Which CMS Is the Most Secure? A Comprehensive Analysis of WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla (Updated)

As more businesses, organizations, and individuals create websites to enhance their online presence, the importance of website security has never been more critical. Content Management Systems (CMS) are the backbone of most websites today, providing a user-friendly platform for managing and publishing content. However, with the rise of cybercrime and increasingly sophisticated attacks, it’s essential to choose a CMS that offers the highest level of security. In this article, we will examine the security features, vulnerabilities, and best practices of three of the most popular CMS platforms—WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla—based on the most recent data and security statistics.

There’s no single “most secure” CMS in every context — security depends less on the CMS brand and more on how it’s used. That said, data shows clear risk drivers: market share + extensibility (plugins/themes) = larger attack surface. Self-hosted ecosystems with huge plugin marketplaces (notably WordPress) produce far more reported vulnerabilities in absolute terms, while closed/hosted platforms (Shopify, Wix, Squarespace) surface fewer public CVEs and shift many responsibilities to the vendor. Enterprise platforms (Drupal, Adobe Commerce/Magento) have rigorous security programs but remain high-value targets. Below I present the data, deep analysis, a comparative table, and practical advice for choosing and securing a CMS.

1) Key facts & headline stats you should know

• WordPress dominates the web. As of 2025, WordPress powers ~43% of all websites (and ~60% of sites where CMS is known), making it the most widely used CMS by far. That scale both attracts attackers and explains why WordPress shows the largest absolute volume of vulnerabilities.

• Vulnerability volume in the WordPress ecosystem is high. Patchstack reported ~6,700 new WordPress-ecosystem vulnerabilities in six months in a 2025 mid-year report — many of those are plugin issues, and hundreds are exploitable in practice. High absolute counts don’t automatically mean the platform is insecure for every user, but they reflect a vast attack surface.

• Most WordPress vulnerabilities originate in plugins and themes. WPScan and industry telemetry regularly show the majority of WordPress problems come from third-party plugins/themes rather than core WordPress. That means governance of extensions matters more than the CMS core itself.

• Hosted SaaS platforms (Shopify etc.) shift much of the security burden to the vendor. Shopify, for example, emphasizes platform-level protections such as PCI compliance, DDoS mitigation and managed patching — reducing the responsibilities for store owners, but not eliminating platform risks. Hosted platforms still experience vulnerabilities, but they’re often fixed centrally.

• Enterprise ecommerce (Magento/Adobe Commerce) remains a high-impact target. Adobe/Magento periodically publishes critical fixes for severe flaws; when a critical bug appears it carries high impact because of the platform’s use in revenue-critical sites. Recent high-severity CVE coverage underscores this.

(These five statements are the most load-bearing claims in this article and are supported by the sources above.)

2) Comparative snapshot — quick table

Note: vulnerability counts are noisy (different datasets, reporting lags). The table below shows relative signals — market share, ecosystem size/complexity, and whether the platform is typically self-hosted or offered as hosted SaaS.

Sources: market share and platform notes (W3Techs/WordPress), WPScan/Patchstack vulnerability stats, Drupal/Joomla security pages, Adobe/Magento and Shopify vendor content.

3) Deep analysis — why some CMSs show more vulnerabilities (and what that actually means)

A. Market share bias and absolute vs relative risk

• Absolute vulnerability counts (CVE records, WPScan/Patchstack tallies) are largely correlated with ecosystem size: more code, more contributors, and more plugins = more bugs to find. That’s why WordPress shows many more reported vulnerabilities in absolute numbers. But per-install risk depends on what a site runs: a minimally-configured WordPress site with only trusted, updated plugins will be far safer than a heavily-customized site with many third-party extensions.

B. Extensibility = attack surface

• Third-party plugins/themes are the primary vector for compromise in open ecosystems. Vulnerable code in a plugin with 100k installs is an instant pathway to mass exploitation. WPScan and Patchstack data confirm plugin/theme issues dominate WordPress vulnerabilities. Governance (curation, vetting, fast patching) is the critical control here.

C. Hosted vs self-hosted — distribution of responsibilities

• Hosted SaaS (Shopify, Wix) reduces owner responsibility for infrastructure and patching; it narrows attack surface by limiting low-level access. However, it centralizes risk — a platform-level flaw can affect many stores, and apps can introduce risks. Vendor security programs matter.

• Self-hosted platforms (WP, Drupal, Magento) give full flexibility but require owners to manage patching, hosting hardening, backups, and responsive incident processes.

