When comparing CMS options, clients often ask if HubSpot or WordPress is better for SEO. Which is "better" depends on your expertise, your team, and your overall SEO strategy.
Both HubSpot and WordPress are good for SEO - one has SEO built-in, the other requires plugins and some customization.
Let's break down what you get with each solution. For the purposes of comparison, we're looking at most of the technical elements of SEO, vs. words on a page. You can perform all content SEO actions like adding headings, formatting content, and sprinkling in keywords on both HubSpot and WordPress. These are the same things you can do in any word processing tool - but what's harder to execute are the more technical elements of SEO, such as:
| Title tags | Meta description |
| SSL | Geotagging |
| XML Sitemap | Structured Data Markup |
| AMP | Google Search Console |
These are some essential pieces of technical SEO that Google considers when ranking sites, and are our primary focus today. With that out of the way, let's get into the comparison.
SEO in HubSpot
The advantage of HubSpot when it comes to SEO is that everything in the CMS and marketing hubs are truly built with SEO in mind, to be used by marketers. In other words - you don't need to know coding, you can just focus on the content and HubSpot handles all of the technical bits.
HubSpot also comes with a variety of content planning tools, so you can get ideas for content pieces right within the platform. It also allows you to seamlessly connect your website, blog and marketing together so you can track a lead's journey. For example, you can see how a lead finds a blog on Google, and then what actions they take afterward.
tl;dr: SEO in HubSpot uses built-in tools, so it's very easy for non-developers and non-SEO experts to use.
Choose HubSpot if:
- You are running inbound marketing campaigns
- You are using HubSpot's CRM and/or other tools (HubSpot plays nice with HubSpot)
- You want visibility on how SEO and organic traffic contribute to revenue
- You don't want to mess with coding and custom options
- You want easy-to-understand and ready-to-export reporting
- SEO is your top priority
→Read Now: 8 Reasons Why You Should Build Your Website in HubSpot
SEO in WordPress
In line with the rest of their methodology, WordPress is completely a blank slate when it comes to SEO. Meaning: you can do everything you need to with both on-page and technical SEO, it just might require coding knowledge OR installing a plugin. For example, if you want to add a meta description to a page you can - but by default, you'll have to get into the code to do it. Otherwise, you'll need to install a tool like YOAST to add a section in the content editor to make it easier to add.
tl;dr: SEO in WordPress is all DIY, and you're going to have to know code or find someone who does.
Choose WordPress if:
- You are only blogging, not running inbound marketing campaigns
- You are using a different CRM than HubSpot
- You have team members that understand plugins and code
- You are willing to pay for plugins (and for maintenance/security)
- You have extensive coding and SEO experience and want to access your markup code
- You don't need ready-made reports (you'll need to go into Google Analytics directly to track performance)
- SEO is important, but it's not your top priority
→Read Now: How to Tell if a WordPress Plugin is Safe
Whenever a client asks me if WordPress or HubSpot is better for SEO, I ask them: what are your goals for your website, how much time does your team have to invest in SEO and how rapidly do you want to grow? The answers to those questions are much more important for deciding which CMS to use. WordPress is a great option for many businesses, but HubSpot is a better option if you're looking for expansive growth, marketing integration and better data.
→Read Now: How to Migrate Your Website from WordPress to HubSpot Without Harming SEO
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BizzyWeb is a Minneapolis-based digital marketing and web design agency that helps companies get the high-quality leads they need to grow and thrive. Our tactics include inbound marketing, SEO, advertising, web design, content creation and sales automation. We are an accredited HubSpot Platinum Partner and we offer full-service HubSpot onboarding, enablement and strategy for new and current users.
