Kentico Xperience 13 (KX13) and Xperience by Kentico (XbyK) aren’t the same product. Kentico rebuilt the platform from scratch. Moving from KX13 to XbyK means rebuilding your content model, your integrations, and in many cases your frontend. So the upgrade quote can feel like a migration budget, and structurally, it is one.

And then the obvious thought hits: the money’s being spent regardless. So why give it to the same vendor who’ll come back for more in a year or two? You could just… build something yours.

This isn’t an argument that every organization should leave Kentico. In some cases, it remains the stronger platform. WordPress has its own trade-offs, and we won’t pretend otherwise.

rtCamp is a WordPress VIP Gold Partner and enterprise open-source platform engineering company. We have delivered 500+ enterprise WordPress engagements, including direct Kentico-to-WordPress migrations. We aren’t neutral on this comparison. If Kentico is the right choice for your organization, this page will tell you that.

TL;DR

Here’s what the comparison comes down to:

What’s happening with Kentico right now

Kentico is a digital experience platform (DXP) built on Microsoft’s .NET framework, with C# and React at its core. Kentico currently has two active product lines: KX13 (EOL on January 1, 2027) and XbyK, Kentico’s current platform. 

XbyK is not backwards compatible with KX13. So, moving from KX13 to XbyK, as we said, is a rebuild. And even after that work, some familiar KX13 features will still be missing.

What a KX13 buyer loses by upgrading to XbyK

If you’re on KX13, some tools you use today aren’t in XbyK. Here’s what didn’t make it across:

Some of these gaps are already closing. But they do matter when you compare the upgrade you’re paying for today.

A Website Project Lead at an enterprise organization summed it up on G2: “… Xperience by Kentico is missing many things that Xperience 13 has and it functions differently from a structural standpoint. It is frustrating to have a product we like so well and then be forced to move to a new product that we’re not even sure we can use.”

What Kentico enterprise customers praise

To be fair, and we will be, Kentico gives customers plenty of good reasons to stay.

And one more thing: Kontent.ai

Kontent.ai is not a Kentico product. It became a fully independent company in 2022 and has since raised $40M from Expedition Growth Capital, its first external investment. Bart Omlo, previously Kentico’s Managing Director, became CEO. Some 2026 vendor write-ups still describe Kentico as Kontent.ai’s parent organization. It isn’t. Kontent.ai is a separate headless CMS company with its own pricing, roadmap, and product direction. Here, we are talking about Kentico and XbyK only.

What enterprise WordPress looks like

Enterprise WordPress is more than WordPress on better hosting. It combines the platform with the security, governance, infrastructure, and engineering practices large organizations need. Let’s make it concrete:

The platform introductions are done. Now the comparison.

Kentico vs WordPress enterprise CMS comparison

An honest comparison should make both platforms a little uncomfortable. So we’ll give Kentico credit where it earns it, and apply the same scrutiny to WordPress.

Kentico vs WordPress architecture

To compare architectures, we need to understand which generation of Kentico you’re looking at. 

How Kentico’s architecture has changed

Kentico has had three distinct architectural generations. One is retired. One reaches the end of life in January 2027. And the current one is a ground-up rebuild that isn’t backwards compatible with either of its predecessors.

Portal Engine (KX12 and earlier, retired)

The oldest Kentico architecture. Editors built pages by dragging pre-built blocks, called web parts, into page sections through a browser-based interface. The Kentico control panel and the live website ran within a single application. Design could be inherited from parent pages for consistency across the site.

Portal Engine has no further updates. Organizations still running Portal Engine face a full rebuild regardless, whether they upgrade to XbyK or migrate elsewhere.

MVC on KX13 (previous generation, end of life January 1, 2027)

KX13’s MVC model separated the Kentico admin from the live website. Two independent applications: the backend where editors manage content, and an ASP.NET Core frontend that renders the public-facing site. Developers had complete freedom over the frontend. The trade-off: two applications to host, deploy, and maintain.

KX13’s MVC model is more capable than Portal Engine but still the previous generation, carrying the January 2027 end-of-life deadline.

