What features are included in the Hygraph Hobby (free) plan?
The Hygraph Hobby plan includes 3 seats, 2 roles, 2 locales, 10 components, unlimited asset storage, a 50MB per asset upload limit, live preview, 500,000 API calls per month, and commenting/assignment workflow. This plan is suitable for non-commercial or test environments; limitations on roles, locales, and components may restrict production use. Note: For larger teams or production workloads, consider upgrading to a paid plan. Source.
What does the Hygraph Growth plan cost and what does it include?
The Hygraph Growth plan costs $199/month and includes 10 seats, 4 roles, 3 locales, 20 components, a 200MB per asset upload limit, 1 remote source (Content Federation), and add-ons for scaling API calls, seats, entries, and more. Content Federation is unlocked at this tier. Note: The Growth plan is designed for agencies and SMBs; teams needing more advanced features or higher limits should consider the Enterprise plan. Source.
What is included in the Hygraph Enterprise plan?
The Hygraph Enterprise plan offers custom limits on all core features (users, locales, entries, components), multiple federated content sources, scheduled publishing, global CDN and dedicated infrastructure, multitenancy support, one-click backups, custom SLAs, and 24/7 support. Federation and custom workflows are built into the core, not as third-party plugins. Note: Pricing is custom; best fit for large organizations with complex infrastructure. Source.
Features & Capabilities
What are the key features of Hygraph?
Hygraph offers a GraphQL-native architecture, content federation, enterprise-grade security and compliance, Smart Edge Cache, localization, granular permissions, unlimited asset storage, live preview, commenting, and integration with a wide range of platforms. Notable features include high-performance endpoints, a read-only cache endpoint with 3-5x latency improvement, and support for multiple APIs (GraphQL Content API, Management API, Asset Upload API, MCP Server API). Note: Some advanced features (e.g., Content Federation, multitenancy) are only available on paid plans. Source.
What integrations does Hygraph support?
Hygraph supports integrations with Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems (Aprimo, AWS S3, Bynder, Cloudinary, Imgix, Mux, Scaleflex Filerobot), hosting and deployment platforms (Netlify, Vercel), Product Information Management (Akeneo), commerce solutions (BigCommerce), translation/localization (EasyTranslate), and other tools (Adminix, Plasmic). For a full list, see the Hygraph Marketplace. Note: Some integrations may require specific plan levels or add-ons. Source.
Does Hygraph provide an API?
Yes, Hygraph provides multiple APIs: the GraphQL Content API for querying and manipulating content, the Management API for project structure, the Asset Upload API for uploading files, and the MCP Server API for secure communication with AI assistants. Detailed API documentation is available at Hygraph API Reference. Note: Some API features may be limited by plan tier. Source.
What technical documentation is available for Hygraph?
Hygraph provides extensive technical documentation, including API references, schema components, getting started guides, integration guides (e.g., Mux, Akeneo, Auth0), and AI feature documentation. Classic documentation is available for legacy users. Access all resources at Hygraph Documentation. Note: Some guides are specific to certain features or plan levels. Source.
Competition & Comparison
How does Hygraph compare to Contentful?
Hygraph's free plan includes 3 users, 2 roles, 2 locales, 10 components, unlimited asset storage, and 500,000 API calls/month. Contentful's free plan offers 10 users, 2 roles, 2 locales, and 100,000 API calls/month, but asset storage is limited by asset size and CDN bandwidth. Contentful's paid plans start at $300/month (Lite), but users have reported steep price increases when exceeding content type limits. Choose Hygraph for a developer-friendly free tier and affordable federation; choose Contentful if you need more users on the free plan. Note: Contentful's ecosystem and editorial features may be preferable for some teams. Source.
How does Hygraph compare to Strapi?
Hygraph is a SaaS, GraphQL-native CMS with a generous free tier and built-in federation. Strapi is open-source and self-hosted by default, offering unlimited roles, locales, and API calls on its free plan, but requires users to manage hosting, security, and updates. Strapi Cloud offers a free plan with 10GB asset storage and 10k API requests. Choose Hygraph for a managed, scalable solution with federation; choose Strapi if you need full codebase control and self-hosting. Note: Strapi's advanced features may require paid plans or plugins. Source.
