Best Headless CMSs to Use in 2023
What is a Headless CMS?
A headless CMS is a content management system built from the ground up as a content repository where the head is separated or decoupled from the body. This back-end-only content management system is also known as headless software or headless system. The contents can be stored in your headless CMS, and then you can send it to display anywhere. Also, it offers a lot more flexibility as to how it's presented in different places. Moreover, headless CMS makes content accessible via a RESTful API or GraphQL API for display on any device via front-end site.
Sanity
Most of the headless CMSes are offered as Software as a Service (SaaS). It means that the editors of your company will have to log into a web application and that the APIs are hosted in a cloud-based backend. Some of the headless CMSes will allow you to host the entire solution on your server and database. Headless CMS separates your content from the tech stack of your website so that you can move it faster.
Why Headless CMS is getting popular?
The popularity of headless CMS is raising high day by day. Headless CMS is providing developers with more freedom, omnichannel delivery, and rich front-end frameworks. A developer can work with structured content and all the contents are organized predictably and usually categorized with metadata, XML, and JSON being common formats. Also, you can broadcast your desired content in different places but not just on the classic website.
Here are the list of best headless CMSs to use in 2023 for your content-rich site
Sanity
Sanity is a flexible headless CMS platform for structured content that allows teams to construct more useful digital experiences. Famous industries such as Nike, Sonos, Cloudflare, National Geographic, Brex, Figma, and Netlify use this headless CMS. Sanity treats content as data so the organizations utilize the APIs to produce optimal editing workflows and transfer content between systems to boost digital velocity.
This industry-leading headless CMS mission is to be the most versatile system for producing and spreading digital content to any device, application, or channel. This headless CMS contains real-time collaboration, customized editing environments, and handy previews, to name a few.
Contentful
Contentful is an API-first headless CMS, a leading content platform for digital builders. This headless CMS allows digital teams complete content and deliver experiences faster. Contentful combines with a library of platforms, like Bynder, Commerce.js, Cloudinary, Gatsby Cloud, and Google Analytics. The headquarter of this headless CMS is in Berlin, Germany. Server-side languages like c£, NET, Python, Ruby, and PHP all are supported by this headless CMS. Popular companies such as Danone, Atlassain, Shiseido, Equinox, GoodRx, and Staples use Contentful headless CMS. Contentful comes with a simple UI and a small learning curve. Here the developers will get a learning curriculum and certification exam to help improve project complexities.
Netlify CMS
NetlifyCMS is an open-source headless content management system that is built as a single-page react app. This CMS works with several static site generators. With the tools they provide, you can fly up the process of content creation while being confirmed with the protection and flexibility benefits that static site generators deliver. This easy-to-use CMS can make custom-styled previews, UI widgets, and editor plugins or add backends to help extra Git platform APIs.
NetlifyCMS can be successfully used with any static generator for a more pleasant and faster web project. Also, this open-source headless CMS allows real-time previews, which helps ensure content is working as intended before being published.
Strapi
Strapi is an open-source headless CMS that offers a seamless creation and distribution of content. If you are not someone who has any scripting knowledge, this industry-leading content management system will help you to create a website. Also, Strapi is a self-hosted CMS that is 100% JavaScript and easily customizable. This is going to help the developers speed up their projects. On the other hand, it supports REST, GraphQL, Entity Service, and Query Engine APIs, as well as a full-featured CLI. Strapi supports programming languages like Vue.js, Angular, React, Next.js, Eleventy, and Svelte. And famous platforms like SendGrid, Algolia, Redis, Sentry, and Mailgun also support this headless content management system. Moreover, Strapi is used by popular companies like TOYOTA, Walmart, NASA, and IBM.
Tina CMS
Tina is a Git-backed headless content management system for constructing content management directly into your website with the capacity to add visual editing to your NextJS site. This open-source CMS allows developers and content creators to collaborate seamlessly. Developers can build a custom visual editing experience that is perfect for their site. Tina is a Git-backed headless CMS that can easily boost output and view context-sensitive adjustments while you update website content. Basically, this CMS was created using ReactJS and the setup is quick and simple.
