: WP Automatic Plugin is a plugin that facilitates automatic content creation and content publishing. This plugin pulls content from specific sources and automatically adds posts and updates to your website. It can pull and publish articles, videos, images, news and other types of content at certain frequencies. You can also customize the content and associate it with specific keywords. WP Automatic Plugin saves time and effort by making it easier to produce content and keep your website up-to-date. However, it is important to pay attention to the rights of use of your content source and content. Check out WordPress Automatic
5. Ultimate Addons for WPBakery Page Builder: Ultimate Addons for WPBakery Page Builder is a plugin developed for WPBakery Page Builder and offers WP users more customization and design options. This plugin improves the content creation experience by adding additional features to WPBakery Page Builder. Pre-designed ready-made blocks let you add content quickly and easily. It also offers a wide range of features, including various widgets, animations, advanced content editing tools, and more. Ultimate Addons for WPBakery Page Builder helps users make their websites more professional-looking and interactive, making the content editing process more efficient. Check out Ultimate Addons
6. Ajax Search Pro – Live WordPress Search & Filter Plugin: Ajax Search Pro is a live search and filter plugin for WP users and aims to provide a more advanced search experience on your website. With this plugin, users can perform a live search on your website and the results can be displayed instantly. Ajax search works fast and user-friendly, and search results are updated in real time. Additionally, users can narrow search results using customizable filtering options and find the content they want faster. Ajax Search Pro improves user experience, making your website more interactive and useful among users. Check out Ajax Search Pro
7. FS Poster – WordPress Social Auto Poster & Scheduler: FS Poster is a social media auto post and scheduling plugin for WP users and aims to make it easier for your website to interact with social media accounts. Thanks to this plugin, you can automatically share content on your social media accounts and predetermine publication schedules. FS Poster integrates with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest and other popular social media platforms, allowing you to share your content with a wide audience. You can also share content between different accounts and customize the timing of sharing. FS Poster helps improve your website’s social media presence and increase follower engagement by automating the content publishing process. Check out the FS Poster
8. EventON – WordPress Virtual Event Calendar Plugin: EventON is a virtual event calendar plugin for WP users and makes it easy for your website to manage and display events. Thanks to this plugin, you can plan, organize and add virtual events to the calendar. You can add dates, times and details to events, enable participants to register, and even sell tickets. EventON offers the opportunity to adapt your event calendar to your website with its user-friendly interface and various customization options. It helps you effectively promote your virtual events and make them easily accessible to visitors. Check out EventON
9. Ultimate Membership Pro – WordPress Membership Plugin: Ultimate Membership Pro is a membership management plugin for WP users and allows you to create paid or free membership systems on your website. This plugin allows you to offer special benefits to your members by limiting access to exclusive content. You can create different membership options by determining membership levels, packages and durations. By creating membership forms, you can easily register users and accept membership payments. It also offers useful management tools to track and report members’ activities. Ultimate Membership Pro is a powerful tool to increase your website’s revenue, build a loyal customer base, and share your content with custom audiences. Check Out Ultimate Membership Pro
10. Extra Product Options & Add-Ons for WooCommerce: It is a plugin developed for WooCommerce users and allows creating additional product options and add-ons on their websites. This plugin allows you to add custom options to your products and allows customers to personalize products based on their preferences. For example, you can add options such as color, size, pattern or add extra services. It also offers the opportunity to manage price differences and stock availability. Extra Product Options & Add-Ons help improve your website’s sales and customer satisfaction by enhancing customer experience. Check out Extra Product Options

WP plugins are a great way to extend the functionality of your website and improve user experience. However, remember that each plugin has its own features and advantages. Therefore, it is important to evaluate each one carefully to choose the one that best suits your needs. The free and premium WP plugins I present in this section can be an excellent starting point for improving the performance and functionality of your site. However, the WP plugin world is constantly evolving and expanding, so always keep your eyes open and follow Algorithm Man’s WordPress posts to discover new and exciting plugins!

Attention Please: The WordPress plugin library is used as a reference for the most popular free plugins, and the Codecanyon library is used as a reference for the most popular paid plugins. Download and purchase figures on both platforms change daily.

History of WP

When we take a closer look at the history of WP, we see that in 2003, Matt Mullenweg announced the first version of WP. This version came with significant improvements over b2 Cafelog and received positive feedback from the community. In 2004, WP version 1.2 introduced plugin architecture, which allowed users and developers to extend the functionality of WP by writing their own plugins.

WP is a project started in 2003 by Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little. It was first designed as a blogging tool, but over time it has evolved into much more. Here is more detailed information about the history and development of WP:

2003 – Birth of WordPress: WPbegan in 2001 as a successor to b2/cafelog, a blogging platform created by Michel Valdrighi, a French programmer. Valdrighi stopped developing the project in 2002, and dissatisfied users Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little redesigned b2/cafelog and created a new way to create a website. This was the birth of WP. On May 27, 2003, Matt and Mike announced the first version of WP, which was a fork of b2/cafelog but came with significant improvements.