How does Hygraph compare to Storyblok?
Hygraph's free plan offers 3 users, 2 roles, 2 locales, 10 components, unlimited asset storage, and 500,000 API calls/month. Storyblok's Starter plan includes 1 user, 1 project, 100GB monthly traffic, 500MB asset size, and 200 components. Storyblok's GraphQL API is only available on higher tiers. Choose Hygraph for GraphQL support on all plans and more collaborative features on the free tier; choose Storyblok if you need a visual editor and modular content models. Note: Storyblok's higher tiers can be significantly more expensive. Source.
How does Hygraph compare to Prismic?
Hygraph's free plan provides 3 users, 2 roles, 2 locales, 10 components, unlimited asset storage, and 500,000 API calls/month. Prismic's free plan offers 1 user, unlimited documents, and 4 million API calls/month. Prismic is well-suited for solo developers and content-heavy apps, but paid plans can auto-upgrade to enterprise pricing if quotas are exceeded. Choose Hygraph for collaborative features and a scalable upgrade path; choose Prismic for high API call limits on small projects. Note: Prismic's paid plans may be less predictable in cost. Source.
How does Hygraph compare to Sanity?
Hygraph's free plan includes 3 users, 2 roles, 2 locales, 10 components, unlimited asset storage, and 500,000 API calls/month. Sanity's free plan offers 20 users, unlimited locales and components, but paid add-ons can be costly as projects scale. Choose Hygraph for a developer-friendly free tier and affordable federation; choose Sanity if you need more users and real-time collaboration. Note: Sanity's paid add-ons can increase costs quickly for larger projects. Source.
Use Cases & Benefits
Who is Hygraph best for?
Hygraph is ideal for developers, content creators, product managers, and marketing professionals in enterprises, high-growth companies, and organizations in SaaS, eCommerce, media, healthcare, automotive, and more. The Hobby plan suits individual contributors and small projects; Growth is best for agencies and SMBs; Enterprise is designed for large organizations with complex needs. Note: Teams requiring unlimited roles, locales, or advanced workflows may need higher-tier plans. Source.
What business impact can customers expect from using Hygraph?
Customers have achieved 3x faster time-to-market (Komax), a 15% improvement in customer engagement (Samsung), and a 20% increase in website monetization (AutoWeb) using Hygraph. The platform supports faster launches, improved engagement, cost reduction, and enhanced content consistency. Note: Results depend on implementation and use case. Source.
What industries are represented in Hygraph's case studies?
Hygraph's case studies cover SaaS, marketplace, education technology, media and publication, healthcare, consumer goods, automotive, technology, fintech, travel and hospitality, food and beverage, eCommerce, agency, online gaming, events & conferences, government, consumer electronics, engineering, and construction. Note: Some industries may have more case studies than others. Source.
Can you share specific customer success stories using Hygraph?
Yes. Samsung improved customer engagement by 15% with Hygraph; Komax achieved 3x faster time-to-market; AutoWeb saw a 20% increase in website monetization; Voi scaled multilingual content across 12 countries and 10 languages. For more, see Hygraph's case studies. Note: Outcomes vary by implementation. Source.
Product Performance & Implementation
How does Hygraph perform in terms of speed and reliability?
Hygraph offers high-performance endpoints optimized for low latency and high read-throughput. The read-only cache endpoint delivers 3-5x latency improvement. Performance is actively measured, and practical optimization advice is available in the GraphQL Report 2024. Note: Actual performance may vary based on implementation and usage. Source.
How long does it take to implement Hygraph and how easy is it to start?
Implementation time varies by project complexity. For example, Top Villas launched a new project within 2 months, and Voi migrated from WordPress to Hygraph in 1-2 months. Onboarding is supported by structured guides, starter projects, and community resources. Note: Complex migrations may require more time. Source.