Xperience by Kentico, headless

XbyK was rebuilt with headless as the intended architecture. Content lives in XbyK, delivered via a GraphQL API to any frontend. Next.js is the most common enterprise choice. A Content Preview REST API gives editors a way to see how draft content will render on the live frontend before publishing, without waiting for a developer to push changes.

This preview capability is a genuine architectural advantage over headless WordPress, where live editorial preview requires additional custom engineering to bridge the editor and the frontend renderer.

XbyK also supports a hybrid model, structured headless delivery alongside a built-in Page Builder for visual content editing.

WordPress architecture: Three ways to deploy

WordPress supports three architecture patterns. It gives organizations the flexibility to match architecture to editorial model.

Monolithic (governed Gutenberg)

WordPress manages both content and presentation in a single application. The block editor, Gutenberg, gives marketing teams a visual, component-based editing experience. In a properly governed implementation, the block library enforces brand standards at the design layer. Editors publish within approved components without developer tickets. This is the most editorially independent option and the right fit for the majority of enterprise marketing sites.

Headless (WPGraphQL + Next.js)

In a headless setup, WordPress manages content in the backend. A Next.js frontend fetches content via WPGraphQL, a mature, widely deployed open-source GraphQL layer, and builds the pages visitors see. If your team lives in Next.js and needs to serve content across multiple frontends, WPGraphQL is a proven stack. And then headless WordPress makes sense.

Hybrid

The hybrid approach means different parts of the same website work differently, and that’s intentional. In other words, parts of the site use governed Gutenberg for traditional editorial publishing, like a news blog or a campaign hub, while other parts use the REST API for interactive or data-driven sections. Both models coexist on one installation.

Bottom line: XbyK’s headless design is real, and its Preview REST API is a genuine editorial advantage for teams building on Next.js. For most enterprise marketing sites though, governed Gutenberg delivers the same publishing independence without the frontend engineering overhead. VinSolutions migrated from Kentico to WordPress VIP without going headless. Core Web Vitals improved by 48%, and now the marketing team publishes independently.

Editorial experience

How many campaign pages did your marketing team build this quarter without involving a developer? The answer depends less on the team and more on the platform they’re working in. Here’s how Kentico and WordPress compare on that question.

Kentico’s editorial model

G2 gave Kentico a 90% ease-of-use score. XbyK’s Page Builder offers content editors a widget-based layout system. Editors select widget zones, drag in content components, and configure them in the browser. For routine work, like editing existing text, updating images, or publishing a blog post, the interface is accessible. 

The landscape changes when you need something new. A TrustRadius reviewer said Kentico requires “custom coding knowledge” and offers limited resources for adding features. Editing what already exists can be easy, while a new component or structural change may still require a developer ticket. 

WordPress’s editorial model

Gutenberg, implemented as a governed design system, is a block-based editor where marketing teams build pages from a library of brand-compliant components. The distinction from Kentico’s Page Builder is the governance architecture. In a properly governed Gutenberg implementation, the block library enforces brand standards at the design layer. Editors publish within approved components without filing developer tickets for new campaign layouts or structural changes within the design system. Here’s what marketing teams did with that independence.

Dealertrack migrated from AEM to WordPress VIP and cut landing page time-to-market by 50%. Before migration, nearly every content update required a developer ticket.

NextGear Capital, a brand of Cox Automotive, moved from a third-party page builder to native Gutenberg on the Cox design library and saw a 20% increase in lead form submissions. Editors used the tool more when publishing stopped requiring tickets.

Private Media consolidated three publications onto one WordPress VIP multisite and cut development costs by 50%.

Bottom line: Kentico’s Page Builder handles routine editing well. The moment marketing needs something new, a developer gets involved. Gutenberg, built as a governed design system, removes that dependency. Editors work within brand-compliant blocks and publish without tickets.

SEO

If your evaluation includes an SEO checklist, both platforms tick most of the same boxes. Clean URLs, metadata control, schema support, sitemaps, GSC integration, and more. The difference might show up when the search engine is ChatGPT. 

