Gutenberg vs Elementor: Best Page Builder for WordPress [2025]
Get Your Free Website Audit
($3,000 Value)
- Uncover performance issues
- Identify SEO opportunities
- Security gaps, and quick wins
Table of Contents
- Quick Comparison of Gutenberg and Elementor
- What is Gutenberg?
- What is Elementor?
- Gutenberg vs Elementor Detailed Comparison
- Which One Should You Choose?
- Australia’s Award-Winning Elementor & Gutenberg Developers
- Conclusion
Stuck choosing between Gutenberg and Elementor?
You’re not alone.
If you’ve been building or redesigning a WordPress site, you’ve likely come across this debate. Gutenberg developers say “Gutenberg is the future of WordPress”, while Elementor developers rave about Elementor’s flexibility.
And now, you’re caught in the middle, wondering if there even is a right answer. Perhaps. But there are a few things for you to consider.
If you, like many, have been going back and forth, comparing features, reading mixed reviews, and still feeling unsure, you might just have landed on the right page. In this guide, we’ll break down Gutenberg vs Elementor, so you can confidently choose the best tool for your needs.
Quick Comparison of Gutenberg and Elementor
The main difference between Gutenberg and Elementor is that Gutenberg is WordPress’s default block editor, focused on content layout, while Elementor is a drag-and-drop page builder offering advanced design controls. Gutenberg is faster and native, while Elementor provides more flexibility and customisation options for design-heavy sites.
Before we start a detailed comparison, here is an overview of a quick overview of Gutenberg and Elementor:
| Factors | Gutenberg | Elementor |
| Ease of Use | Simple, native block editor with minimal learning curve. | Intuitive drag-and-drop interface; feature-rich, which may lead to a slightly steeper learning curve. |
| Cost and Pricing | Free as part of the WordPress core. | Default WordPress editor, fully integrated with the WordPress ecosystem; works seamlessly with default themes and additional plugins. |
| Performance and Speed | Lightweight and optimised within WordPress, offering fast load times. | More resource-intensive due to additional features; may require optimisation for best page speed. |
| Customisation and Flexibility | Provides basic customisation through blocks; ideal for content-focused sites. | Offers extensive customisation options with a wide range of widgets and flexible design capabilities for custom layouts. |
| Compatibility | Default WordPress editor, fully integrated with the WordPress ecosystem, works seamlessly with default themes and additional plugins. | Compatible with most WordPress themes and plugins, though occasional conflicts may arise with some third-party add-ons. |
| Support | Backed by the WordPress community, extensive official documentation, and active support forums. | Provides comprehensive documentation, tutorials, community forums, and premium support for Pro users. |
What is Gutenberg?
Gutenberg is the default WordPress block editor that offers users numerous options to create and format content. Introduced with WordPress 5.0, it has become the default block editor.
With Gutenberg, you can easily create pages and posts by using its block-based approach. Each piece of content is treated as an individual block, often referred to as a Gutenberg page.
Key Features
- Block-Based Editing: Each piece of content (text, image, video, etc.) is treated as an individual block, making it easy to move and customise elements.
- Intuitive Interface: A user interface that streamlines the editing process and allows real-time content customisation.
- Responsive Design Elements: Built-in tools for creating responsive layouts that adjust seamlessly across different devices.
- Seamless Integration: Fully integrated with default WordPress, ensuring compatibility with themes and plugins while maintaining regular updates.
- Reusable Blocks: Ability to save and reuse custom blocks across multiple posts or pages, saving time and ensuring design consistency
Limitations
- Gutenberg can be less flexible for more complex layouts compared to dedicated page builders.
- Users accustomed to the classic editor may require time to adapt to the block-based system
- Some older plugins and themes may not yet fully support Gutenberg’s block system
What is Elementor?
Elementor is a page-level drag-and-drop editor for WordPress. It is a builder plugin that empowers anyone to design websites without writing a single line of code.
For Elementor developers, it has quickly become a popular WordPress page builder plugin thanks to its extensive design options and flexibility. By simply choosing the Elementor page builder, you can leverage its premade templates and all the functionality required to craft stunning designs.
Key Features
- Drag-and-Drop Editor: Visual editing lets you see changes in real-time while you create pages.
- Extensive Widget Library: Access a wide range of pre-designed widgets and modules to enhance functionality and design.
- Real-Time Editing: Experience immediate visual feedback, speeding up the process of creating complex pages.