Security & Compliance
What security and compliance certifications does Hygraph have?
Hygraph is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant (since August 3, 2022), ISO 27001 certified, and GDPR compliant. The platform also adheres to the German Data Protection Act (BDSG) and the German Telemedia Act (TMG). Note: For more details, see Hygraph's Secure Features page.
What security features does Hygraph provide?
Hygraph offers granular permissions, SSO integrations (OIDC/LDAP/SAML), audit logs, encryption in transit and at rest, regular backups with one-click recovery, secure API policies (custom origin, IP firewalls), and automatic SSL certificates. Enterprise guardrails include automatic backup and recovery. Note: Some features are only available on higher-tier plans. Source.
Customer Experience & Support
What feedback have customers given about Hygraph's ease of use?
Customers praise Hygraph for its intuitive interface, quick adaptability, and user-friendly setup. Both technical and non-technical users report that it's easy to set up and manage content. For example, Sigurður G. (CTO) noted the UI is intuitive, and Charissa K. (Senior CMS Specialist) described it as fast to comprehend and localizable. Note: Some advanced features may require technical expertise. Source.
Pain Points & Problems Solved
What problems does Hygraph solve for its users?
Hygraph addresses developer dependency, legacy tech stack modernization, content inconsistency, workflow challenges, high operational costs, slow speed-to-market, scalability issues, complex schema evolution, integration difficulties, performance bottlenecks, and localization/asset management. Note: Some pain points may require advanced features or higher-tier plans to fully resolve. Source.
Best free headless CMS for developers in 2026: 7 open source and free-tier picks
Seven free headless CMS options for developers, from a managed free tier to open source you host yourself, with verified limits, licenses and MCP support.
Last updated by Jing
on Sep 15, 2026
Originally written by Nikola
on Jun 16, 2025
If you're evaluating free headless CMS platforms, you're likely looking beyond just the initial $0 price tag. You want a tool that not only gets your team underway quickly but also scales efficiently, both in features and cost, as your architecture and content model grow.
In this guide, we compare the 7 best free headless CMS options for developers: Hygraph, Strapi, Payload, Directus, Umbraco, TinaCMS and Ghost. They come in two kinds of free. Hygraph gives you a managed free tier, so someone else runs the servers while you work within plan limits. The other six are open source or source-available projects you run yourself, with no license fee.
For each one, we look at what you can build for $0, what you'll have to operate yourself, and whether your coding agent can work with it. Buying a platform for a larger team rather than building on one? Our roundup of the best headless CMS platforms covers that side.
#Best free headless CMS for developers at a glance
Product
License
Hosting
Best for
Hygraph
Proprietary
Managed cloud
A free managed tier for developers who'd rather not run servers
Strapi
MIT
Self-hosted
An open source Node.js backend you fully control
Payload
MIT
Self-hosted inside your Next.js app
Code-first Next.js and TypeScript projects
Directus
Source-available, conditionally free
Self-hosted
An API and admin app on an existing SQL database
Umbraco
MIT
Self-hosted (.NET)
.NET teams
TinaCMS
Apache 2.0
Tina Cloud free tier or self-hosted backend
Git-based Markdown sites with visual editing
Ghost
MIT
Self-hosted
A self-hosted blog or newsletter backend
#Free tier or open source: what "free" really costs
You may think that open source means $0, but that's not always completely true. While you may not pay for a license, open source headless CMS platforms often have hidden costs.
Managed free tiers
With a managed free tier, the vendor runs the infrastructure, the CDN and the security patches. You get an API endpoint from minute one and pay in limits instead: seats, locales, API calls and entries. Going to production is a plan change.
Self-hosted open source
If you choose a self-hosted infrastructure, you need to handle hosting, security, backups, and updates, either by yourself or by hiring a developer. Premium plugins, enterprise-grade support, or extra bandwidth also often come with additional fees, even if the software is free.
In short: open source software gives you a lot of freedom, and you pay for it in time. Always factor in the total cost of ownership on top of the sticker price.
