Starter Theme400K+ users

Kadence Alternative for Next.js & Astro

A modern, performance-focused WordPress starter theme with 400K+ active installations and strong Gutenberg block integration. Learn how to go fully modern with component-based alternatives.

TL;DR

You don't need Kadence after migrating to Next.js or Astro. Modern frameworks give you full control over your design system with React components and Tailwind CSS—no page builder overhead, no theme lock-in, no license renewals. See the alternatives below.

Official docs: Next.js Documentation · Astro Documentation

The Problem with Kadence

Kadence is among the more modern WordPress themes, but it's still constrained by the Gutenberg editor's block model, which produces wrapper-heavy HTML. Kadence Blocks Pro creates another premium dependency for advanced block features. The theme's header/footer builder, while visual, outputs complex nested markup. Kadence's design library requires importing pre-built sections that may not match your exact needs, and customization means overriding generated CSS.

Modern Alternatives

Next.js + shadcn/ui Blocks

shadcn/ui's new Blocks feature provides pre-built page sections similar to Kadence's design library, but as ownable React components.

library

Pros

Pre-built sections (hero, features, pricing)
Full code ownership
Tailwind CSS styling
Accessible out of the box

Cons

Requires React knowledge
Fewer options than Kadence library
No drag-and-drop

How to Implement

Use shadcn/ui blocks CLI to add pre-built sections to your Next.js project, then customize the Tailwind styling and content.

Astro + Starwind UI

A Tailwind CSS component library for Astro that mirrors Kadence's block-based approach with better performance.

template

Pros

Astro-native components
Zero JS overhead for static content
Tailwind CSS styling
Growing component library

Cons

Smaller ecosystem than React
Newer project
Less community support

How to Implement

Set up Astro with Starwind UI components and build pages using the component library.

WordPress Headless + Next.js

Keep WordPress and Kadence Blocks for content editing but render the frontend with Next.js for better performance.

framework

Pros

Keep familiar editing experience
Better frontend performance
Use existing content workflow
Gradual migration path

Cons

Two systems to maintain
Requires block-to-component mapping
More complex architecture

How to Implement

Use WPGraphQL to fetch Kadence block content, then render it with React components in a Next.js frontend.

Framer

For Kadence users who love the visual design library experience, Framer provides similar functionality without WordPress.

builder

Pros

Visual section library
Beautiful animations
Component-based design
Fast publishing

Cons

Platform lock-in
Monthly cost
Less code control

How to Implement

Use Framer's component and section library to recreate your Kadence layouts visually.

Migration Steps

Document your Kadence header/footer builder configuration and global typography/color settings

Inventory which Kadence Blocks you use across your site (Row Layout, Advanced Heading, Info Box, etc.)

Export content via WordPress REST API or WPGraphQL—Kadence block markup is stored as Gutenberg blocks

Map Kadence blocks to React components: kadence/rowlayout → Grid component, kadence/advancedheading → styled heading, kadence/infobox → Card

Recreate Kadence's global color palette as Tailwind CSS custom colors

Port Kadence's header builder layout to a responsive React navigation component

Migrate Kadence Forms to React Hook Form

Replace Kadence's design library imports with shadcn/ui blocks or custom section components

Deploy and test—compare Lighthouse scores with your Kadence site

Frequently Asked Questions

Kadence already uses Gutenberg blocks—isn't that modern enough?

Gutenberg is more modern than classic editors, but still produces bloated HTML with data attributes, wrapper divs, and WordPress-specific markup. React components output clean, semantic HTML and are reusable across projects—not locked to WordPress.

I love Kadence's design library—what replaces it?

shadcn/ui blocks, Tailwind UI, and open-source component collections like Aceternity UI provide similar pre-built sections. The key difference: you own the code and can customize every pixel without fighting CSS overrides.

What about Kadence's header/footer builder?

Build your header and footer as React components. Modern CSS (Flexbox, Grid) with Tailwind makes complex header layouts simple. A responsive mega menu that took Kadence's builder to configure takes a Radix Navigation Menu component and some Tailwind classes.