Here’s a closer look at Kentico’s SEO features:

Now, the SEO features on the WordPress side:

WordPress’s semantic content architecture, REST API, clean heading hierarchy, structured block-based content model, and native schema markup support make it well-suited for AEO implementation. At rtCamp, we use the 5 AI Dimensions Framework to assess AI readiness across every migration engagement. AEO, content discovery on LLMs, is the first of five dimensions. By the time the new platform launches, the architecture is already set up to surface content in ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity answers.

Kentico does ship a GA “SEO & GEO Specialist” agent via AIRA that addresses GEO. But as with all AIRA capabilities, it is subject to AIRA credit usage.

Bottom line: Both Kentico and WordPress can support the structural requirements for LLM visibility. The difference is that on WordPress, building the semantic architecture is part of the migration engagement at no additional cost.

Security

Kentico and WordPress ecosystems provide strong security features. Yet, let’s look a little deeper.

What the 2026 advisories show for Kentico

As of today, Kentico offers built-in security controls and a clear line of vendor accountability. It also publishes security advisories so customers can understand an issue and apply the relevant fix. That matters. 

On May 21, 2026, Kentico disclosed a critical-rated security vulnerability in XbyK’s own admin interface. An attacker with access could read, modify, or delete content and extract credentials. It wasn’t a plugin or an outdated version. The vulnerability was in Kentico’s existing code.

The second issue was with multi-factor authentication. XbyK had no limit on how many times someone could try a verification code. An attacker with a stolen password could just keep guessing codes automatically until one worked. The extra layer of security was not there. Again, first-party code.

Customers had no other option but to wait till Kentico issues fixes.

So when you hear that vulnerabilities often come from third-party plugins, remember that first-party code can have vulnerabilities too.

What the WordPress’ plugin risk means for enterprise

When it comes to WordPress, around 91% of its vulnerabilities do come from third-party plugins. But the risk the stat describes lives in unmanaged, self-hosted environments where plugins are installed freely. WordPress VIP runs automated vulnerability detection via WPScan and patches ahead of core releases. An organization on WordPress VIP is not operating in that environment. 

The same principle applies to the broader population statistics sometimes cited in enterprise evaluations. They provide figures about small businesses struggling with WordPress or SMB teams not getting AI results. These come from SiteGround’s 2026 survey of small business owners on shared hosting, not from enterprise deployments. Applying small-business, self-hosted data to an enterprise DXP evaluation is a category error. Enterprise WordPress on VIP, engineered and governed by a specialist team, like rtCamp, is a different product in a different context. 

WordPress and Kentico overall compliance posture

WordPress VIP holds FedRAMP Moderate, GovRAMP, TX-RAMP Level 2, SOC 2 Type II, and documented WCAG 2.0 AA and Section 508 conformance. The European Accessibility Act became enforceable on June 28, 2025, and enforcement is intensifying. XbyK holds no FedRAMP certification, has no published VPAT, no WCAG 2.1 AA conformance statement for its authoring interface, and no ATAG 2.0 assessment. For regulated US industries and European enterprises, these appear directly in procurement checklists.

Platform credentials matter, but they are only part of the security picture. The rest comes down to how the site is built and governed. rtCamp is SOC 2 Type II compliant and ISO 27001 certified, with plugin governance, automated vulnerability scanning, and CI/CD checks built into every enterprise delivery.

Bottom line: Both platforms take security seriously. Kentico’s 2026 vulnerabilities were in vendor-written code, so customers waited. WordPress VIP patches ahead of disclosure and holds the compliance certifications regulated industries require.

Scalability

Kentico and WordPress scale to enterprise traffic volumes, so this dimension alone isn’t decisive for most organizations.

WordPress VIP serves Penske Media’s 79 million monthly uniques, The New Yorker, BBC America, and NASA. CDN integration, advanced caching, and database optimization are built into the infrastructure. WordPress VIP’s documented uptime SLA is 99.95%. The platform handles traffic spikes natively without customer-side infrastructure decisions at the hosting layer.

