To choose a headless CMS, start with the one requirement you cannot trade away, then compare only the platforms that meet it. We keep twelve comparison lists, one per need: hosting model, free tier, editing style, API, languages, permissions and automation.
New to the category? Read what a headless CMS is first.
Why start from one requirement?
Compare twenty features at once and you get a spreadsheet nobody trusts. Usually one requirement is fixed before the project starts: legal keeps the data on your servers, finance caps the budget, or marketing wants to build pages without a developer. Apply it first and three or four platforms are left.
Who runs it, and what does it cost?
Open source
Our open-source headless CMS list covers Strapi, headless WordPress, Drupal, TYPO3, Ghost and Joomla. You can self-host, audit and extend each of them. In exchange you own upgrades, backups and security patches.
SaaS
The SaaS headless CMS list is about subscription products you reach through a browser and an API, with nothing to install or run yourself.
Cloud-based
The cloud-based headless CMS comparison puts 11 vendor-hosted platforms side by side on hosting model, CDN delivery, uptime SLA, starting price and team fit.
Free tier
The free headless CMS comparison covers nine platforms on records, API calls, seats and the real cost to run, with limits taken from vendor pricing pages in October 2026.
How will editors work?
Git-based
A Git-based CMS stores content as Markdown, MDX, JSON or YAML files in your repository, so every save becomes a commit. The list compares 14 tools and flags the two that are no longer maintained. It fits marketing sites, docs and blogs.
Page builder
Our list of headless CMS platforms with page builder features covers Storyblok, Builder.io, Prismic, Sanity, Contentful, Contentstack and others. In these tools marketers compose pages from components that developers define.
Scheduling
The content scheduling comparison looks at timed publishing and expiry in Contentful, Hygraph, Prismic, Amplience and Strapi.
Languages
The multilingual headless CMS list covers Storyblok, Strapi, headless WordPress, Directus, Contentful, Drupal and more. Check whether a platform translates per field or per entry, and what visitors see when a translation is missing.
What do developers and IT need?
GraphQL
The GraphQL-enabled headless CMS list covers Hygraph, Contentful, Strapi, Sanity and Storyblok. GraphQL pays off when a page needs nested, related content in one request. For simple pages REST is enough.
Webhooks
Our list of headless CMS platforms with webhooks covers twelve platforms. Webhooks are what rebuild the site, refresh a search index or notify a CRM when an editor publishes.
Roles and permissions
The roles and permissions comparison checks nine platforms for custom roles, field-level access, SSO, audit logs and the plan you need for each, using vendor docs read on 22 October 2026.
Data and personalisation
Data-driven headless CMS platforms looks at analytics, personalisation and A/B testing around Strapi, Contentful, Directus, Kontent.ai and Sanity, and also covers GDPR and data residency.
If you need this, start with that list
| If you need | Start with | Then check |
|---|---|---|
| Data on your own servers, code you can change | Open-source headless CMS | Roles and permissions |
| No servers to run at all | Cloud-based headless CMS | SaaS headless CMS |
| A predictable subscription and vendor support | SaaS headless CMS | Cloud-based headless CMS |
| To launch with no licence cost | Free headless CMS | Open-source headless CMS |
| Content in the same repository as the code | Git-based CMS | Free headless CMS |
| Marketers building pages themselves | Page builder features | Content scheduling |
| Campaigns that go live at a set time | Content scheduling | Webhooks |
| Several languages and regional sites | Multilingual headless CMS | Roles and permissions |
| Nested content in one API request | GraphQL-enabled headless CMS | Webhooks |
| Rebuilds, search and CRM updates on publish | Webhooks | GraphQL-enabled |
| Separate rights for writers, reviewers, publishers | Roles and permissions | Multilingual headless CMS |
| Analytics, personalisation and A/B tests | Data-driven headless CMS | Page builder features |
When a list is not enough
A list cannot see your content model or the systems the CMS has to talk to. If you are moving off WordPress, Drupal or a legacy enterprise CMS, our headless CMS development services page explains how we model content, build the frontend and migrate content while keeping the URLs that rank. To have one team choose, build and support the platform, see how we work as a headless CMS agency.
