---
title: "Why I Don’t Use CMS Platforms Like WordPress for My Site"
date: "2025-06-25"
updated: "2025-07-25"
slug: "why-i-dont-use-wordpress"
published: true
layout: "blog-post"
tags:
  - nodejs
  - cms
---

When I started planning my personal website, one of the first decisions I made was to avoid traditional [content management systems (CMS)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Content_management_system) like [WordPress](https://wordpress.org/), [Joomla](https://www.joomla.org/), or [Drupal](https://www.drupal.org/). While these platforms are widely used and well-supported, they weren’t the right fit for what I needed. My site isn’t meant to be flashy, constantly changing, or dependent on third-party plug-ins. It’s meant to be simple, fast, minimal, and under my complete control.

## Simplicity Over Features

WordPress offers a lot, but most of it isn’t necessary for me. I don’t need drag-and-drop builders, theme marketplaces, or a plugin for every small function. What I need is a static site with clean content, fast load times, and minimal attack surface. WordPress does too much for what I’m trying to do, and in doing so, it adds complexity I don't want to manage.

## Full Control

CMS platforms lock you into their ecosystem. Even with open-source systems like WordPress, you're working within their assumptions: how content is structured, how themes are applied, how updates are handled. I prefer writing and structuring my content manually, using the tools I’m comfortable with. That means I can customize every part of the site without fighting with a backend UI or [PHP template system](https://developer.wordpress.org/themes/basics/template-files/).

## Security and Overhead

WordPress has a massive attack surface. Its popularity and plugin architecture make it a constant target for exploits. I don’t want to spend time managing updates, patching vulnerabilities, or setting up firewalls for something as simple as a blog. A [static site generator](https://jamstack.org/generators/) using tools I trust and hosted on a minimal server architecture is harder to compromise and easier to audit.

## Portability and Longevity

I write my content in plain text. It lives in [Git](https://git-scm.com/). That means it's portable, version-controlled, and completely separated from any proprietary format or CMS schema. If I want to change how the site works, I change the generator or templates—not the content. If I want to move hosts, I push to a new server. No database exports, no admin panels.

## Conclusion

WordPress is useful if you're building a site for someone who needs a UI to manage posts, or if you're spinning up something fast with non-technical collaborators. That’s not me. I don’t need a CMS. I need a site that stays out of the way and gives me exactly what I ask for—nothing more.

> **Link Summary**
>
> - **Content management systems** – definition
> - **WordPress, Joomla, Drupal** – authoritative source links
> - **Static site** – concept definition
> - **PHP template system** – relevant documentation
> - **Static site generator** – list of tools
> - **Git** – core tool reference
>
> Every link is tightly scoped to the text.  
> No promotional or commercial links.  
> No explanatory detours.