Kentico XbyK SaaS runs on Microsoft Azure with built-in web farm support, automatic file and object synchronization across server instances, and caching built into the platform. Kentico’s documented SaaS uptime SLA is 99.9%. The platform is designed for enterprise scale and handles multi-server deployments.

Bottom line: The structural difference is control and SLA. WordPress VIP’s uptime SLA is higher, and its infrastructure is purpose-built for content-heavy enterprise deployments. For self-managed XbyK, the customer provisions and manages their own Azure or AWS infrastructure and absorbs the operational overhead.

Personalization

XbyK supports rule-based personalization through Page Builder on its Advanced license tier. Developers first create the widgets and condition types. Editors can then display different content variants based on contact groups, visitor activity, campaign data, or other criteria defined during implementation. Once that foundation is in place, marketers can manage everyday personalization from the CMS.

On the Standard tier, developers can still build conditional content into a website, but editors do not get the same Page Builder personalization controls. Each new rule would depend on custom development. 

WordPress doesn’t include a native personalization suite. Instead, organizations choose the tools that fit their needs. This takes more planning at the start, but it also gives the organization control over its data, infrastructure, and vendors. The team can replace or extend one part of the stack without changing the CMS.

Bottom line: Kentico offers a more packaged route to rule-based personalization, provided you have the Advanced license. WordPress requires more architectural decisions upfront, but gives enterprises more freedom to shape the personalization stack.

Upgrade cost and effort

Kentico prices its licenses by channel, with each website or digital property treated as a separate channel. The Standard tier supports only one main channel. If you need a second site, you must move to the more expensive Advanced tier and pay for each additional channel.

Every new channel bought upfront is cheaper than adding it later. That pricing mechanic matters for multi-brand organizations. Cost scales linearly per brand, with no volume discounts for larger portfolios.

According to G2’s FAQ on pricing data for Kentico, the entry-level KX13 Business plan starts at $12,500 per year, covering core CMS, workflows, and digital marketing. The current XbyK SaaS plan starts at $23,880/year ($1,990 per month). That’s the managed cloud version where Kentico handles the hosting. Third-party pricing listings put self-managed Xperience by Kentico at around $11,880 per year. On-premises hosting for Kentico can range from $5,000 to $15,000 annually, while cloud-based solutions through providers like Azure or AWS typically cost between $10,000 and $30,000 per year.

AI is another potential cost. AIRA uses a consumption-based credit system, so heavy usage can incur overage costs.

And finally, there’s the migration itself. Moving from KX13 to XbyK is a rebuild. Custom integrations, content models, and features not covered by the Universal Migration Tool (which handles data migration only, not feature parity) require developer redevelopment. That work needs Kentico specialists, and there aren’t many of them. The talent pool is thin compared to WordPress, which pushes up rates for the initial migration and customization.

Add license fees, hosting, channel add-ons, AI credits, migration costs, and specialist developer rates, and you’re looking at what we call the Platform Tax. It’s the cumulative cost of staying on a platform that bundles capabilities you don’t need, and forces upgrade cycles that re-architect your implementation.

WordPress puts the budget into what you own

When it comes to WordPress, you own what you build. The core software is free and open source. WordPress VIP enterprise hosting starts at around $25,000 per year. AI capabilities are shipped in WordPress 7.0 core at no additional cost. Unlike Kentico’s per-channel licensing model, WordPress Multisite lets organizations unify multiple brands on one governed platform without paying a separate core software license for each site. 

A migration to WordPress requires serious upfront work, and year one may cost more than Kentico’s base license. Especially if you need a complex enterprise migration. The picture changes around year three. With no license fees compounding and no forced upgrade cycles, the savings start to accumulate. That does not mean ongoing work disappears. Enterprise WordPress maintenance still covers security updates, performance, new features, and platform improvements. The difference is that the budget continues to improve the platform you already own. 

And here’s another advantage: WordPress doesn’t ask you to rebuild the whole platform with every major release. You invest in a system you own, then improve it over time instead of paying migration-level costs again.

Bottom line: Kentico’s number keeps growing. Channel add-ons, AI credits, specialist rates, and eventually another rebuild. WordPress’s number front-loads and then holds. 

