Joomla
Joomla: A capable, free CMS for multilingual publishing, workflows, permissions, and structured content. Ranked #6 of 164 in Content Management Systems by our editors (8.6/10); pricing: Free plan; best for general-purpose open-source website management.
At a glance
- Editor score8.6 / 10
- PricingFree plan
- Best forGeneral-purpose open-source website management
- Free planYes
- Paid fromFree
- Editorial workflowsYes
- Facts checked22 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Free, open-source platform with self-hosted deployment
- Built-in multilingual content, workflows, SEO, and versioning
- Granular permissions, custom fields, templates, extensions, and APIs
Where it doesn't
- You manage hosting for a self-hosted installation
- Hosting and third-party extensions may add separate costs
- Fewer verified integrations than category leaders
Our verdict on Joomla
Joomla is a free, open-source content management system for publishing web content on a user's own hosting. It is suited to corporate sites, portals, intranets, publications, government and nonprofit websites, online reservations, and community sites. Its core covers content editing and publishing, media organization, custom fields, templates, extensions, and documented API access. The platform is also designed for multilingual content, search-engine-friendly URLs, access control, and content versioning, making it a general-purpose option for teams that need more than basic page editing.
Its strongest fit is breadth within the core CMS. Visual workflows and a workflow editor support structured editorial processes, while user groups, access levels, and granular permissions help separate responsibilities. Multilingual content management includes language associations, and custom fields support structured content. Media management, versioning, templates, extensions, and APIs provide additional ways to shape a site without limiting the platform to a narrow publishing format. Choose Joomla when a site needs several of these capabilities together, particularly multilingual publishing, custom roles, workflows, and self-hosted control.
The main trade-off is operational ownership. Joomla itself is free, but running it on your own hosting places hosting management with the site owner, and third-party extensions may have separate costs. The product also has fewer verified integrations than category leaders, which may matter for organizations selecting a CMS around a specific ecosystem. Joomla should appeal to teams comfortable with self-hosted software and a broad feature set; organizations prioritizing a larger verified integration landscape or avoiding hosting responsibility should consider an alternative.
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Joomla pricing
Joomla fact sheet
| Free plan | Yes |
|---|---|
| Paid from | Free |
| Platform type | Hybrid |
| Editorial workflows | Yes |
| Custom user roles | Yes |
| Multilingual content | Yes |
| SEO tools | Yes |
| Media library | Yes |
| Custom content types | Yes |
| Deployment | Cloud, Self-hosted |
| Platforms | Web |
| Compliance & security | 2FA |
| Support | Community, Docs |
| Built for | Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Pricing | Free plan |
| Website | joomla.org |
| Facts checked | 22 Sep 2026 |
Alternatives to Joomla
- DrupalA mature CMS for complex content, editorial control, and custom digital architectures.9.4
- Webflow CMSA hosted visual CMS for structured content, dynamic pages, and integrated publishing workflows.9.3
- HubSpot Content HubA hosted CMS for teams that want personalization, localization, and marketing workflows together.9.2
Joomla vs the competition
- Joomla vs Drupal
- Joomla vs Webflow CMS
- Joomla vs HubSpot Content Hub
- Joomla vs Xperience by Kentico
- Joomla vs Progress Sitefinity
- Joomla vs TYPO3 CMS
Compare Joomla with any tool side by side →
Also Ranked In
Joomla is ranked in 7 of our directories.
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Featured on iTechGuides
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
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