In this guide, we will compare Elementor vs Divi, review some interesting stats, and provide you with detailed instruction on how to convert Divi to Elementor.
Table of contents:
1. Elementor vs Divi
2. How to Convert Divi to Elementor
3. Migrate Divi to Elementor with ThemeREX Studio
As of now, there are multiple WordPress page builders for all tastes. Each of them has its’ pros and cons. However, from January 2019 there is a major shift towards Elementor page builder on the market. This made people wonder which builder to choose Divi or Elementor?
1. Elementor vs Divi
Let’s start the Elementor vs Divi analysis with some important numbers.
1. Elementor vs Divi experience on the market
Divi was released in November 2013. The latest version is 4.6.
Elementor was created in December 2016. And the latest Elementor version is 3.0.
And here are the overall Google Search trends for these builders over time.
2. Divi vs Elementor active users
According to builtwith.com as of October 2020 Elementor has 3,046,564 active installations, while Divi has only 1,651,306.So, as we can see Elementor has almost twice more active installations than Divi.
3. Divi and Elementor pricing
Here comes a tough one to compare. It is rather difficult to compare the pricing of these 2 page builders, because they don’t provide identical packages. Just take a look
Elementor Pricing
Divi Pricing
- Elementor provides a fully functional free version available on WordPress, while Divi has only paid plans.
- The cheapest premium plan for Elementor is $49/year and Divi – $89/year. However, Divi gives much more in their starter pack: full access to all ElegantThemes products and addons. Also, they don’t limit you by 1 site license. You can use Divi on an unlimited amount of sites. Elementor allows only 1 site though.
- The next difference is that Divi has a one time fee lifetime package. You pay $249 and use Divi as long as you want and on any site you’d like. Elementor doesn’t have this. Their $199 “Expert” package gives you 1,000 sites and requires annual payments. 1,000 sites sounds more like unlimited usage, but $199/year is kinda expensive.
Both provide a 30-Day money back guarantee for new purchases.
So, if you are a freelancer or a web agency and the pricing is your main concern, then Divi by ElegantThemes seems to be the best option for you and moreover, there is a Divi official Discount available through which you can save $25 on the lifetime plan and $10 on the Annual plan. .
Although, if you are going to create just 1-2 sites, you should probably go with either free Elementor or their personal plan. And again that’s in case the pricing is your main concern.
4. Usability and intuitiveness
In terms of usability most of the experienced WordPress developers think that Elementor went the “WordPress way”. They made this control panel on the left side. When you edit anything on the left side it is immediately displayed on the right side.
Elementor
You can also drag-and-drop blocks and sections and edit them right on the screen (even without the side panel).
Divi makes its own way though. They don’t have this sidebar. Everything is managed right on the screen you work on.
Divi
They also have a drag-and-drop functionality. But some programmers and designers don’t like the way the settings and options are hidden in a context menu. It’s especially not quite intuitive for beginners.
5. Flexibility and customization depth
When it comes to flexibility and customization both builders are pretty good. Although, Elementor has much more controls and settings for each kind of object. Let’s take a look at the customization panel when you edit a simple image on your page.
Tab “content” allows you to choose the image, edit its size, alignment, caption and add a link.
“Style” tab provides you with more precise settings like width, height, opacity, special css filters, border settings and box shadow.
Advanced tab allows you to modify margins, paddings, css ids and classes, color scheme, effects, positioning, visibility on different devices, etc.
And all these settings are available for 3 modes: desktop, tablet and mobile.
We heard plenty of thoughts about this super detailed Elementor customization panel. Some users say that it’s too much. Too many settings tire users. Others are extremely happy with that. It allows creating pixel perfect designs. Also it is better to have them (just in case) than don’t have them at all.
Now let’s take a look at Divi.
They have exactly the same tabs and most of the settings. So, it is safe to say that Elementor was inspired by the way Divi organized their customizer.
Tab “Content” contains main settings, like tag, type of content, input field, etc.
