Next.js vs WordPress: What's Actually Right for Your Business in 2025

The Question We Get Asked Every Week

"Should we use WordPress or something modern like Next.js?"

It is a fair question. WordPress powers 43% of the internet. It is cheap, familiar, and has a plugin for everything. Next.js is what the fastest, most scalable web products in the world are built on. They are not the same type of tool — and pretending otherwise does businesses a disservice.

Here is the honest answer.

When WordPress Is the Right Choice

WordPress is genuinely excellent for a specific use case: content-heavy sites where non-technical editors need to publish frequently and the technical requirements are simple.

If you run a news blog, a small business brochure site, or a simple portfolio with no complex interactions — WordPress with a good theme and managed hosting will serve you well. Setup is fast. Cost is low. Your team can update it without calling a developer.

That is WordPress at its best.

Where WordPress Starts to Break Down

The problem is that most businesses outgrow "simple" faster than they expect. The moment you need:

• A checkout flow or any kind of transaction
• User accounts with custom dashboards
• Real-time features — live inventory, notifications, booking systems
• Performance above 80/100 on Google's Core Web Vitals
• Custom integrations with your CRM, ERP, or third-party APIs
• A design that doesn't look like every other WordPress site

… you are fighting WordPress rather than working with it. Every feature becomes a plugin. Every plugin adds bloat. Every update breaks something. Your "cheap" site starts requiring expensive developer time just to maintain.

What Next.js Actually Is

Next.js is a React framework built by Vercel. It powers the frontends of companies like TikTok, Twitch, Airbnb, and Nike. It gives developers complete control over performance, data fetching, routing, and rendering strategy.

With Next.js you get:

• Server-side rendering — pages are pre-rendered on the server, making them fast for users and indexable by Google
• Static generation with ISR — pages are generated at build time but can be revalidated without a full redeploy
• API routes — your backend lives in the same codebase
• Image optimisation — automatic WebP conversion, lazy loading, responsive sizes
• TypeScript-first — fewer runtime bugs, better developer experience

The trade-off: it requires professional developers to build and maintain. You cannot drag and drop a theme on top of it.

The Real Cost Comparison

A WordPress site might cost $2,000–$5,000 to build. A custom Next.js application might cost $8,000–$30,000 depending on complexity.

But here is what the WordPress price tag does not include:

• $200–$800/year in premium plugins to match custom functionality
• Regular developer time to handle plugin conflicts and updates
• Lost revenue from slower page speed (a 1-second delay in mobile load time reduces conversions by up to 20%)
• The eventual full rebuild when the site can no longer scale

Most businesses that build on WordPress for "the cheaper option" rebuild within 3 years. They pay twice.

Our Recommendation

Choose WordPress if: you need a simple content site up fast with minimal budget and simple ongoing updates by non-technical staff.

Choose Next.js if: your website is a product, drives revenue, needs to be fast, or will grow into something complex. Build it right once.

Still not sure? Book a free consultation — we will tell you honestly which one fits your situation.