Implementation complexity

Neither platform becomes enterprise-ready straight out of the box. Both need architecture, integrations, governance, and careful development. 

Kentico’s implementation model

Xperience by Kentico uses ASP.NET Core, C#, and React, and works well with services such as Azure and Microsoft Entra ID. Experienced .NET teams will find the underlying technology familiar.

Kentico also gives developers a flexible API and plenty of room for customization. But general .NET experience isn’t the same as Kentico expertise. Developers still need to learn its APIs, content model, Page Builder, deployment process, and platform-specific conventions.

Kentico SaaS reduces the work at the hosting layer, but it does not remove implementation complexity. Your team or partner must still build the components, integrations, and editorial experience around the platform.

WordPress’s implementation model

Enterprise WordPress also requires careful engineering. A governed implementation needs a defined content model, a brand-compliant block library, controlled plugins, user permissions, integrations, automated testing, and a secure deployment pipeline.

The difference is that these skills are easier to find. WordPress uses PHP on the backend and JavaScript and React for Gutenberg blocks, giving organizations access to a much larger developer community and a broader choice of partners.

A headless WordPress build adds another layer of complexity. WPGraphQL and a Next.js frontend can support multichannel delivery or a React-based product experience, but they also introduce separate preview, caching, hosting, and deployment requirements. Headless is valuable when the use case calls for it.

Bottom line: Kentico has the more natural fit with the Microsoft stack because it is built on .NET and designed to run on Azure. But choosing WordPress does not mean leaving Microsoft behind. Both platforms can use Microsoft Entra ID for single sign-on through OIDC, connect to Dynamics 365, and send data to Power BI.

Kentico vs WordPress: AI

AI is now part of both platforms, but they approach it differently.

MCP, Model Context Protocol, is the standard that lets AI systems like Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor connect to external tools and act inside them. With MCP, an AI agent can read your content, create a new article, update a page, or trigger a publishing workflow directly inside your CMS.

Kentico’s AI implementation

AIRA is Kentico’s native AI suite, with specialist tools for content strategy, SEO and GEO, customer journeys, and campaign management. XbyK also provides Management MCP tooling that allows compatible AI assistants to work with content types, pages, content items, channels, languages, and Page Builder components.  

And again, the price. Different AIRA actions consume credits. AIRA runs on a credit-consumption model. The more your team uses it, the more you pay. It runs on Kentico-managed Azure, meaning the AI model, the data, and the infrastructure are under Kentico’s control. 

WordPress’s AI implementation

WordPress built AI into the platform in two releases.

December 2025, version 6.9 added the Abilities API to core. It’s a foundation layer that registers what the site can do so AI can discover and call those capabilities.

May 2026, version 7.0 “Armstrong” added the AI Client to core, the component that sends requests to external AI providers and returns responses. Think of it as the messenger between WordPress and whichever AI model the organization chooses. It doesn’t generate content itself. The provider does.

On top of those two core components sit two separately installed plugins:

WordPress AI ecosystem

Source

Providers are configured once at Settings > Connectors. Anthropic, OpenAI, Google Gemini, and local models like Ollama are all supported.

WordPress VIP adds LLM access controls. Administrators decide how AI systems can interact with published content, which matters for organizations with strict content-use requirements.

rtCamp contributed three connectors to WordPress 7.0: OpenRouter, LM Studio, and OpenAI. So if you’re evaluating partners for an AI-ready WordPress build, that’s a relevant detail: rtCamp contributed to the codebase your AI implementation will run on.

In this section, we’ll cover the whole 5 AI Dimensions Framework. We use it to structure enterprise AI readiness across five dimensions:

We make these architectural decisions during the migration, so AI readiness is built into the migration engagement as its forward-looking deliverable.

Bottom line: Kentico’s AI costs more the more you use it, runs on Kentico’s infrastructure, and requires a sales conversation before you know what it costs. WordPress’s AI shipped in core at $0, runs on whatever provider you choose, and stays on infrastructure you own.

Kentico vs WordPress at a glance

If you’ve jumped straight here, this is what you need to know.

