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CMS comparison CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Craft CMS

CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Craft CMS

CoreMedia Content Cloud is a closed-source enterprise DXP that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Craft CMS is a closed-source traditional CMS 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 12.

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  • CoreMedia Content Cloud Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 18 of 28 built in
  • Craft CMS Traditional · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in

Sources checked: CoreMedia Content Cloud on 29 Sept 2026, Craft CMS 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
CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Craft CMS feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
CoreMedia Content Cloud Enterprise DXP
Craft CMS Traditional
Overview
What it is 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.Self-hosted PHP CMS with custom fields and Twig templates. Pixel & Tonic sells licences per project and runs Craft Cloud hosting.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. CoreMedia Content Cloud v13, or CMCC 13 Version 2512.1.1, released 10 Aug 2026 Craft CMS 5 in Solo, Team and Pro editions. Craft 6 is in alpha. Version 5.11.3, released 18 Sept 2026
Vendor CoreMedia GmbH coremedia.com Pixel & Tonic craftcms.com
Licence Closed source Proprietary Closed source Proprietary Craft License, source available
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Event Hub webhooks are an add-on for the CoreMedia cloud service only. Self-hosting Vendor cloud Craft Cloud starts at $120 per month per project and includes a Team licence.
Built with Java, Spring Boot, TypeScript for StudioPHP, Yii 2, Twig
Database Relational database: PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, SQL ServerMySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. No free option Pricing on request. Free to start Solo free for one user. Team $279, Pro $399 per project, then $99 per year for updates. Enterprise 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. Built in XML files in the project workspace define content types. 3 Built in Project config YAML records sections, entry types and fields for Git. 7
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Not available Content type changes need a developer and a deployment. 3 Built in 6
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Page grid placements hold reusable content items. 4 Built in Matrix fields with nested entry types. 8
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Limited Each locale is a derived site linked to a master site, with a translation workflow. 5 Built in Per-site and per-language field translation on every edition. 61
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in Named image variants and crops in the CAE and Headless Server. 6 Built in 10
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in REST endpoints mapped from persisted GraphQL queries. 7 Plugin or add-on Free first-party Element API plugin. 12
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in Headless Server. 7 Built in 111
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Plugin or add-on Event Hub add-on service for cloud service subscribers. 89 Plugin or add-on Free first-party Webhooks plugin. 13
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Content Application Engine with FreeMarker templates. 1 Built in Twig templates.
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Built in 14
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Built in Valid-from and valid-to dates plus a scheduled publication workflow. 11 Built in Post date and expiry date on entries. 15
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Built in Editors can view and restore revisions. 14
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in 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 In-preview editing in Studio, also for headless frontends. 10 Limited Live Preview shows the edit form beside the page. No click-to-edit. 14
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Built in Workflow Server with configurable publication workflows. 1113 Plugin or add-on Workflow plugin by Verbb, $49. 16
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Limited Projects group content. A publication set carries linked items along. 1213 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. Not available Not available
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in Rights rules per group, folder and content type. 14 Paid tier Pro. Team allows one user group. Solo has one user. 51
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available Rights apply per folder and content type. 14 Paid tier Per-field Current User Condition. Rules by user group need Pro. 65
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Built in Studio login runs on Spring Security. A project swaps in a redirect-based SSO provider. 1516 Paid tier First-party SAML SSO on Enterprise. 13
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Built in Records who changed what and when; supports reversions. Retention, export and edition limits are not public: confirm in the contract. 16 Not available No core log. Craft 5 audit plugins exist but are niche. 20
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Built in Built in Included on every edition. 19
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Studio plugins. Built in 18
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in CoreMedia Marketplace. 17 Built in Craft Plugin Store. 1
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Formcentric for CoreMedia, a partner product from the Marketplace. 18 Plugin or add-on Formie by Verbb, $99. Pricing page lists forms as plugin-only. 171
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Plugin or add-on Elastic Social module manages site users and comments. 19 Paid tier Public registration needs Pro. 5
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Plugin or add-on KIO Co-Pilot needs a licence with KIO enabled. 20 Not available No first-party AI feature.
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Not available None for content. The only official MCP server covers Engagement Cloud analytics. 20 Not available Third-party Craft CMS MCP plugin by Stimmt Digital. 19

CoreMedia Content Cloud sources

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

  1. CoreMedia release notes: 2512.1.1
  2. CoreMedia Content Management System
  3. Content Server Manual: Structure of content type definitions
  4. Studio User Manual: Editing a page grid
  5. Studio User Manual: Translation to derived sites
  6. CAE Developer Manual: Image Transformation API
  7. Headless Server Developer Manual: Mapping REST access
  8. Introduction to the Event Hub Service
  9. Service description: Event Hub
  10. Introducing in-preview editing for CoreMedia Content Cloud
  11. Scheduled publication workflow
  12. How to use projects in Studio (CMCC 13)
  13. Publication steps and best practices
  14. Studio User Manual: Permissions and rights
  15. Studio Developer Manual 2512.1: Single Sign On Integration
  16. CoreMedia: security, access control and audit trails
  17. CoreMedia Marketplace
  18. Formcentric Form Manager on CoreMedia Marketplace
  19. Studio User Manual 2512.0: Elastic Social
  20. Introduction to KIO Co-Pilot

Craft CMS sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Craft CMS 5 in Solo, Team and Pro editions. Craft 6 is in alpha..

  1. Craft CMS pricing
  2. Craft Cloud pricing
  3. Craft CMS Enterprise
  4. Craft 5 docs: Licensing and editions
  5. Craft 5 docs: User management
  6. Craft 5 docs: Custom fields
  7. Craft 5 docs: Project config
  8. Craft 5 docs: Matrix fields
  9. Craft 5 docs: Sites and localization
  10. Craft 5 docs: Image transforms
  11. Craft 5 docs: GraphQL API
  12. Element API plugin (Pixel & Tonic)
  13. Webhooks plugin (Pixel & Tonic)
  14. Craft 5 docs: Drafts and revisions
  15. Craft 5 docs: Entries
  16. Workflow plugin by Verbb
  17. Formie plugin by Verbb
  18. Craft 5 docs: Extending Craft
  19. Craft CMS MCP plugin by Stimmt Digital
  20. Trails audit plugin

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

Where they differ

CoreMedia Content Cloud and Craft CMS get a different status on 12 of the 28 features and the same status on 16. CoreMedia Content Cloud has 18 built in on its baseline edition, Craft CMS 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.

Free option
CoreMedia Content Cloud has no free option. Craft CMS has a free option.

Built in on CoreMedia Content Cloud, a different answer on Craft CMS 6

  • REST API CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on.
  • Visual editing CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Limited.
  • Approval workflows CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on.
  • Custom roles CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Paid tier.
  • Single sign-on CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Paid tier.
  • Audit log CoreMedia Content Cloud: Built in. Craft CMS: Not available.

Built in on Craft CMS, a different answer on CoreMedia Content Cloud 2

  • Content model in the UI CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available. Craft CMS: Built in.
  • Localization CoreMedia Content Cloud: Limited. Craft CMS: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 4

  • Content releases CoreMedia Content Cloud: Limited. Craft CMS: Not available.
  • Field-level permissions CoreMedia Content Cloud: Not available. Craft CMS: Paid tier.
  • Site member accounts CoreMedia Content Cloud: Plugin or add-on. Craft CMS: Paid tier.
  • AI writing assistant CoreMedia Content Cloud: Plugin or add-on. Craft CMS: Not available.

More comparisons

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

CoreMedia Content Cloud against other platforms

Craft CMS against other platforms

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

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