The go-to option for creating a website from scratch that is fast, convenient, and requires little to no coding is WordPress. The popularity of WordPress can be understood by the fact that it powers 43% of all the websites on the internet, resulting in a market share of a staggering 64% of all CMS. When it comes to making a website that is loved by all, choosing the right page builder is very important. A page builder is a plugin or theme component that allows users to structure and design responsive pages. It enables you to build pages with minimal effort and technical knowledge. For example, a page builder like Elementor or WPBakerly allows users to create and customize web pages using a simple drag-and-drop interface. This intuitive approach eliminates the need for coding knowledge, enabling users to design visually appealing layouts without any technical expertise.
WordPress users can customize every aspect of their website’s pages with a page builder. From adjusting typography and colors to adding multimedia content and interactive elements, page builders offer various customization options to suit individual preferences and requirements. Elementor and WPBakery are some of the most used and appreciated page builders in WordPress. But most of you who want to use a page builder or have already used either of them must have wondered which one among the two is better, more efficient, or the easiest to use. If yes, then this article is the right one for you. This article will look at the major differences between Elementor and WPBakery and try to conclude as to which one of them is the right fit for you.
Elementor vs. WPBakery: An Overview
Elementor is the leading WordPress website builder and is widely used. Elementor has been consistently popular due to its user-friendly interface, extensive features, and active community support. Elementor market share is now 14.1% of all WordPress sites. It is a plugin that helps you create and edit websites by employing the drag-and-drop technique. Elementor uses content blocks, also called elements, that can be dragged around and dropped to create a webpage. Many elements are available to add text, tables, lists, images, etc. Other versatile features include 40 widgets and elements available for free, easy page-building capabilities, a beginner-friendly interface, custom fonts and icons, advanced settings for enhanced customization, etc.
WPBakery, another page builder for WordPress, is somewhat similar to Elementor and is used by more than 5,800,000 websites globally. It uses drag-and-drop content elements to build pages. Earlier, WPBakery was called Visual Composer Page Builder, but because some similar products were launched, the name was changed to WPBakery. The page builder has more than 50 content elements, including social media buttons, text blocks, charts, carousels, etc. Other prominent features include 50+ widgets and elements, custom CSS capabilities, video background support, multilingual support, frontend and backend editing options, etc.
Also Read 15 Important Reasons For Having A Mobile-Friendly Website in Today’s Business
7 Key Differences between Elementor and WPBakery
Both of the page builders offer exciting features to the user. But by comparing the performance of both of the page builders at several levels, we can conclude which of the two is better. Let us consider their performances on seven criteria to see whether we can conclude as to which one of them is better.
1. Interface and Ease of Use:
An interactive user interface makes it easier to work on your boring tasks as well. Let’s see how WPBakery and Elementor perform on these criteria.
- WPBakery: WPBakery can be considered a user-friendly plugin. The efficiency and ease of using WPBakery increase with time and practice. It might seem a bit overwhelming for beginners, but constant exposure to its use and a few YouTube tutorials might help them perform better in less time. It is easier to use WPBakery if one knows coding well.
- Elementor: Elementor is considered more beginner-friendly than WPBakery. It offers a more intuitive and easy drag-and-drop interface that allows anyone to build a page, even if they do not know about coding.
2. Pricing:
Price can be your deciding factor before you commit to any of the page builders. Let us compare pricing plans from both of them to see which one is the most affordable.
- WPBakery: It has several pricing options, which come in three different categories. These are
- Regular: $59/lifetime. This subscription comes with free updates, premium support, and access to the template library and is for use on a single site.
- 5 sites: $256/lifetime This plan includes free use of up to 5 sites, free updates, premium support, and access to the template library.
- 10 sites: $499/lifetime allows free use of up to 10 sites with all other features.
- Elementor: Elementor also offers many attractive choices to its users. These include:
- Essential plan: $49/year for 1 site
- Advanced: $99/year for 3 websites
- Expert plan: $199/year for 25 websites
- Agency plan: $399/year for 1000 websites
But apart from this, Elementor provides a free plan that’s limited to 40 widgets and elements, which is mostly preferred by beginners as it offers a chance to learn how to use a page builder for free.
3. Elements and Widgets:
These are the components that you can drag and drop to create a page. It is better when a page builder provides many elements and widgets that are easily customizable.
- WPBakery: It provides a range of over 50 widgets. Additionally, more than 250 other elements and widgets can be accessed through add-ons and allow diversity. These elements and widgets include text blocks, images, buttons, separators, spacers, icons, a video player, testimonials, tabs, Google Maps, post grids, etc.