Read the license
MIT and Apache 2.0 are permissive licenses: you can use, change and ship the code commercially. Directus is the exception on this list. Since version 12, it uses a source-available license that's free only for organizations under $5M in annual revenue and fewer than 50 employees.
Price matters, and these four questions sort the list faster.
Content model and typed API
Get the structure right before you write front-end code. Look for intuitive APIs, a schema you can introspect or generate types from, and clear, up-to-date documentation. In Hygraph, for example, the GraphQL schema describes every model and field. Bonus points if the CMS supports frameworks like Next.js or Nuxt out of the box.
AI and MCP support
MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard that connects AI tools to other software. Check whether Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code can connect, and what the agent may do once it's in. Blocked deletes and role-based access count for more than a long list of tools.
Hosting and maintenance you take on
Is the platform actively maintained, with an active community and integrations for tools you already use? With self-hosting, you also own the database, backups, uptime and upgrades.
A clear upgrade path
Marketers will join eventually and need previews, scheduling and workflows that don't rely on engineering for every small tweak. The best free plan is one you can grow out of without migrating content.
#The 7 best free and open source headless CMS for developers
1. Hygraph: best free managed tier for developers who'd rather not run servers
Hygraph is a modern, API-first, headless CMS for creating and delivering structured content at scale. Being GraphQL-native, Hygraph has broad querying capabilities and an intuitive, user-friendly interface for managing complex relationships between content types. As an agentic content platform, it's also built for the AI tools and agents that now work with that content.
For AI work, every Hygraph project comes with an MCP server. Connect Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code or Windsurf, and your agent can read the schema, create models and draft entries. Delete and unpublish stay manual in Hygraph Studio, as the MCP server docs explain.
One honest caveat: Hygraph is proprietary and runs only in the cloud. If self-hosting is a hard requirement, pick one of the open source options below.
When you're ready for production, the same project moves to Growth (from $199 a month), which adds 10 seats, 3 locales, a second environment and 1 remote source. A standout feature in Hygraph's mid-tier plan is Content Federation, a feature that allows you to enrich your content in the CMS from other services you use such as PIM, DAM or anything that provides a REST or GraphQL API.
After the initial launch of new pages, the engineering team is not involved in the day to day work, allowing them to work on more challenging projects outside of just maintaining the website. It ensures that resources are being used in the best way possible, helping the business grow overall.
Harrison StevensVP of Marketing at Bellhop
2. Strapi: best open source Node.js backend you fully control
Strapi is a self-hosted, open source headless CMS with a flexible backend and customizable APIs. Its database layer gives you granular control over controllers, services, and user permissions. It's MIT licensed and the most familiar Node.js CMS on this list.
Strapi ships a built-in MCP server, generally available since version 5.49. It's off by default, and an agent's token never exceeds its owner's permissions.
The catch is hosting. Strapi Cloud stopped offering a free plan to new signups on July 1, 2026, and deleted existing free projects on September 1. Free Strapi now means self-hosted Strapi. Preview works on the free edition in full screen, while side-by-side live preview needs a paid plan.
Pick Strapi if your team writes Node.js and wants full control of the backend. Compare the two in Hygraph vs Strapi.
3. Payload: best for code-first Next.js and TypeScript projects
Payload installs straight into your Next.js app. You define collections, fields and access rules in a TypeScript config, so your content model lives in the repo next to your components. Think of it as the TypeScript CMS on this list, MIT licensed, with localization and live preview built in.
The official MCP plugin connects VS Code, Cursor or Claude Code. You decide per collection and per API key whether an agent may find, create, update or delete.
Hosting needs a plan here too. Payload joined Figma in 2025, and Payload Cloud has paused new signups while the team builds a replacement. Expect to host it yourself, for example on Vercel or Cloudflare.
It suits teams already building with Next.js. Our Next.js CMS guide goes deeper on that stack.
