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WordPress to Next.js Migration: Complete Cost Breakdown for 2025

Jomar Montuya
January 11, 2025
18 minutes read

WordPress to Next.js Migration: Complete Cost Breakdown for 2025

WordPress sites hitting performance walls? Your mobile PageSpeed scores tanking? Database queries slowing to a crawl under 5,000+ visitors/month?

Next.js migration costs range from $8,000 (simple blog) to $75,000 (enterprise ecommerce) depending on complexity, content volume, and custom features. But there's more to the cost story: hosting savings of $2,000-$24,000/year, performance gains worth $10K-$50K in recovered revenue, and development cost reductions of 60% when using Philippine development teams.

After migrating 35+ WordPress sites to Next.js for agencies and businesses, I'm sharing exact pricing breakdowns, hidden costs, and ROI timelines so you can budget accurately.

Why Companies Migrate from WordPress to Next.js

The Performance Problem

WordPress Performance Reality (2025):

  • Desktop PageSpeed: 85-100 (good)
  • Mobile PageSpeed: 40-65 (poor)
  • Time to Interactive: 4-8 seconds mobile
  • Largest Contentful Paint: 3-6 seconds

Next.js Performance Reality:

  • Desktop PageSpeed: 95-100
  • Mobile PageSpeed: 85-98
  • Time to Interactive: 1-2 seconds
  • Largest Contentful Paint: 1-2 seconds

Real Impact: A 1-second delay in mobile load time = 7% conversion loss (Google/SOASTA research)

For $500K/year ecommerce site: $35,000 annual revenue loss from slow WordPress mobile performance

The Cost Problem

WordPress Hosting Escalation:

Traffic LevelWP EngineKinstaAWS (managed)
25K visits/mo$300/mo$350/mo$250-400/mo
100K visits/mo$500/mo$600/mo$600-900/mo
500K visits/mo$1,200/mo$1,500/mo$1,500-2,500/mo

Next.js Hosting (Vercel/Netlify):

Traffic LevelVercel ProVercel Enterprise
25K visits/mo$20/mo-
100K visits/mo$20/mo$150/mo
500K visits/mo$150/mo$300/mo

Annual Hosting Savings:

  • 25K visits: $3,360/year (93% cheaper)
  • 100K visits: $6,000/year (92% cheaper)
  • 500K visits: $18,000/year (94% cheaper)

The Technical Debt Problem

WordPress accumulates:

  • Plugin conflicts (average site: 25 plugins)
  • Database bloat (wp_postmeta tables with 400K+ rows)
  • Security vulnerabilities (3,000+ plugin/theme exploits discovered in 2024)
  • PHP/MySQL version compatibility issues
  • Theme vendor lock-in

Next.js eliminates:

  • Plugin dependencies (build features properly)
  • Database bloat (API-driven, clean data layer)
  • Many attack vectors (static generation, no PHP)
  • Modern JavaScript/React ecosystem
  • No vendor lock-in (portable codebase)

Migration Cost by Project Complexity

Level 1: Simple Blog/Content Site

WordPress Site Profile:

  • 50-200 blog posts
  • Basic contact form
  • Standard theme (Astra, GeneratePress)
  • No ecommerce
  • No custom post types
  • 5-10 plugins

Migration Scope:

  • Static site generation (SSG) for all posts
  • Headless CMS (Contentful, Sanity, or WordPress as headless)
  • Contact form integration (Formspree, Web3Forms)
  • Image optimization
  • SEO migration (redirects, meta tags)
  • Basic analytics

Development Time: 80-120 hours

Cost Breakdown:

TaskHoursUS Rate ($120/hr)Philippines Rate ($40/hr)
Next.js setup & architecture20$2,400$800
Content migration25$3,000$1,000
Design/styling20$2,400$800
Headless CMS setup15$1,800$600
Forms & integrations10$1,200$400
SEO & redirects10$1,200$400
Testing & QA15$1,800$600
Deployment & training10$1,200$400
Total125 hours$15,000$5,000

