Umbraco Website Development LondonUmbraco websitesenterprise-grade, editor-friendly.
WebAnts is a London Umbraco agency. We build custom Umbraco CMS websites, Umbraco Cloud setups and Umbraco migrations — .NET-based, GDPR-compliant, built for teams that need full control. No deposit required.
20+
Umbraco sites delivered in London & UK
5–10 wks
Typical Umbraco project delivery
4.9★
Average client rating
£0
Deposit — milestone payments only
14
Countries served
What is Umbraco
The enterprise CMS built for .NET organisations.
Starting from
£5,000
Flat quote · No prepayment · 5–10 wk delivery
Umbraco is a .NET-based open-source CMS used by UK enterprises, government bodies, NHS trusts, and regulated professional services. WebAnts is a London Umbraco agency building custom Umbraco sites for law firms, healthcare organisations, charities, and enterprise corporate clients.
Unlike WordPress, Umbraco runs on .NET 8 — integrating naturally with Azure, Active Directory, and Microsoft enterprise infrastructure. Unlike Contentful, Umbraco is self-hosted: your content lives in your own database, your data residency is in the UK, and there are no per-seat or per-API-call charges. We build on Drupal and WordPress too — we recommend based on your stack and compliance requirements.
We handle Umbraco redesigns, headless Umbraco Heartcore builds, v8/v10 to v13 upgrades, multisite configurations, and migrations from WordPress and Drupal. Flat written quote after a free 30-minute discovery call.
Why Umbraco
Six reasons Umbraco wins for enterprise.
.NET infrastructure. GDPR by design. Editor-friendly back-office. Umbraco combines enterprise compliance with a CMS your team will actually use.
01
.NET ecosystem, enterprise security
Umbraco is built on .NET 8 — the same technology stack used across Microsoft enterprise infrastructure. That means familiar security models, Azure hosting, Active Directory integration, and development resources your IT team already understands.
02
GDPR-compliant by design
Umbraco is one of the most popular CMS platforms with UK public sector and NHS-adjacent organisations. GDPR-compliant data handling, self-hosted data residency, and accessibility-first templates make it a natural fit for regulated industries.
03
Editor-friendly back-office
Umbraco's back-office is one of the most intuitive in the enterprise CMS space. Non-technical editors manage content through a clean interface with document types, data types, and content sections — no code required for day-to-day publishing.
04
Umbraco Cloud managed hosting
Umbraco Cloud provides structured Development, Staging, and Production environments with Git-based deployments, content sync, and a fully managed hosting stack — no server admin required. Available from around £40/month per environment.
05
Heartcore headless for API-first builds
Umbraco Heartcore is the managed headless (SaaS) tier — expose your Umbraco content via REST and GraphQL APIs. We pair Heartcore with Next.js frontends for maximum performance, keeping the familiar Umbraco editor experience your team already knows.
06
Multisite from one installation
A single Umbraco installation can power multiple domains, brands, languages, and editorial teams with distinct content hierarchies. Ideal for councils, housing associations, NHS trusts, and enterprise groups with regional or divisional sites.
What we build
12 Umbraco services.
From a new Umbraco 13 build to a v8 upgrade to a multisite Heartcore headless platform — all in-house in London.
01
Custom Umbraco 13 Development
Bespoke Umbraco 13 builds on .NET 8 — custom document types, data types, templates, and back-office configuration designed around your editorial workflow and brand.
02
Umbraco Cloud Setup & Deployment
Full Umbraco Cloud environment setup with Development, Staging, and Production. Git-based deployments, content sync, CI/CD pipelines, and structured deployment flows — so your team ships changes without manual server access.
03
Umbraco Heartcore (Headless)
Umbraco Heartcore as a managed headless CMS backend, paired with a Next.js frontend. GraphQL and REST APIs, live preview, and ISR — full editorial control in Umbraco's back-office with a fast, custom frontend.
04
Umbraco Multisite Configuration
Single Umbraco installation serving multiple sites — different domains, brands, or regional offices. Shared document types with per-site overrides, separate editorial teams, and clean content hierarchy separation.
