Comparison · updated October 2026

Joomla alternative: fewer extensions, more system

Joomla is free and flexible, but leans heavily on third-party extensions, and on someone who keeps the installation, the updates and the security up to date. Joomla's share has been declining for years. Neuramerce delivers website, webshop, inventory, customer contact and marketing in one system, with hosting and updates included.

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Free migration from Joomla · no credit card required

TL;DR: who should choose what?

ChooseJoomla

if you know Joomla well, your setup runs stably, and you want full control over the server and code. Joomla is free, multilingual at its core, and you're not locked into anything.

Choose

if you're done juggling extensions that clash with each other, and you want your site, sales, and customer contact in one system with hosting, updates, and security included.

The full comparison

Joomla compared on what the core itself does, without third-party extensions. Much of what's listed below as “via extension” is possible in Joomla; it's just an extension that someone has to choose, set up, update and eventually replace.

Feature	Neuramerce	Joomla
Building & designing
Visual page builder, no code required⁠	Built in	Page builder via extension
Reusable blocks and section templates⁠	Built in	Modules and positions
Brand identity in one place: colors, fonts, logo⁠	Brand Kit	Via your template
Multiple sites or brands from one environment⁠	Yes	Separate installations
Version history and restore points per page⁠	For blog posts	Yes (versions)
Content & structure
Blog with categories and authors⁠	Built in	Built in (articles)
Custom content types (recipes, cases, knowledge base)⁠	Built in	Via extension
Media library with AI alt text⁠	Built in	Media yes, no AI alt text
Forms that land in your inbox and CRM⁠	Built in	Via extension
Multilingual content with translated URLs and hreflang⁠	Built in	Multilingual at its core
Translate content from within the system itself⁠	Native	At its core, manually
Link content to product categories⁠	Built in	Via extension
Migration of your existing site	Free	Manual or via extension
SEO & AI findability
Per-page SEO score with concrete checks⁠	Built in	No per-page score
Manage meta titles, descriptions, and canonicals⁠	Built in	Basic, per article
Internal link suggestions from your own content⁠	Built in	No
Sitemap, hreflang, and redirects, automatically⁠	Built in	Via extension
Define your own URL structure, per language⁠	Built in	Yes, with SEF settings
Rich results: FAQ, product, recipe, breadcrumb⁠	Built in	Via extension
AI findability: llms.txt and feed for AI bots⁠	Built in	Not at its core
Keyword research and content planning⁠	Built in	Standalone service
Selling & customer data
Webshop with products and checkout in the same environment⁠	Built in	Via VirtueMart or HikaShop
Inventory, purchasing, and warehouse⁠	Built in	No
CRM: customer history alongside your content⁠	Built in	Via extension
Shared inbox for email, chat, and social⁠	Built in	No
AI chatbot that knows your content and orders⁠	Yes	No
Collect and display reviews⁠	Built in	Via extension
Plan and publish on social media⁠	Built in	Separate package
Ad management: Meta, Google, and TikTok⁠	Meta and Google, TikTok tracking only	Separate package
Management, speed & cost
Hosting, updates, and security included	Included	Arrange it yourself
Extra plugins needed for basic functionality	No	Yes, extensions
Cost of the software	Fixed rate	Free core, extensions and hosting extra
Data and hosting in the EU	Yes	Depends on your host
Dutch-language support from a single provider	Yes	Community or agency
Underlying technology	Next.js/React, server-rendered	PHP + MySQL
Modify the source code yourself (open source)	No	Yes

Comparison of the core products based on public information, October 2026. Joomla is a trademark of Open Source Matters, Inc.; we are not affiliated. Spotted something that's not right? Let us know

You don't have to switch all at once

Leave your Joomla site running. Neuramerce connects natively, so you can switch module by module: SEO, reviews, or customer contact first, the site itself later.

JoomlaVirtueMartHikaShopMailchimpSendcloudMollie

+ Google Search Console, Google Shopping, Meta, and more.

What does your Joomla site really cost?

The core is free; the extensions, hosting, and maintenance are not. Set your own amounts on the sliders and see what you're currently spending per year.

