Next.js or WordPress for a service-business website?

We sell both. Next.js runs the lead-generation sites we look after in Australia. We also build on WordPress, connect it to systems such as Microsoft Dynamics, and publish WordPress care plans at Premium USD 89/month or Enterprise USD 159/month (invoiced in the customer's local currency). So it makes no difference to us which you pick, as long as it suits how you will run the site.

Be careful with comparisons from agencies that only sell one. And be careful with us too, since this website is built on Next.js.

WordPress is still the default. W3Techs reported 39.5% of all websites using it on 30 October 2026, and that popularity is itself an advantage, because someone can always be found to work on it. The current release is 7.1.4, from 28 October 2026. The 7.1 branch has had four point releases since 19 August, which shows how regularly someone needs to be applying updates.

Next.js is on 16.4, released on 6 October 2026. It isn’t something you can set up and forget either. The Next.js team moved to a formal security release process in July 2026, has published several security updates since, and has another scheduled for 3 November 2026. On a simple marketing site, a static page reduces what’s exposed, but someone must still own those updates.

It gives you a better starting point, because a page loads only the code someone chose to include. But a heavy image or a tag manager full of scripts slows any site, whatever it’s built on. A WordPress site on good hosting with a light theme can beat a badly built Next.js one.

We looked for evidence in our own benchmark of 25 service-business websites. Lighthouse identified 12 of them as WordPress and none as Next.js, though it reported no platform at all for 10. The WordPress sites scored anywhere from 41 to 98, and the 3 sites that reached 90 or above were all WordPress sites running the WP Rocket caching plugin. That doesn’t show WordPress is faster, because the sample isn’t large or balanced enough to compare platforms. It does show that a WordPress site can score very well, and that being on WordPress doesn’t tell you how fast a site is.

1. Who changes the site, and how often? If staff will publish weekly and change their own pages, WordPress is the natural fit. If changes come a few times a year through a developer, that advantage counts for much less.
2. Does the quote flow need to be unusual? A plain contact form is available anywhere. A multi-step form that branches by service, stores enquiries and exports them is easier to get right when it’s custom-built. It can also be done in WordPress, with more care over plugin choice.
3. Who will be there in three years? If you have no developer relationship and don’t want one, choose the platform with the widest choice of people. That’s WordPress. A custom Next.js site is only as good as your access to someone who can change it.

Don’t rebuild because of a framework. If your WordPress site brings in enquiries, try fixing what’s measurably wrong first: images, hosting, unused plugins and third-party scripts. A rebuild puts your rankings and URLs at risk, and it only makes sense if the current site can’t do what the business needs. If you have a WordPress site you’d rather not look after yourself, that’s what the care plans are for.

If you do go for a new site, the structure matters more than the platform. Our guide to what a cleaning website needs to get quotes shows the parts that matter, and the local SEO checklist covers the setup.