05
Umbraco v8/v10 → v13 Upgrade
Full version upgrade from Umbraco 7, 8, or 10 to Umbraco 13 LTS — content migration, custom type compatibility, package updates, Razor template rewrite, and zero data loss. Includes staging environment testing before production cutover.
06
Umbraco Theme & Template Development
Custom Razor templates, partial views, and front-end builds that match your brand exactly. Accessible, performant HTML output optimised for Core Web Vitals and on-page SEO from the first publish.
07
Umbraco SEO & Core Web Vitals
SEO configuration, structured data (JSON-LD), XML sitemaps, canonical tags, Open Graph, and 301 redirect management. Core Web Vitals optimisation including LCP, CLS, and INP — all built in, not bolted on.
08
WordPress → Umbraco Migration
Full content migration from WordPress to Umbraco — posts, pages, images, custom fields mapped to Umbraco document types. Every URL gets a 301 redirect so your Google rankings survive the move intact.
09
Drupal → Umbraco Migration
Migrate from Drupal to Umbraco — structured content mapping, taxonomy conversion, and media library migration. Full 301 redirect management and SEO equity preservation throughout the process.
10
Umbraco Integration (CRM, ERP, APIs)
Connect Umbraco to Salesforce, Dynamics 365, HubSpot, SAP, and custom APIs via Umbraco's service layer. Contact sync, form submissions, ERP data feeds, and SSO integrations built to enterprise standards.
11
Umbraco GDPR & Accessibility Compliance
WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility audit and remediation. GDPR data handling review, cookie consent configuration, and data residency documentation — essential for UK public sector, NHS, and regulated professional services.
12
Umbraco Maintenance & Retainers
Monthly retainers covering security patches, Umbraco and package updates, Umbraco Cloud monitoring, performance optimisation, and ongoing development. Monthly plans or block-of-hours — drawn down as needed.
How we work
Four phases. No mystery.
Milestone payments — you see progress every week and own every deliverable the moment it lands.
01
Discovery
A free 30-min call to scope your Umbraco requirements — hosting (Cloud vs self-hosted), content model, version, integration needs, and budget. You leave with a flat written quote and a recommended architecture.
02
Design
Wireframes, then polished Figma designs in your brand. Document type architecture planned before a line of code is written — so your editorial team approves the back-office structure alongside the front-end designs.
03
Build
Weekly staging updates on Umbraco Cloud or your chosen environment. Document types, templates, integrations, and SEO configuration built in parallel. GDPR and accessibility checks throughout — not just at the end.
04
Launch & Handover
Launch day, DNS cutover, Search Console submission, 301 redirects verified. Back-office walkthrough for your editorial team. Optional retainer or take the keys — full handover documentation included as standard.
Transparent pricing
What does Umbraco development cost in London?
Every project is scoped individually — but here are real ranges based on scope. All prices are flat fees, not hourly estimates. Written quote after a free 30-min discovery call.
Starter
£5,000 – £10,000
4–6 weeks
Umbraco site, up to 20 pages.
- ✓Custom document types
- ✓Up to 20 pages
- ✓Umbraco Cloud setup
- ✓Contact form + GA4
- ✓SEO (meta, OG, sitemap)
- ✓Back-office walkthrough
Best for: SMEs, charities, smaller public sector sites
Growth
£10,000 – £22,000
6–10 weeks
Full Umbraco build + integrations + Umbraco Cloud.
- ✓Full Umbraco 13 build
- ✓Umbraco Cloud (Dev/Staging/Prod)
- ✓CRM or ERP integration
- ✓Custom back-office extensions
- ✓301 redirects (if migrating)
- ✓2 weeks post-launch support
Best for: Professional services, housing, enterprise SMEs
Scale
£22,000 – £40,000
10–16 weeks
Multisite + Heartcore headless + ERP integrations.
