The verdict in three sentences
For a 60-employee industrial SME in Berlin, a WordPress to Next.js migration pays off as soon as the website generates quote requests and maintenance exceeds EUR 2,000 a year. A realistic budget is EUR 11,000 to 18,000 excl. VAT for 140 pages, delivered in 8 to 10 weeks. The only real risk is SEO, and it is neutralised by a 301 redirect plan covering 100% of URLs and 90 days of Search Console monitoring.
WordPress update or Next.js migration: the numbers side by side
The marketing manager of a metal fabrication company often hesitates between two paths: refreshing the existing WordPress theme or rebuilding on Next.js. The first is cheaper in year one, the second is cheaper over three years once you count maintenance, security incidents and conversions lost to slow pages.
| Criterion | WordPress update | Next.js migration |
|---|---|---|
| Initial cost (140 pages) | EUR 5,000 to 8,000 | EUR 11,000 to 18,000 |
| Annual maintenance | EUR 2,400 (current) | EUR 600 to 1,200 |
| Plugins to maintain | 18 | 0 (native features) |
| Measured mobile LCP | 3.2 to 4.1 s | 1.3 s |
| Delivery time | 4 to 6 weeks | 8 to 10 weeks |
| 3-year cumulative cost | EUR 12,200 to 15,200 | EUR 12,800 to 21,600 |
| Attack surface | High (plugins, public admin) | Low (static site, separate CMS) |
Over three years the gap narrows sharply. What tips the balance is speed: going from a 4.1 s LCP to 1.3 s takes the site out of the "poor" Core Web Vitals zone, which improves both rankings and the conversion rate of product pages (tanks, welded frames, sheet metal work).
What a EUR 11,000 to 18,000 migration budget includes
The range depends mainly on the number of page templates and content migration. A fabrication company typically has service pages, project references, industry pages (food processing, chemicals, energy) and a quote form that accepts drawings.
| Item | Estimated effort | Cost excl. VAT (2026 estimate) |
|---|---|---|
| SEO audit and inventory of 140 URLs | 3 days | EUR 1,500 to 2,100 |
| Design and 8 to 12 page templates | 6 to 9 days | EUR 3,000 to 5,000 |
| Next.js development and headless CMS | 8 to 12 days | EUR 4,000 to 6,500 |
| Content migration and clean-up | 3 to 5 days | EUR 1,200 to 2,000 |
| 301 redirect plan and testing | 2 days | EUR 800 to 1,200 |
| Quote form with attachments (DXF, PDF) | 1 to 2 days | EUR 500 to 1,200 |
The headless CMS lets the marketing team publish a new project reference without a developer, just like WordPress, but without exposing an admin interface on the public domain.
The real SEO risks and how to neutralise them
A poorly prepared migration can cost 20 to 40% of organic traffic for several months. This almost always comes from the same mistakes: changed URLs without redirects, lost title tags, renamed images, forgotten sitemap. The method that protects traffic fits in five points.
- Full inventory: export of the 140 indexed URLs, backlinks and the pages that generate quote requests.
- 301 redirects on 100% of changed URLs, tested automatically before go-live.
- Keep the title, meta description and H1 tags of ranking pages.
- XML sitemap and structured data (Organization, Product, LocalBusiness) ready on launch day.
- 90-day Search Console monitoring with 404 errors fixed within 48 h.
With this method, the traffic dip is usually limited to 5 to 10% for 3 to 6 weeks, after which the speed gain takes over.
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Mini case study
Jonas, marketing manager of a 60-employee metal fabrication company in Berlin, receives 25 qualified quote requests a month through the website, with a 12% close rate and an average order of EUR 18,000. He goes for a EUR 15,000 migration. By dropping WordPress maintenance (EUR 2,400 a year, replaced by EUR 900), he saves EUR 1,500 a year. If cutting LCP from 4.1 s to 1.3 s brings just 2 extra quote requests a month, that means about 3 extra orders a year, close to EUR 54,000 in revenue. At a 25% gross margin, the migration pays for itself in under 15 months.
FAQ
How long does it take to migrate 140 pages from WordPress to Next.js?
Allow 8 to 10 weeks from audit to go-live. The SEO audit and design sign-off take the first 3 weeks, development and content migration the next 5.
Will we lose our Google rankings?
Not if 100% of changed URLs get a 301 redirect and the tags of high-performing pages are preserved. A temporary 5 to 10% dip over a few weeks is possible, then speed usually improves positions.
Can the marketing team still publish on its own?
Yes, through a headless CMS with a visual editor. Publishing a project reference takes about 15 minutes, with no code involved.
Why does maintenance drop so much?
The 18 plugins disappear, and with them the monthly updates and related vulnerabilities. Maintaining a Next.js site costs around EUR 600 to 1,200 a year versus EUR 2,400 today.
Can the quote form accept technical drawings?
Yes, uploading DXF, STEP or PDF files up to 25 MB is included in the budget, with email notification to the sales team.
Let's scope your project. Send us your current site URL and we will price the migration of your pages, the redirect plan and the go-live timeline. 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.
