Posted by: Jeroen Wijdeven
07 August 2025
Are you questioning the value of your current CMS?
Choosing a CMS is like hiring a key member of your digital team. You need someone who fits your rhythm, adapts to change and delivers under pressure. It's about long-term chemistry and shared momentum.
If you're currently using Optimizely or Umbraco, you're probably asking a more strategic question:
- Are we getting the value we signed up for?
- Could we do more with something different or leaner?
- Is now the time to rethink our CMS strategy?
Both platforms are powerful in their own right. Optimizely excels in data-driven digital experience, while Umbraco delivers flexible, open-source control.
At Growcreate, we've found that success lies in finding the best CMS fit.
If you're scaling your solution or simplifying your editorial experience, both Optimizely and Umbraco offer substantial value when used in the right context.
At Growcreate, we've helped enterprises move in both directions, and we've seen firsthand what works in the real world. The right platform should reduce costs, speed up delivery and support your roadmap.
Is Optimizely still the right fit for you? Read on.
Is Optimizely the right CMS for enterprise platforms?
Optimizely has a lot going for it, especially if you're running a complex site that combines personalisation, experimentation and commerce all in one place.
It's polished, powerful and comes with an impressive DXP toolkit and enterprise power:
- Advanced experimentation and personalisation
- A structured architecture built for scale and governance
- Integration with marketing stacks and analytics platforms
Optimizely delivers for teams that need a powerful all-in-one DXP. If you're prioritising agility or cost efficiency, there are compelling alternatives worth exploring.
Curious how a lighter approach compares? Let's explore Umbraco.
Could Umbraco be a better fit for your CMS strategy?
Umbraco doesn't try to do everything out of the box, and that's exactly where it shines. It's modular, open-source and fast to deploy. For organisations that prioritise adaptability and autonomy, Umbraco gives you space to build your way while staying in control of how you scale and deliver.
Why do teams choose Umbraco?
- Open-source foundation with commercial-grade support
- Cloud-ready and Azure-native infrastructure
- Composable architecture that scales with your needs
And now, with tools like Umbraco Engage, first-party analytics, personalisation, and A/B testing are available on demand.
Comparing enterprise features? Let's break it down.
Feature-by-feature: Optimizely vs Umbraco
| Feature | Optimizely | Umbraco |
|---|---|---|
| Time to live | 6–12 months | 3–6 months |
| ROI timeline | 12–18 months | 6–9 months |
| Licensing | Usage-based SaaS | Open-source with optional cloud plans |
| Infrastructure | Optimizely Cloud or Azure | Azure-native or Umbraco Cloud |
| Developer ecosystem | Mid-size, certified partner network | Large open-source + partner network |
| Personalisation | Built-in, enterprise-grade | Optional via Umbraco Engage |
| Upgrades | SaaS-managed | Flexible, partner-led paths |
| Editorial UX | Rich but layered | Intuitive and customisable |
| Support model | Centralised support with SLAs | Partner-led support (e.g. Growcreate) |
G2 user ratings comparing Umbraco and Optimizely
Ease of setup
8.5
Asset management
8.0
Ease of setup
7.4
Asset management
7.1
Developer tools
8.8
Multi-language support
8.5
Developer tools
7.2
Multi-language support
8.4
What are the benefits of migrating to Optimizely or Umbraco?
"According to G2, users rate Umbraco higher across setup speed, developer tools and usability—key drivers for teams looking to reduce delivery overhead."
| Benefit | Optimizely | Umbraco |
| Lower total cost of ownership | Consolidates tools into a single DXP with predictable enterprise pricing | Open-source core, flexible licensing, and lower infrastructure overhead |
| Faster time-to-market | Streamlined rollout for enterprise teams using built-in tools | Rapid deployment and agile builds with CI/CD pipelines |
| Enterprise-grade flexibility | Built-in experimentation, commerce, and personalisation | Modular architecture, composable integrations, and headless options |
| Future-proof technology | SaaS-managed upgrades and continuous innovation roadmap | .NET Core architecture and strong open-source community innovation |
| Team empowerment | Strong tooling for marketers and experimentation teams | Clean editorial UX and developer-friendly setup |
| Cloud readiness | Runs on Optimizely Cloud or Azure with enterprise SLAs | Azure-native, Umbraco Cloud, or self-hosted deployments |
Value to you: Both platforms can reduce risk, improve delivery and deliver value when matched to the right priorities.