- ✓Umbraco Multisite (2–5 sites)
- ✓Umbraco Heartcore headless API
- ✓Next.js frontend
- ✓ERP integration (SAP, Dynamics)
- ✓GDPR & WCAG 2.2 AA audit
- ✓Dedicated support month
Best for: Councils, NHS trusts, enterprise groups
Enterprise
From £40,000
16–24 weeks
Public sector or enterprise platform, full compliance.
- ✓Unlimited sites & document types
- ✓Full accessibility (WCAG 2.2 AA)
- ✓Custom back-office dashboards
- ✓Azure or on-premise deployment
- ✓Full design system documentation
- ✓Ongoing retainer available
Best for: Government, large NHS, enterprise corporate
Need a detailed breakdown? Book a free discovery call →
Platform migrations
Moving to Umbraco from another platform?
We migrate WordPress, Drupal, and custom .NET sites to Umbraco — content, SEO equity, and 301 redirects all handled. We also handle v8/v10 to v13 upgrades.
WordPress → Umbraco
The most common migration we handle for organisations moving to .NET infrastructure. All posts, pages, images, and custom field content migrated to Umbraco document types. Every existing URL gets a 301 redirect — your Google rankings survive the move intact. DNS cutover during a low-traffic window.
Drupal → Umbraco
Drupal migrations require careful taxonomy and content type mapping. We convert Drupal nodes and vocabularies to equivalent Umbraco document types and data types, preserving content relationships and URL structure. Full 301 redirect management and SEO equity check post-migration.
Umbraco v8/v10 → Umbraco 13 Upgrade
Umbraco 7, 8, and 10 are end-of-life or approaching it. We handle full version upgrades to Umbraco 13 LTS — content migration, Razor template rewrite, package compatibility review, and staging environment testing before production cutover. No data loss, no surprise downtime.
Custom .NET site → Umbraco
Moving a custom ASP.NET or .NET Core site to Umbraco gives your team a proper editorial back-office without losing the .NET stack you already run. We map existing content models to Umbraco document types and rebuild the front-end in Razor or headless — preserving your brand and SEO equity.
What you get
Everything included.
No hidden extras.
Every Umbraco build ships with the full stack — design, dev, SEO, CMS setup, integrations, and a proper handover your editorial team can use from day one.
- ✓Umbraco site deployed to Umbraco Cloud or own server
- ✓Custom templates and back-office views
- ✓Editor-friendly content types and document types
- ✓CRM/ERP integrations (if applicable)
- ✓GDPR audit and cookie consent configuration
- ✓SEO: meta, OG, JSON-LD schema, sitemap, robots.txt
- ✓301 redirects configured (if migrating)
- ✓Google Analytics 4 + Search Console setup
- ✓Two weeks post-launch support included
From £5,000 for a standard Umbraco site. Full build with integrations from £10,000. Flat quote after a free 30-min call.
Who we build for
Umbraco for
regulated sectors.
Platform comparison
Umbraco vs the alternatives.
We build on multiple platforms. Here is an honest four-way comparison — WordPress, Drupal, Contentful, Craft CMS — so you can make the right call for your organisation.
| vs Platform | Umbraco wins on | They win on | Choose Umbraco when |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress | .NET ecosystem, enterprise security model, structured content types, no plugin bloat, better multisite management, GDPR-compliant by default | Larger plugin ecosystem, lower upfront cost, wider freelancer pool, WooCommerce for complex ecommerce | Your organisation runs on .NET infrastructure, has compliance requirements, or needs multisite across multiple brands or regions |
| Drupal | More intuitive back-office for non-technical editors, faster development on .NET stack, Umbraco Cloud managed hosting, cleaner upgrade path | More granular permissions, larger open-source community, stronger out-of-the-box accessibility for complex gov builds | Your team prefers .NET over PHP, you need a more editor-friendly back-office, or you want Umbraco Cloud managed hosting |
| Contentful | Self-hosted data ownership, no per-seat pricing, .NET native, full back-office UI for editors, no API-call billing | Lower developer setup time, global CDN for content API, large integration marketplace, better for non-developer teams | You need data residency in the UK, run a .NET stack, or your per-seat Contentful bill is becoming unsustainable |
| Craft CMS | .NET vs PHP stack, stronger enterprise governance, better public sector adoption in UK, Umbraco Cloud for managed deployments, GDPR tooling | More flexible content modelling, better Matrix field UX, stronger community for creative agencies, lower initial cost | Your IT infrastructure is Microsoft-based, you need public sector compliance, or you have an existing .NET development team |
“WebAnts built something better than I’d ever imagined — shipped faster than any agency I’ve worked with.”