The “design tab” will help you to customize the sizes, spacing, colors, height and width, etc.
And the “advanced” tab allows you to add your custom code for the element.
As you can see Divi also has a good level of customization, though not as deep as Elementor. And again, here we heard different opinions. Some people say that they like the “Divi way”, while others don’t.
Elementor vs Divi, Which One is Better?
Considering all the above mentioned arguments we pick Elementor over Divi and here is why.
We are not only WordPress themes authors. We also have our own Website Studio. Therefore we have lots of experience working with different page builders and their versions. We have been working with WPBakery, Visual Composer, Elementor, Beaver builder and others.
In 2017 we would recommend using Visual Composer. But as of 2019 we strongly recommend Elementor.
2. How to Convert Divi to Elementor
With the growing popularity of Elementor more and more users migrate their projects. Divi users are no exception. But obviously it’s not that easy. Here is how to convert Divi to Elementor.
By the way, if you have a Visual Composer on your site, here is a nice article on how to convert Visual Composer or WPBakery to Elementor.
First of all, we have to admit that there are no special plugins or free online services that can easily convert your Divi site to Elementor.
Step 1. Preparation
Before you start converting your Divi site to Elementor you need to do couple preparation things.
First of all, make sure to make a full site back up. You can use any modern plugin like Backupbuddy or Updraft. In case anything goes wrong you will always be able to restore your site.
Second of all, turn off the cache on your server and on your site (if you use any caching plugin).
Third, if you have an opportunity to make a dev or staging site that would be great. You can simply download your entire site with a Duplicator plugin and restore it on your local or staging site.
Step 2. Install Elementor
As of 2020 these 2 builders can be activated on the same site and it will not crush. So, go ahead and install Elementor page builder on your website.
Then, create a test page and add several Elementor shortcodes. Check if they work properly and if the theme does not conflict with the page builder (because sometimes it happens).
Also check if there are any JS / CSS errors.
Just press F12 on your keyboard and click the “Console” tab.
If you can fix the css/js issues you can continue using the theme. If not, then it is recommended to change it to some other Elementor-friendly theme.
Step 3. Remove Divi & Related Plugins
Next you can disable the Divi and plugins that you don’t need. You will find lots of pages with the shortcodes left after the deactivation. It will look like this.
Step 4. First things to do with Elementor
So, now we have our pages, posts and database ready for migration. First thing to do is to rebuild the header and the footer with the Elementor.Luckily it has a super flexible drag and drop builder, where you can add logo, menu, texts, contact info, etc.
Step 5. Rebuild posts and pages
Next you will need to rebuild your posts and pages with Elementor shortcodes. Just open the page and click “Edit with Elementor” on the top panel.
Then, using the Elementor blocks and sections recreate the layout.
Step 6. Doublecheck
It’s quite obvious, but once you are done with rebuilding your posts and pages go through your entire site and check if everything is fine.
Also, make sure to check it on different devices: laptop, tablet and mobile phone.
3. Alternative - Migrate Divi to Elementor with ThemeREX Studio
Elementor is now the most progressive and the most popular WordPress page builder. People choose it over other WP plugins.
Though, as it was previously mentioned there is no 1-click easy way to convert your Divi site to Elementor. It will take some time and effort to accomplish this task.
Did you create a WordPress website using the Divi builder? Have you changed your mind, and now you’d like to continue customizing it with Elementor?
No worries! ThemeREX Studio has prepared a special offer that you will enjoy.
In 14 business days, the expert team will convert your Divi website into Elementor.
You will also get up to 6 pages moved from the old to the new website, plus 10 blog posts as part of the offer.
While converting your website to Elementor, ThemeREX Studio will also cover the theme installation and customization of the theme’s color scheme and styles to match your original site.
Besides, you may order several extra services that include logo replacement, speed optimization, theme update, and moving your site to the brand-new theme.
Hope this helps. Comment below if you have any questions or thoughts about the topic.