Ready to switch? Here's what to expect from a migration.
CMS migration essentials
Thinking about switching platforms? Here's what you should know before making the move.
Typical timelines
Most CMS migrations take between 3 and 6 months, depending on the complexity of your platform and the volume of content.
Risk and continuity
With the right partner, migration can be low-risk and zero-downtime. We plan for staging, rollback and phased release.
Feature parity
We assess which features are essential (such as personalisation, analytics, and workflows) and map them to the new platform.
Tech integration
Both Umbraco and Optimizely support seamless integration with CRM systems, marketing automation platforms, and data management systems.
.NET compatibility
You'll need .NET skills, either internally or through your agency partner. Growcreate can supply engineering support where required.
Whether you're replatforming or refining your stack, a CMS audit will show you exactly where you stand.
Why choose Growcreate?
Growcreate is trusted by enterprises across finance, healthcare, automotive and government to deliver CMS solutions that perform.
If you're migrating from Optimizely to Umbraco or the other way around, we bring the strategic clarity, engineering firepower, and ongoing support to make it work.
- CMS audits and roadmap planning
- Azure DevOps and cloud-native builds
- Personalisation and editorial optimisation
- 24/7 support from UK-based experts
Ready to explore your options? We'll show you what's possible.
FAQs
Possibly, if your current CMS is no longer aligned with your goals.
Many teams move from Optimizely to Umbraco when they want to reduce cost, simplify development or adopt a more agile content model. Migration makes sense when you are overpaying for features you do not use or struggling to move at the pace your team needs. At Growcreate, we have helped enterprises migrate in 3 to 6 months with no disruption to delivery.
Yes, for organisations that fully use their DXP capabilities.
Optimizely offers powerful personalisation, experimentation and commerce, but that comes at a premium. If you're leveraging all of those tools, it can deliver huge value. But if you're only using a fraction of the platform, there may be better ROI from a leaner, more modular CMS like Umbraco.
Yes, with a lighter, more flexible approach.
Umbraco Engage offers personalisation, A/B testing and user profiling features that rival Optimizely's, but without locking you into a full-suite DXP. For most enterprise content teams, Umbraco provides more control over how and when personalisation is rolled out.
Both Optimizely and Umbraco run well on Azure, but Umbraco is native to the platform.
Umbraco is built on .NET Core and integrates seamlessly with Azure DevOps, as well as hosting and security models. Optimizely also supports Azure, but often runs through its own managed cloud environment. If Azure is your preferred infrastructure, Umbraco gives you more control and flexibility.
Umbraco typically goes live in half the time.
Umbraco projects often launch within 3 to 6 months, while Optimizely builds can take 6 to 12 months due to the complexity of the platform and its integrations. If speed is a critical KPI, then Umbraco's modularity and DevOps compatibility make it ideal for faster delivery cycles.
Switching to Umbraco can reduce total CMS costs by 30-50%.
Licensing, hosting and implementation costs are typically lower with Umbraco, especially for teams not using Optimizely's full DXP feature set. Organisations migrating from Optimizely to Umbraco often reinvest savings into UX, content or performance optimisation. The real question is how much value you can get from switching to a new CMS.
Umbraco offers greater agility and developer freedom.
Optimizely is highly structured and powerful, but it is also more rigid. Umbraco provides agile teams with more flexibility to iterate, test, and deploy quickly, especially in environments where CI/CD, headless delivery, and modular integrations are essential.
If you're questioning the value of a platform, you're already halfway there.
Underperformance, rising costs and slow delivery are all signs that it is time to reassess. A CMS should support your roadmap, not restrict it. Whether you stay with your current platform, reconfigure or migrate, the best first step is an objective CMS audit.
Jeroen Wijdeven, CTO at Growcreate
Jeroen leads the technology strategy at Growcreate, where he helps enterprise teams deliver secure, scalable platforms using Optimizely, Umbraco, and Microsoft Azure. As an Optimizely MVP and Umbraco Awards judge, Jeroen is trusted across the industry for his insight into content platforms, composable architectures and digital performance. He works closely with CMOs and CTOs to translate complex ideas into tangible results.