- Responsive Design Controls: Customise layouts for various devices, ensuring your website looks great on desktops, tablets, and mobiles.
- Template & Block Library: Access hundreds of premade templates and blocks that you can tweak to fit your needs.
Limitations
- The extensive features and dynamic elements can add extra load time
- The large number of options can be overwhelming for those new to different page builder systems
- Certain themes or third-party plugins may occasionally conflict with Elementor’s advanced features
- Heavy reliance on Elementor might complicate switching to another builder in the future
Gutenberg vs Elementor Detailed Comparison
Let’s see both Gutenberg and Elementor in action and see which one is best for you.
1. Ease of Use
When choosing a page builder or content editor, ease of use is often the most critical factor, especially if you want to get your WordPress site up and running quickly.
Gutenberg
Gutenberg is integrated directly into WordPress, offering a native, block-based editing experience. Its design emphasises simplicity and consistency, allowing users to:
- Insert and rearrange blocks effortlessly.
- Create content with a minimalistic and straightforward interface.
- Maintain focus on writing by minimising design distractions.
Elementor
Elementor provides a visual drag-and-drop editor that caters to users who desire more design control and flexibility due to its numerous builder features. It is a popular page builder plugin because it comes with key ease-of-use features like:
- Editing content in real time with immediate visual feedback.
- Navigating an interface designed for ease of use despite a robust feature set.
- Customising designs extensively, even though the range of options can introduce a steeper learning curve for newcomers.
2. Cost and Pricing
Budget considerations and transparent pricing structures are crucial when choosing the right tool for your website.
Gutenberg
Gutenberg is completely free as it is a default WordPress page builder integrated into WordPress. No additional subscriptions or fees are required, which makes it attractive to budget-conscious WordPress users.
It’s an excellent choice for users seeking a cost-effective, native editing experience.
Elementor
Elementor operates on a freemium model, offering both free and premium options. The Elementor pro subscription plans come in the form of tiered plans.
These tiered plans allow you to scale your investment based on your specific design needs and the size of your business.
Slow website wasting your marketing spend?
- Uncover performance issues
- Identify SEO opportunities
- Security gaps, and quick wins
Elementor Pro Pricing Plans:
- Essential Plan: $59/year for 1 website.
- Advanced Plan: $99/year for up to 3 websites.
- Expert Plan: $199/year for up to 25 websites.
- Studio Plan: $499/year for up to 100 websites.
- Agency Plan: $999/year for up to 1,000 websites.
3. Performance and Speed
Today, Google focuses on performance for ranking any website. If your website is not loading within 3 seconds, people will start bouncing off your website. When they bounce off your website, Google will de-rank your website. That is why it is important to focus more on speed.
Gutenberg
Gutenberg is the native WordPress editor. It means that there is no extra code attached to the Gutenberg block editor. It is lightweight and fast, and allows you to customise the website in any way you want.
Elementor
Elementor is a great plugin. But it comes with a lot of extra code that can decrease the performance of your website. In comparison with Gutenberg, Elementor doesn’t perform well in terms of speed.
4. Customisation and Flexibility
Let’s say you add content to the website. Now you want to customise the content. What would you do?
With Gutenberg, you can easily change the layout, add columns on the body section of your landing page or blog. You can customise the page easily as the editor has multiple block options.
On the other hand, Elementor is not that easy to customise for anyone. If you have not used page editors before, you would need some tutorials to easily understand how Elementor works.
But once you get the hang of Elementor, it becomes a lot easier to manage and customise your site content with Elementor.
As it has a learning curve, Elementor would be great for your business in the long run.
5. Compatibility
Both Elementor and Gutenberg are built to integrate well within the WordPress environment, yet they handle compatibility in distinct ways.
Gutenberg
As the default editor within WordPress, Gutenberg is designed to work seamlessly with core themes and plugins. Regular updates to WordPress ensure that Gutenberg remains compatible with a wide array of themes and extensions.
Its deep integration minimises conflicts, although some older or less frequently updated plugins and themes might experience occasional issues with its block-based system.
Elementor
Elementor is compatible with most modern WordPress themes, offering a flexible design experience. It is designed to work alongside numerous third-party plugins.
Elementor benefits from a robust ecosystem, though users may sometimes encounter conflicts with certain plugins.
Regular updates and a large user community contribute to resolving compatibility issues promptly so you can expect a smoother experience over time.
