Many website owners who do not currently utilize a content management system, but are interested in converting to a CMS, find themselves asking the question: Which CMS is right for me (or my company)? Well, a considerable amount of research has already been done for you, and three content management systems have risen to the top for a number of reasons, including community support, extensibility, and ease of use.

The 2009 Open Source CMS Market Share Report is a very in-depth and comprehensive study which, at a high level, focuses on two categories: rate of adoption and brand strength. Its findings will come as no surprise to many who are familiar with the topic: the top three CMSs are Joomla, Drupal, and WordPress. What may come as a surprise is that their popularity is ranked in that order - that's right, Joomla is now the CMS of choice.

WordPress is without a doubt still the #1 blogging platform. It is quick to setup and easy to learn, but while it has made considerable advances in other parts of the interface, it does not approach the other two "big CMSs" in most other areas. Mashable, TechCrunch, and numerous other high-profile news blogs use WordPress. It is also largely used for "business card" websites, as small businesses find it a simple way to gain a quick online presence.

Drupal, given enough time and resources, can be made to look like anything. Ubuntu.com, Miami.com, and TheOnion.com are some examples of Drupal sites. Drupal is very extensible, but at the same time, the learning curve for administrators and users is steeper than the other choices.

In my opinion, the reason Joomla has risen to the top is its all-around versatility. It is both user-friendly enough to appeal to all audiences (not just programmers), and it is dynamic enough to have a wide range of uses, from blogging to e-commerce to directories - you name it. Among Joomla users are Joomla.org (of course), Linux.com, and IHOP.com. Even the US Army Corps of Engineers at Los Angeles uses Joomla. One of the key concerns of many Joomla critics has been that its user permissions are too rigid, but Joomla plans to address this issue in its upcoming 1.6 release.

So, broadly, the decision comes down to this. If you want to display content in a blog format, use WordPress. If you want a very custom framework and you have the budget, use Drupal. And if you want an easy-to-use, dynamic, middle-of-the-road CMS, use Joomla!