4. Directus: best for putting an API and admin app on an existing SQL database
Directus wraps an SQL database, new or existing, with REST and GraphQL APIs and a no-code admin app. Your tables stay your tables, and editors get a UI over data you already have.
Since version 11.13, Directus has supported MCP natively. Agents work through your existing roles and permissions, and every change they make lands in the audit trail.
Read the license closely. With version 12, Directus moved to a source-available license. Its Open Innovation Grant keeps it free, with no feature caps, for organizations under $5M in annual revenue and fewer than 50 employees. Bigger companies need a paid license, and Directus Cloud offers a trial only.
Reach for Directus when you have a database and need an API fast. Weighing your options? See our Directus alternatives.
5. Umbraco: best open source option for .NET teams
Umbraco is an MIT licensed CMS built on .NET. Its Content Delivery API turns it into a .NET headless CMS, so you can serve content to any front end while keeping the familiar backoffice for editors.
Umbraco's AI tooling starts with the Developer MCP (also MIT), which links Claude Code or Cursor to the Management API of your own instance. It's meant for prototyping and debugging locally.
Upkeep is on you. You run the .NET hosting, and major versions can bring breaking changes. Long-term support releases give you more time between upgrades.
For teams that already write C#, it's the natural pick.
6. TinaCMS: best for Git-based Markdown sites with visual editing
TinaCMS keeps your content as Markdown and MDX files in your repository and adds a visual editor on top. It's Apache 2.0 licensed. Tina Cloud's free plan covers 2 users, unlimited projects and documents, and 100 GB of bandwidth a month. You can also self-host the backend with your own database, authentication and Git provider.
The AI story here is simple. Content lives in files, so your coding agent edits it like any other code, and every change shows up in your Git history. Among git based CMS options, Decap CMS (MIT) is a lighter, fully free alternative.
Scale is the limit. File-based content gets harder to manage as relations between content types grow.
It shines for docs, marketing sites and blogs that already live in a Git repo.
7. Ghost: best for a self-hosted blog or newsletter backend
Ghost is an MIT licensed publishing platform with memberships and newsletters built in. Its read-only Content API serves published posts, pages and tags as JSON to any front end.
MCP support is early. Ghost's own command line tool, ghst, has an MCP mode in beta, and community servers fill the gaps.
Its scope is narrow. Ghost is made for publishing, so custom content types and relations are limited, and its docs recommend one install per language.
Choose Ghost when you want a self-hosted blog or newsletter with a custom front end.
Start by connecting your agent to the CMS through MCP, then let it read the schema and seed test content. Agents guess less when the schema tells them exactly what each field holds, so typed models pay off here first.
Then prototype the feature itself: AI search, a chat assistant or generated summaries, running on real structured content. AI supports the people doing the work, so keep an editor reviewing what the feature produces. For a wider view of how CMS platforms handle AI, read our guide to the AI CMS.
#When to move off a free plan, and how to upgrade without switching
Watch for these signals: more editors than seats, a second market or locale, approval workflows, audit requirements, API limits, or a security review asking who patches the server.
But the best choice is the one that lets you start fast and grow without changing platforms. On Hygraph, the same project moves from Hobby to Growth, then to Enterprise, which adds SSO, audit logs, custom roles, up to 10 remote sources and AI Agents. That path scales a long way: Dr. Oetker runs more than 40 markets on Hygraph. See plans and pricing and our take on the enterprise headless CMS.
With open source, plan your production setup early: managed hosting, backups, monitoring, or the vendor's paid edition.
Start free on Hygraph
Get a hosted GraphQL API, an MCP server for your coding agent and room to prototype before you pay anything.
Hygraph. If you'd rather not run servers, its free Hobby plan gives you a hosted GraphQL API, 3 seats, 2 locales, 500,000 API calls and an MCP server for your coding agent. Need to self-host? Strapi and Payload are strong open source picks.
Only the license. Hosting, backups, security patches and the developer hours that major upgrades eat up are all on you. Check the license as well: MIT and Apache 2.0 are permissive, while Directus stays free only for organizations under $5M in revenue and 50 employees.
