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CMS comparison Contentful vs EmDash

Contentful vs EmDash

Contentful is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. EmDash is an open-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 15.

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  • Contentful Headless · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in
  • EmDash Traditional · Open source · 14 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Contentful on 29 Sept 2026, EmDash 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 EmDash feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Contentful Headless
EmDash Traditional
Overview
What it is Hosted headless CMS run by Contentful. Contentful stores content in its cloud and delivers it over REST and GraphQL APIs.Open-source CMS from Cloudflare that runs inside an Astro site, with the admin and pages in one app on Cloudflare Workers or Node.js.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Contentful Platform SaaS, Free, Lite and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated EmDash 1.0, open source Version 1.0.1, released 28 Sept 2026
Vendor Salesforce (acquired Contentful in September 2026) contentful.com Cloudflare emdashcms.com
Licence Closed source Proprietary Open source MIT
Hosting No self-hosting Vendor cloud Runs only in Contentful's cloud. The local MCP server and SDKs are open source. Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. You deploy to your own Cloudflare account or Node.js server.
Built with Hosted SaaS with REST and GraphQL APIs, SDKs for JavaScript and other languagesTypeScript, Astro
Database Managed by ContentfulSQLite, Cloudflare D1, PostgreSQL, libSQL
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. Free to start Free and open source. You pay only for hosting.
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 Limited Seed files set up new sites. A live site's model changes through the admin, API or CLI. 20
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in 1 Built in Admin role only. 220
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 Blocks field with versioned block types. 5
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 Built in Each translation is a separate entry with its own status. 6
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 Uses Astro's image endpoint for sizes and formats. Crop and focal point in the editor. 78
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in 1 Built in 9
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in 5 Not available
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Built in 1 Plugin or add-on Official webhook-notifier plugin. 18
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 The Astro site renders the pages. 2
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 10
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 10
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in 1 Built in On revision-enabled collections. 10
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in 6 Built in Signed preview links. 11
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 Signed-in editors get visual editing on the rendered page. 11
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 Not available Contributors cannot publish. No configurable review stages. 1210
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. 78 Not available
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. 113 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. 19 Not available Five fixed roles from Subscriber to Admin. 12
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 12
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 Limited Microsoft Entra sign-in built in. Other IdPs through Cloudflare Access. No native SAML. 12
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 Plugin or add-on Official audit-log plugin. 19
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 Not available
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 Plugins add admin pages and dashboard widgets. 13
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Contentful Marketplace. 15 Built in Plugin registry, launched with 1.0. 143
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Not available Plugin or add-on Official forms plugin. 17
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Not available Limited Subscriber role reads member-only content. Members share the editors' user system. 12
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. 115 Not available
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 Built in Built in and on by default. 15

Contentful sources

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

  1. Contentful pricing
  2. Salesforce signs definitive agreement to acquire Contentful
  3. contentful-migration on GitHub
  4. Contentful docs: Images
  5. Contentful docs: GraphQL Content API
  6. Contentful docs: Live preview
  7. Contentful Marketplace: Launch
  8. Contentful Help Center: Launch
  9. Contentful Help Center: Create a custom role
  10. Contentful Help Center: Content permissions
  11. Contentful Help Center: Single sign-on (SSO)
  12. Contentful docs: Set up audit logs
  13. Contentful Help Center: The entry editor
  14. Contentful docs: Create a custom app
  15. Contentful Marketplace: AI Content Generator
  16. Contentful docs: MCP server
  17. MarketScreener (S&P Capital IQ): Salesforce completed the acquisition of Contentful on September 1, 2026

EmDash sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. EmDash 1.0, open source.

  1. emdash on the npm registry
  2. EmDash homepage
  3. EmDash 1.0: an open source CMS for Astro
  4. EmDash repository on GitHub
  5. EmDash docs: Blocks
  6. EmDash docs: Internationalization
  7. EmDash docs: Configuration reference
  8. EmDash docs: Media Library
  9. EmDash docs: REST API
  10. EmDash docs: Content lifecycle
  11. EmDash docs: Preview mode
  12. EmDash docs: Authentication
  13. EmDash docs: Plugins overview
  14. EmDash docs: Plugin registry
  15. EmDash docs: AI tools and MCP server
  16. EmDash docs: Database options
  17. @emdash-cms/plugin-forms on the npm registry
  18. @emdash-cms/plugin-webhook-notifier on the npm registry
  19. @emdash-cms/plugin-audit-log on the npm registry
  20. EmDash docs: Evolving a deployed site

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

Where they differ

Contentful and EmDash get a different status on 15 of the 28 features and the same status on 13. Contentful has 14 built in on its baseline edition, EmDash has 14. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Licence
Contentful is closed source (Proprietary). EmDash is open source (MIT).
Self-hosting
Contentful cannot be self-hosted. EmDash can be self-hosted.
Vendor cloud
Contentful has a vendor-run cloud. EmDash has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Contentful, a different answer on EmDash 2

  • GraphQL API Contentful: Built in. EmDash: Not available.
  • Webhooks Contentful: Built in. EmDash: Plugin or add-on.

Built in on EmDash, a different answer on Contentful 2

  • Renders the website Contentful: Not available. EmDash: Built in.
  • Scheduled publishing Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 11

  • Approval workflows Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Not available.
  • Content releases Contentful: Plugin or add-on. EmDash: Not available.
  • Real-time co-editing Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Not available.
  • Custom roles Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Not available.
  • Field-level permissions Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Not available.
  • Single sign-on Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Limited.
  • Audit log Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Plugin or add-on.
  • Multiple sites Contentful: Paid tier. EmDash: Not available.
  • Form builder Contentful: Not available. EmDash: Plugin or add-on.
  • Site member accounts Contentful: Not available. EmDash: Limited.
  • AI writing assistant Contentful: Plugin or add-on. EmDash: Not available.

More comparisons

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

Contentful against other platforms

EmDash against other platforms

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

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