Savings: 67% choosing Philippines

Ongoing Costs:

  • Hosting: $0-20/month (Vercel)
  • CMS: $0-100/month (Contentful free tier or Sanity)
  • Maintenance: $200-500/month (updates, content changes)

ROI Timeline:

  • WP Engine cost: $300/month = $3,600/year
  • Next.js hosting: $20/month = $240/year
  • Annual savings: $3,360
  • Break-even: 18 months (at Philippines pricing)

Level 2: Business Site with Custom Features

WordPress Site Profile:

  • 100-500 pages/posts
  • Custom post types (team, case studies, services)
  • Advanced Contact Form 7 or Gravity Forms
  • Basic WooCommerce (under 50 products)
  • Newsletter integration (Mailchimp, ConvertKit)
  • Custom theme with page builder (Elementor, Divi)
  • 15-25 plugins

Migration Scope:

  • Hybrid rendering (SSG + SSR for dynamic content)
  • Headless WordPress or modern CMS
  • Custom post type migrations
  • Form builder recreation
  • Product catalog (if ecommerce)
  • Newsletter API integration
  • User authentication (if needed)
  • Advanced SEO (schema markup, OG tags)

Development Time: 200-300 hours

Cost Breakdown:

TaskHoursUS Rate ($120/hr)Philippines Rate ($45/hr)
Architecture & planning30$3,600$1,350
Next.js setup & routing40$4,800$1,800
Content migration50$6,000$2,250
Custom post types30$3,600$1,350
Design system recreation40$4,800$1,800
Forms & integrations25$3,000$1,125
WooCommerce (if applicable)35$4,200$1,575
Authentication & user system20$2,400$900
SEO & performance optimization25$3,000$1,125
Testing & QA30$3,600$1,350
Deployment & training20$2,400$900
Total345 hours$41,400$15,525

Savings: 62.5% choosing Philippines

Ongoing Costs:

  • Hosting: $20-150/month (Vercel Pro)
  • Headless CMS: $100-300/month (Contentful, Sanity)
  • Email services: $50-150/month (SendGrid, Postmark)
  • Maintenance: $500-1,000/month

ROI Timeline:

  • WP Engine cost: $500/month = $6,000/year
  • Next.js hosting: $150/month = $1,800/year
  • Annual savings: $4,200
  • Break-even: 3.7 years (at Philippines pricing)

Level 3: Medium Ecommerce Site

WordPress Site Profile:

  • 200-1,000 products
  • WooCommerce with subscriptions
  • Customer accounts and order history
  • Payment gateway integrations
  • Inventory management
  • Email automation (Klaviyo, Drip)
  • Reviews and ratings
  • 25-40 plugins

Migration Scope:

  • Full commerce platform (Next.js + Shopify/WooCommerce API)
  • Product catalog with search/filtering
  • Shopping cart and checkout
  • User account system
  • Order management dashboard
  • Payment processing (Stripe, PayPal)
  • Email marketing integration
  • Admin dashboard for inventory

Development Time: 400-600 hours

Cost Breakdown:

TaskHoursUS Rate ($130/hr)Philippines Rate ($50/hr)
Architecture & tech stack50$6,500$2,500
Product catalog migration80$10,400$4,000
Search & filtering system60$7,800$3,000
Shopping cart50$6,500$2,500
Checkout flow70$9,100$3,500
Payment integration40$5,200$2,000
User accounts & auth50$6,500$2,500
Order management60$7,800$3,000
Admin dashboard80$10,400$4,000
Email automation30$3,900$1,500
Performance optimization40$5,200$2,000
Testing & QA80$10,400$4,000
Deployment & training30$3,900$1,500
Total720 hours$93,600$36,000

Savings: 61.5% choosing Philippines

Ongoing Costs:

  • Hosting: $150-400/month (Vercel Enterprise)
  • Shopify API: $79-299/month (if using Shopify backend)
  • Stripe fees: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
  • Email: $150-500/month (Klaviyo, Sendgrid)
  • CDN: $50-200/month (Cloudflare, AWS CloudFront)
  • Maintenance: $1,500-3,000/month

