A Content Management System or CMS, is a software program that can be used to create and maintain a fully functional website. There are numerous content management systems available today with many being free and open source in nature.

With so many CMS options out there, it is important that you choose one that is well suited to you. Some systems are easy to manage and will assist you in building a dynamic site with flash, while some maybe harder to adopt. We have taken the guesswork out of choosing a content management system and have included what we believe to be the five best, free content management systems available today.

WordPress



WordPress is considered by most experts to be the best free content management system on the web as it is ideal for creating personal and mini websites. The user interface is very easy to use and the software breaks the art of managing your content down to three steps. The first step is to find some hosting, the second involves downloading and installing WP using the five minute installation process provided and the final step involves adding content to your WordPress website.


Expression Engine

Thought to be the most flexible content management system that is free to use, Expression Engine offers a very professional user interface and an outstanding support system. This  system is ideal if you want to create more than one blog or if you wish to have a very dynamic website. Through the use of just one control panel, you can easily manage everything on your site including the network, memberships, blogs, forums, wiki, contact forms, etc.

Expression Engine is a top choice for the creation of both small sites and large.

Joomla

Regardless if you are a newbie or an advanced IT professional, the Joomla content management system makes website creation and management easy.  Simple to set up and use, you will benefit from the many plug-ins and widgets offered. The Joomla software allows you to keep tabs on all of your content however, this system does take a bit of getting used to regarding its admin interface and plug-ins. Many people the world over use Joomla to create business sites and blogs as well as personal and family homepages.

Drupal

The Drupal content management system is a CMS which is constantly benefiting from contributions made to it by programmers. It is a very popular and an open source system that has an wide collection of useful features and great support. Large community web sites can be made with Drupal as can personal blogs of all types. Websites can easily be personalized and your content is managed via the use of polls, templates and version control.

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