Introducing the Most Famous WordPress Websites in the World and Iran

WordPress is recognized as the most popular content management system (CMS) in the world, and according to statistics, more than 40% of all websites are built with WordPress. However, some people still assume that WordPress is only suitable for small websites or blogs and is not powerful enough to manage the websites of large companies or well-known brands.

But this is not the case – many highly famous websites (both globally and in Iran) use WordPress or originally started with WordPress. In this structured article, we examine three categories of such websites:

• Websites that were built with WordPress from the beginning and still use it.

• Websites that initially used another CMS and later migrated to WordPress.

• Websites that were originally built with WordPress but later evolved and may now run on custom CMS platforms or other technologies.

Websites That Were Built with WordPress from the Beginning

This category includes websites that were launched with WordPress from day one and continue to operate on it today. These websites demonstrate that WordPress can grow from a simple blog into a large media platform capable of meeting large-scale requirements. Below are some notable global and Iranian examples.

Global Examples (Started with WordPress)

• TechCrunch – A leading website in startup and technology news that was launched in 2005 as a WordPress blog by Michael Arrington and has since become one of the largest technology news sources in the world. TechCrunch benefits from the scalability and powerful content management capabilities of WordPress. This website is an example of WordPress scalability at an international media level.

• Mashable – A well‑known digital media and entertainment platform that began in 2005 as a simple WordPress blog founded by Pete Cashmore. Over the years, Mashable experienced tremendous growth and, while maintaining its WordPress infrastructure, now reaches millions of readers daily. This website demonstrates that WordPress can serve as the foundation for a successful media startup and can scale over time with custom features to handle high traffic and diverse content.

Iranian Examples (Launched with WordPress)

• Digiato – One of the most popular Persian‑language technology websites, built entirely with WordPress. Digiato started its activity in 2014 and now attracts millions of monthly visitors by covering technology news. Its continued use of WordPress demonstrates the flexibility and capability of this CMS for high‑traffic media websites.

• Digikala Mag – The content magazine of Iran’s largest e‑commerce platform (Digikala). It uses WordPress to publish buying guides, product reviews, digital goods articles, books, entertainment content, and more. As a part of Digikala’s ecosystem, Digikala Mag demonstrates that WordPress can integrate with large businesses and effectively support the content production needs of major companies.

Websites That Migrated to WordPress

The second category includes websites that initially used another content management system but later decided to migrate to WordPress for various reasons such as ease of use, lower maintenance costs, more features, or the large WordPress developer community. In recent years, this trend has accelerated, and even large organizations and brands have chosen WordPress as their new platform.

Global Websites That Migrated to WordPress

• WhiteHouse.gov – One of the most prominent examples of a successful migration to WordPress. The official website of the White House previously used other systems (including Drupal), but in 2017, the entire site was migrated to WordPress. Interestingly, subsequent administrations continued using the same CMS. This migration reduced operational costs and demonstrated that WordPress can meet even the highest security and technical standards.

• Rolling Stone – The website of the famous Rolling Stone magazine migrated to WordPress in 2018 after years of using an outdated proprietary CMS. During this migration, hundreds of thousands of archived articles from previous decades were transferred into WordPress. Today, Rolling Stone uses WordPress VIP to manage its content and advertising.

• Sweden.se – The official national portal of Sweden that provides information about Swedish culture, nature, and society. This multilingual government website demonstrates that WordPress can function effectively even at a national scale.

Websites That Moved Away from WordPress

The third category includes websites that were initially built with WordPress but later migrated to other platforms due to unique technical needs, extremely large scale, or strategic technology decisions.

Global Example

• Smashing Magazine – A well‑known online magazine focused on web design and frontend development. It originally grew using WordPress but in 2017 migrated to a JAMstack architecture using Hugo and React (Preact). The move was intended to improve performance, security, and reduce maintenance complexity.

Other Popular WordPress Websites in Iran

Conclusion

As demonstrated, WordPress has proven its capabilities across a wide range of websites—from small blogs to large global news portals and official government websites. Many successful websites began with WordPress and continued growing with it, while others migrated to WordPress for its flexibility, scalability, and strong SEO ecosystem.

WordPress and SEO

Many of the websites mentioned above rank highly in search engines thanks to their strong content structure and SEO strategies. WordPress offers powerful tools such as Yoast SEO and optimized architecture that help websites achieve higher rankings and attract more visitors.

If you are planning to launch a website, WordPress is a smart choice. The large global community of developers and users provides access to thousands of themes and plugins, making it possible to grow from a small idea into a large and successful website.