WordPress Celebrates 18th Anniversary ( Status and Prospects of WordPress )

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WordPress is celebrating its 18th anniversary on May 27, 2021, and we have compiled a summary of the status and prospects of WordPress while looking at statistics about WordPress. Let's look back at WordPress, the CMS that is used in many websites.

The 18th birthday of WordPress

The birthday of WordPress is May 27, 2003, when the first version, WordPress 0.7, was released.

It turned 18 years old on May 27, 2021, after it was first released.

If you want to know more about the release dates for each version, please see the following article.

Are there any events for the 18th anniversary?

For the 10th anniversary, there was a large birthday event; for the 18th anniversary, no significant event has been held so far.

Let’s celebrate the 20th anniversary in a big way.

Status and Prospects of WordPress

We will analyze the current situation by looking at the statistics about WordPress. It also introduces the future roadmap announced by WordPress.org.

Status

Used in 41.6% of web and 64.9% of CMS

According to W3Techs.com, WordPress is used by 41.6% of all websites; it holds a 64.9% share of the CMS market (as of May 28, 2021).

WordPress Usage

Trends in WordPress usage and market share since 2011 are shown below.

DateWordPress Usage
(All websites)
Market share of WordPress
(CMS)
January 1, 201113.1%55.3%
January 1, 201215.8%54.3%
January 1, 201317.4%54.8%
January 1, 201421.0%59.8%
January 1, 201523.3%60.7%
January 1, 201625.6%58.8%
January 1, 201727.3%58.5%
January 1, 201829.2%60.0%
January 1, 201932.7%59.7%
January 1, 202035.4%62.1%
January 1, 202139.5%64.1%
May 28, 202141.6%64.9%

The day is not far off when WordPress will be used more than 50% of all websites.

If the rate increases by 3% per year, it will exceed 50% by 2025.

Over 58,000 plugins

As of May 28, 2021, 58,633 plug-ins have been registered in the official directory.

Plugins can easily add a variety of functions by simply installing and enabling them. Look for the features you want.

Over 8,000 themes

As of May 28, 2021, 8,371 themes have been registered in the official directory.

There are many themes available so you can create a design of your choice.

There are a variety of themes available outside of the official directory. Here are some recommended themes.

Over 40% of users use the latest version

According to WordPress.org’s Statistics, over 40% of users are using the latest WordPress 5.7.

Updating to the latest version will enhance security and allow you to use new features.

WordPress version

Future Outlook

Roadmap for 2021

This is the release schedule for the currently planned version. It is still in the planning stage and is subject to change.

VersionRelease schedule
5.8July 2021
5.9December 2021

The big major upgrade, 6.0, is expected to be in 2022 or later.

End of support for IE 11

It has been announced that IE 11 support will be discontinued in WordPress 5.8.

It is recommended that you use a browser such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.

Full site editing implemented

Full site editing is a feature that allows you to edit all parts of your site in a block editor.

You will be able to use it by installing WordPress 5.8 or later, or a theme that supports full site editing.

Debating whether to disable FLoC

Google is planning to introduce FLoC, which has raised concerns about privacy, and WordPress is considering whether to disable FLoC by default.

If you want to disable FLoC by yourself, please refer to the following article.

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