Hygraph
Hygraph is a native GraphQL headless CMS that concentrates on Content Federation. This headless content management system integrates all the services with its exceptional content federation method and spreads content from anywhere - o anywhere utilizing a single, powerful GraphQL API. Hygraph supports React, Vue and Next.js, Gatsby, Nuxt, Apollo, Sapper, and Gridsome. Some of the popular companies such as Samsung, Dr. Oetker, Philips, Shure, Ashley Furniture, and Telenor use Hygraph. The pricing of this headless CMS starts at $299 per month for professionals and $799 for high-scale projects. Yet, you can also opt for the free version, perfect for start-ups and short businesses.
Storyblok
Storyblok is the first headless CMS that works for developers, business users, and marketers. This is a visual editor for content teams. It's gonna help you collect anything from corporate websites to helpdesks, mobile apps, and eCommerce stores. Also, Storyblok offers a visual preview to developers and editors that come with a key weak point for headless platforms. leading brands like Adidas, Panini, Pay one, and Marc O'Polo is using this headless CMS. The CMS supports Vue.js, Gridsome, Laravel, Nuxt.js, Gatsby.js, React, Svelte, Next.js, Ruby, and Django. The price starts at 90 Euros each month up for entry-level users to 2,999 Euros per month for enormous enterprises.
DatoCMS
DatoCMS is an API-based headless content management system that is written in GraphQL. This CMS contains a visual content schema builder, webhooks, comfortable image manipulation, multilingual content, and additional parts. It comes with a wide range of other technologies that can be easy to use and highly agreeable. The free plan of this CMS supports GraphQL API, and combining it with site generators such as Gatsby or libraries like Next.js or React is not a problem. Around 4k business use DatoCMS to build their online content at scale from a central hub, and spread it easily via API to websites and any other digital experience.
Prismic
Prismic is a Headless Content management system that allows you to select the technology, framework, and language and thereafter effortlessly collect and provide the content. This Saas-based CMS supports the following technologies Node, React, Next, Gatsby, Vue, Nuxt, etc. Also, many big and popular companies like Google, Netflix, and others use Prismic. Besides this platform is not a fully free open-source CMS, the basic version is free but for all the mighty power you need to pay for that. The headquarter of this content management system is in San Francisco, California.
Payload CMS
Payload CMS is a self-hosted headless content management system. This headless is a solution to content authoring for your JavaScript application. Here you can own all your data and distribute content wherever you need through automatically available GraphQL and REST API. Also, Payload will give you a turn-key solution for user authentication, file uploads, localization, input validation, access control, programmatic hooks, and an admin panel. If you are worried about learning this new CMS here is the good news for you. You don't need to learn payload, all you have to do is just write JavaScript to extend your application.
Forestry
Forestry CMS is a customizable content manager that only targets important editing and managing content. This simplest headless CMS allows users to write front-end code, with Next.js, Hugo, Gatsby, or another preferred static site generator. The headquarter of this content management system is in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The clean UI of this CMS allows them to write with ease and no unnecessary distractions.
Craft CMS
Craft is a headless CMS for creating custom digital experiences on the web and beyond. This CMS is super flexible and has a user-friendly interface to the completely customizable backend. For community support, it provides plans and SLAs and you can use them whenever you want to. Craft offers a clean-slate approach to content modeling that doesn’t make any inferences about the content you require to operate. Also, marketing tools like Salesforce, Mailchimp, HubSpot, and countless more are connected with Craft. Moreover, Craft comes with a fast and flexible templating system based on Twig for building traditional websites. You will get a built-in Plugin Store with hundreds of free and commercial plugins.
WordPress
WordPress is a headless content, management system that right now is the most popular CMS on the web. This CMS is used by everyone from small DIY bloggers to small/mid-sized agencies and complex enterprises. You will get amazing headless experiences while providing content editors and managers with an extensible and familiar publishing interface only using the ready-made REST API.