I find the predictions that Elementor and other page builders will eventually succumb to Gutenberg and block based editing very interesting.

I am a self taught DIY website builder who started many years ago with Xara, then Wix, before discovering WordPress.

Being a non coder I quickly discovered that (a) I needed a page builder (first Divi, then Visual Composer and latterly Elementor), and (b) the default theme of the day and free themes in general are pretty much useless for anyone who wants to build a serious website.

When Gutenberg arrived I was intrigued, and spent quite a few hours playing and experimenting with it, before coming to the conclusion that the UI had been designed by Matt Mullenweg’s cleaning lady during her lunch break.

I then discovered the Disable Gutenberg plugin, and have not bothered with the block editor since.

However I thought I would take a look at the new 2024 default theme, as the idea of full site editing has some appeal. After about an hour or so I had had enough. The whole experience is still horrible and I am not the only one who thinks so.

If Gutenberg is the future of WordPress, how is that of the current 3700+ reviews of the plugin, over 2400 of them (64%!!!!) only give it one star? The latest of these are only days and weeks old, and they are not the usual complaints about various aspects of a plugin that good plugins routinely attract.

What comes through loud and clear is that many of the reviewers feel that Gutenberg is a poorly designed product that has been forced upon them against their will.

This must be incredibly embarrassing for the people at WordPress and I feel for the poor forum moderators who have to respond to these reviews. There is nothing they can really say, other than to offer the usual platitudes.

Elementor and other page builders may have their faults, but if they ever disappear or adopt block based editing as their standard offering, I predict that there will be an exodus of enthusiastic amateurs like myself to CMS alternatives other than WordPress.