LaTisha Ebanks
Marketing Director, North Pointe Marketing
Start a project
Free 30-min call.
Flat written quote.
No prepayment.
Tell us about your Umbraco project — what you need built, your current platform, compliance requirements, and timeline. We’ll review it and send a flat quote within 24 hours.
★★★★★ 4.9 on Google
★★★★★ 5.0 on Clutch
★★★★★ 5.0 on Upwork
Top Web Designers 2025 — DesignRush
FAQ
Umbraco questions, answered directly.
What is Umbraco?
Umbraco is an open-source .NET CMS used by enterprises, government bodies, NHS trusts, and large organisations that need a flexible, scalable content management platform on the Microsoft technology stack. It provides a structured content model with custom document types and data types, an intuitive editor back-office, native multisite support, and a managed cloud hosting option (Umbraco Cloud). Umbraco 13 — the current LTS release — runs on .NET 8 and supports headless delivery via the Umbraco Heartcore API.
How much does Umbraco development cost in London?
A standard Umbraco marketing site from WebAnts starts from £5,000 for a basic build with up to 20 pages. A full Umbraco build with integrations and Umbraco Cloud costs £10,000–£22,000. Multisite builds with Heartcore headless and ERP integrations cost £22,000–£40,000. Public sector or enterprise platforms start from £40,000. Every project gets a flat written quote after a free 30-minute discovery call — no hourly estimates, no deposit.
What is the difference between Umbraco and WordPress?
Umbraco is built on .NET (C#) and is designed for enterprise and public sector organisations that need a structured, scalable CMS on Microsoft infrastructure. WordPress is PHP-based with a much larger plugin ecosystem and lower entry cost. Umbraco offers stronger content model control, better multisite governance, native GDPR compliance tools, and a cleaner upgrade path for organisations already running .NET. WordPress is better for smaller budgets, plugin-heavy builds, or WooCommerce ecommerce.
Is Umbraco good for enterprise?
Yes — Umbraco is one of the leading enterprise CMS platforms in the UK, particularly for public sector, NHS, housing associations, legal, and financial services organisations. Its .NET foundation integrates naturally with Microsoft enterprise infrastructure (Azure, Active Directory, Dynamics 365), the content model is structured and maintainable at scale, and multisite support is robust. Umbraco Cloud provides managed hosting with structured deployment environments suitable for enterprise governance requirements.
What is Umbraco Cloud?
Umbraco Cloud is the official managed hosting platform for Umbraco CMS. It provides Development, Staging, and Production environments with Git-based deployments, structured content and code synchronisation between environments, managed infrastructure, daily backups, and a 99.9% uptime SLA. Starting from around £40/month per environment. Most WebAnts Umbraco projects are deployed to Umbraco Cloud — it eliminates server management overhead and provides a reliable deployment pipeline.
What is Umbraco Heartcore (headless)?
Umbraco Heartcore is the managed headless CMS tier of Umbraco. It exposes your Umbraco content via REST and GraphQL APIs, allowing a decoupled frontend — typically Next.js or React — to consume content while editors continue using the familiar Umbraco back-office. Heartcore is Umbraco's SaaS headless offering; Umbraco 12+ also includes a free built-in Content Delivery API for self-hosted headless builds.
Is Umbraco GDPR compliant?
Umbraco is designed with GDPR compliance in mind — particularly important for UK public sector and regulated industries. Key features include self-hosted data residency (you control where data lives), granular user role management, content versioning with audit trails, and no third-party data sharing from the CMS itself. WebAnts includes a GDPR configuration audit and cookie consent setup as standard on public sector and healthcare Umbraco projects.
