What is the difference between WordPress.com vs WordPress.org

I am new to the blogging. Wanted to try out the WordPress CMS. But I am confused between the WordPress.com and the WordPress.org. Is both sites are same? On which one, I can create a free website? Please help me.

WordPress.com allows you to create websites on their servers without having to buy a new hosting account. Also you will be able to create a website as the sub domain of the WordPress.com. For example: mysite.wordpress.com.

WordPress.org on the other hand allows you to download the default WordPress software and run it on your own domain and hosting provider.

So, should I go with WordPress.com instead of the the WordPress.org if my need is to create a free WordPress website without having to pay anything?

Yes. If you want to create a WordPress website without having to pay anything, you have to go with the WordPress.com. But when it comes to the search engine rankings, the dedicated domains will have more advantage when compared to a WordPress sub domain. If you are OK with it, you can continue with the WordPress.com.

What do you mean by SEO advantage?

As per the SEO experts, the search engines like Google will always provide more importance to a dedicated domain (like example.com) than a WordPress sub domain (like example.wordpress.com). Because, the people who run websites by spending some money are little more concentrated on their website and producing good content than those who create a free site (think logically.)

So, if you have a dedicated domain of your own vs a WordPress hosted website, that dedicated domain is more capable of ranking higher in search results (of course, other ranking factors like Backlinks, Age, Trust, etc. matters as well.)

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Thanks for clarifying my doubts.

There are some other points I would like to point out.

  • WordPress.com has many limitations when compared to the WordPress.org (For example: Wordpress.com have around 100+ free themes to choose while the WordPress.org has more than 1600 free themes.)
  • In WordPress.com you will be limited in the content size while in WordPress.org it’s all about your hosting.
  • In WordPress.com you don’t own the content you publish. Instead, WordPress owns it and they can take it down at any time they want. In WordPress.org you are the owner of your content and you can have copyrights over your creation.
  • Like @Lakshmi mentioned, you will get more exposure and trust while using the dedicated domain on WordPress.org.
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