Joomla is an open-source content management system (CMS) that powers nearly 2 million websites on the internet.

The platform offers numerous advanced features, allowing you to easily make a website or an app.

Considered one of the best WordPress alternatives, Joomla supports various content types and custom fields, including gallery, calendar, and checkboxes. This allows you to create a dynamic website without using third-party plugins.

This article will provide a step-by-step tutorial on how to install Joomla and its core components.  It will also walk you through the content creation process and give a few tips on how to speed up your site.

Getting to Know Joomla

Joomla provides every tool that users need to manage, update, and publish content. Additionally, the platform allows you to build any type of website, be it for a personal or business project.

From site management to core enhancement, Joomla also helps extend your site’s functionality with the vast amount of extensions available. They fall under these types:

• Components – core extensions that you can modify from the back-end and view on the front-end of your site. Some examples are com_content, com_newsfeeds, and com_weblinks.
• Modules – lightweight extensions or widgets that display certain content types, such as recent articles, article categories, or search boxes.
• Plugins – pieces of software that provide additional functions such as adding a music player or social media share buttons to enhance your website’s performance.
• Templates – sets of design and layouts that control the site’s appearance. A template defines how components and Joomla modules are shown on the website.
• Languages – offers translation packs for creating a multi-language site.
• Libraries – collections of function-related code that are used in modules, components, or plugins.

You can find them in the official Joomla! Directory and other third-party sources, such as Joomlart and Joomdev.

Because of the flexibility, many famous brands and organizations use this platform for their websites, including Harvard University, Linux.com, Guggenheim, MTV Greece, and the UNRIC.

Of course, this platform also has a steeper learning curve compared to other CMSs. Not to worry, as there are many articles, tutorials, videos, forums, and documentation to help you along.

2. Leverage Caching

Caching stores content in local storage. Users get the content from the stored cache rather than sending requests to the main server, resulting in a faster loading time.

With our Business plan and higher, you can easily enable object cache through hPanel. Here’s how:

1. Log in to hPanel and click Websites on the navigation bar. Then, find your domain name and click Manage.

Installing Joomla

There are two ways to install this platform – automatically and manually.

Using Hostinger’s Auto Installer

Most web hosting providers include auto-installers to allow you to set up software from the admin panel. On Hostinger’s hPanel, users can access auto-installers under the Website menu.

If you use Joomla web hosting, the procedure will be the same.

1. Open the Auto Installer, find Joomla, and click Select. 

2. Enter your website credentials and select Next. Specify the configuration details, like your domain, preferred language, administrator email, password, and username. When you’re done, click Install.

3. Once the installation is complete, you can log in to the control panel and start creating your Joomla website.

Installing Joomla Manually

Another way to set up Joomla is through manual installation. This method will require you to create a database to serve as storage for the content.

Before you proceed to the installation, download the latest version of Joomla from its official website.

Once the download is complete, access your web hosting control panel to create the database.

1. Navigate to your hPanel -> Databases -> Management. Define your database name, username, and password in the provided fields. Then click the Create button.

3. When your database is all set, upload the downloaded .zip file from your computer into your server using Hostinger File Manager. Choose the domain or access all files.

Open your public_html folder and click on the Upload Files button in the upper right corner.

Click File to select the installation package from your computer to begin the process.

After the file has successfully been uploaded to the folder, you should see the file name on the list.

4. Extract the file to retrieve the content by right-clicking and choosing the Extract option.

5. Access your domain name through any browser. This will take you to Joomla’s Main Configuration page.

Pick your preferred language, then fill out the blank fields.

6. Input your MySQL database credentials from earlier steps.

Review the configurations and click Install to finish up.

When the installation process is done, the page will tell you that Joomla has been successfully installed.

You can now access the Joomla admin dashboard via yourdomain.com/administrator and start working on your project.

Installing Joomla on Hostinger VPS

If you use virtual server hosting from Hostinger, you have another option to install Joomla with a one-click template. This OS template includes Joomla, OpenLiteSpeed, and LSCache image in the installation, which simplify your setup process.

It makes setting up parts like PHP OPCache faster to help you optimize the web server more efficiently.

You can find this feature by opening hPanel and clicking on your server.

After that, look for Operating System on the side panel, and choose Applications under the Change Your Operating System section. You can find the Joomla template in the drop-down menu. Click Change OS to begin the installation.

This process will overwrite your previous OS installation if you have one, so make sure to back up your files beforehand.

Creating a Website With Joomla

The following section will help you get familiar with Joomla basics and showcase how to perform various tasks from the Control Panel.

Adding Articles

Articles in Joomla refer to blog posts that users display on their websites.

1. To create one, access your admin panel and click Content -> Articles -> Add New Article.

2. The window will bring up the WYSIWYG editor, where you can write and modify the article.

When you’re done, pick one out of the three provided statuses – Published, Unpublished, or Archived.

Press the Save button or select Save & Close to be directed to the Articles page. Once the post is created, it’ll appear in the Latest Articles section of your website.

Creating Categories

A category in Joomla enables users to organize their posts based on relevant topics. If you plan to create a wide variety of content, creating categories will let people find information on your site easily.

In order to assign a category to your content, make sure to create them in advance:

1. Click Content -> Categories -> Add New Category on the top-bar menu.
2. Fill in the Title, Description, and Alias (optional).
3. Select Save or Save & Close to create your new category.
   Adding Featured Articles

   To feature an article, navigate to Content -> Articles. There, you’ll see the list of published posts on your website. Simply click on the Star icon next to the desired article to make it featured.
   Creating Menus

   Joomla menus play an important role in defining your site’s structure and improving user experience. The more straightforward your site’s menu, the easier it will be for people to navigate your website.

   You can display a featured articles page and other dedicated pages on your website by creating menus.

   1. Head over to the Menus -> Main Menu and choose the Add New Menu Item option.
      
   2. Type a title for your menu item, e.g., “Featured Articles” then define the Menu Item Type. For this Joomla tutorial, we’ll choose Articles -> Featured Articles.
   3. Select which Menu item will be displayed and press the Save or Save & Close button.
      types of menu items you can set, including:
      • Article Category Blog – shows categories of blog posts in a blog layout.
      • Single News Feed – highlights one RSS feed.
      • Contact Featured – displays a list of featured contacts.
      • Search Results – enables a search form for visitors.

      Creating Components

      Components in Joomla refer to extensions that are responsible for the site’s main elements. They consist of two main categories – administrator and site.

      The administrator side allows you to modify aspects of the components on the back-end. The site part works to render pages requested by your visitors.

      This tutorial will show you how to create Joomla’s default components, such as News Feed, Contact Us page, and Banner.

      

      Pro Tip

      Create a Menu for the Contact Us page to make the contact form viewable and accessible from your main website.