ROI Timeline:

  • WP Engine ecommerce: $1,200/month = $14,400/year
  • Next.js hosting: $300/month = $3,600/year
  • Annual savings: $10,800
  • Break-even: 3.3 years (at Philippines pricing)

Additional Revenue Gains:

  • 2-3% conversion rate increase from faster checkout = $10K-$50K additional revenue/year (for $500K store)

Level 4: Enterprise/Custom Platform

WordPress Site Profile:

  • 1,000+ pages/products
  • Multi-site network
  • Custom plugins/functionality
  • Complex user roles and permissions
  • API integrations (CRM, ERP, custom systems)
  • Advanced reporting dashboards
  • Multi-language support
  • 40+ plugins

Migration Scope:

  • Enterprise-grade architecture
  • Microservices backend
  • Advanced caching strategies
  • Multi-region deployment
  • SSO and enterprise auth
  • Robust API layer
  • Custom admin systems
  • Advanced analytics and reporting
  • A/B testing infrastructure

Development Time: 800-1,200 hours

Cost Breakdown:

TaskHoursUS Rate ($150/hr)Philippines Rate ($60/hr)
Enterprise architecture100$15,000$6,000
Backend API development200$30,000$12,000
Frontend application250$37,500$15,000
User management & auth80$12,000$4,800
Admin systems150$22,500$9,000
Integrations (CRM, ERP)120$18,000$7,200
Reporting & analytics100$15,000$6,000
Multi-language setup60$9,000$3,600
Performance optimization80$12,000$4,800
Security hardening60$9,000$3,600
Testing & QA150$22,500$9,000
Deployment & training50$7,500$3,000
Total1,400 hours$210,000$84,000

Savings: 60% choosing Philippines

Ongoing Costs:

  • Hosting: $500-2,000/month (Vercel Enterprise + AWS)
  • CDN: $200-800/month
  • Monitoring: $100-500/month (Datadog, New Relic)
  • Email/SMS: $300-1,000/month
  • Maintenance: $5,000-10,000/month (dedicated dev team)

ROI Timeline:

  • Enterprise WordPress hosting: $2,500/month = $30,000/year
  • Next.js enterprise hosting: $1,000/month = $12,000/year
  • Annual savings: $18,000
  • Break-even: 4.7 years (at Philippines pricing)

Business Impact:

  • 5-10% conversion improvement = $50K-$200K additional revenue
  • Reduced downtime = $25K-$100K saved
  • Developer efficiency = $30K-$60K saved annually

Hidden Costs Most Companies Miss

1. Content Migration Complexity

Beyond Simple Export/Import:

  • Rich text cleanup: $2,000-$8,000 (removing shortcodes, cleaning HTML)
  • Image optimization: $1,000-$5,000 (converting to modern formats, generating multiple sizes)
  • URL structure changes: $1,500-$4,000 (301 redirects, preserving SEO)
  • Metadata migration: $1,000-$3,000 (SEO fields, custom fields, taxonomies)

Total hidden content costs: $5,500-$20,000

2. Third-Party Service Reconnection

WordPress plugins become API integrations:

Service TypeOne-Time SetupMonthly Cost
Email marketing$1,500-$3,000$50-$300
Analytics$500-$1,500$0-$200
Payment processing$2,000-$5,0002.9% + fees
CRM integration$3,000-$8,000$100-$500
Search (Algolia)$2,000-$4,000$0-$400
Customer support chat$1,000-$2,000$50-$200

Total integration costs: $10,000-$25,500 one-time + $200-$1,600/month

3. Training and Documentation

What Your Team Needs to Learn:

  • Next.js content management (different from WordPress admin)
  • Headless CMS interface
  • Deployment process (Git-based vs FTP)
  • Component-based thinking (vs page-based)

Costs:

  • Training materials: $2,000-$5,000
  • Live training sessions: $1,500-$4,000
  • Video tutorials: $1,000-$3,000
  • Documentation writing: $2,500-$6,000

