Important Update – 30th March, 2010:
It seems, as of the last couple of days, that Blogger has changed its attitude towards using Blogger blogs to funnel traffic towards affiliate sites. See this thread in the Warrior Forum, and note the 11th and 13th comments.
As a result, I strongly urge you to check the terms of service of Blogger (and, of course, WordPress.com) before deciding how you’re going to use them.
Original article starts here:
Several times this week I’ve seen questions asking which is the better blogging platform – Blogger or WordPress.
It’s actually not a simple case one or the other, because they both have their strengths and weaknesses.
I maintain blogs on Blogger, WordPress.com and my own self-hosted WordPress site, and here’s my take on it.
Both Blogger and WordPress.com blogs are free, easy to set up and get indexed quickly by the search engines.
With WordPress.com, however, you cannot use Adsense and you cannot use it to drive traffic to an affiliate site or a landing page. If you do they’ll suspend your blog, as I discovered to my cost some time ago.
Blogger doesn’t have those restrictions.
With both Blogger and WordPress.com you’re at risk of losing your data if something happens to the servers they’re running on, although with WordPress.com you can export your blog to your PC in an xml file. This effectively enables you to back it up.
The themes available in Blogger are much nicer now than they were a while ago, but you still have that bar across the top of the page (with Blogger hosted blogs) which I really dislike.
WordPress.com offers quite a wide choice of themes and there’s no obvious WordPress branding (like the Blogger bar across the top), so I generally prefer the look of a WordPress.com blog.
The most flexible of these platforms, though, is self-hosted WordPress.
With self-hosted WordPress you don’t have any of these restrictions. You can use it as you like and you can publish what you like.
Although a large and increasing number of hosting providers now offer 1-click installation for WordPress, you do still need to know how to use FTP for uploading new themes or plugins. You also, of course, need to pay for a domain name and hosting!
However, you can customize your self-hosted WordPress blog almost infinitely with the huge range of plugins (mostly free but some paid) that are available. You can even configure it to act as a static site if you want to.
And you have total control over your data, as long as you carry out regular back ups! If something happens to the server you’re on you can be back up and running within an hour or so.
Self-hosted WordPress blogs are not as attractive to the search engines as WordPress.com or Blogger blogs are when you first set them up.
This is because they’re sitting on your domain, and your domain needs to establish its credibility with the search engines – unless, of course, your domain already has the pulling power of WordPress.com..!
But there are loads of SEO related plugins you can use to make your self-hosted WordPress blog stand out more for the search engines. As your blog becomes established, you’ll find that your new posts are indexed very quickly. My new posts are consistently indexed on Google now, within 4 – 6 hours of being published.
And, for a brand new domain, you’ll find that it will start to rank in the search engines more quickly if you’re using WordPress (with the proper plugins) than it would if you were just building the site with a site builder, unless you’re a demon SEO expert!
So which is the best?
Well – I use self-hosted WordPress for this blog, and I have both Blogger and WordPress.com blogs as satellites, pointing towards it. This helps to give it more search engine love by creating a larger online footprint and a few more inbound links.
So the answer to the question as to which is better really depends on how you want to use the blog. My suggestion is to first define clearly what you want to use your blog for, and then select the platform that best meets your specific needs.
And the most effective blogging strategy may be to use all of them in ways that complement each other.
Which platform do you prefer? Leave us a comment!
Update – 31 March 2009
This post was originally written in August 2008. Since then Google has made some updates to the blogger platform that address some of the points I made above
Here they are:
1. Exporting your content
You can now export your blogger blog to an XML file, which you can store on your PC. There’s a specific link for doing this in the settings screen. There’s also a link for importing your posts.
This means you can now back up your Blogger blog content and re-import it if you need to. It provides the same functionality as WordPress.com blogs
2. Custom domains
You can publish to a custom domain (i.e. a domain that you buy and host). This will effectively get rid of the Blogger navigation bar across the top of the screen, although you are limited to Blogger’s ‘classic’ templates. This provides the same functionality that WordPress.com offers. Plus you will need to pay for a domain name and hosting.
