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Payload CMS

Payload CMS is a self-hostable, open-source alternative to Contentful / Sanity. This page compiles its license, stack, deployment, maintenance and hosting details from public sources (updated 2026-06-16).

At a glance

category (analytics, CRM, file-storage, BI, etc.)
headless CMS
SaaS-tool-it-replaces (e.g. 'Google Analytics', 'Notion')
Contentful / Sanity
license type (MIT, AGPL, GPL, BSL, etc.)
MIT
primary language/stack
TypeScript / Node.js
deployment method (Docker, Helm/K8s, bare-metal, one-click)
Docker, bare-metal (Node)
GitHub stars (snapshot, dated)
~30k (approx, 2025)
last-commit recency / maintenance activity
Very active
managed-hosting-available (yes/no + who offers it)
Yes — Payload Cloud (official)
minimum RAM/CPU footprint
~512MB-1GB RAM
has-active-community (Discord/forum size tier)
Active Discord (medium)

Code-first headless CMS; acquired by Figma in 2025. Star count approximate.

Official site / source ↗

Some links may be affiliate links that support this directory.

Alternatives in headless CMS

Directus

FAQ

What does Payload CMS replace?
Payload CMS is a self-hostable alternative to Contentful / Sanity.

What's notable about Payload CMS?
Code-first headless CMS; acquired by Figma in 2025. Star count approximate.

Is the data here verified?
Yes — every entry is compiled from public sources and links out to its source.