Contentful vs Storyblok
Contentful is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. Storyblok is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 8.
- Contentful Headless · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in
- Storyblok Headless · Closed source · 15 of 28 built in
Sources checked: Contentful on 29 Sept 2026, Storyblok 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
| Platform | | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| What it is | Hosted headless CMS run by Contentful. Contentful stores content in its cloud and delivers it over REST and GraphQL APIs. | Hosted headless CMS with a Visual Editor where editors compose pages from developer-defined blocks. Run by Storyblok GmbH. |
| Edition compared The product and release each column describes. | Contentful Platform SaaS, Free, Lite and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated | Storyblok SaaS, Starter to Elite plans SaaS, continuously updated |
| Vendor | Salesforce (acquired Contentful in September 2026) contentful.com | Storyblok GmbH storyblok.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. | No self-hosting Vendor cloud Spaces run in Storyblok's EU, US, Canada or Australia regions. |
| Built with | Hosted SaaS with REST and GraphQL APIs, SDKs for JavaScript and other languages | SaaS, JavaScript SDKs and CLI |
| Database | Managed by Contentful | Managed by Storyblok |
| 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 Starter free. Growth $99, Growth Plus $349 per space per month. Premium and Elite 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 The CLI pulls and pushes JSON component schemas. Typed @storyblok/schema is in preview. 234 |
| 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 1 |
| 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 Nestable blocks inside stories. 1 |
| 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 Starter includes 2 locales. Growth adds locales at $20 each per month. 1 |
| 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 Image Optimization Service on all plans. 1 |
| APIs and delivery | ||
| REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. | Built in 1 | Built in Content Delivery API and Management API. 1 |
| GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. | Built in 5 | Paid tier GraphQL Content Delivery API on Premium and Elite. 1 |
| Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. | Built in 1 | Built in 3 webhooks on Starter, 5 on Growth, 15 on Premium. 1 |
| Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. | Not available | Not available |
| 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 | Paid tier Single story scheduling from Growth. Growth allows 2 scheduled stories, Premium 100. 1 |
| Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. | Built in 1 | Limited Starter keeps 1 day of versions. Growth 30 days, Premium 180, Elite unlimited. 1 |
| Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. | Built in 6 | Built in 1 |
| 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 Visual Editor on all plans. 1 |
| 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 | Paid tier Custom workflows and stages on Premium and Elite. Lower plans get fixed default stages. 1 |
| 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 | Paid tier 20 releases on Premium, unlimited on Elite. 1 |
| 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 Comments and content locking. No simultaneous editing of one story. 110 |
| 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 | Paid tier 10 custom roles on Premium, unlimited on Elite. 15 |
| 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 | Paid tier Field permissions come with custom roles on Premium and Elite. 15 |
| 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 | Paid tier Premium and Elite. 1 |
| 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 | Limited Activity log on all plans. Starter keeps 1 day, Growth 30 days, Elite unlimited. 1 |
| 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 One account can own many spaces, each on its own plan. 6 |
| 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 Field plugins on all plans. Tool and space plugins on Premium and Elite. 17 |
| Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. | Built in Contentful Marketplace. 15 | Built in Storyblok App Directory. 8 |
| Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. | Not available | Not available |
| Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. | Not available | Not available |
| 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 | Built in AI content generation and translation on all plans, metered by AI credits. 1 |
| 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 Hosted server over the Management API. 9 |
Contentful sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Contentful Platform SaaS, Free, Lite and Enterprise plans.
- Contentful pricing
- Salesforce signs definitive agreement to acquire Contentful
- contentful-migration on GitHub
- Contentful docs: Images
- Contentful docs: GraphQL Content API
- Contentful docs: Live preview
- Contentful Marketplace: Launch
- Contentful Help Center: Launch
- Contentful Help Center: Create a custom role
- Contentful Help Center: Content permissions
- Contentful Help Center: Single sign-on (SSO)
- Contentful docs: Set up audit logs
- Contentful Help Center: The entry editor
- Contentful docs: Create a custom app
- Contentful Marketplace: AI Content Generator
- Contentful docs: MCP server
- MarketScreener (S&P Capital IQ): Salesforce completed the acquisition of Contentful on September 1, 2026
Storyblok sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Storyblok SaaS, Starter to Elite plans.