Hosting and backups (€/month)€ 35Template and extension licenses (€/year)€ 500Maintenance and builder (€/month)€ 150Standalone tools: inbox, mailing, SEO (€/month)€ 90

Estimated savings per year

€ 2.510

vs. € 3.800/year with Joomla

Claim this saving

Indicative, excl. VAT. Assumption: one site with a handful of paid extensions. Compared with Neuramerce Pro, €1,290 per year with annual billing.

Why companies switch away from Joomla

The reasons we hear most often.

Joomla 4 is end-of-life, Joomla 5 is next

Joomla 4 has been end-of-life since October 2025, and bug fixes for Joomla 5 stop on 13 October 2026; security updates for Joomla 5 run until 12 October 2027. The current line is Joomla 6. If you still run Joomla 4 or older, a migration is unavoidable, and for Joomla 5 it will come eventually too. That is a logical moment to consider switching altogether. We do the migration for free. Read what upgrading to Joomla 6 involves.

Extensions that don't keep growing with you

With every major version, the question is whether your extensions come along. Sometimes the developer has stopped, and you have to rebuild part of your site.

Updates and security are on you

Core, template, and extensions each have their own release rhythm. Falling behind is a risk; keeping up is work that brings in no visitors.

A shrinking ecosystem

According to W3Techs, Joomla's share fell from 1.4% to 1.1% of all websites in a year (October 2026). Fewer users means fewer extensions, fewer builders, and less choice.

Sales and operations are separate

VirtueMart or HikaShop handles the order; inventory, purchasing, returns, and point of sale don't. That calls for a second system.

Findability is scattered across parts

Sitemap, redirects, and Schema.org are all separate extensions. There's no per-page score, internal link suggestions, or llms.txt.

One point of contact, in Dutch

No forum, no separate extension developer: one party responsible for the whole.

Switching in 4 steps

Your site stays online. We handle the migration; you just keep publishing.

Demo and intake
30 minutes. We look at your Joomla version, your extensions, your language setup, and which URLs drive traffic.
Connect and run alongside
We let Neuramerce run alongside first, on SEO, reviews, or customer contact. Your visitors won't notice a thing yet.
Free migration
Articles, categories, media, menus, and translations move over. We keep your URL structure wherever possible; anything else is covered with redirects.
Live, with one invoice
You switch to the new site, the extension licenses can go, and your team gets training in Dutch.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about switching from Joomla.

01Is Neuramerce a good alternative to Joomla?

For most business sites, yes. Joomla is free and flexible, but you build functionality with third-party extensions and you're responsible for hosting, updates, and security yourself. Neuramerce delivers that as one system from one provider.

02What does the end of support for Joomla 4 and 5 mean?

Joomla 4 has been end-of-life since October 2025: no more updates, including security updates. For Joomla 5, bug fixes stop on 13 October 2026 and security updates run until 12 October 2027. The current line is Joomla 6. If you run Joomla 4 or older, you have to migrate anyway, with planning and a budget; for Joomla 5 that moment comes too. That is a good moment to compare whether you would rather move to a platform where hosting, updates, and security are our job. We migrate from Joomla for free.

03What does Joomla actually cost?

The core is free. The costs are in hosting, a template, paid extensions, and the maintenance someone has to do. Use the calculator on this page to work out your own situation.

04Can I bring my articles and menus along?

Yes. We migrate your articles, categories, media, menus, and translations for you, at no extra cost.

05Will my multilingual site keep working?

Yes. Multilingual support is at the core of Neuramerce, including translated URLs and hreflang, just like Joomla, but without separate language modules and menu duplicates.

06Will I lose my Google rankings if I switch?

Not if the migration is done properly. We keep your URL structure wherever possible and set up redirects for everything that changes, including your meta titles and descriptions.

07What if my extension stops being maintained?

That problem disappears: the features are built into the platform and maintained by one party. There's no separate developer who can stop maintaining it halfway through.

08Is Neuramerce open source like Joomla?

No. That's the key trade-off: you can't modify the source code yourself. In exchange, hosting, updates, security, and support are our responsibility.

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