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Next.js vs WordPress

Security & risk comparison · Updated October 2026

How does Next.js compare to WordPress on security, AI-readiness, and total cost of ownership? We scored both across 7 dimensions using NVD/NIST CVE data, GitHub metrics, and our census of the Tranco top 100,000.

Key finding

Next.js scores 81/100 overall versus WordPress's 44/100. Next.js has 25 total CVEs compared to WordPress's 11334, giving it a smaller vulnerability surface. (Source: WebPulse framework scoring, NIST NVD and CISA KEV, updated October 2026)

Who actually runs Next.js and WordPress

Share of sites with an identified platform, from WebPulse's scan of the Tranco top 100,000 and our Common Crawl census.

WhereNext.jsWordPress
Top 1,000 34.4% (74) 23.3% (50)
Top 10,000 31.1% (797) 29.0% (743)
Top 100,000 23.1% (6,413) 37.4% (10,368)
Wider web2.6%74.3%

Highest-ranked sites on Next.js

  1. yahoo.com#59
  2. vimeo.com#88
  3. f5.com#90
  4. nginx.com#95
  5. snapchat.com#127

Highest-ranked sites on WordPress

  1. wordpress.org#48
  2. wordpress.com#100
  3. bit.ly#117
  4. criteo.com#132
  5. gravatar.com#154

Detected from each homepage's HTML, headers and cookies in September 2026. Methodology

81
Next.js
Modern · JAVASCRIPT
vs
44
WordPress
Legacy · PHP
Dimension-by-dimension breakdown
security Next.js
82
22
Next.js
WordPress
performance Tie
65
65
Next.js
WordPress
ecosystem Next.js
90
55
Next.js
WordPress
ai readiness Next.js
88
35
Next.js
WordPress
developer experience Next.js
85
50
Next.js
WordPress
market trajectory Next.js
85
75
Next.js
WordPress
cost of ownership Next.js
75
35
Next.js
WordPress
Security details
Metric Next.js WordPress
Total CVEs 25 11334
Critical CVEs 2 387
Exploited (KEV) 0 23
CVEs last year 8 4200
Avg CVSS 4.5 6.1
Security score 82/100 22/100
Recommended
Next.js

Next.js scores 81/100. Verdict: Recommended.

Caution
WordPress

WordPress scores 45/100. Consider migrating to: astro, nextjs, hugo.

Alternatives: astro, nextjs, hugo

Quick facts
Next.js
Category: Fullstack
Language: JAVASCRIPT
First release: 2016
Generation: Modern
Trend: Rising
Market share: 3.5%
WordPress
Category: Cms
Language: PHP
First release: 2003
Generation: Legacy
Trend: Declining
Market share: 43.0%
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September 29, 2026
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Data sourced from NVD/NIST CVE database, GitHub API, and WebPulse framework scanner. Scores calculated using a 7-dimension model covering security, performance, ecosystem health, AI-readiness, developer experience, market trajectory, and cost of ownership. Updated October 2026.