For small projects, often yes, as long as you stay inside the limits. Self-hosted open source has no license cap, but uptime, scaling and security become your job. Managed free tiers suit prototypes best, and on Hygraph the same project moves to a paid plan without migrating content.
Most of them now connect through MCP, the open standard that links AI tools to other software. Hygraph includes an MCP server on its free plan, Strapi ships one built in and Payload has an official plugin. Check permissions too: blocked deletes and role-based access matter most.
Who runs the servers. With a hosted, managed CMS, the vendor handles infrastructure, the CDN, updates and security, and you work within plan limits. Self-hosting gives you full control of code and data, and in return you own the database, backups, uptime and upgrades.
Blog Authors
Jing Li
Nikola Gemes
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Best free headless CMS for developers in 2026: 7 open source and free-tier picks
Seven free headless CMS options for developers, from a managed free tier to open source you host yourself, with verified limits, licenses and MCP support.
Last updated by Jing
on Sep 15, 2026
Originally written by Nikola
on Jun 16, 2025
If you're evaluating free headless CMS platforms, you're likely looking beyond just the initial $0 price tag. You want a tool that not only gets your team underway quickly but also scales efficiently, both in features and cost, as your architecture and content model grow.
In this guide, we compare the 7 best free headless CMS options for developers: Hygraph, Strapi, Payload, Directus, Umbraco, TinaCMS and Ghost. They come in two kinds of free. Hygraph gives you a managed free tier, so someone else runs the servers while you work within plan limits. The other six are open source or source-available projects you run yourself, with no license fee.
For each one, we look at what you can build for $0, what you'll have to operate yourself, and whether your coding agent can work with it. Buying a platform for a larger team rather than building on one? Our roundup of the best headless CMS platforms covers that side.
#Best free headless CMS for developers at a glance
Product
License
Hosting
Best for
Hygraph
Proprietary
Managed cloud
A free managed tier for developers who'd rather not run servers
Strapi
MIT
Self-hosted
An open source Node.js backend you fully control
Payload
MIT
Self-hosted inside your Next.js app
Code-first Next.js and TypeScript projects
Directus
Source-available, conditionally free
Self-hosted
An API and admin app on an existing SQL database
Umbraco
MIT
Self-hosted (.NET)
.NET teams
TinaCMS
Apache 2.0
Tina Cloud free tier or self-hosted backend
Git-based Markdown sites with visual editing
Ghost
MIT
Self-hosted
A self-hosted blog or newsletter backend
#Free tier or open source: what "free" really costs
You may think that open source means $0, but that's not always completely true. While you may not pay for a license, open source headless CMS platforms often have hidden costs.
Managed free tiers
With a managed free tier, the vendor runs the infrastructure, the CDN and the security patches. You get an API endpoint from minute one and pay in limits instead: seats, locales, API calls and entries. Going to production is a plan change.
Self-hosted open source
If you choose a self-hosted infrastructure, you need to handle hosting, security, backups, and updates, either by yourself or by hiring a developer. Premium plugins, enterprise-grade support, or extra bandwidth also often come with additional fees, even if the software is free.
In short: open source software gives you a lot of freedom, and you pay for it in time. Always factor in the total cost of ownership on top of the sticker price.
Read the license
MIT and Apache 2.0 are permissive licenses: you can use, change and ship the code commercially. Directus is the exception on this list. Since version 12, it uses a source-available license that's free only for organizations under $5M in annual revenue and fewer than 50 employees.
Price matters, and these four questions sort the list faster.
Content model and typed API
Get the structure right before you write front-end code. Look for intuitive APIs, a schema you can introspect or generate types from, and clear, up-to-date documentation. In Hygraph, for example, the GraphQL schema describes every model and field. Bonus points if the CMS supports frameworks like Next.js or Nuxt out of the box.
AI and MCP support
MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard that connects AI tools to other software. Check whether Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code can connect, and what the agent may do once it's in. Blocked deletes and role-based access count for more than a long list of tools.
