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Joomla alternatives: 5 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Oct 25, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rank

Common reasons people leave Joomla: smaller ecosystem and talent pool than WordPress, and admin interface takes time to learn. We ranked 5 alternatives by how directly each one replaces Joomla, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. WordPress currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1WordPress logoWordPressOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web, iOS +14 of 466.5
2Drupal logoDrupalOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web3 of 362.6
3Concrete CMS logoConcrete CMSOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web5 of 559.6
4ProcessWire logoProcessWireOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web3 of 357.2
5Grav logoGravOpen sourceYesSelf-hosted, Web5 of 555.3
  1. WordPress logo

    1. WordPressTop pick

    Best for: Anyone who wants the largest ecosystem of themes, plugins, hosts and developers

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web, iOS, Android

    66.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from Joomla

    Much bigger plugin and theme market and more hosts that optimise for it.

    Pros

    • Huge plugin and theme ecosystem for almost any feature
    • Cheap hosting and easy-to-find developers everywhere
    • Block editor lets non-developers build and edit pages

    Cons

    • Plugin-heavy sites get slow and hard to maintain
    • Frequent target for attacks, so updates can't be ignored
    • Quality of third-party plugins varies widely
    Visit WordPress Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is WordPress a good Joomla alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    GPL
    Checked Oct 25, 2026wordpress.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Stack
    PHP with MariaDB/MySQL
    Checked Oct 25, 2026wordpress.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Server requirements
    PHP 8.3+, MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.11+ recommended
    Checked Oct 25, 2026wordpress.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Open source
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026wordpress.org(opens source in a new tab)
  2. Drupal logo

    2. Drupal

    Best for: Organisations with complex content, many editors and in-house or agency developers

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web

    62.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Joomla

    Deeper content modelling and permissions for larger, more complex sites.

    Pros

    • Strong content modelling, permissions and multilingual support in core
    • Thousands of contributed modules and a large professional community
    • Works as a traditional CMS or a headless API backend

    Cons

    • Steeper learning curve than WordPress for site builders
    • Major upgrades and custom modules need experienced developers
    • Overkill for small brochure sites
    Visit Drupal Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.387
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Drupal a good Joomla alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    License
    GPL
    Checked Oct 25, 2026drupal.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Open source
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026drupal.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Price
    Free
    Checked Oct 25, 2026drupal.org(opens source in a new tab)
  3. Concrete CMS logo

    3. Concrete CMS

    Best for: Teams that want non-technical staff editing pages directly on the live site

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web

    59.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Joomla

    Open-source PHP CMS with in-page editing that non-technical editors pick up fast.

    Pros

    • In-page editing that's easy for non-technical editors
    • Versioning, workflows and permissions built in
    • MIT-licensed and free to self-host

    Cons

    • Much smaller theme and add-on ecosystem than WordPress
    • Fewer developers who know it
    • Not designed for headless or API-first use
    Visit Concrete CMS Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.377
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Concrete CMS a good Joomla alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    MIT
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Open source
    Yes, free
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concretecms.com(opens source in a new tab)
    In-page editing
    WYSIWYG on the page
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concretecms.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Version control
    Review, compare and revert
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concretecms.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Security certification
    ISO 27001
    Checked Oct 25, 2026concretecms.com(opens source in a new tab)
  4. ProcessWire logo

    4. ProcessWire

    Best for: PHP developers who want total control over markup with a stable, simple core

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web

    57.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from Joomla

    Lean open-source PHP CMS with a clean API for developers who want full control.

    Pros

    • Very flexible fields and templates for any content shape
    • Clean PHP API that's quick to learn
    • Stable core with careful, backwards-compatible releases

    Cons

    • Small community and few ready-made themes
    • Not aimed at non-developers building their own site
    • Development leans heavily on one lead maintainer
    Visit ProcessWire Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.369
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is ProcessWire a good Joomla alternative?

    Verified facts

    3 of 3 verified
    Open source
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026processwire.com(opens source in a new tab)
    API reference
    Documents all classes and API variables
    Checked Oct 25, 2026processwire.com(opens source in a new tab)
    License
    MPL 2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026processwire.com(opens source in a new tab)
  5. Grav logo

    5. Grav

    Best for: Developers and tinkerers who want a light, database-free PHP site

    Open sourceSelf-hostableSelf-hosted, Web

    55.3

    score / 100

    Why switch from Joomla

    Flat-file PHP CMS that drops the database for simpler sites.

    Pros

    • No database: Markdown files that live happily in Git
    • Runs on cheap shared PHP hosting
    • MIT-licensed and free, with an optional admin panel

    Cons

    • Smaller community and theme choice than big CMSs
    • Third-party plugin quality varies
    • Large sites with many editors outgrow flat files
    Visit Grav Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.363
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Grav a good Joomla alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    MIT
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Storage
    Flat-file, no database
    Checked Oct 25, 2026getgrav.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Grav 2
    Adds first-party API and MCP server
    Checked Oct 25, 2026getgrav.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Requirements
    PHP 8.3+ (Grav 2)
    Checked Oct 25, 2026getgrav.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Multi-language
    Built in
    Checked Oct 25, 2026getgrav.org(opens source in a new tab)

The best Joomla alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

WordPress logo

Best Joomla alternative for most people

WordPress

Much bigger plugin and theme market and more hosts that optimise for it.

Drupal logo

Best Joomla alternative for a free option

Drupal

Deeper content modelling and permissions for larger, more complex sites.

Concrete CMS logo

Best Joomla alternative for open source

Concrete CMS

Open-source PHP CMS with in-page editing that non-technical editors pick up fast.

ProcessWire logo

Best Joomla alternative for self-hosting

ProcessWire

Lean open-source PHP CMS with a clean API for developers who want full control.

WordPress logo

Best Joomla alternative for iPhone and Android

WordPress

Much bigger plugin and theme market and more hosts that optimise for it.

Grav logo

Best Joomla alternative for working in the browser

Grav

Flat-file PHP CMS that drops the database for simpler sites.

Joomla alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to Joomla?

WordPress ranks first right now. Much bigger plugin and theme market and more hosts that optimise for it. Drupal and Concrete CMS follow it in our ranking.

Is there a free alternative to Joomla?

Yes. WordPress (open source), Drupal (open source), Concrete CMS (open source) and ProcessWire (open source) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to Joomla?

Yes: WordPress, Drupal, Concrete CMS and ProcessWire, plus 1 more in the list above. WordPress, Drupal and Concrete CMS can also be self-hosted.

Why do people switch from Joomla?

The complaints we hear most: smaller ecosystem and talent pool than WordPress; admin interface takes time to learn; fewer modern, well-maintained templates.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces Joomla, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.