OBJECTIVE: Is the cementless Zweymüller hip cup superior to the cemented Müller cup? METHOD: This article presents a radiographic analysis of 25 cemented Müller acetabular cups versus 22 cementless Zweymüller cups using the Einbildröntgenanalyse (EBRA), a software tool for radiographic measurement of acetabular cup migration. In addition, we determined the effects of the cup anteversion and inclination, the polyethylene wear, the lateral bone coverage of the acetabular cup, the position of the center of rotation, and individual factors on the incidence of cup migration. RESULTS: The incidence of cup migration was 64% in the cementless group and 48% in the cemented group after a mean follow-up of 6 years. The average migration rate was 0.33 mm/a for cementless Zweymüller cups and 0.38 mm/a for cemented Müller cups. Cup anteversion and inclination showed no effect on the incidence of cup migration. The combination metal-polyethylene (0.17 mm per year) demonstrated a significantly higher wear rate in comparison to the ceramic-polyethylene combination (0.11 mm per year). Incompletely lateral covered cups demonstrated a significantly higher incidence of cup migration. Cranial or medial deviations of the center of rotation up to 5 mm are tolerable, in contrast to caudal or lateral deviations that lead to a significantly higher incidence of cup migration. CONCLUSION: The superiority of the cementless Zweymüller cup was not observed. We recommend a complete lateral bone coverage of the hip cup. Cranial and medial deviations of the center of rotation up to 5 mm are tolerable. In the present study the polyethylene wear of the ceramic-polyethylene combination was significantly less as compared with the metal-polyethylene combination.