WP Bakery VS Visual Composer: Head to Head Comparison
Page builders have brought a revolutionary change in the tech industry. Almost anyone can design a website having zero coding experience now.
Were Page Builders Always Famous?
Rewinding a decade ago, content builders were not so popular and were only available and used by a few. Now, there are dozens in the market, one better than the other.
WPBakery, formerly called Visual Composer page builder, is a pioneer in the WordPress page builders category. But with the growing needs and demands, Website builders are marking their presence rapidly too.
Difference between a Page Builder and a Website Builder:
Although the work done by both the page builder and the website builder is similar, there is one significant difference.
Page builder helps you manage and design a single page’s content, whereas the website builder is for the whole website.
WPBakery page builder and Visual Composer Website builder both are different products. Because of a misconception, they are still considered the same by many people, which is not true.
The Story Behind Misconception:
The Visual Composer team wanted to introduce a new product realizing the growing market needs of their customers.
Unlike the previous product with a lifetime license, it was supposed to be a yearly license model due to its complex features and specially designed features for advanced needs.
The contractual limitations didn’t allow the team to sell two products under the same name. They had no choice but to rename their previous page builder product, hence came WPBakery Page builder.
The WPBakery is nothing but the same old Visual Composer page builder. The Visual Composer Website Builder, however, is an entirely brand new product.
The name change has created a lot of confusion among the old customers, and still to date, many people think of both the products as the same.
What is the Difference Between WPBakery and Visual Composer?
All WordPress builders provide the same primary objectives, but everyone differs in the features and performances they provide.
Although both the WPBakery and the Visual Composer offer a simple drag and drop option for easy designing, there is a lot of difference in their functionalities and features.
Let’s dive deeper into what WPBakery and Visual Composer has to offer:
An Overview of WPBakery Page Builder
WPBakery is one of the most downloaded WordPress plugins in the CodeCanyon marketplace. It comes in two versions: Regular and Extended, both providing their own sets of benefits.
It offers a ‘free test drive’ where you can try WPBakery Page Builder for free.
We will discuss what features WPBakery has to offer for you to give a head to head comparison between the two products.
Countless Templates and Add-on Options:
It consists of numerous elements, templates, and add ons. To be
precise, WPBakery has 50+ built-in content elements, 250+ add ons, 13 default widgets and 100+ templates.
Inline Front-end Editor and Back-end Editor:
With the incredible inline front-end editor, you can drag and drop fields to create stunning and intricate pages within no time.
Moreover, with the back-end editor, you can build pages from the dashboard of your WordPress site.
You can switch between devices to check the overall appearance of the pages. It provides support for third party plugins such as Woo Commerce, Ninja Forms, Pie Register, etc.
Animations and Grids for Appealing Web Layouts:
With the countless options of adding animations, charts, icons, images, accordions, buttons, maps, post grids, tables, and more, you can create appealing web layouts. While with content elements, you can edit, add, duplicate, remove, or develop presets.
Template Library:
The template library consists of unlimited, free pro designed layout templates. You can even create your template, save it and use it anytime you want.
WP Skin Builder:
If you want to create an appealing theme, then WPBakery Page Builder skin builder is the perfect option. Changing the visual appearance is quite simple now.
You can connect your WordPress theme with a custom WPBakery Skin builder to create the desired outlook. You can make customized designs depending upon your CSS knowledge.
Converts Shortcodes into Elements through Mapper:
You can add any shortcode, and the revolutionary Shortcode mapper will do the magic for you. It will execute and render the code and display the result in the front-end editor.
40+ predefined grid element styles:
There are 40+ predefined grid element styles to choose from, along with content elements and other grid options.
The grid elements are divided into multiple groups such as Post Masonry Grid, Post Grid, Media Grid, and Media Masonry Grid. Now you can easily view blog posts, media galleries, or portfolios.
Supports SEO and Social Media Sharing Plugins:
Keeping in mind the significance of SEO, WPBakery Page Builder supports one of the most famous plugins, Yoast by SEO.
You can easily share your content across the web as the builder is compatible with all popular social media plugins.
