The verdict in three sentences
For an SMB whose WordPress site has piled up 45 plugins, slow pages and security alerts, a migration to Next.js costs EUR 8,000 to 18,000 excl. VAT (about USD 8,700 to 19,500) in 2026. The real risk is not technical but SEO: without a 301 redirect plan covering 100% of URLs, you can lose 20 to 40% of organic traffic within weeks. Done properly, the migration cuts running costs from EUR 150 to EUR 90 a month and lifts the mobile Lighthouse score from 45 to 95.
Why SMBs are leaving WordPress in 2026
WordPress is still a good tool to get started. The problem comes with accumulation: a wine merchant who has added a multilingual module, a gift box configurator, a B2B form, a cache plugin and a page builder over the years ends up with 45 plugins to update. Every update can break a page, and every plugin abandoned by its developer becomes an entry point for attacks.
Next.js, paired with a headless CMS (Sanity, Strapi or Payload), separates content from presentation. Pages are pre-built and served from a CDN: there is no database exposed on the public site, no admin panel at /wp-admin, and load time drops below one second, even on mobile 4G.
| Criterion | Current WordPress (60 pages, 45 plugins) | Next.js + headless CMS |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile Lighthouse score | 40 to 50 | 90 to 98 |
| Mobile load time (LCP) | 3.5 to 5 s | 0.8 to 1.5 s |
| Updates to monitor | 45 plugins + core + theme | 1 framework, quarterly updates |
| Security incidents per year (estimate) | 1 to 3 | close to 0 on the public site |
| Monthly maintenance and hosting | EUR 120 to 180 | EUR 70 to 110 |
| Editorial autonomy | good, but risk of breaking layouts | good, blocks controlled by the CMS |
| Cost of a new page type | EUR 300 to 600 | EUR 400 to 800 (reusable template afterwards) |
What the migration costs and where the budget goes
The budget mainly depends on three factors: the number of distinct page templates, the volume of content to migrate and business features (catalogue, trade area, multilingual). For a 60-page site with 6 to 8 templates, here is a realistic 2026 split.
| Item | 2026 range (EUR excl. VAT) | Share of budget |
|---|---|---|
| SEO audit and URL inventory (full crawl, backlinks) | 800 to 1,500 | 8 to 10% |
| Design and template adaptation | 1,500 to 3,500 | 18 to 20% |
| Next.js development (6 to 8 templates) | 3,000 to 7,000 | 38 to 40% |
| Headless CMS setup and content models | 1,000 to 2,500 | 12 to 14% |
| Content migration (60 pages, images, PDFs) | 800 to 1,800 | 9 to 10% |
| 301 redirect plan and SEO QA | 500 to 1,000 | 5 to 6% |
| Team training and documentation | 400 to 700 | 3 to 4% |
| Total | 8,000 to 18,000 | 100% |
The standard timeline is 8 to 12 weeks: 2 weeks of audit and design, 4 to 6 weeks of development, 2 weeks of content migration and QA, then a switchover on a Tuesday morning, never a Friday.
The no-traffic-loss plan
The migration succeeds or fails on preserving rankings. The non-negotiable steps:
- Full crawl of the old site (Screaming Frog or similar): every indexed URL, including PDFs and old product pages.
- Mapping table from old URL to new URL, validated line by line. Target: 100% of URLs covered, no redirect chains.
- Keep the title, meta description and H1 tags of traffic-driving pages, at least for the first 3 months.
- Structured data (Organization, Product, BreadcrumbList) re-injected into the new templates.
- Daily monitoring in Google Search Console for 30 days: 404 errors, excluded pages, coverage.
With this protocol, the traffic dip is usually limited to 5 to 10% for 2 to 4 weeks, followed by a rise driven by the speed gain.
Mini case study
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James, managing director of a wine merchant in London (14 staff, 60 pages, 45 plugins), compares his costs over 3 years.
- Staying on WordPress: EUR 150 x 36 months = EUR 5,400, plus 2 incidents a year at about EUR 900 of clean-up and downtime, i.e. EUR 5,400 over 3 years. Total: EUR 10,800, with no improvement to the site.
- Migrating to Next.js: EUR 12,500 project, then EUR 90 x 36 months = EUR 3,240. Total: EUR 15,740.
The EUR 4,940 gap is covered if the site wins a few trade orders. With an average B2B basket of EUR 1,800 and a 30% margin, 10 extra orders over 3 years, fewer than one per quarter, reach break-even. A 15% lift in mobile conversion, common when load time drops from 4.5 s to 1.2 s, is more than enough.
FAQ
Will I lose my rankings by leaving WordPress?
Not if 100% of URLs are 301-redirected and the tags of top-performing pages are kept. The temporary dip is usually limited to 5 to 10% for 2 to 4 weeks.
Can my team still edit the site on its own?
Yes. The headless CMS offers an editing interface comparable to WordPress, with predefined blocks that prevent layouts from breaking. A 2-hour training session is enough for most marketing teams.
Should we migrate all at once or in stages?
For a 60-page site, a single switchover over 8 to 12 weeks is simpler and cheaper. Beyond 300 pages, a section-by-section migration over 4 to 6 months limits risk.
How much does Next.js hosting cost?
For an SMB, budget EUR 20 to 40 a month for hosting (Vercel, Netlify or a European server) and EUR 50 to 70 a month for technical monitoring, about EUR 90 in total.
What about the WooCommerce shop?
It can be replaced by headless Shopify or a custom ordering module. Plan an extra EUR 3,000 to 8,000 depending on the number of SKUs and B2B pricing rules.
Let's scope your project. Send us your WordPress site address and we will price the URL audit, the Next.js migration and the redirect plan, with an indicative budget of EUR 8,000 to 18,000 and a timeline of 8 to 12 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
