CMS comparison Contentful vs CoreMedia Content Cloud

Contentful vs CoreMedia Content Cloud

Contentful is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. CoreMedia Content Cloud is a closed-source enterprise DXP that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 17.

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Contentful Headless · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in
CoreMedia Content Cloud Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 18 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Contentful on 29 Sept 2026, CoreMedia Content Cloud on 29 Sept 2026. Plans and releases can change after those dates.

WAYF is an official Payload partner and top contributor. Every platform in the table is classified by the same published definitions, and each answer lists the vendor page it came from.

Feature comparison

Built inPaid tierPlugin or add-onLimitedNot available

Contentful vs CoreMedia Content Cloud feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform	Contentful Headless	CoreMedia Content Cloud Enterprise DXP
Overview
What it is	Hosted headless CMS run by Contentful. Contentful stores content in its cloud and delivers it over REST and GraphQL APIs.	Java-based enterprise CMS with a Studio editor, a template engine and a GraphQL headless server. Runs on-premises or as CoreMedia's cloud service.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes.	Contentful Platform SaaS, Free, Lite and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated	CoreMedia Content Cloud v13, or CMCC 13 Version 2512.1.1, released 10 Aug 2026
Vendor	Salesforce (acquired Contentful in September 2026) contentful.com	CoreMedia GmbH coremedia.com
Licence	Closed source Proprietary	Closed source Proprietary
Hosting	No self-hosting Vendor cloud Runs only in Contentful's cloud. The local MCP server and SDKs are open source.	Self-hosting Vendor cloud Event Hub webhooks are an add-on for the CoreMedia cloud service only.
Built with	Hosted SaaS with REST and GraphQL APIs, SDKs for JavaScript and other languages	Java, Spring Boot, TypeScript for Studio
Database	Managed by Contentful	Relational database: PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, SQL Server
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere.	Free to start Free plan. Lite $300 per month. Extra Lite Space $850 per month. Enterprise on request.	No free option Pricing on request.
Content modelling
Content model in code You define content types in files in your repository, review them like any other code and apply them from there. Imperative migration scripts alone count as limited.	Limited Migration scripts run by the Contentful CLI change the model. No declarative schema files. 3	Built in XML files in the project workspace define content types. 3
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code.	Built in 1	Not available Content type changes need a developer and a deployment. 3
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them.	Built in Reorderable reference fields to typed entries. Studio page building is Enterprise. 1	Built in Page grid placements hold reusable content items. 4
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language.	Built in 2 locales on Free, 3 on Lite, custom on Enterprise. 1	Limited Each locale is a derived site linked to a master site, with a translation workflow. 5
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service.	Built in Images API resizes, crops and converts by URL parameter. 4	Built in Named image variants and crops in the CAE and Headless Server. 6
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content.	Built in 1	Built in REST endpoints mapped from persisted GraphQL queries. 7
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content.	Built in 5	Built in Headless Server. 7
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published.	Built in 1	Plugin or add-on Event Hub add-on service for cloud service subscribers. 8 9
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no.	Not available	Built in Content Application Engine with FreeMarker templates. 1
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then.	Built in 1	Built in
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish.	Paid tier Scheduled publishing on Lite and Enterprise. 1	Built in Valid-from and valid-to dates plus a scheduled publication workflow. 11
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them.	Built in 1	Built in
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing.	Built in 6	Built in
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it.	Built in Live preview inspector mode opens the field next to the page. Needs the live preview SDK. 6	Built in In-preview editing in Studio, also for headless frontends. 10
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage.	Paid tier Not on the Starter Space. Up to 5 on a Lite Space at $850 a month, custom on Enterprise. 1	Built in Workflow Server with configurable publication workflows. 11 13
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release.	Plugin or add-on Launch is available on Lite and Enterprise plan families, but requires Contentful admin support to purchase and install. 7 8	Limited Projects group content. A publication set carries linked items along. 12 13
Real-time co-editing Two or more editors can work on the same entry at once and see each other's changes live.	Paid tier Live collaboration on Lite and Enterprise, with per-field presence avatars. 1 13	Not available
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set.	Paid tier Premium plans, sold as Enterprise. Free has 2 fixed roles, Lite 3. 1 9	Built in Rights rules per group, folder and content type. 14
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries.	Paid tier Field and locale rules in custom roles. Premium plans only, sold as Enterprise. 10	Not available Rights apply per folder and content type. 14
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider.	Paid tier SAML 2.0 SSO on Premium plans, sold as Enterprise. 11	Built in Studio login runs on Spring Security. A project swaps in a redirect-based SSO provider. 15 16
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log.	Paid tier Audit logs on selected Enterprise plans, by sales agreement. 12	Built in Records who changed what and when; supports reversions. Retention, export and edition limits are not public: confirm in the contract. 16
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users.	Paid tier One Starter Space on Free and Lite, plus one paid Lite Space. Multiple spaces on Enterprise. 1	Built in
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface.	Built in App Framework for custom field, sidebar, entry and page apps. 14	Built in Studio plugins.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions.	Built in Contentful Marketplace. 15	Built in CoreMedia Marketplace. 17
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code.	Not available	Plugin or add-on Formcentric for CoreMedia, a partner product from the Marketplace. 18
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors.	Not available	Plugin or add-on Elastic Social module manages site users and comments. 19
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content.	Plugin or add-on Official AI Content Generator app with your own OpenAI key. AI Actions need Enterprise. 1 15	Plugin or add-on KIO Co-Pilot needs a licence with KIO enabled. 20
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content.	Built in Hosted beta server at mcp.contentful.com and an open-source local server. 16	Not available None for content. The only official MCP server covers Engagement Cloud analytics. 20

Contentful sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Contentful Platform SaaS, Free, Lite and Enterprise plans.

CoreMedia Content Cloud sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. CoreMedia Content Cloud v13, or CMCC 13.

Considering more platforms? Compare Contentful and CoreMedia Content Cloud with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.

Where they differ

Contentful and CoreMedia Content Cloud get a different status on 17 of the 28 features and the same status on 11. Contentful has 14 built in on its baseline edition, CoreMedia Content Cloud has 18. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Self-hosting: Contentful cannot be self-hosted. CoreMedia Content Cloud can be self-hosted.
Free option: Contentful has a free option. CoreMedia Content Cloud has no free option.

Built in on Contentful, a different answer on CoreMedia Content Cloud 4

Content model in the UI Contentful: Built in. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available.
Localization Contentful: Built in. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Limited.
Webhooks Contentful: Built in. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Plugin or add-on.
Official MCP server Contentful: Built in. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available.

Built in on CoreMedia Content Cloud, a different answer on Contentful 8

Content model in code Contentful: Limited. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Renders the website Contentful: Not available. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Scheduled publishing Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Approval workflows Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Custom roles Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Single sign-on Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Audit log Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.
Multiple sites Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 5

Content releases Contentful: Plugin or add-on. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Limited.
Real-time co-editing Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available.
Field-level permissions Contentful: Paid tier. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available.
Form builder Contentful: Not available. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Plugin or add-on.
Site member accounts Contentful: Not available. CoreMedia Content Cloud: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

Full write-ups with worked examples and costs: Contentful vs Payload.

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CoreMedia Content Cloud against other platforms

Open the CMS comparison tool to put up to six platforms in one table.

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