Leaving AEM? Here’s where to go.

Adobe Experience Manager is built for the largest content operations. Many teams find they are paying for, and maintaining, far more platform than their website uses.

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Should you move off AEM?

If your site is primarily marketing and content, and the wider Adobe suite isn’t central to how you work, move to a headless CMS such as Sanity or Contentful with an Astro frontend. Publishing gets faster and the platform gets much lighter.

If you depend on AEM Assets, Adobe Target, and Adobe Analytics working together, and have a strong AEM team, staying is usually the right choice.

Signs it’s time to leave AEM.

The platform outweighs the site

Licensing and infrastructure costs are hard to justify for what the site actually does.

Every change needs a specialist

AEM development requires Java and platform expertise that is scarce and expensive.

Publishing takes too many steps

Editors work through complex authoring and approval flows for simple updates.

Upgrades are major projects

Moving versions, or to AEM as a Cloud Service, takes significant time and budget.

The Adobe suite isn’t really used

The integration that justified AEM isn’t delivering in practice.

Where AEM teams usually go.

Teams leaving AEM usually want to keep structured content and governance while dropping most of the platform around it.

  • Option

    Astro with a visual CMS

    Best for
    Content-heavy or performance-critical sites with custom integrations
    Who edits content
    Marketing, in the CMS; developers own templates and components
    Watch out for
    New templates need a developer

  • Option

    Headless CMS (Sanity or Contentful)

    Best for
    Content reused across the website, product, and other channels
    Who edits content
    Editors, in structured content models
    Watch out for
    More architecture to plan before you build

Pick a path.

Stay on AEM, or go?

Not every site needs to move. Here’s the honest version.

Leaving AEM makes sense when

  • Licence and hosting costs are under scrutiny
  • You struggle to find AEM developers
  • Editors want simpler publishing
  • The Adobe suite integration isn’t used much
  • A version upgrade would be a major project

Staying on AEM is fine when

  • You rely on AEM Assets across many teams
  • Adobe Target and Analytics are deeply embedded
  • You have an experienced AEM team
  • Multi-site, multi-language governance is complex and working
  • Your Adobe agreement runs for years yet

What comes with you.

Content fragments, pages, assets, and workflows are mapped to a new content model, with approvals and permissions rebuilt in the new CMS.

  • Content types, fields, and taxonomies
  • URLs, with a tested 301 redirect map
  • Editorial roles, approvals, and workflows
  • Personalisation rules, rebuilt where they earn it
  • Integrations and single sign-on
  • Digital assets, re-optimised

Leaving a different platform?

Leaving AEM: common questions.

Why do companies move away from Adobe Experience Manager?

The most common reasons are licensing and hosting costs, a shortage of AEM developers, slow publishing, and using only a small part of what the platform offers.

What is the best alternative to AEM?

For most marketing and content sites, a headless CMS such as Sanity or Contentful with an Astro frontend. Asset management can move to a dedicated DAM if you need one.

Can we keep our digital assets when leaving AEM?

Yes. Assets and their metadata are exported and moved into the new CMS or a dedicated DAM, with references updated throughout the content.

Can a headless CMS handle multiple sites and languages?

Yes. Sanity and Contentful both support multi-site and localised content, with permissions and workflows per team or market.

How long does an AEM migration take?

Most take sixteen to twenty-eight weeks, depending on sites, languages, assets, and integrations. We scope it after a discovery audit.