3. Monetisation
Monetisation of your Blogger blog is even easier now with a monetisation tab that offers you options for where you want Adsense ads displaid. Simply point and click. (You’ll need to sign up for an Adsense account first, though).
4. Editing your template
The HTML edit screen includes the CSS settings for your blog as in-line CSS. Therefore, editing and changing styling is simply a question of editing the attributes and saving.
These changes (and there are probably others that I haven’t noticed) have improved the features of Blogger without making it more difficult to use for people new to blogging.
Good moves 
Now, given that the differences between Blogger and WordPress.com are so few, I’d suggest thinking about what you want to do longer term with your blog.
Are you just starting out but plan to be in this for the long haul?
If so I’d suggest you go for WordPress.com and here’s why:
Both Blogger and WordPress.com have limitations but, as I’ve explained above, WordPress.org (self hosted WordPress) provides you with almost infinite scalability – which you may want to use in the future.
And if you decide to move to WordPress.org the transition will be easier from WordPress.com than from Blogger – simply because you’ll already be familiar with the way WordPress works.
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{ 57 comments }
Hey great post with a lot of good info on the differences, however I wanted to comment on the part about Self-hosted Wordpress blogs not being as attractive to the search engines as Blogger.com
There ars some SEO plug-ins for self hosted Wordpess blogs that really help with getting indexed quickly. I can generally get indexed within about a week.
Overall I have to say I prefer the self hosted Wordpress blogs because of the flexibility the plugins provide.
But great post for helping people decide when they’re first starting out.
Ms. Liz
Hi Liz,
Many thanks!
Actually my point was that new self-hosted WP blogs are not as attractive as new Blogger or WP.com blogs when you first set them up. But only when you first set them up.
The SEO related plugins definitely speed up the process of getting street cred for the domain which carries your new self-hosted WP blog, and this ultimately leads to new posts being indexed very quickly.
As I mentioned above – this is a self hosted blog and this particular post was indexed in 1 hour, 23 minutes.
But that’s because it’s been around a while and this domain has an established track record.
The reason new Blogger and WP.com blogs get indexed so quickly is because they’re on domains (blogspot.com and wp.com) that have very well established track records with the SEs
Thanks again for your comments!
Cheers,
Martin.
+1
Well written post. Dougist.com is platformed on a self hosted wordpress environment and I think it provides the best range of functionality and support. The flexibility of dealing with my own files and email clients for almost nothing provides me with long range flexibility as my traffic grows and changes.
Doug
http://www.dougist.com
Wow what a terrific question some people will kill just to be sure they have the last word about this topic…
IMO blogger is easier to start (newbie level) and is more frequently crawled by Google.
But as you said Wordpress self-hosting is much more powerful (ah those plugins!).
I’m now on the way to test WP & Blogger + HTML websites made with XsitePro2 (on various topics) to see what converts best with Adsense & pure Affiliation marketing (no AdSense).
See you,
AO.
Hi Arthur,
Thanks – and good luck with your test! I think you could do well with XsitePro2.
I’m just starting to play around with building static sites using Wordpress and the Thesis theme. I haven’t published any yet but I’m very pleased with the look and feel you can achieve. Both WP and Thesis are SEO effective so it will be interesting to see how those fare when I publish them.
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks for the info… I landed here from Twitter… thanks!
I know that I like the comment area for WP and it seems the themes look a little cleaner… and I know that the big guys in IM suggest WP.
gioperation´s last blog post..We are what we repeatedly do…
Hi gioperation,
Thanks for stopping by and I’m glad the info was useful!
It does depend on what you want to do with your blog – as I mentioned above! I’m running Wordpress self-hosted and Wordpress hosted as well as Blogger blogs and they all serve a different purpose. (And they all do so very effectively!).