Hosting and maintenance you take on
Is the platform actively maintained, with an active community and integrations for tools you already use? With self-hosting, you also own the database, backups, uptime and upgrades.
A clear upgrade path
Marketers will join eventually and need previews, scheduling and workflows that don't rely on engineering for every small tweak. The best free plan is one you can grow out of without migrating content.
#The 7 best free and open source headless CMS for developers
1. Hygraph: best free managed tier for developers who'd rather not run servers
Hygraph is a modern, API-first, headless CMS for creating and delivering structured content at scale. Being GraphQL-native, Hygraph has broad querying capabilities and an intuitive, user-friendly interface for managing complex relationships between content types. As an agentic content platform, it's also built for the AI tools and agents that now work with that content.
For AI work, every Hygraph project comes with an MCP server. Connect Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code or Windsurf, and your agent can read the schema, create models and draft entries. Delete and unpublish stay manual in Hygraph Studio, as the MCP server docs explain.
One honest caveat: Hygraph is proprietary and runs only in the cloud. If self-hosting is a hard requirement, pick one of the open source options below.
When you're ready for production, the same project moves to Growth (from $199 a month), which adds 10 seats, 3 locales, a second environment and 1 remote source. A standout feature in Hygraph's mid-tier plan is Content Federation, a feature that allows you to enrich your content in the CMS from other services you use such as PIM, DAM or anything that provides a REST or GraphQL API.
After the initial launch of new pages, the engineering team is not involved in the day to day work, allowing them to work on more challenging projects outside of just maintaining the website. It ensures that resources are being used in the best way possible, helping the business grow overall.
Harrison StevensVP of Marketing at Bellhop
2. Strapi: best open source Node.js backend you fully control
Strapi is a self-hosted, open source headless CMS with a flexible backend and customizable APIs. Its database layer gives you granular control over controllers, services, and user permissions. It's MIT licensed and the most familiar Node.js CMS on this list.
Strapi ships a built-in MCP server, generally available since version 5.49. It's off by default, and an agent's token never exceeds its owner's permissions.
The catch is hosting. Strapi Cloud stopped offering a free plan to new signups on July 1, 2026, and deleted existing free projects on September 1. Free Strapi now means self-hosted Strapi. Preview works on the free edition in full screen, while side-by-side live preview needs a paid plan.
Pick Strapi if your team writes Node.js and wants full control of the backend. Compare the two in Hygraph vs Strapi.
3. Payload: best for code-first Next.js and TypeScript projects
Payload installs straight into your Next.js app. You define collections, fields and access rules in a TypeScript config, so your content model lives in the repo next to your components. Think of it as the TypeScript CMS on this list, MIT licensed, with localization and live preview built in.
The official MCP plugin connects VS Code, Cursor or Claude Code. You decide per collection and per API key whether an agent may find, create, update or delete.
Hosting needs a plan here too. Payload joined Figma in 2025, and Payload Cloud has paused new signups while the team builds a replacement. Expect to host it yourself, for example on Vercel or Cloudflare.
It suits teams already building with Next.js. Our Next.js CMS guide goes deeper on that stack.
4. Directus: best for putting an API and admin app on an existing SQL database
Directus wraps an SQL database, new or existing, with REST and GraphQL APIs and a no-code admin app. Your tables stay your tables, and editors get a UI over data you already have.
Since version 11.13, Directus has supported MCP natively. Agents work through your existing roles and permissions, and every change they make lands in the audit trail.
Read the license closely. With version 12, Directus moved to a source-available license. Its Open Innovation Grant keeps it free, with no feature caps, for organizations under $5M in annual revenue and fewer than 50 employees. Bigger companies need a paid license, and Directus Cloud offers a trial only.
Reach for Directus when you have a database and need an API fast. Weighing your options? See our Directus alternatives.
5. Umbraco: best open source option for .NET teams
Umbraco is an MIT licensed CMS built on .NET. Its Content Delivery API turns it into a .NET headless CMS, so you can serve content to any front end while keeping the familiar backoffice for editors.