AreaXperience by KenticoEnterprise WordPressArchitectureHybrid headless DXP built on ASP.NET Core, C#, and React. Strong preview support for decoupled frontends.Supports traditional, hybrid, and headless architectures. Governed Gutenberg suits most enterprise marketing sites; WPGraphQL and Next.js support headless builds.Editorial experiencePage Builder works well for routine updates within existing widgets and templates. New layouts or components may require a developer.Governed Gutenberg lets editors create pages from approved, brand-compliant blocks with less day-to-day developer support.SEO and AEOIncludes standard SEO controls and offers AI-assisted SEO and GEO through AIRA.Offers mature SEO tooling and gives teams direct control over schema, structured content, and the semantic architecture used for AEO.Security and complianceStrong first-party security controls and single-vendor support. Customers depend on Kentico to patch vulnerabilities in proprietary code.WordPress VIP controls plugin risk through code review, vulnerability scanning, and managed updates. It also holds certifications such as FedRAMP Moderate and SOC 2 Type II.ScalabilityXbyK SaaS runs on Azure and supports web farms, caching, and multi-server deployments. Its published uptime SLA is 99.9%.WordPress VIP includes a global CDN, advanced caching, traffic-spike management, and a 99.95% standard uptime SLA.PersonalizationRule-based Page Builder personalization is available on the Advanced tier. Standard needs custom code.Personalization requires configuration or integrations, but organizations control the tools, data, infrastructure, and pricing model.Licensing and channelsAnnual license required. Pricing rises with tiers, channels, and AI usage. Standard supports one main channel.WordPress core has no license fee, and Multisite supports multiple sites without per-channel software charges. Enterprise hosting and engineering still carry costs.UpgradesMoving from KX13 to XbyK requires a rebuild because the two products are not backwards compatible.Major releases generally preserve backwards compatibility, so organizations can improve the same implementation over time.ImplementationA natural fit for experienced .NET teams and organizations committed to Azure. Kentico-specific expertise is still required.Requires disciplined enterprise engineering, but the larger PHP, JavaScript, and React talent pool makes teams easier to build.AIAIRA provides ready-made AI agents, while Kentico’s MCP tools let compatible assistants work with the platform. AIRA uses a credit-based consumption model.Core AI infrastructure supports different providers, MCP connections, and AI workflows that organizations can configure around their own requirements.Best suited toOrganizations with established Kentico expertise, strong .NET investment, and a preference for an integrated vendor-managed DXP.Organizations that prioritize ownership, editorial independence, a broader talent pool, multi-brand efficiency, and control over future platform decisions.

Kentico vs WordPress: Verdict

You could compare features all day and still miss the point. Both platforms, Kentico and WordPress, cover the enterprise basics. So look at the operating model.

Kentico: Vendor-controlled licensing, upgrade cycles on Kentico’s schedule, AI capabilities on Kentico’s credit model, data on Kentico’s infrastructure. You are a tenant.

WordPress: Open-source foundation, infrastructure you own, AI capabilities at the provider layer you choose, upgrade cycles you control. You own what you build.

Yet, it happens Kentico might be the right choice. Stay on Kentico, or move to XbyK, if any of these apply:

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Your team is a .NET shop and rebuilding on a different stack introduces more risk than the license cost justifies.

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You need basic out-of-the-box personalization on a small number of channels, without additional implementation effort.

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Single-vendor support accountability matters more to your organization than the SLA difference.

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You are not in a regulated US market where FedRAMP Moderate is a procurement requirement.

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Your Kentico developers carry institutional knowledge that would cost more to rebuild than the license differential saves.

For everyone else, the decision deserves a closer look before the final call. Start with our 20-hour free discovery audit. We map your current architecture, identify every constraint, and help you build the internal business case. If WordPress isn’t the right fit, we’ll tell you that too.

Addressing your questions: Kentico vs WordPress

Is Kentico being discontinued?

KX13 reaches end of life on January 1, 2027, so security patches and support will end. XbyK is Kentico’s current product but is not backwards compatible with KX13. If you’re on KX13, you face a forced platform decision before that date.

What is Kontent.ai? Is it part of Kentico?