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask – use the ‘Dear Martin’ page (hit ‘Contact’ in the menu at the top of the page!)
Cheers,
Martin.
thanks so much for the tweet. would love to connect with ya & chat anytime.
alejandro reyes´s last blog post..Twitter Followers, Where Am I Taking Them?
My pleasure – I hope it was helpful!
Cheers,
Martin.
You took the words right out of mouth – its like I wrote it myself
Dave´s last blog post..Rate cuts in ECB and Bank of England
Great Minds think alike, huh!
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks for the article. I really learned a great deal. I only started blogging five months ago. Still learning, but finding I am ready for so much more so quickly.
You have given me a lot to think about. Where do I want to go? What do I want to do? Back to the drawing board!
Thanks again.
Judith´s last blog post..Birthdays and All Things Good Today
Hi Judith,
I’m delighted this was helpful! Blogging (and anything on the Internet) is a process of perpetual learning because it all moves so quickly!
If you have any questions you’re more than welcome to contact me through the contact page – or leave a comment here so others can see the question and the answer.
With a bit of luck everyone will benefit!
Cheers,
Martin.
Hey thanks for answering my tweet … This is a great post and has helped me decide to do what you did and that’s switch to self-hosted Wordpress while maintaining my free Wordpress.com and starting a Blogger acct to point to my blog …
Thank you so very much!
Nydia´s last blog post..Dora … Is that You?
Hi Nydia,
I’m glad this was helpful! If you have any questions on setting up that ‘online footprint’ of a network of blogs pointing towards your main blog let me know!
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks! Love this blog
I like the fact blogger lets me use affiliates, without them I would go hungry!
However, I think I will keep on using blogger until wordpress wins me over.
Thanks for the advice on using my old blog as a hub site… that’s a wonderful idea!
Hi Miss D,
Yes – Blogger is easier to monetise than wordpress.com – no question. And if Blogger is working for you stay with it!
You can use your old blog as a hub site and set up Squidoo Lenses, HubPages pages and other sites to create a reasonable online foot print. Keep them on related subjects (not necessarily exactly the same) and inter-link them.
Cheers,
Martin.
Very informative. Really got some of my queries resolved.
Deep Sherchan´s last blog post..What is Social Media?
Hi Deep,
Glad it was helpful!
Cheers,
Martin.
Great article. Thank you for letting me know about it via Twitter. Have enjoyed reading this website and will add it to my favorites.
BeachwalkerMari´s last blog post..The Garden Club of Charleston Walking Tour
Hi there,
Glad it was helpful and thanks for adding me to your favourites!
Cheers,
Martin.
Hi – a couple corrections to point of from someone that works on Blogger
1. Blogger allows “Export your blog” to backup you content
2. Blogger does allow full control of your HTML (so you can remove the Blogger navigation bar if you want)
Siobhan, hi,
Many thanks for those 2 updates – much appreciated!
Cheers,
Martin.
I am actually meeting with WordPress found Matt Mullenweg next week. Feel free to leave any questions you want answered:
http://www.thomascrampton.com/hong-kong/amcham-hong-kong-matt-mullenweg-wordpress-hong-kong/
Hi Thomas,
Thanks for the heads up – I initially planned to come to the Tuesday evening session but I’ve sent an email to Christy Li to see if there are still places at the Tuesday lunchtime AmCham session.
Look forward to meeting up at one of those do’s!
Cheers,
Martin.
Hi Martin,
Thanks for replying to my tweeted question.
I used WordPress.com and don’t self-host. This gives me a bit less control and means I can’t use plug-ins, but to be honest I’ve never found the need.
Maybe coming to blogging from having written a number of work and personal web-sites (some with HTML in NotePad – yes I am hard-core!) I found blogger a bit FisherPrice for my liking. Also an afternoon of struggling to use some pretty basic (and harmless) HTML constructs had me pulling my hair out. Some one suggested I check out WordPress and it immediately seemed a more grown-up platform.