There is More to it:
We are not bragging. There is a lot more WPBakery has to offer in terms of features than what we have listed here.
You can also select Google Fonts, Social Icons, and even numerous image filters for a diverse and attractive website appearance.
With a lifetime license, it is wise to choose this builder if your requirements match the features.
Now, let’s discuss the features Visual Composer has to offer.
An Overview of Visual Composer Website Builder
Visual Composer, as the name suggests, is a website builder. It is developed using React.Js and is available in Free and Premium version. It offers responsive templates, add-ons, and numerous content elements.
Let us discuss the main features Visual Composer has to offer in comparison with the WPBakery.
Offers Complete Website Design:
The Visual Composer lets you create the entire website, not just a part of it, including the header and the footer.
It not just about explicit websites; you can create landing pages, portfolios, business websites, and so much more.
Front-end Editor, Inline Editor, and Tree-view Mode:
With the front-end editor, you can drag and drop elements to design the desired web page. You can resize columns or change gap size depending upon your requirements.
You can use an inline editor, live front-end editor, or tree view to check your content before the final publishing.
Design Made Easy:
While creating a page, you can edit the borders, background, spaces or add parallax effects.
Create hero sections, linear background, radial-gradient background, video background, or use an image on a transparent gradient background for a unique effect.
Undoubtedly, the design is made easy through multiple effects and design controls.
Visual Composer Hub:
One of the significant additions of Visual Composer is its online market place, Visual Composer Hub. It is a library that is being updated continuously for unlimited downloads.
This hub allows you to download pre-made content elements, templates, and add-ons.
Custom Page Layouts and Global Templates:
With Visual Composer, you can create your custom elements or add-ons and integrate them into your themes. You can work on one-page templates that allow you to create versatile web pages or landing pages within minutes.
If you have created custom layouts, you can also reuse them with global templates.
Responsiveness:
Visual Composer has built-in auto responsiveness that takes care of how your content will look on mobile devices. You can control your layout’s responsiveness by making changes in rows and columns.
Limitless Layout Designs:
Almost everything of a layout can be edited, such as padding, margins, backgrounds, or animations in Visual Composer.
Layouts can be viewed by switching to various devices. The order of the layouts can be changed from the standard left to right to right to left. The layout designs are limitless.
Compatibility with Popular WordPress Plugins:
Almost all the famous WordPress plugins are compatible with the Visual Composer. You can now combine the functionality of your favorite plugin with the Composer.
Compatibility elements can be used by installing 3rd Party plugin. You can develop your custom compatibility elements and place them in the Visual Composer Hub.
Free and Paid Versions:
Visual Composer offers a free basic version, which is pretty advanced for a beginner to build a simple website and three paid versions; Single site Premium, 3 Websites, and a Developer’s Licence.
Each premium option has a one year support and premium updates feature.
What is More in the Store of Visual Composer?
With the unlimited ready-to-use content elements, header, footer, sidebar editors, blocks and buttons, countless themes, and a lot more, Visual Composer is a fair bargain.
One more critical point of comparison is that since Visual Composer is developed on React.js, no code breaks even if the plugin is disabled, as there are no shortcodes in it.
WPBakery and Visual Composer In a Nutshell
WPBakery and Visual Composer have their own set of rich functionalities. While the former is suitable for building web pages, the latter is ideal for building full-fleshed websites.
Interestingly, both products are used by professionals as well as individuals having zero coding experience.
Conclusion:
WPBakery and Visual Composer have maintained an integral position in the market. They have their differences, and each one carries its significance in their respective domains.
Whichever you choose, depending upon your custom needs, both have their own set of pros. Customize your pages and website on an entirely different level using WPBakery Page Builder and Visual Composer Website Builder.
One thing is guaranteed: You no longer have to depend on a developer to build your excellent website.
Did you also think that both the plugins were the same? We hope that the confusion has now been resolved and you have a clear picture of how different WPBakery and Visual Composer are from each other.
Please share with us your experiences with these plugins. Which plugin was the best choice for you?
