The closest alternatives to Drupal on Lister are WordPress, Shopify and HubSpot CMS, the companies that share the most rankings with it. Each is compared below on its stated best fit, starting price and Lister Score.
Drupal alternatives, compared| # | ALTERNATIVE | BEST FOR | SCORE | FROM | RANKED |
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| 1 |  WordPressThe world's most popular website builder | Bloggers, small businesses, content publishers, portfolios | 95.0 | Free (self-hosted) | #1 in Top 10 CMS PlatformsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 2 |  ShopifyThe all-in-one commerce platform | Online stores and serious e-commerce sellers | 92.7 | $29/month | #2 in Top 10 CMS PlatformsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 3 |  HubSpot CMSCMS built for inbound marketing | Marketing teams, lead generation focused businesses, inbound marketers | 88.0 | Free (with limitations) | #4 in Top 10 Content Management SystemsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 4 |  JoomlaThe flexible open-source CMS | Community portals, membership sites, small to medium businesses | 85.7 | Free (self-hosted) | #5 in Top 10 CMS PlatformsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 5 |  ContentfulHeadless CMS for modern content delivery | Developers, multi-channel content distribution, modern web applications | 83.3 | Free (limited) | #6 in Top 10 Content Management SystemsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 6 |  WixCreate your website without limits | General business and portfolio websites | 83.3 | $16/month | #6 in Top 10 CMS PlatformsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 7 |  GhostModern membership and content platform | Independent journalists, bloggers, membership-driven publications | 76.3 | £9/month | #9 in Top 10 Content Management SystemsOn 2 of Drupal's rankings |
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| 8 |  MagentoFlexible, scalable enterprise eCommerce | Enterprise retailers, complex B2B operations, high-volume sellers | 88.0 | Free (self-hosted) or Custom (cloud) | #4 in Top 10 CMS Platforms |
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| 9 |  SquarespaceEverything you need to sell anything | Creatives, photographers, and modern blogs | 81.0 | $16/month | #7 in Top 10 CMS Platforms |
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| 10 |  StatamicFlat-file and database CMS for developers | Developers, technical teams, custom projects | 78.7 | Free | #8 in Top 10 Content Management Systems |
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How to choose an alternative to Drupal
Start from what you need it for. Where each fits best, as Lister records it:
- WordPress: Bloggers, small businesses, content publishers, portfolios
- Shopify: Online stores and serious e-commerce sellers
- HubSpot CMS: Marketing teams, lead generation focused businesses, inbound marketers
- Joomla: Community portals, membership sites, small to medium businesses
- Contentful: Developers, multi-channel content distribution, modern web applications
- Wix: General business and portfolio websites
- Ghost: Independent journalists, bloggers, membership-driven publications
- Magento: Enterprise retailers, complex B2B operations, high-volume sellers
- Squarespace: Creatives, photographers, and modern blogs
- Statamic: Developers, technical teams, custom projects
Closest to Drupal by the rankings they share: WordPress (2 rankings), Shopify (2 rankings) and HubSpot CMS (2 rankings).
Free to start, by their stated pricing: WordPress, HubSpot CMS, Joomla, Contentful, Magento and Statamic.
Stated starting prices: Shopify ($29/month), Wix ($16/month), Ghost (£9/month) and Squarespace ($16/month).
Each Lister Score is the alternative's score on the ranking named in its row, so compare scores within one ranking rather than across rankings. How the score is made.
Each alternative in brief
01
The world's most popular website builder
#1 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: Open-source CMS powering over 43% of all websites. Self-hosted or managed through WordPress.com. Offers unmatched flexibility through thousands of plugins and themes.
PROS- Vast ecosystem of 58,000+ plugins and 9,000+ themes
- Extremely beginner-friendly with no coding required
CONS- Requires regular updates and security maintenance on self-hosted versions
- Can become slow without proper optimisation and caching
95.0
02
The all-in-one commerce platform
#2 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: Cloud-based e-commerce CMS with built-in payment processing, hosting, and inventory management. Focused entirely on online store creation and order management.
PROS- Industry-leading e-commerce and inventory features
- Extensive app ecosystem for scaling sales
CONS- Transaction fees apply unless you use Shopify Payments
92.7
03
CMS built for inbound marketing
#4 in Top 10 Content Management Systems: HubSpot CMS is a free, drag-and-drop website builder integrated with HubSpot's marketing automation, CRM, and analytics tools. It streamlines marketing workflows and provides first-party data collection without third-party tools.
PROS- Seamless integration with HubSpot's marketing automation platform
- Excellent SEO tools and content performance analytics included
CONS- Limited design customisation compared to pure website builders
- Costs escalate significantly with advanced marketing features
88.0
04
The flexible open-source CMS
#5 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: Open-source CMS offering more structure than WordPress whilst remaining accessible. Strong community support and extensive extension library for various use cases.
PROS- Strong built-in user management and permissions system
- Good balance between flexibility and ease of use
CONS- Smaller plugin and theme ecosystem compared to WordPress
- Community is smaller, resulting in fewer third-party integrations
85.7
05
Headless CMS for modern content delivery
#6 in Top 10 Content Management Systems: Contentful is a headless CMS that separates content from presentation, allowing delivery to websites, mobile apps, and IoT devices via APIs. It excels for organisations managing content across multiple digital experiences.
PROS- Incredible flexibility for delivering content to any platform or device
- Excellent developer experience with comprehensive APIs and SDKs
CONS- Requires technical expertise and separate front-end development
- Higher learning curve for teams without development resources
83.3
06
Create your website without limits
#6 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: Cloud-based website builder with drag-and-drop interface and AI-powered design assistance. All-in-one solution including hosting, domain, and e-commerce capabilities.
PROS- Very easy to use drag and drop interface
- Large selection of professional templates
CONS- Cannot switch templates once the site is published
83.3
07
Modern membership and content platform
#9 in Top 10 Content Management Systems: Ghost is a lightweight CMS designed specifically for writers, bloggers, and publishers. It emphasises simplicity, performance, and built-in membership and subscription features for monetising content.
PROS- Clean, distraction-free editor experience optimised for writers
- Built-in membership, subscriber management, and email newsletter tools
CONS- Smaller ecosystem of themes and integrations compared to WordPress
- Less suitable for businesses requiring extensive customisation
76.3
08
Flexible, scalable enterprise eCommerce
#4 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: Robust open-source e-commerce platform owned by Adobe. Built for large-scale enterprise retail with advanced merchandising and personalisation features.
PROS- Unlimited customisation and scalability for complex requirements
- Powerful multi-store, multi-vendor and B2B capabilities
CONS- Steep learning curve requiring experienced developer involvement
- Higher total cost of ownership including hosting and development
88.0
09
Everything you need to sell anything
#7 in Top 10 CMS Platforms: All-in-one CMS with emphasis on beautiful, mobile-responsive design. Integrated hosting and e-commerce with curated template selection and modern aesthetic.
PROS- Stunning, professional template designs
- Exceptional built-in blogging and portfolio tools
CONS- Navigation is restricted to a maximum of two levels
81.0
10
Flat-file and database CMS for developers
#8 in Top 10 Content Management Systems: Statamic is a Laravel-based CMS combining flat-file and database options, designed for developers who want control without the overhead of traditional platforms. It features a clean, intuitive CP and modern development experience.
PROS- Modern, developer-friendly architecture
- Flexible flat-file and database options
CONS- Requires technical expertise to implement
- Smaller ecosystem and community compared to WordPress
78.7