- Storyblok pricing and plan comparison
- Storyblok CLI documentation
- Sneak peek: type-safe schemas with @storyblok/schema (July 2026)
- Storyblok CLI: components push
- Storyblok roles manual
- Storyblok spaces concept
- Storyblok plugins introduction
- Storyblok App Directory
- Storyblok MCP server documentation
- Storyblok tutorial: building real-time collaboration with Tiptap and Yjs
Considering more platforms? Compare Contentful and Storyblok with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.
Where they differ
Contentful and Storyblok get a different status on 8 of the 28 features and the same status on 20. Contentful has 14 built in on its baseline edition, Storyblok has 15. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.
Built in on Contentful, a different answer on Storyblok 2
- GraphQL API Contentful: Built in. Storyblok: Paid tier.
- Version history Contentful: Built in. Storyblok: Limited.
Built in on Storyblok, a different answer on Contentful 3
- Content model in code Contentful: Limited. Storyblok: Built in.
- Multiple sites Contentful: Paid tier. Storyblok: Built in.
- AI writing assistant Contentful: Plugin or add-on. Storyblok: Built in.
Built in on neither, with different answers 3
- Content releases Contentful: Plugin or add-on. Storyblok: Paid tier.
- Real-time co-editing Contentful: Paid tier. Storyblok: Not available.
- Audit log Contentful: Paid tier. Storyblok: Limited.
More comparisons
Full write-ups with worked examples and costs: Contentful vs Payload and Storyblok vs Payload.
Contentful against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Contentful
- Contentful vs Contentstack
- Contentful vs CoreMedia Content Cloud
- Contentful vs Craft CMS
- Contentful vs DatoCMS
- Contentful vs Decap CMS
- Contentful vs Directus
- Contentful vs Drupal
- Contentful vs EmDash
- Contentful vs FirstSpirit
- Contentful vs Framer
- Contentful vs Ghost
- Contentful vs HubSpot CMS
- Contentful vs Hygraph
- Contentful vs Instatic
- Contentful vs Joomla
- Contentful vs Keystone
- Contentful vs Kirby
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- Contentful vs Optimizely CMS
- Contentful vs Payload
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- Contentful vs Squarespace
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- Contentful vs Strapi
- Contentful vs TYPO3
- Contentful vs Umbraco
- Contentful vs Wagtail
- Contentful vs Webflow
- Contentful vs Wix
- Contentful vs WordPress
- Contentful vs Xperience by Kentico
Storyblok against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Storyblok
- Contentstack vs Storyblok
- CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Storyblok
- Craft CMS vs Storyblok
- DatoCMS vs Storyblok
- Decap CMS vs Storyblok
- Directus vs Storyblok
- Drupal vs Storyblok
- EmDash vs Storyblok
- FirstSpirit vs Storyblok
- Framer vs Storyblok
- Ghost vs Storyblok
- HubSpot CMS vs Storyblok
- Hygraph vs Storyblok
- Instatic vs Storyblok
- Joomla vs Storyblok
- Keystone vs Storyblok
- Kirby vs Storyblok
- Liferay DXP vs Storyblok
- Optimizely CMS vs Storyblok
- Storyblok vs Payload
- Prismic vs Storyblok
- Progress Sitefinity vs Storyblok
- Sanity vs Storyblok
- Sitecore vs Storyblok
- Squarespace vs Storyblok
- Statamic vs Storyblok
- Storyblok vs Strapi
- Storyblok vs TYPO3
- Storyblok vs Umbraco
- Storyblok vs Wagtail
- Storyblok vs Webflow
- Storyblok vs Wix
- Storyblok vs WordPress
- Xperience by Kentico vs Storyblok
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