No. Kontent.ai became an independent company in July 2022 with its own leadership and investors. It’s a separate headless CMS. This comparison covers Kentico and XbyK only.

What replaces Kentico’s personalization on WordPress?

Basic rule-based personalization runs inside WordPress via free ecosystem plugins like PersonalizeWP or If-So. For deep behavior-based personalization, such as tracking reading habits, building visitor profiles, and lead scoring, advanced features can still run natively on your own hosting infrastructure. 

Is WordPress secure enough for regulated industries?

WordPress VIP holds FedRAMP Moderate, GovRAMP, TX-RAMP Level 2, SOC 2 Type II, and WCAG 2.0 AA conformance. XbyK holds no FedRAMP certification. For regulated US industries and European enterprises managing EAA compliance, that gap can narrow the decision.

What does a Kentico to WordPress migration cost?

Migrations can take anywhere from $50K–$300K depending on integration count and editorial workflow complexity. Scope is confirmed in the discovery phase before you sign a contract. The first 20 hours of discovery are free. If the audit doesn’t produce a clear migration path, you have spent nothing but time.

To assess whether the move makes financial sense, compare that investment with the full Kentico cost. Not only the base license, but also channels, hosting, specialist development, and AI credits. 

How long does a migration take?

Standard migrations take 2 to 4 months. Mid-complexity migrations with CRM integrations, analytics rebuilds, and workflow re-architecture land around 3 to 5 months. Multi-brand or multisite enterprise migrations typically need 4 to 8 months. 

The new WordPress platform is built in parallel to your live Kentico site, so there is no downtime at launch. When the build is ready, launch uses blue-green deployment. The DNS switch flips to the new platform with instant rollback available if anything needs to be reversed.

Can we keep our .NET team?

Moving to WordPress does not necessarily mean replacing your existing team. .NET developers can continue to own Microsoft-based services, APIs, identity systems, and business integrations. In a headless build, frontend developers can also keep working with React and JavaScript.

However, a conventional WordPress implementation does require PHP and WordPress expertise. The choice is whether to retrain part of the team, hire those skills, or work with an enterprise WordPress partner.

Is WordPress enterprise ready?

WordPress powers 41% of the web. Cox Automotive, Al Jazeera, NASA, The White House, and the BBC run on it. WordPress VIP provides FedRAMP Moderate, SOC 2 Type II, 24/7 support, and a 99.95% uptime SLA. rtCamp has delivered 500+ enterprise WordPress engagements, with 96% client satisfaction and an average client partnership of six years. So yes, WordPress is a proven platform for enterprise digital ecosystems, and a credible Kentico alternative for organizations that want more control over their platform.

TL;DR

What’s happening with Kentico right now

What a KX13 buyer loses by upgrading to XbyK

What Kentico enterprise customers praise

And one more thing: Kontent.ai

What enterprise WordPress looks like

Kentico vs WordPress enterprise CMS comparison

Kentico vs WordPress architecture 

Editorial experience

SEO

Security

Scalability

Personalization

Upgrade cost and effort

Implementation complexity

Kentico vs WordPress: AI

Kentico vs WordPress at a glance

Kentico vs WordPress: Verdict

Addressing your questions: Kentico vs WordPress

Is Kentico being discontinued?

What is Kontent.ai? Is it part of Kentico?

What replaces Kentico's personalization on WordPress?

Is WordPress secure enough for regulated industries?

What does a Kentico to WordPress migration cost?

How long does a migration take?

Can we keep our .NET team?

Is WordPress enterprise ready?

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Credits

Mackenzie

Mackenzie Hartung

Author

Mackenzie Hartung

Author

Mackenzie Hartung is the Chief Delivery Officer at rtCamp, where she oversees the delivery strategy, processes, and teams that power enterprise WordPress engagements. With over a decade of experien…

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Aviral

Aviral Mittal

Editor

Aviral Mittal

Editor

Aviral Mittal is the Chief Marketing Officer at rtCamp, where he established and leads the marketing function, building and growing a team of 20+ specialists across content, SEO, design, and growth…

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