6. Support
When it comes to assistance, both Gutenberg and Elementor offer valuable support resources.
Gutenberg
As the native WordPress editor, Gutenberg benefits from the extensive support infrastructure of the WordPress community.
In addition, Gutenberg is also enhanced by:
- Detailed official WordPress documentation that covers common issues and advanced usage.
- A wealth of online tutorials and guides created by both the community and professionals.
- Reliance on community-driven support may sometimes lead to variable response times.
Elementor
With its freemium model and premium offerings, Elementor has invested significantly in building a comprehensive support network.
Besides, Elementor also has:
- Extensive official documentation, including step-by-step guides and video tutorials.
- Active community forums where users can exchange tips and solve common challenges.
- Dedicated customer support channels for Pro subscribers, offering faster and more personalised assistance.
- Regular updates and a responsive support team that continuously improve the user experience.
7. Advanced Features
Gutenberg
- Custom Blocks & Block Patterns: Create and reuse custom-designed blocks to maintain design consistency and streamline your workflow.
- Reusable Blocks: Save frequently used block configurations to apply across multiple posts or pages.
- Enhanced Code Editor: Access underlying HTML and CSS for each block, providing deeper customisation options for power users.
- Developer-Friendly API: Build and integrate custom blocks and plugins, extending the editor’s functionality to meet unique requirements.
Elementor
- Theme Builder: Design every part of your website from headers and footers to archive and single post templates without any coding.
- Popup Builder: Create and customise engaging popups and forms that seamlessly integrate with your site’s design.
- Dynamic Content Integration: Connect to dynamic data sources, enabling personalised content and advanced functionality.
- Motion & Animation Effects: Add scroll effects, animations, and interactive elements to enhance user engagement.
- Custom CSS & Global Widgets: Apply custom CSS for precise styling control and use global widgets for consistent design elements across your site.
Which One Should You Choose?
Deciding between Gutenberg and Elementor boils down to your website’s needs, your technical expertise, and your design goals.
Consider the following insights to determine which tool aligns best with your requirements:
Why Choose Gutenberg
Gutenberg is a great plugin for bloggers and affiliate marketers who don’t want to add any extra plugins to their websites. Gutenberg offers buttons, tables, and sections that they usually installed through plugins.
Besides, you should use Gutenberg:
- For basic-level content editing
- For improving the content format
- For creating templates for your website content
- For adding buttons and sections to your blog posts
- For free customisations (remember that Elementor is paid)
Why Choose Elementor
In comparison with Gutenberg, Elementor is a full-fledged customisation plugin for WordPress. It is not just a content editor and should not be treated as one.
You should go with Elementor:
- When you want a premium design
- When you want blocks that you don’t get with the Gutenberg editor alone
- When you have a developer who can customise the website
- When you want all the functionality in one place, whether using the Elementor plugin on a free plan
- When you have to redesign the complete website
- When you want a theme that works with Elementor
- When you want templates available to choose from
Australia’s Award-Winning Elementor & Gutenberg Developers
At WP Creative, we don’t just build websites, we create high-performing WordPress experiences that help businesses grow.
As one of Australia’s top WordPress design and development agencies, we’ve delivered hundreds of custom websites using both Elementor and Gutenberg. Our team includes award-winning developers who know these tools inside out.
Whether you need the design freedom of Elementor or the speed and simplicity of Gutenberg, we’ll guide you to the best choice and build it right.
Fast. SEO-friendly. Easy to manage. Backed by expert support.
Conclusion
If you are just looking for basic content-level editing, then Gutenberg alone will serve you great. But if you are looking for something that can offer much more than that, then Elementor would be a great choice for that.
The main difference between Elementor and Gutenberg is that Elementor is a drag-and-drop visual page builder plugin, while Gutenberg is WordPress’s default block editor. Elementor offers advanced design flexibility and styling tools. Gutenberg provides a lightweight editing experience built into WordPress without additional plugins.
So, depending on whether you want to redesign your website or just add new landing pages to increase your overall sales, you can make your decision based on the comparison of these page-level editors.
Need help choosing the right builder or redesigning your site?
Let our WordPress experts guide you. Whether it’s Elementor or Gutenberg, we’ll help you choose the best tool for your goals and build a site that looks great and performs even better.
Book A Free Consultation Today!
Get Your Free Website Audit
($3,000 Value)
- Uncover performance issues
- Identify SEO opportunities
- Security gaps, and quick wins