- Elementors: With 40 elements in their free version and over 100 more elements in the paid versions, Elementors offers very strong competition to WPBakery. It also allows advanced customization without coding. The various elements and widgets offered by Elementpr include heading, text editor, image, button, divider, spacer, icon, video, image carousel, countdown, flip box, animated headline, progress bar, etc.
4. Compatibility with Themes and Plugins:
It is because of themes and plugins that creating a website has become easier. Compatibility with themes and plug-ins may make or break a deal.
- WPBakery: WPBakery offers compatibility with many popular themes and plug-ins. It can be integrated with numerous themes. Some of the themes have WPBakery as their default page builders, while others can be integrated seamlessly. Some common examples are Svada, BeTheme, The7, Enfold, Jupiter, Salient, Bridge, X Theme, etc.
- Elementor: Elementor offers several common as well as distinct themes at both beginner and advanced levels. Similar to WPBakery, it can be integrated with many other themes. Some WordPress themes that work smoothly with Elementor are Astra, GeneratePress, OceanWP, Hestia, Neve, Hello Elementor, Blocksy, Phlox, Kadence, Page Builder Framework, etc.
Most of the common themes work easily with both of the page builders, but for some specific themes, you may need to check which of the two options works better.
5. SEO Functionalities:
Both Elementor and WPBakery offer not just easy website creation, but also allow you to create a website that is SEO-friendly, which helps them rank better in search results.
- WPBakery: WPBakery is compatible with most common SEO plugins. It helps in creating high-quality content, page load speed, mobile responsiveness, structured data, freedom to customize your URL structure, and optimizing meta titles and descriptions to make an appropriate meta tag. By following some SEO practices, you can easily create pages that fare better in search results. But it should be noted that its working relies generally on plug-ins, and deactivating any plug-in may lead to unsatisfactory results.
- Elementor: Elementor gains an upper hand here because it works perfectly well even when plug-ins are deactivated.
However, you must remember that page builders can only assist in making a page SEO-friendly, but the ultimate results depend on whether you are following good SEO practices.
You may also like reading What is SEO and How it Can Help Your Business?
6. Templates and Design options:
Templates can be used to create new websites in seconds. It is very easy to choose any template and create a new SEO-friendly website with the help of several available design options.
- WPBakery: It has over 100 templates as part of its template library. These can be used for landing pages, home pages, portfolios, etc. Designs help to further modify the template according to your wants.
- Elementor: Elementor also offers more than 100 templates to start working with. It also provides global style options that allow users to consistently customize the design of their website.
7. Support:
The user base of any page builder also increases depending on what level of assistance they provide to their users and how.
- WPBakery: WPBakery provides customer support through various channels, such as documentation that provides answers regarding installation instructions, features, settings, troubleshooting, etc.; support tickets where personalized assistants give solutions to customers; community forums, updates, and bug fixes; and premium support, which includes faster responses, extended hours, and more personalized assistance.
- Elementor: Elementor also helps its users through similar channels. The ultimate aim is to resolve all their queries in the most satisfactory way possible.
Elementor or WPBakerly: Which is better?
Through this blog, we can see that both page builders are versatile and effective. The debate between Elementor and WPBakery continues to spark discussions among WordPress users worldwide, each advocating for their preferred choice. Both the page builders of WordPress engage their users through many features. While Elementor shines with its intuitive interface, extensive features, and thriving community, WPBakery’s loyal following appreciates its robust functionality and versatility. But if we are to choose any one of the two options, it is advisable to choose Elementor because of its easy-to-use interface, bigger community to support and ask for assistance, being free to start with, and the availability of more plugins to extend it. A major factor to choose between them could have been speed, but data about the speed-wise performance of both page builders is not very reliable. Hence, with the present information, it is safer and easier to use Elementor.
However, you also need to understand that ultimately, the best WordPress page builder depends on individual needs, preferences, and project requirements. Whether you opt for the creativity and flexibility of Elementor or the familiarity and reliability of WPBakery, both platforms offer powerful tools to bring your website vision to life.
If you are still confused between Elementor and WPBakery, you may also consider using alternatives such as Divi, Beaver Builder, Themify, etc. However, they are new and less popular with limited support and a small community.
Given all this, in the end, it is you who has to choose a suitable page builder according to your needs. We advise you to do your research to find the most suitable option that satisfies your requirements and make an informed decision.
