We're a small web agency based in Prague. For years, we built client websites on WordPress – just like everyone else.
Then we switched to Next.js. After delivering 100+ projects, we're never going back. Here's why.
The Problem With WordPress in 2026
Don't get me wrong – WordPress powers 43% of the web. It's a great tool for what it was designed for: blogging. But when clients come to us asking for a fast, modern business website, WordPress starts showing its cracks:
Speed: The average WordPress site loads in 4–8 seconds. Every second above 3s costs you ~7% in conversions.
Plugin hell: Need SEO? Plugin. Need caching? Plugin. Need security? Plugin. Each one adds weight, complexity, and potential vulnerabilities.
Maintenance burden: Core updates, plugin updates, PHP version conflicts, database optimization... it never ends.
Security: WordPress is the #1 target for hackers precisely because it's so popular. Outdated plugins are the main attack vector.
We spent more time maintaining WordPress sites than building them. Something had to change.
Why Next.js?
We evaluated several options – Gatsby, Astro, SvelteKit, plain HTML/CSS. We landed on Next.js for these reasons:
- Performance Out of the Box Next.js gives you automatic code splitting, image optimization, and static generation by default. No configuration, no plugins. Here's a real comparison from one of our client projects – same design, same content: ┌─────────────────┬───────────┬──────────┐ │ Metric │ WordPress │ Next.js │ ├─────────────────┼───────────┼──────────┤ │ First Load │ 4.2s │ 1.1s │ │ LCP │ 3.8s │ 1.3s │ │ CLS │ 0.24 │ 0.01 │ │ PageSpeed Score │ 47 │ 98 │ │ Total Size │ 3.2 MB │ 340 KB │ └─────────────────┴───────────┴──────────┘ That's not a cherry-picked example. We see these numbers consistently across projects.
- SEO That Actually Works With Next.js, you get:
Server-side rendering (SSR) or static site generation (SSG) – Google gets fully rendered HTML, not a JavaScript blob
Automatic
Built-in image optimization with next/image – WebP/AVIF, lazy loading, proper sizing
Structured data is trivial to implement with JSON-LD
Our clients consistently see improved Google rankings within 2-3 months of switching from WordPress to Next.js. Not because of magic – because the technical foundation is simply better.
- Developer Experience This matters more than people think. When your dev team enjoys working with a tool, they ship faster and write better code. jsx// A simple page component in Next.js // Clean, readable, no PHP spaghetti
export default function ServicesPage() {
return (
);
}
Compare this to a WordPress template file with mixed PHP/HTML, the_loop(), get_template_part(), and 47 hooks. The cognitive overhead is massive.
- Security (or Lack of Worry) A Next.js site deployed on Vercel or a CDN has virtually zero attack surface. There's no database to hack, no admin panel to brute-force, no plugins with backdoors. In 2+ years of running Next.js sites in production, we've had exactly zero security incidents. With WordPress, we used to deal with hacked sites monthly. The Tradeoffs (Being Honest) Next.js isn't perfect for every use case. Here's where WordPress still wins:
Non-technical content editors: WordPress's admin panel is familiar to everyone. For Next.js, you need a headless CMS (we use Sanity or Strapi).
Plugin ecosystem: Need a specific, niche feature? WordPress probably has a plugin for it. With Next.js, you might need to build it.
Cost for complex sites: A WordPress developer costs less per hour than a React developer. For very simple sites, WordPress can be cheaper.
E-commerce at scale: WooCommerce is battle-tested. Next.js + headless commerce (Shopify Storefront API, Medusa) works great but requires more setup.
Our Stack in 2026
For anyone curious, here's what we use for most client projects:
Framework: Next.js 15 (App Router)
Styling: Tailwind CSS
CMS: Sanity.io (for clients who need to edit content)
Hosting: Vercel (or self-hosted on VPS for cost-sensitive clients)
Forms: React Hook Form + server actions
Analytics: Plausible (privacy-friendly alternative to GA4)
SEO: Built-in Next.js metadata + custom structured data
Total hosting cost for a typical business website: ~$0–20/month (vs $10–50/month for WordPress hosting + premium plugins).
The Results
After 100+ Next.js projects, here are our average numbers:
PageSpeed score: 95+ (mobile)
Load time: Under 2 seconds
Delivery time: 3–7 business days
Client satisfaction: We haven't had a single client ask to go back to WordPress
Should You Switch?
If you're a developer building client websites and you're still on WordPress, I'd encourage you to try Next.js for your next project. The learning curve is real – give yourself 2-3 weeks to get comfortable – but the payoff is worth it.
If you're a business owner reading this: ask your agency about their tech stack. If they're still defaulting to WordPress for every project, they might be optimizing for their convenience, not your results.
We're Weblyx, a web development agency from Prague specializing in Next.js websites. If you have questions about migrating from WordPress or starting a new project, drop a comment below or reach out at weblyx.cz.
What's your experience with Next.js vs WordPress? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. 👇
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