A non-trivial number of "Next.js + Sanity" stacks would be better off on WordPress + REST. We've migrated three this year. Here's why the boring choice keeps winning.
The case for headless WordPress
The WordPress REST API has been production-grade for nearly a decade. Editorial workflow, media library, role-based access, scheduling, revisions - all of it works out of the box, all of it is familiar to non-technical editors, and all of it is one Docker compose away from running on your own infrastructure.
Pair it with a Next.js or Astro front-end fetching from /wp-json/wp/v2/ and you get the editor experience your marketing team already knows, with the front-end performance your engineers want.
When NOT to use it
WordPress is the wrong choice when content is highly structured and relational - a product catalogue with deep filters, a job board with custom faceting. There, a typed CMS like Sanity or Payload earns its keep.
The lesson
Don't pick a CMS based on what you want to build. Pick it based on who's editing.