Note: This article was last updated on April 30, 2024 and may contain outdated information.
Craft 3 had a remarkable run. Released in 2018, it powered thousands of websites and represented a major leap forward from Craft 2. But as of April 2024, Craft 3 reached end of life. If you’re still running it, you need to upgrade.
End of Life Means No Security Updates
Once a software version reaches end of life, the manufacturer stops releasing security patches. Any vulnerabilities discovered after April 2024 in Craft 3 won’t be fixed. Your site becomes progressively more exposed as time passes and new security issues are identified.
This matters because security isn’t static. New attack vectors emerge, previously unknown vulnerabilities surface, and the threat landscape evolves. Running unsupported software is like leaving a window unlocked because it’s been fine so far.
The PHP Problem
Craft 3 runs on PHP 7.2 through 8.0. All of these versions have reached end of life from a PHP perspective. Modern hosting environments increasingly default to PHP 8.1, 8.2, or 8.3. Whilst you can usually specify an older PHP version, you’re fighting against the current rather than moving with it.
Newer PHP versions offer genuine performance improvements and security enhancements at the language level. Staying on older versions means missing out on these benefits whilst potentially paying premium rates for legacy hosting configurations.
What You Gain from Upgrading
Moving to Craft 4 or 5 isn’t just about security maintenance. Modern versions include substantial improvements:
Craft 4 introduced element chips for better content relationships, field layouts for global sets, improved asset handling, and notable performance optimisations. The control panel received refinements that make content authoring smoother and more intuitive.
Craft 5 builds on this further with the new Twig 3 template engine, enhanced element editor slides, improved permissions granularity, and better developer experience through its updated plugin API and modern PHP practices.
Planning Your Upgrade
Unlike a simple plugin update, migrating from Craft 3 to Craft 4 or 5 requires planning. Template syntax has evolved, deprecated features have been removed, and plugins need updating to compatible versions.
The good news: Pixel & Tonic documented the upgrade path thoroughly, and the Craft community has extensive experience with these migrations. Most sites can upgrade from Craft 3 to Craft 4 relatively smoothly, and from Craft 4 to Craft 5 with minimal friction.
Custom plugins and complex template implementations require more attention. Any plugin that hasn’t been updated for Craft 4 or 5 will need addressing, either through updates, replacements, or custom development work.
Getting Started
We’ve migrated numerous sites from Craft 3 to current versions. The process involves auditing your current setup, identifying potential issues, testing the upgrade in a staging environment, and executing the migration with minimal disruption to your content authors and site visitors.
If you’re running Craft 3, get in touch. We can assess your site, explain what the upgrade involves, and create a migration plan that works for your schedule and budget. The security risks of staying on unsupported software only increase with time.