Word Avatar is used for a user’s profile image in online communications. Gravatar is a web-based service which allows its users to use the Avatar image.
In WordPress, an Avatar and Gravatar are both related to user profile images, but they are slightly different concepts:
- Avatar: In WordPress, an avatar is a user’s profile picture that is displayed within the WordPress ecosystem. Avatars are commonly used to represent users in comments, author boxes, and other areas where user identification is needed. WordPress allows users to set their avatar through their user profile settings. Avatars can be uploaded directly to WordPress or can be chosen from a predefined set of images.
- Gravatar: Gravatar stands for “Globally Recognized Avatar.” It is a service that allows users to associate a profile picture with their email address. Gravatar is not specific to WordPress; it’s a globally available service used across various websites and platforms. When a user sets up a Gravatar, their chosen image will automatically appear whenever they use the associated email address to comment on a Gravatar-enabled website, including WordPress sites that have Gravatar support enabled.
To summarize:
- Avatars are specific to WordPress and are profile pictures set within the WordPress ecosystem.
- Gravatar is a service that provides globally recognized avatars associated with email addresses and can be used across multiple platforms, including WordPress.