Tu licencia de Kentico vence en 2027. ¿Qué pasa con tu tráfico?
Si tu equipo digital trabaja con Kentico Xperience 13, tienes 18 meses para migrar antes de que finalice el soporte y caduquen tus certificaciones de cumplimiento.
Choose Kentico only if you're committed to the .NET ecosystem and accept SaaS-only vendor lock-in with Xperience. Choose Next.js if you want full ownership of your codebase, dramatically better performance, and the freedom to pair any headless CMS with any hosting provider. With Kentico 13 reaching end of life in late 2026, Next.js with a headless CMS is the migration path that gives you the most long-term flexibility.
Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico)
A .NET-based CMS and digital experience platform for enterprise websites
Next.js
The React framework for production-grade websites and applications
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico) | Next.js |
|---|---|---|
| Open source | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self-hosting option | Kentico 13 only (EOL 2026) | ✓ |
| A/B testing built-in | ✓ | Via integrations (LaunchDarkly, Vercel Edge Config, etc.) |
| Edge rendering / ISR | ✗ | ✓ |
| Marketing automation | ✓ | Via integrations (Segment, HubSpot, etc.) |
| Built-in page builder | ✓ | Via headless CMS (Sanity Studio, Contentful, etc.) |
| Multi-site management | ✓ | ✓ |
| Server-side rendering | ✓ | ✓ |
| API-first architecture | ✗ | ✓ |
| Static site generation | ✗ | ✓ |
| Headless content delivery | Partial — bolt-on, not native | ✓ |
| React/Vue/Svelte frontend | ✗ | ✓ |
What is Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico)?
Kentico is a .NET-based CMS and digital experience platform. Kentico 13 is the last self-hostable version and reaches end of life in late 2026. Its successor, Xperience by Kentico, is a SaaS-only platform with fundamentally different architecture and pricing — making the upgrade path essentially a full replatforming project.
What is Next.js?
Next.js is a React-based framework for building production websites and applications. It supports static generation, server-side rendering, and incremental static regeneration out of the box. As a frontend framework, it pairs with any headless CMS to give teams full ownership of their code, hosting, and content infrastructure — the opposite of vendor lock-in.
Key Differences
Ownership and Vendor Lock-in
Kentico 13 is EOL. Kentico's only supported path forward is Xperience by Kentico, which is SaaS-only — you can't self-host, you can't export your templates, and you're locked into their pricing forever. Next.js is MIT-licensed open-source. You own every line of code, deploy anywhere, and can switch CMS providers without rebuilding your frontend.
Performance and Core Web Vitals
Kentico sites typically score 40-75 on Lighthouse due to heavy server-rendered .NET pages, jQuery dependencies, and unoptimized asset delivery. Next.js sites routinely hit 90-100 with built-in image optimization, automatic code splitting, edge rendering, and ISR. This directly impacts SEO rankings and conversion rates.
Architecture: Monolith vs Composable
Kentico is a monolithic DXP — CMS, marketing automation, personalization, and analytics all bundled together. This sounds convenient until you need to replace one piece. Next.js follows the composable architecture pattern: pick a best-in-class CMS, analytics tool, marketing platform, and A/B testing service independently. Each piece is replaceable without touching the others.
Developer Talent Pool
Kentico requires .NET and C# developers with specific Kentico platform experience — a shrinking and expensive talent pool. Next.js runs on React, the most widely adopted frontend framework in the world. Finding, hiring, and retaining React developers is dramatically easier and more cost-effective than sourcing Kentico specialists.
Total Cost of Ownership
Kentico 13 required Windows Server licensing, IIS hosting, and Kentico license fees. Xperience by Kentico adds SaaS subscription costs that scale with usage. Next.js is free. Pair it with Vercel ($0-20/mo per seat) and a headless CMS ($0-300/mo), and your infrastructure costs drop by 60-80% compared to enterprise Kentico deployments — even before factoring in cheaper developer labor.
Performance Comparison
| Metric | Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico) | Next.js |
|---|---|---|
| TTFB | 300-800ms typical on shared .NET hosting | Sub-100ms with edge rendering and ISR |
| Build tool | MSBuild / .NET compilation | Turbopack (Next.js 15+) / Webpack |
| Base JS bundle | ~200-400KB (jQuery + custom scripts) | ~70-90KB with React (less with selective hydration) |
| Core Web Vitals | Often fails CLS and LCP thresholds | Built-in Image, Font, and Script optimization components |
| Lighthouse range | 40-75 | 90-100 |
SEO Comparison
| SEO Feature | Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico) | Next.js |
|---|---|---|
| SSG support | ✗ | ✓ |
| SSR support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Schema markup | Manual implementation required | ✓ |
| Meta tag control | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sitemap generation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Core Web Vitals optimization | ✗ | ✓ |
Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico)
- All-in-one platform with CMS, marketing automation, and analytics in a single install.
- Built-in A/B testing and personalization for marketing teams.
- Mature .NET ecosystem with strong enterprise support history.
- Page builder lets non-technical editors create layouts visually.
- Kentico 13 reaches end of life late 2026 — no more security patches or support after that.
- Xperience by Kentico is SaaS-only, creating complete vendor lock-in with no self-hosting escape hatch.