Umbraco's AI tooling starts with the Developer MCP (also MIT), which links Claude Code or Cursor to the Management API of your own instance. It's meant for prototyping and debugging locally.
Upkeep is on you. You run the .NET hosting, and major versions can bring breaking changes. Long-term support releases give you more time between upgrades.
For teams that already write C#, it's the natural pick.
6. TinaCMS: best for Git-based Markdown sites with visual editing
TinaCMS keeps your content as Markdown and MDX files in your repository and adds a visual editor on top. It's Apache 2.0 licensed. Tina Cloud's free plan covers 2 users, unlimited projects and documents, and 100 GB of bandwidth a month. You can also self-host the backend with your own database, authentication and Git provider.
The AI story here is simple. Content lives in files, so your coding agent edits it like any other code, and every change shows up in your Git history. Among git based CMS options, Decap CMS (MIT) is a lighter, fully free alternative.
Scale is the limit. File-based content gets harder to manage as relations between content types grow.
It shines for docs, marketing sites and blogs that already live in a Git repo.
7. Ghost: best for a self-hosted blog or newsletter backend
Ghost is an MIT licensed publishing platform with memberships and newsletters built in. Its read-only Content API serves published posts, pages and tags as JSON to any front end.
MCP support is early. Ghost's own command line tool, ghst, has an MCP mode in beta, and community servers fill the gaps.
Its scope is narrow. Ghost is made for publishing, so custom content types and relations are limited, and its docs recommend one install per language.
Choose Ghost when you want a self-hosted blog or newsletter with a custom front end.
Start by connecting your agent to the CMS through MCP, then let it read the schema and seed test content. Agents guess less when the schema tells them exactly what each field holds, so typed models pay off here first.
Then prototype the feature itself: AI search, a chat assistant or generated summaries, running on real structured content. AI supports the people doing the work, so keep an editor reviewing what the feature produces. For a wider view of how CMS platforms handle AI, read our guide to the AI CMS.
#When to move off a free plan, and how to upgrade without switching
Watch for these signals: more editors than seats, a second market or locale, approval workflows, audit requirements, API limits, or a security review asking who patches the server.
But the best choice is the one that lets you start fast and grow without changing platforms. On Hygraph, the same project moves from Hobby to Growth, then to Enterprise, which adds SSO, audit logs, custom roles, up to 10 remote sources and AI Agents. That path scales a long way: Dr. Oetker runs more than 40 markets on Hygraph. See plans and pricing and our take on the enterprise headless CMS.
With open source, plan your production setup early: managed hosting, backups, monitoring, or the vendor's paid edition.
Start free on Hygraph
Get a hosted GraphQL API, an MCP server for your coding agent and room to prototype before you pay anything.
Hygraph. If you'd rather not run servers, its free Hobby plan gives you a hosted GraphQL API, 3 seats, 2 locales, 500,000 API calls and an MCP server for your coding agent. Need to self-host? Strapi and Payload are strong open source picks.
Only the license. Hosting, backups, security patches and the developer hours that major upgrades eat up are all on you. Check the license as well: MIT and Apache 2.0 are permissive, while Directus stays free only for organizations under $5M in revenue and 50 employees.
For small projects, often yes, as long as you stay inside the limits. Self-hosted open source has no license cap, but uptime, scaling and security become your job. Managed free tiers suit prototypes best, and on Hygraph the same project moves to a paid plan without migrating content.
Most of them now connect through MCP, the open standard that links AI tools to other software. Hygraph includes an MCP server on its free plan, Strapi ships one built in and Payload has an official plugin. Check permissions too: blocked deletes and role-based access matter most.
Who runs the servers. With a hosted, managed CMS, the vendor handles infrastructure, the CDN, updates and security, and you work within plan limits. Self-hosting gives you full control of code and data, and in return you own the database, backups, uptime and upgrades.
Blog Authors
Jing Li
Nikola Gemes
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