Having said that, I wish you could tweak your CSS a bit more easily (e.g. changing display widths) without having to purchase the CSS upgrade.
Peter
Peter Thomas´s last blog post..Perseverance
Peter, hi,
Yes – quite a few people object to having to pay for the CSS upgrade.
I paid on one of my .com blogs and made some small tweaks. Given that it’s only $15 I wasn’t too fussed, but tweaking the CSS in either Blogger or Typepad is both free and pretty straightforward.
Cheers,
Martin.
Yes the ability to freely tweak CSS was certainly one advantage of Blogger.
Peter
Peter Thomas´s last blog post..Pigeonholing – A tragedy
This was nice post .. i learnt a lot …
let me know check where is that export option for blogger .
Manish
http://www.jagoinvestor.com
Manish Chauhan´s last blog post..How to use Trendlines to find Support and Resistance
Hi Manish.
Glad it was useful!
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks, Martin. This is a great post explaining the differences to a beginner like me. I had been hearing from a few SEO experts to change my brand new Wordpress.com blog (a convert from Blogger) to Wordpress.org because of it having my own domain name or something attached to it (yes, I am obviously not a techie, but trying!). But I love my new blog so much and don’t want to chance losing content or any rankings I’ve built up in the last month since the change. I think I will stick with what I have.
Thanks again,
Erin
Erin, hi,
Thanks for dropping by and for your kind comments!
Some great blogs run on WordPress.com and you’ll always get good ranking and traffic with them – so sticking with .com will work very well
Cheers,
Martin.
I had some of those worries too that you wrote about. It’s really hard to decide what to choose. There are many choices and many options out there in everything.
Hi there,
Yes – there sure are!
Thanks for stopping by
Cheers,
Martin.
Hi Martin,
Great article. Thanks for replying to my Tweet with this post. I can definitely use this information as I work on getting my blog started.
Cheers.
-C
Hi Chamara,
Thanks – I’m delighted it was helpful
Good luck with getting your blog started and let me know if you have any questions while you’re getting it set up.
Cheers,
Martin.
Thank you SO much for this informative post! I have been deep in thought for some time now about the way to go for my new fashion blog and have found limitations with Wordpress.com (adsense, as you mentioned) but really needed to know more. This has been invaluable information. I now know that self hosted Wordpress is the way to go.
Personally though, my preference for my home blog is Wordpress. It is so clean and easy to manouver through – the SEO and daily tracking is great, too!
Sarah Ward´s last blog post..welcome to our blog!
Hi Sarah,
I’m delighted it was helpful to you and thanks for your very kind comments, both here and on Twitter
If you have any questions setting up your self-hosted WP pick up a copy of the Wordpress Tutorial (top right of the page) and you can also check out Wordpress TV
Thanks for tweeting this to me.
Leigh, hi,
You’re welcome – hope it was helpful!
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks a lot, absolutely happy to know the two differences and your help is much appreciated. I’ve used blogspot and currently using wordpress, but I like something like blogger so I can use adsense. Anyways, when I get a free time one of thesedays, I want to explore about the blogger, seems this might serve my needs.
once again, thank you so much and looking forward to your tweets.
cheers,
chhophyel
You’re very welcome and I’m delighted it was helpful!
Free time, huh – what’s that..!?
Cheers,
Martin.
great article and relevant to what I am doing. I have a Blogger blog (with Adsense and affiliate marketing) but like many of the features of the Wordpress blog. I set up a WP blog and tried to ad affiliate marketing and WP would not allow me to add the code (it nuked it as I was trying to save it).
I am now going to continue with the WP blog but convert it to hosting it on GoDaddy so that I can have more control over it (add affiliate marketing and adsense).
thanks for the article. bradmcleod
.-= bradmcleod´s last blog ..What is a Fair Price for Apartments? =-.
