If there is ever a need to figure out whether a website is powered by WordPress or not, then it’s a simple task. We can either view the content/design, source of the website or check with external tools. What we usually look for is the directory structure, themes or CSS files that are pointed in the HTML code. If they match the WordPress style, then we can be certain that the site is powered by this famous CMS. It’s really a 2 minute task to figure out if any website has been built with WordPress.
The simplest method is to go to the footer of the site and see whether the webmaster has left the Powered by WordPress or Proudly Powered by WordPress message intact. If it’s not there, then we have some additional methods to verify.
Figuring Out from the Website’s Source HTML
Open the website and then press the shortcut keys CTRL + U in Windows to view its source. We can also use the menu buttons to view the source HTML. Don’t let the HTML tags overwhelm you and use CTRL + F to find and navigate through it.
If the user has left it intact, then a meta tag will be there with the name generator.
<meta name="generator" content="WordPress 4.1.1" />
It will also hold the current WordPress version. But for security reasons, some users choose to hide this. So you will have to search around in the source code for directories such as wp-content or even wp-includes.
These directories hold the theme files like CSS styles and JavaScript.
Figuring Out by Visiting the Admin Directory
Try opening the admin and user login page by visiting either one of these:
- http://domain.com/wp-login.php
- http://domain.com/wp-admin/
- http://domain.com/admin/
If they redirect to the login page that looks something like this, then it’s certainly WordPress.
But know that the login page can be hidden or the style can be changed. So, even if the login page looks different, we can’t be certain that it is not WordPress.
Accessing the Readme Files
WordPress comes with a readme file and it is accessible from http://domain.com/readme.html. If it’s WordPress, then you’ll see the logo along with some text related to the installation and the software. Remember that a user can freely delete or remove this file.
Using External Tools
There are several external tools that allow us to figure out the technology behind a website. Here are a few of those:
Open this site, enter the domain name and it will display the technologies that power it. Look under the heading Content Management Systems and if it is powered by WordPress, it will show there. You also get additional insights.
Input the domain name in this website and it will simply display whether it’s WordPress or not. If it is WordPress, there will be a message like
Good news everyone,
this website is on WordPress.
Otherwise, the message will be
Bad news everyone,
this website is not using WordPress.
Using Plugins for Google Chrome
If you use Google Chrome as a browser, then there are several plugins that can analyze the contents of a website and give out the information about them.
Here are three of such plugins:
Install any one of these plugins in your browser. Once it is added, you can see its results on the right side of the address bar. It will not only show the CMS but also the frameworks that powers the site.