How Can I See Which CMS a Website Is Using?

Content management system - Software

Do you want to know which content management system (CMS) a website uses? Then read the tips that I share in this article, and you will find out in no time!

It is not difficult to find out which Content Management System (CMS) a website uses, but you just need to know how to do it.

In this article, I will first show how you can view a page’s source with the three largest browsers (Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer).

Based on this, you can determine whether a website uses Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, Typo3, Magento, or Dotnetnuke.

Content management system - Web development

Do you want to know more about the differences between the three best-known open source cms? 

View the source code of a website

Go to the website whose source you want to view and click the right mouse button.

  • With Internet Explorer, you choose ‘View source’ or ‘Show source’ depending on the language settings
  • With Firefox or Chrome, select ‘View page source’ or ‘View page source’ depending on the language settings.

Discover the Content Management System used

What you now see in front of you is the source code of the website. You can search for specific terms used in the source code or enter a term using the search function (CTRL + F). Each CMS uses a specific folder structure by which you can recognize them.

Joomla

Search for ‘/ templates /’ like:

<link rel = "stylesheet" href = "/ templates / system / css / system.css" type = "text / css" />

Drupal

Search for ‘/ sites /’ like:

<img src = "sites / all / modules / drupalorg / drupalorg / images / d8.svg" alt = "Drupal 8">

WordPress

Search for ‘/ wp-includes /’ like:

<link href = "// sworg / wp-includes / css / dashicons.css? 20141219" rel = "stylesheet" type = "text / css" />

Magento

Search for ‘/ skin / frontend /’ like

<link rel = "shortcut icon" href = "http://enterprise-demo.user.magentotrial.com/skin/frontend/base/default/favicon.ico" type = "image / x-icon" />

Typo3

Search for ‘/ typo3conf /’ like:

<img src = "/ typo3conf / ext / t3org_template / i / typo3-logo.png" width = "118" height = "34" alt = "TYPO3" title = "TYPO3" />

Dotnetnuke

Search for ‘/ Portals /’ such as:

<link href = "/ Portals / _default / default.css? cdv = 354" media = "all" type = "text / css" rel = "stylesheet" />

As you can see, it is quite simple to discover which CMS a website uses.

Are you researching which CMS you want to use?

Then keep in mind that a CMS is responsible for managing and displaying the content. An important consideration here is open source vs. closed source.

Have you made this choice? Don’t look at factors such as the design and findability of a website. These are not determined by the CMS.

A web design consists of CSS and HTML and can be applied to any CMS. Findability is largely determined by the content that you place in the CMS.

‘Content is king’ is what many specialists say, and we have been experiencing this for years. Would you like to know more about how to make your website easier to find? Read also: How do you get more visitors to your website.

Do you want to know more about the differences between WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla, the three most-used open-source CMSs? 

If you are not that passionate about your browser and source code, you can also do it via shortcut keys. To see the source code, click on Crtl and U at the same time, so Crtl + U. To quickly find the correct text, click on Crtl and F at the same time and type in the text you are looking for.

If you’ve ever been curious about the technical aspects of a website, wondered how it functions, or how it’s built, you’re in the right place. In this beginner’s guide, we’re diving into an essential question – how can you see which Content Management System (CMS) a website is using?

CMS is the behind-the-scenes powerhouse that allows website owners to manage their content efficiently. But, how can you find out which CMS a website is using? Fortunately, the answer isn’t as complicated as you might think.

What is a CMS?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, let’s take a moment to understand what a CMS is. In simple terms, a Content Management System is a software that facilitates creating, managing, and modifying digital content on a website without needing specialized technical knowledge.

Think of the CMS as the backbone of any website, giving non-technical users the power to manage their content with ease. Popular CMS platforms include WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and Squarespace, among others.

Why Would You Want to Know a Website’s CMS?

Now, why would anyone want to know what CMS a website is using? Here’s why:

  1. Competitor Analysis: Knowing what CMS your competitors are using can give you insights into their website’s functionality, which you might want to incorporate into your own site.
  2. Web Development: If you’re a web developer or a digital agency, understanding a website’s CMS can help in designing a similar or improved platform for your clients.
  3. Security Research: If you’re into cybersecurity, understanding the CMS can help you identify potential vulnerabilities in a site, allowing for improved security measures.

Identifying a CMS: Manual Methods

If you’re a keen observer, there are a few manual ways to guess which CMS a site uses.

View Page Source

Right-click on a webpage and select “View Page Source” or “Inspect”. This action opens the raw HTML code of the site. Once there, look for lines mentioning the CMS like ‘wp-content’ (for WordPress) or ‘sites/all’ (for Drupal). It’s a bit of detective work, but it’s a start!

URL Structure

The structure of a website’s URL can give hints about its CMS. For example, URLs containing ‘wp-content’ or ‘wp-includes’ indicate WordPress.

Website Footer

Some websites mention their CMS in the footer. Phrases like “Powered by WordPress” or “Built with Joomla” are dead giveaways.

While manual methods can work, they’re not foolproof. Therefore, we turn to automated tools.

Identifying a CMS: Automated Tools

Automated tools take the guesswork out of identifying a website’s CMS. They provide accurate results with just a few clicks. Here are some of the top tools you can use:

Online Tools to Check What CRM the Website Is Using

  1. BuiltWith : This online tool provides a breakdown of the technology stack of any given website, including its CMS, servers, hosting providers, and more.
  2. Wappalyzer: Wappalyzer is a cross-platform utility that reveals the technologies used on websites, detecting content management systems, ecommerce platforms, web frameworks, server software, and more.

Additionally, here are a few more online tools:

  1. WhatCMS: This tool specifically focuses on identifying the CMS used by any website.
  2. CMS Detect: This online tool also allows you to detect which CMS a website is using.

Here you can see where the site was created, info about:

  • Web Server
  • SSL Certificate
  • Hosting Providers
  • Content Management Systems (CMS)
  • Frameworks
  • Widgets
  • Mobile
  • Aggregation Functionality
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