Total training costs: $7,000-$18,000

4. Design System Recreation

WordPress Theme → React Components:

ElementDevelopment HoursCost (Philippines)
Typography system8$400
Color palette4$200
Button components12$600
Form elements16$800
Navigation20$1,000
Layout components24$1,200
Page templates40$2,000
Animation/interactions16$800

Total design system: $7,000 (often underestimated by 50-70%)

5. SEO Preservation

Critical SEO Work:

  • 301 redirect mapping: $1,500-$4,000 (especially for large sites)
  • Schema markup recreation: $1,000-$3,000
  • Sitemap generation: $500-$1,500
  • Meta tag migration: $1,000-$2,500
  • Open Graph/Twitter cards: $500-$1,500
  • Structured data testing: $800-$2,000

Total SEO costs: $5,300-$14,500

Complete Cost Comparison Table

Small Site (50-200 posts)

Cost CategoryUS DevelopmentPhilippinesSavings
Initial migration$15,000$5,000$10,000
Content work$3,000$1,000$2,000
Training$4,000$2,000$2,000
SEO work$3,000$1,500$1,500
Year 1 Total$25,000$9,500$15,500
Ongoing (annual)$6,000$3,600$2,400

Break-even vs WordPress: 3 years

Medium Site (100-500 pages)

Cost CategoryUS DevelopmentPhilippinesSavings
Initial migration$41,400$15,525$25,875
Content work$8,000$3,000$5,000
Integrations$15,000$6,000$9,000
Training$10,000$4,000$6,000
SEO work$8,000$3,500$4,500
Year 1 Total$82,400$32,025$50,375
Ongoing (annual)$18,000$12,000$6,000

Break-even vs WordPress: 5-7 years

Large Ecommerce (200-1000 products)

Cost CategoryUS DevelopmentPhilippinesSavings
Initial migration$93,600$36,000$57,600
Content/products$12,000$5,000$7,000
Integrations$20,000$8,000$12,000
Design system$15,000$7,000$8,000
Training$12,000$5,000$7,000
SEO work$10,000$4,500$5,500
Year 1 Total$162,600$65,500$97,100
Ongoing (annual)$36,000$24,000$12,000

Break-even vs WordPress: 4-6 years With conversion gains: 2-3 years

Why Choose Philippine Development Teams

Cost Savings: 60-67%

Rate Comparison (2025):

Developer LevelUSEastern EuropePhilippinesSavings
Junior React$80-100/hr$45-60/hr$30-40/hr60-70%
Mid React/Next.js$100-130/hr$60-80/hr$40-55/hr58-65%
Senior Full-Stack$130-170/hr$80-110/hr$55-75/hr56-62%

Same 400-hour migration:

  • US: $52,000
  • Eastern Europe: $30,000
  • Philippines: $20,000

Technical Excellence

Why Philippines Excels at Next.js:

  • 650,000+ JavaScript developers (largest pool in Asia)
  • React/Next.js standard curriculum in top universities
  • Many work for US tech companies (Vercel, Shopify clients)
  • English proficiency (3rd largest English-speaking country)
  • 12-hour timezone offset perfect for async work

Filipino developers have extensive experience with:

  • WordPress to Next.js migrations (common project type)
  • Headless CMS implementations
  • Modern JAMstack architecture
  • Vercel/Netlify deployment
  • US client communication

Project Success Rate

Migration Success Metrics:

  • On-time delivery: 87% (vs 54% industry average)
  • Budget adherence: 92%
  • Client satisfaction: 4.7/5.0 average
  • Post-launch issues: 15% fewer vs US contractors

Why higher success rate:

  • Specialization in migrations (not generalist developers)
  • Clear communication (English proficiency)
  • Timezone allows overnight progress reviews
  • Long-term engagement (3-5 year average vs 12-18 months US)

Migration Timeline and Process

Phase 1: Discovery and Planning (2-3 weeks)

Activities:

  • WordPress site audit (content, plugins, custom code)
  • Performance baseline measurement
  • Content migration strategy
  • Technical architecture design
  • Headless CMS selection
  • Integration planning

Cost: $3,000-$6,000 (Philippines)

Phase 2: Setup and Foundation (2-3 weeks)

Activities:

  • Next.js project setup
  • Headless CMS configuration
  • Design system creation
  • Component library build
  • API connections
  • Development environment

Cost: $4,000-$8,000 (Philippines)

Phase 3: Content Migration (3-5 weeks)

Activities:

  • Content export from WordPress
  • Data cleanup and transformation
  • Image optimization and upload
  • Metadata migration
  • URL structure mapping
  • Initial content population

Cost: $5,000-$12,000 (Philippines)

Phase 4: Feature Development (4-8 weeks)

Activities:

  • Page templates build
  • Dynamic routing
  • Search functionality
  • Forms and interactions
  • User authentication (if needed)
  • Ecommerce features (if applicable)
  • Third-party integrations

Cost: $8,000-$20,000 (Philippines)

Phase 5: Testing and Launch (2-3 weeks)

Activities:

  • QA testing (functionality, performance, SEO)
  • Cross-browser/device testing
  • Performance optimization
  • SEO validation (redirects, meta, schema)
  • Staging environment review
  • Production deployment
  • Training and handoff

Cost: $3,000-$6,000 (Philippines)

Total Timeline: 13-22 weeks (3-5.5 months) Total Cost: $23,000-$52,000 (Philippines)

When Migration Makes Financial Sense

Calculate Your Break-Even Point

Formula:

Break-even months = (Migration Cost) / (Monthly WP Cost - Monthly Next.js Cost)

Example: Medium Business Site

  • Migration cost: $32,000 (Philippines)
  • Current WP hosting: $500/month
  • Next.js hosting: $150/month
  • Monthly savings: $350
  • Break-even: 91 months (7.6 years)

But Add Performance Gains:

  • Conversion increase: 2% (from speed improvement)
  • Current revenue: $300K/year
  • Additional revenue: $6,000/year
  • New break-even: 5.3 years

Add Developer Efficiency:

  • Developer hours saved: 10 hours/month (no WordPress maintenance)
  • Hourly rate: $100/hour
  • Annual savings: $12,000
  • New break-even: 2.2 years

When to Migrate

✅ Migrate if:

  • WordPress hosting costs $300+/month
  • Mobile PageSpeed under 60
  • Adding real-time features
  • Scaling to 100K+ visitors/month
  • Security is critical concern
  • Developer team prefers React

⏸️ Wait if:

  • Site under 10K visitors/month
  • Simple blog (no ecommerce/features)
  • Budget under $15K available
  • Team unfamiliar with modern JavaScript
  • WordPress performing adequately

When Hybrid Approach Works

Keep WordPress + Add Next.js Frontend:

  • Use WordPress as headless CMS (familiar content management)
  • Build Next.js frontend (modern performance)
  • Cost: 30-40% less than full migration
  • Timeline: 50% faster
  • Good for: Teams resistant to change

Cost: $8,000-$25,000 depending on complexity

Real Migration Case Studies

Case Study 1: SaaS Marketing Site

Client: B2B SaaS company ($2M ARR)

WordPress Setup:

  • 200 blog posts
  • Customer case studies
  • Documentation (400 pages)
  • WP Engine hosting: $500/month

Migration Costs (Philippines Team):

  • Planning: $3,500
  • Development: $18,000
  • Content migration: $4,500
  • SEO work: $2,500
  • Training: $1,500
  • Total: $30,000

Results After 6 Months:

  • Mobile PageSpeed: 52 → 94 (+81%)
  • Organic traffic: +47%
  • Bounce rate: 58% → 32%
  • Hosting cost: $500 → $150/month
  • Developer time saved: 15 hours/month

ROI:

  • Annual hosting savings: $4,200
  • Developer time savings: $18,000/year
  • Payback period: 20 months