Can Umbraco handle multisite?
Yes — Umbraco has native multisite support from a single installation. Multiple sites, domains, languages, and editorial teams can be managed from one Umbraco back-office. Each site can have its own content hierarchy, document types, templates, and editorial team with separate permissions. This makes Umbraco ideal for councils, housing associations, NHS trusts, and enterprise groups with multiple regional or divisional websites.
What is the difference between Umbraco and Drupal?
Both Umbraco and Drupal are enterprise-grade open-source CMS platforms used by UK public sector organisations. Drupal is PHP-based, has a larger global community, and offers more granular permissions out of the box. Umbraco is .NET-based, has a more intuitive editor back-office, and offers Umbraco Cloud for managed hosting with structured deployment environments. Organisations already running .NET infrastructure typically find Umbraco a more natural fit than Drupal.
What .NET version does Umbraco 13 use?
Umbraco 13 runs on .NET 8, which is a Long-Term Support (LTS) release of .NET with support until November 2026. .NET 8 brings improved performance, native AOT compilation, and better memory management compared to earlier .NET versions. WebAnts builds all new Umbraco projects on Umbraco 13 with .NET 8 unless a client has a specific reason to target an earlier version.
Can you upgrade from Umbraco v8 to v13?
Yes — this is one of WebAnts' most common Umbraco projects. Umbraco 7 and 8 are end-of-life and Umbraco 10 is approaching end-of-life. Upgrading to Umbraco 13 LTS requires a Razor template rewrite (from Umbraco's legacy view system to .NET 8 Razor), package compatibility review, content migration, and staging environment testing before production cutover. We provide a fixed-price upgrade quote after a codebase audit.
Is Umbraco good for government or public sector websites?
Yes — Umbraco is widely used across UK local authorities, NHS organisations, housing associations, and government-adjacent bodies. Key advantages for the public sector include GDPR-compliant self-hosted deployment, WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility support, Umbraco Cloud for managed hosting with structured environments, .NET integration with Microsoft government infrastructure, and a track record of adoption across UK public sector organisations.
How does Umbraco handle content versioning?
Umbraco maintains a full version history for every piece of content. Editors can view and restore previous versions of any page or content item from the back-office — useful for compliance, audit trails, and recovering from accidental changes. Content can also be published with a scheduled publish date and unpublished automatically, supporting editorial workflows in regulated environments.
Is Umbraco good for non-technical editors?
Umbraco's back-office is one of the more editor-friendly interfaces in the enterprise CMS space. Document types define structured content forms that editors fill in — no free-form HTML editing unless you deliberately enable it. Rich text editors (TinyMCE or Tiptap), image cropping, media libraries, and multi-language content are all accessible without technical knowledge. WebAnts includes a back-office walkthrough session for editorial teams as standard on every project.
What hosting do you recommend for Umbraco?
For most projects, we recommend Umbraco Cloud — the managed hosting platform provides structured Development, Staging, and Production environments, Git-based deployments, daily backups, and a managed infrastructure stack. For organisations with specific compliance requirements, existing Azure infrastructure, or on-premise data residency requirements, we configure Azure App Service or on-premise Windows Server deployments.
Can Umbraco integrate with our CRM or ERP?
Yes. Umbraco integrates with Salesforce, Dynamics 365, HubSpot, SAP, and custom APIs via its service layer and composition pattern. We handle CRM contact sync from forms, ERP data feeds into content types, and Single Sign-On (SSO) via Azure Active Directory or SAML providers. Integration scope is costed separately and included in the flat project quote.
How long does an Umbraco project take?
A standard Umbraco marketing site takes 4–6 weeks. A full build with integrations and Umbraco Cloud takes 6–10 weeks. Multisite or Heartcore headless builds take 10–16 weeks. Enterprise or public sector platforms take 16–24 weeks. WebAnts provides a firm delivery timeline in the written proposal — all projects have weekly staging updates so you can track progress throughout.
