Complete guide to migrating your Netlify CMS website to VuePress. Leave Netlify CMS's officially deprecated behind and get excellent default theme for documentation sites. Free migration tool included.
You can migrate from Netlify CMS to VuePress for free using LeaveWP. Enter your site URL, choose VuePress as the destination, and download your content — posts, pages, and media — in minutes. No API keys, passwords, or CLI tools required. Difficulty: Medium. Estimated time: 20-40 minutes.
Git-based CMS for static site generators (now Decap CMS). Static site teams wanting a free, Git-backed editorial UI, but these limitations push teams toward modern alternatives.
Officially deprecated — succeeded by Decap CMS
This is the most common reason teams migrate away from Netlify CMS. VuePress eliminates this issue entirely.
Limited to Git-based workflows (slow for large content volumes)
With VuePress, excellent default theme for documentation sites.
No real-time collaboration or content scheduling
Modern architectures like VuePress are designed to avoid this from the ground up.
Admin UI is basic compared to commercial headless CMS options
After migrating, you'll no longer need to worry about this — VuePress takes a fundamentally different approach.
Vue-powered SSG optimized for technical documentation. Built with JavaScript (Vue.js), it's technical documentation sites in the vue.js ecosystem.
Excellent default theme for documentation sites
Vue components work in Markdown files
Built-in search, sidebar navigation, and versioning
Optimized for developer documentation out of the box
VuePress is open-source and free to use. You own your code and data with no vendor lock-in. Deploy to any host that supports JavaScript, or use managed platforms like Vercel and Netlify for zero-config deployments.
Side-by-side comparison based on real platform characteristics
| Metric | Netlify CMS | VuePress |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 |
| Performance | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 |
| Flexibility | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 |
| Cost | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Scalability | ⭐⭐ 2/5 | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 |
| Ecosystem | ⭐⭐ 2/5 | ⭐⭐ 2/5 |
| Language | JavaScript (Git-backed) | JavaScript (Vue.js) |
| Pricing | Free | Free (open-source) |
| Open Source | Yes | Yes |
Ratings are based on publicly available data, documentation, and community consensus as of 2026. Individual experience may vary.
A detailed breakdown of how your Netlify CMS content maps to VuePress
What may need manual attention
Custom server-side logic, third-party integrations, and platform-specific plugins will need equivalent solutions in VuePress. The core content (text, images, metadata) transfers cleanly.
Migrate your content in three simple steps
Enter your Netlify CMS site URL — LeaveWP connects automatically.
Select VuePress as destination and choose content options.
Download your migrated content or preview it in your browser.
Migrating from Netlify CMS to VuePress makes the most sense if you're experiencing officially deprecated — succeeded by decap cms or outgrowing Netlify CMS's architecture. VuePress is best for technical documentation sites in the vue.js ecosystem.
You should migrate if: your Netlify CMS site is slow, your hosting costs are climbing, you need developer flexibility, or you want to adopt a modern JAMstack architecture.
You might want to stay if: your Netlify CMS site benefits from content lives in your git repository — no external database and you don't have JavaScript developers on your team.
The migration itself is straightforward with LeaveWP — enter your Netlify CMS URL, select VuePress, and download your content. The more important question is whether VuePress's architecture fits your team's skills and your project's long-term needs.
Explore more migration paths from Netlify CMS or to VuePress
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