- Performance is poor by modern standards — heavy page weight, slow TTFB, and jQuery dependencies.
- Requires Windows Server and .NET expertise, limiting your developer hiring pool.
Next.js
- Free and open-source with zero vendor lock-in — deploy anywhere, switch hosts anytime.
- Best-in-class performance with SSG, ISR, and edge rendering delivering sub-100ms TTFB.
- Massive React ecosystem means access to the largest frontend developer talent pool in the world.
- Pair with any headless CMS — Sanity, Contentful, Strapi, Payload — and swap later if needed.
- Built-in SEO primitives (metadata API, sitemap generation, image optimization) that directly improve rankings.
- No built-in CMS — you need to select and integrate a separate headless CMS for content management.
- Marketing automation and A/B testing require third-party integrations rather than being included out of the box.
- Requires JavaScript/React expertise, which is a shift for .NET-only teams.
When to Choose Kentico (Kentico 13 / Xperience by Kentico)
- You're deeply embedded in .NET with internal developers who specialize in C# and have no appetite for JavaScript frameworks.
- You need built-in marketing automation and personalization and don't want to integrate separate tools.
- Your organization requires a single-vendor DXP for compliance or procurement reasons and accepts the lock-in tradeoff.
When to Choose Next.js
- You're on Kentico 13 facing EOL and want to own your codebase rather than moving to another locked-in platform.
- Performance and SEO are priorities — you need Lighthouse scores above 90 and fast Core Web Vitals.
- You want the freedom to choose your CMS, hosting provider, and every tool in your stack independently.
- You're building a modern composable architecture where best-of-breed tools replace monolithic suites.
Can You Migrate?
Yes. We've migrated 5,000+ sites between platforms. We handle data migration, content modeling, frontend rebuilds, and SEO preservation. Every migration is zero-downtime.
Frequently Asked Questions
¿Cuándo llega Kentico 13 a su fin de vida?
Kentico 13 alcanza el fin de vida a finales de 2026. A partir de ese momento, no habrá más parches de seguridad, correcciones de errores ni soporte técnico por parte de Kentico. Si sigues ejecutándolo después de esa fecha, te enfrentarás a riesgos de seguridad reales y problemas de cumplimiento que solo empeorarán con el tiempo. La única ruta de migración soportada que ofrece Kentico es pasar a Kentico Xperience by Kentico: una plataforma exclusivamente SaaS, arquitectónicamente diferente a lo que tienes ahora y con un modelo de precios acorde a ello.
¿Puedo migrar de Kentico a Next.js?
Sí, y es un camino muy transitado. Exportas tu contenido de Kentico a un CMS headless —Sanity, Contentful o Strapi son las opciones habituales— y luego construyes tu frontend en Next.js. El resultado es que eres propietario absoluto de tu base de código, el rendimiento mejora y puedes alojar donde quieras. Para la mayoría de los sitios, la migración dura entre 6 y 12 semanas según la complejidad acumulada a lo largo de los años.
¿Kentico Xperience es lo mismo que Kentico 13?
No, y aquí es donde mucha gente se confunde. Kentico Xperience by Kentico no es una actualización de Kentico 13; es un producto completamente distinto. Solo SaaS, por lo que el alojamiento propio no es una opción. Precios por suscripción notablemente más elevados. Arquitectura diferente, APIs diferentes, sistema de plantillas diferente. Cuando pasas de Kentico 13 a Xperience, estás haciendo un proyecto de replatforming completo. No dejes que nadie te diga lo contrario.
¿Es Next.js adecuado para sitios web empresariales?
Next.js no es ningún framework de nicho: Nike, Hulu, TikTok y The Washington Post funcionan con él. Gestiona SSR, ISR, acceso basado en roles, internacionalización y configuraciones multisitio sin necesidad de un montón de plugins. Combínalo con un CMS headless y los equipos empresariales obtienen los flujos de trabajo editoriales que realmente necesitan, sin quedar atados a la hoja de ruta y las decisiones de precios de un único proveedor.
¿Qué CMS headless debería usar con Next.js para reemplazar Kentico?
Sinceramente, la elección correcta depende de tu equipo y de lo que estés construyendo. La colaboración en tiempo real de Sanity es difícil de superar si los editores trabajan de forma simultánea. Contentful es la opción empresarial madura: gobernanza sólida y auditorías completas. Strapi es de código abierto y se puede autoalojar, algo muy relevante cuando la soberanía de los datos no es negociable. Los tres se integran limpiamente con Next.js, y los editores que han estado atados a la interfaz de administración de Kentico 13 notan la diferencia de inmediato.
¿Cuánto cuesta ejecutar Next.js en comparación con Kentico?
Next.js en sí es gratuito y de código abierto. Vercel comienza gratis y cuesta alrededor de 20 USD/mes por usuario en planes de equipo. Un CMS headless añade entre 0 y 300 USD/mes según cuál elijas y cuánto contenido gestiones. ¿Kentico Xperience enterprise SaaS? Empieza en miles de dólares al mes. Incluso teniendo en cuenta los costos de migración, la mayoría de las organizaciones terminan con un costo total de propiedad más bajo antes de que acabe el primer año.
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something together.
Whether it's a migration, a new build, or an SEO challenge — the Social Animal team would love to hear from you.