2004 – WordPress 1.2 and Plugin Architecture: In 2004, the WP team released version 1.2, which included plugin architecture, a new feature that allowed users to create plugins to extend the default functionality of WP.

2005 – WordPress 1.5, Pages, Comment Moderation, Kubrick Theme, and Automattic: In 2005, WP version 1.5 came with several important features. First, Matt introduced Kubrick as a new default theme to showcase the “extremely flexible theme system” that 1.5 offers. Second, WP has gone beyond blog posts and added support for pages. Finally, WP 1.5 made it possible to easily moderate comments, with initial comments requiring approval. Additionally, Matt Mullenweg launched Automattic and began hiring prominent WP contributors.

2006 – WordPress 2.0, WYSIWYG Editor and WP Trademarks: Towards the end of the year, WP version 2.0 was released. It introduced a built-in WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) page editor and improved the publishing flow. Users can now add tags and categories while working on a post. They also gained the ability to preview the final post before publishing.

2007 – WordPress 2.1: Version 2.1 came with improved search functionality and an autosave feature to prevent loss of unsaved content.

2008 – WordPress 2.5, New Admin Dashboard: In 2008, Happy Cog, a web design company, collaborated with the WP team and helped design WordPress’ new admin interface.

2009 – WordPress 2.8, BuddyPress: WP 2.8 release came with improved widget management and a new theme browser.

2010 – WordPress 3.0, WP Foundation: 2010 was a big year for WP. Automattic has completed the transfer of the WordPress brand name and famous blue logo to the WP Foundation. This ensured that WP would remain open source and community members would continue to contribute to the project.

2011-2012 – WordPress 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 and 3.4: During these years, WP introduced a number of new features and improvements. These innovations include features such as speed and performance improvements, new default theme, internal links, drag and drop media uploader and theme customizer. Developments during this period increased the ease of use and flexibility of WP and contributed to the popularity of the platform.

2013 – WordPress 3.6, 3.7 and 3.8: The rapid development of WP continued in 2013 and WP encountered three major versions. WP has released three major versions: 3.6 “Oscar”, 3.7 “Basie” and 3.8 “Parker”. These versions came with features like automatic background updates, improved search results, better revision controls and user interface. Additionally, the “Post Locking” feature was also introduced to prevent users from editing the same content at the same time.

2014 – WordPress 3.9 and 4.1: With version 3.9, the WP team introduced changes to the visual post editor.

2015 – WooCommerce: This year, Automattic acquired WooCommerce, which had already dominated as a WP plugin and was used to create online stores.

2016 – WordPress 4.5, 4.6 and 4.7: WP 4.5, 4.6 and 4.7 versions released in 2016 brought a number of features and improvements to enhance and improve user experience. These versions have made significant strides in areas such as customizability, media management, fixes, and performance improvements. Additionally, these updates also introduced new editing tools that make it easier to create and edit content faster and more efficiently.

2017 – WordPress 4.9 and Vulnerabilities: The year 2017 did not start well for the WP community because the REST API was found to have vulnerabilities that allowed hacking websites based on WP 4.7.

2018 – WordPress 5.0, Gutenberg Editor: In 2018, WP officially launched the Gutenberg editor in version 5.0.

2019 – WordPress 5.1, Site Health: In 2019, the WP team spent a significant amount of time debugging the tools that come with the Gutenberg project.

2020 – COVID and WordCamps: Due to COVID, Matt Mullenweg canceled WordCamp Asia in Bangkok.

2021 – WordPress 5.7 and 5.8: 2021 brought further developments towards full site editing of WP.

2022 – WordPress 5.9 and 6.0: In 2022, the WP team further refined the editing process to enable full site editing (FSE).

2024 – WordPress 6.5: You can go to our article to review the latest version of WP, Wordpress 6.5: Wordpress 6.5

Future – Future of WordPress: WP has been changing the website development landscape since the inception of the Gutenberg project. Currently, WP continues its work on Customization, the second phase of the Gutenberg project. The recently released WordPress 6.1 and 6.2 versions brought with them a number of new features and improvements that make it even easier for users to edit sites. The site editor has left beta and a Stylebook feature has been added that allows users to see how blocks look and behave.

Additionally, users were allowed to add custom CSS to their themes or blocks. The ability to copy and paste block styles allows users to easily apply changes they make to a specific block to another block. Additionally, a new template browsing experience has been introduced that makes it easier for users to find which template they need to edit when they want to make changes to a specific website area.

Added a ‘Media’ tab where users can browse copyright-free images from their WPmedia library or Openverse. Along with these features, WordPress 6.2 also includes a number of other improvements, such as subpanels that make it easier to distinguish between block settings and styles, and a new distraction-free mode that removes all toolbars and editing panels from the screen.

This detailed history shows how WP evolved into much more than just a blogging tool. WP has made creating and managing websites easier than ever before, thanks to its user-friendly interface and extensive customization options. This development process explains why WP is used by millions of websites around the world.