Yes – I’m afraid WordPress.com blogs don’t accept code, forms or anything like that.
But you’ll be fine with self hosted WordPress – you can do what you like with that.
Glad the article was helpful,
Cheers,
Martin.
I made the transition from Blogger to Wordpress about 4 years ago when I realised that I didn’t have anything backing up my blog and all my wise
writing. What would happen if it got lost?
I self-host and use the backup plugin and have confidence now that my writings are preserved and saved and under my control.
.-= Kathie M. Thomas´s last undefined ..If you register your site for free at =-.
I am very impressed with your comments about linking to your self-hosted site with your wordpress.com and blogger blogs., how cool.
.-= rosie´s last blog ..7 Ways To Put the “B” Back in Your Blogging-Part 7 =-.
Hi Rosie,
Always happy to impress people
Thanks for dropping in,
Cheers,
Martin.
Thank you so much. I started on Blogger because that is what I discovered first last year but this gives me a lot more distinctions on the two platforms. Great!
.-= Alison Pena´s last blog ..The Unemployment Sinkhole and the Way Out =-.
Alison, hi,
You’re very welcome – let me know if you have any more questions
Cheers,
Martin.
Hi Martin,
I saw you mentioning this thread on the warrior forum.
Great post. Like you mentioned, both platforms have their advantages and disadvantages, but sometimes we tend to forget that there’s always a difference in “difficulty level”.
Being a Wordpress expert myself, I do not recommend it to absolute beginners. Blogger is in my opinion so much easier. And you can do some pretty things with it as well.
Thanks for “listening” to my humble opinion.
Cheers,
Stefan
Stefan, hi,
I agree – Blogger is definitely easier for complete beginners and I often recommend it to people who are absolutely brand new to blogging.
Quite a few people I know start a blog on Blogger and once they get up to speed with everything they often start a second blog on WordPress.com.
The beauty of both Blogger and WordPress.com is that you can mess everything up and just start again. That becomes a bit of a pain when you’ve put a lot of design effort into a self-hosted blog
Thanks for dropping in,
Cheers,
Martin.
If you need full control over your blog, then I would say Wordpress.Org on your own server. If not then Wordpress.com, or Blogger. But you know Google Wave may blow everything out of the water when that comes out.
Alan, hi,
Google Wave has been out for a while – and, to my mind, has been something of a non-event. I fiddled around with it when it first came out but I haven’t touched it for months.
Google aren’t doing well with their social networking stuff – GFC, Wave and Buzz seem to overlap somewhat and haven’t even made a blip on Twitter or Facebook’s screens
Cheers,
Martin.
I think wave is still in beta, well it is at least for me, I haven’t been able to access it yet. I did like the idea of being able to embed a wave in any website as shown in their tech demo. That would be interesting.
Hi Martin,
Interesting post. Thanks. But I still wonder why you would want to spread your site over 3 kinds of hosting service. That sounds difficult in maintenance to me. There have to be great advantages in that to make it worthwhile. Are there?
Evelien, hi,
It’s not true to say that I spread my site over 3 kinds of hosting service – what I did was to run blogs on Blogger, WordPress.com and this one (WordPress.org). They were separate blogs which I updated on separate schedules.
The original reason for doing that was to create a larger online footprint in order to help kick start this blog. The satellite blogs linked back to this one, so readers that hit one of them were encouraged to click through here.
However, as this blog has grown and established itself in its own right I no longer bother with updating and managing the Blogger and WordPress.com blogs. It is extra work – and since there’s no longer any need to do it I’ve been focusing on other stuff for a while now.
Would I do the same thing again with a new blog? Probably not.
It did bring a few extra visitors in, but I know a lot more now about launching a new blog and what’s needed to help it gain traction. So I do things differently now when starting a new blog.
Cheers,
Martin.
Thanks!
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