Can you migrate from WordPress to Umbraco?
Yes. WordPress-to-Umbraco migration is one of our most common Umbraco projects for organisations moving to .NET infrastructure. We export all WordPress content (posts, pages, custom post types, media) and map it to Umbraco document types. Every existing URL gets a 301 redirect so your Google rankings survive the move intact. DNS cutover is handled during a low-traffic window — typically under 30 minutes of downtime.
Do you offer Umbraco maintenance retainers?
Yes. After launch you can take full control or continue with a monthly maintenance retainer covering security patches, Umbraco and package updates, Umbraco Cloud monitoring, performance optimisation, content model changes, and ongoing development. Retainers are structured as a fixed monthly scope or a block of hours drawn down as needed.
What is WCAG and does Umbraco support it?
WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) is the international standard for web accessibility. WCAG 2.2 AA is the level required for UK public sector websites under the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations. Umbraco supports WCAG-compliant builds through accessible Razor templates, structured content entry forms that enforce alt text, and back-office accessibility for editors. WebAnts includes a WCAG 2.2 AA audit and remediation on all public sector and NHS Umbraco projects.
(Related services)
Enterprise CMS, your editors will actually use. →
Free discovery call. Flat quote. 5–10 week delivery. No prepayment.
About WebAnts — Umbraco Website Development Agency in London
WebAnts is a London web design and development agency specialising in Umbraco CMS website development. 4.9★ rated on Google, 5.0 on Clutch, 5.0 on Upwork. Named Top Web Design Agency 2025 by DesignRush. Based in London, serving enterprise, public sector, and regulated professional services clients across the UK and 14 countries.
What is Umbraco?
Umbraco is an open-source .NET CMS used by enterprises, government bodies, NHS trusts, housing associations, and large organisations that need a scalable content management platform on the Microsoft technology stack. It provides a structured content model with custom document types and data types, an intuitive editor back-office, native multisite support from one installation, and Umbraco Cloud for managed hosting with structured deployment environments. Umbraco 13 runs on .NET 8 and supports headless delivery via the Umbraco Heartcore API.
What Umbraco services does WebAnts offer?
WebAnts offers 12 Umbraco services: custom Umbraco 13 development, Umbraco Cloud setup and deployment, Umbraco Heartcore headless CMS with Next.js frontend, Umbraco multisite configuration, Umbraco v8/v10 to v13 version upgrades, Umbraco theme and template development, Umbraco SEO and Core Web Vitals, WordPress to Umbraco migration, Drupal to Umbraco migration, CRM and ERP integrations (Salesforce, Dynamics 365, SAP), GDPR and WCAG 2.2 AA compliance, and monthly Umbraco maintenance retainers.
How much does Umbraco development cost in London?
A standard Umbraco site from WebAnts starts from £5,000 for up to 20 pages (4–6 weeks). A full Umbraco build with integrations and Umbraco Cloud costs £10,000–£22,000 (6–10 weeks). Multisite or Heartcore headless builds cost £22,000–£40,000. Enterprise or public sector platforms start from £40,000. Flat written quote after a free 30-minute discovery call — no hourly estimates, no deposit.
Is Umbraco good for enterprise and public sector organisations?
Yes — Umbraco is widely adopted by UK local authorities, NHS trusts, housing associations, and government-adjacent bodies. Key advantages include GDPR-compliant self-hosted deployment with UK data residency, WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility support, .NET integration with Microsoft government infrastructure, Umbraco Cloud managed hosting with structured deployment environments, and a strong track record of adoption across UK public sector organisations.
What makes WebAnts different from other Umbraco agencies?
No offshoring. No prepayment. Milestone payments so you own every deliverable as it lands. Direct access to the developer building your Umbraco site — not an account manager. 20+ Umbraco sites delivered for London and UK clients. GDPR and WCAG compliance built in — not bolted on as an afterthought. Honest advice on whether Umbraco is the right platform for your requirements and budget.
Dream Algorithm Ltd, trading as WebAnts · London, UK+44 20 3983 9795hello@webants.io