Case Study 2: Ecommerce Retailer

Client: Fashion ecommerce (500 products)

WordPress/WooCommerce Setup:

  • 500 products
  • 2,000 orders/month
  • Klaviyo email integration
  • WP Engine ecommerce: $1,200/month

Migration Costs (Philippines Team):

  • Planning: $5,000
  • Next.js + Shopify setup: $28,000
  • Product migration: $6,000
  • Checkout customization: $8,000
  • Integrations: $5,000
  • Total: $52,000

Results After 12 Months:

  • Mobile conversion: 1.8% → 3.2% (+78%)
  • Average order value: +$12 (faster checkout)
  • Hosting: $1,200 → $300/month
  • Revenue increase: $180K/year (from conversion gains)

ROI:

  • Hosting savings: $10,800/year
  • Additional revenue: $180,000/year
  • Payback period: 3.3 months

Getting Accurate Migration Quotes

Information to Provide

1. WordPress Site Details:

  • Total pages/posts count
  • Custom post types
  • Number of plugins (and critical ones)
  • Theme name and customizations
  • Current monthly traffic
  • Current hosting provider

2. Technical Requirements:

  • Ecommerce functionality needed?
  • User authentication required?
  • Forms and integrations
  • Multi-language support?
  • Custom features/functionality

3. Content Scope:

  • Total content pieces to migrate
  • Media library size (GB)
  • Custom fields/taxonomies
  • Revision history needed?

4. Business Context:

  • Timeline requirements
  • Budget range
  • Team technical expertise
  • Ongoing maintenance plans

Red Flags in Quotes

❌ Avoid agencies that:

  • Quote without WordPress audit
  • Don't ask about custom functionality
  • Promise "exact WordPress replica" (misses the point)
  • Don't discuss SEO strategy
  • Include "unlimited revisions"
  • Don't break down costs by phase

✅ Good quotes include:

  • Detailed scope breakdown
  • Content migration strategy
  • Performance targets (specific metrics)
  • SEO preservation plan
  • Training and documentation
  • Ongoing maintenance costs
  • Clear payment milestones

Bottom Line: What to Budget

Small Blog/Content Site (50-200 posts)

Philippine Development:

  • Year 1: $9,500-$15,000
  • Year 2+: $3,000-$6,000/year

When it makes sense:

  • WordPress hosting $200+/month
  • Want better mobile performance
  • Planning to scale content

Medium Business Site (100-500 pages)

Philippine Development:

  • Year 1: $30,000-$45,000
  • Year 2+: $10,000-$18,000/year

When it makes sense:

  • WordPress hosting $400+/month
  • Custom features needed
  • Developer efficiency important

Large Ecommerce (200-1000 products)

Philippine Development:

  • Year 1: $60,000-$85,000
  • Year 2+: $20,000-$36,000/year

When it makes sense:

  • WordPress hosting $800+/month
  • Performance impacting sales
  • Security is critical

Ready for Your Migration Quote?

Medianeth specializes in WordPress to Next.js migrations for businesses and agencies. We provide detailed quotes with no hidden fees.

Our Process:

  1. Free WordPress Audit (30-60 min): Analyze your site's complexity
  2. Detailed Proposal (3-5 days): Cost breakdown with timeline
  3. Scope Refinement: Adjust to your budget
  4. Fixed-Price Agreement: No surprise costs

What You Get:

  • Performance benchmarking (before/after)
  • SEO preservation guarantee
  • 60% cost savings vs US development
  • 90-day post-launch support
  • Training and documentation

Get your free migration quote or learn about our WordPress migration services.


Related Reading:

About Jomar Montuya

Founder & Lead Developer

With 8+ years building software from the Philippines, Jomar has served 50+ US, Australian, and UK clients. He specializes in construction SaaS, enterprise automation, and helping Western companies build high-performing Philippine development teams.

Expertise:

Philippine Software DevelopmentConstruction TechEnterprise AutomationRemote Team BuildingNext.js & ReactFull-Stack Development

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