D. Vulnerability severity & exploitability

• Not all CVEs are equal. Many reported issues are low-severity or theoretical; a smaller subset are high-severity, easily exploitable flaws used in real attacks. Patchstack reported that a sizable minority of WordPress ecosystem vulnerabilities are actually exploitable in practice — this is what matters operationally.

E. Development model & security culture

• Platforms with formal security teams and coordinated disclosure (Drupal’s security advisory process, Adobe’s Product Security) tend to manage serious issues more transparently and with coordinated patches. That reduces time-to-patch for critical issues and improves enterprise trustworthiness.

4) Practical metrics you can use to choose a CMS (and why)

If security matters for your project, don’t pick a CMS by brand alone. evaluate:

1. Operational responsibility model — hosted or self-hosted? If you lack ops/security staff, a hosted SaaS reduces burden.

2. Ecosystem trust & governance — how are plugins/apps vetted? Are reviews, code audits, and maintainers active? (Large plugin marketplaces are powerful but require governance.)

3. Patch cadence & vendor support — how fast does the vendor/maintainers issue fixes for critical CVEs? Check advisory histories (Drupal security advisories, Adobe/Magento patches).

4. Attack surface size — fewer third-party extensions = smaller risk surface; prioritize minimal install base and only vetted extensions.

5. Hosting & WAF options — can you deploy behind an enterprise WAF, CDN and managed monitoring? These infrastructure controls drastically reduce exploitation risk.

6. Ecosystem telemetry — use vulnerability feeds (WPScan, Patchstack, NVD) to track trends for your chosen CMS.

5) Recommendations — hard security rules regardless of CMS

These are evidence-backed, high-leverage controls that reduce real risk:

• Limit plugins/apps — the single most important step for WordPress sites is to minimize the number of third-party plugins and only use actively maintained ones. Data shows plugin vulnerabilities dominate compromise vectors.

• Automate patching where safe — test updates in staging, then deploy; for critical fixes prefer quick patching. Platforms with managed patching reduce owner burden.

• Use a WAF + CDN — virtual patching and edge rules block many exploit attempts even before they reach your origin.

• Harden hosting & CI/CD — isolate environments, rotate secrets, apply least privilege, sign/restrict deployments.

• Continuous monitoring & FIM — file integrity monitoring and anomaly detection catch persistence early.

• Incident readiness & backups — snapshot/backup immutably, and have tested restore playbooks.

• Supply-chain scrutiny — for ecommerce and enterprise, vet third-party modules and require code audits for high-risk extensions.

6) Methodology & data limitations (be transparent)

My analysis above combines market telemetry (W3Techs), vulnerability databases and vendor advisories (WPScan, Patchstack, NVD/CVE pages, Drupal/Joomla security centers), and vendor-published security docs (Shopify, Adobe/Magento reporting). Important caveats:

• Reporting bias. Large ecosystems produce more reported CVEs; counts are not normalized by installs per se. A smaller CMS can be “riskier” for any given install if it is custom-configured or poorly maintained.

• Dataset differences. WPScan, Patchstack and NVD use different collection methods; numbers should be used for trend and signal, not precise ranking.

• Exploitability matters more than raw counts. Focus on whether vulnerabilities are actively exploited and how fast patches/mitigations are available. Patchstack notes a notable share of vulnerabilities are practically exploitable; that is the key operational risk.

7) Bottom line — which CMS is most secure?

• If you want the easiest path to low operational security burden: choose a reputable hosted SaaS (Shopify, Wix, Squarespace) — vendor handles infra and many patches. This reduces owner responsibility but trades off control and customization.

• If you need maximum flexibility and control (but accept operational burden): WordPress or headless/self-hosted frameworks can be secure if you enforce strict plugin governance, patching, WAF protection, and monitoring. Data shows WordPress has the most vulnerabilities in absolute terms — but with disciplined controls it remains a secure choice for millions of sites.

• For enterprise or complex content needs where security is paramount: Drupal or properly managed Adobe Commerce/Magento installations can offer robust security (coordinated disclosure and enterprise controls), provided you have the ops/security capabilities to manage them.

So: no CMS is inherently bulletproof. The best choice depends on your threat model, internal security maturity, and willingness to operationalize patching, extension governance, and monitoring.

8) Next steps — practical checklist for teams choosing or securing a CMS

1. Define your threat model: data sensitivity, revenue dependence, compliance.

2. If you pick self-hosted, budget for ops/security (patching, WAF, monitoring).

3. If using plugins/apps, require maintenance/SLAs and limit counts.

4. Subscribe to vulnerability feeds for your CMS (WPScan, Patchstack, NVD).

5. Implement edge protections (CDN/WAF) and FIM.

6. Test incident response and maintain immutable backups.