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CMS comparison Craft CMS vs DatoCMS

Craft CMS vs DatoCMS

Craft CMS is a closed-source traditional CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. DatoCMS 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 15.

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  • Craft CMS Traditional · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in
  • DatoCMS Headless · Closed source · 16 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Craft CMS on 29 Sept 2026, DatoCMS 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
Craft CMS vs DatoCMS feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Craft CMS Traditional
DatoCMS Headless
Overview
What it is Self-hosted PHP CMS with custom fields and Twig templates. Pixel & Tonic sells licences per project and runs Craft Cloud hosting.Hosted headless CMS run by DatoCMS. It delivers content over a GraphQL API, with a REST API for content management.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Craft CMS 5 in Solo, Team and Pro editions. Craft 6 is in alpha. Version 5.11.3, released 18 Sept 2026 DatoCMS SaaS, Free, Professional and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated
Vendor Pixel & Tonic craftcms.com DatoCMS datocms.com
Licence Closed source Proprietary Craft License, source available Closed source Proprietary
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Craft Cloud starts at $120 per month per project and includes a Team licence. No self-hosting Vendor cloud
Built with PHP, Yii 2, TwigHosted SaaS with GraphQL delivery and REST management APIs, TypeScript client
Database MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQLManaged by DatoCMS
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Solo free for one user. Team $279, Pro $399 per project, then $99 per year for updates. Enterprise on request. Free to start Free plan. Professional €149 per month billed annually, or €199 monthly. 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 Project config YAML records sections, entry types and fields for Git. 7 Limited Migration scripts run by the DatoCMS CLI, auto-generated from environment diffs. 12
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in 6 Built in 1
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Matrix fields with nested entry types. 8 Built in Block library used in modular content and Structured Text fields. 1
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Per-site and per-language field translation on every edition. 61 Built in Field-level locales, 5 included and up to 10 with paid add-ons. 1
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in 10 Built in Images API with imgix URL parameters. 3
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Plugin or add-on Free first-party Element API plugin. 12 Built in REST Content Management API reads records. Delivery is GraphQL. 111
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in 111 Built in 1
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Plugin or add-on Free first-party Webhooks plugin. 13 Built in 1
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Twig templates. Not available
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in 14 Built in 1
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Built in Post date and expiry date on entries. 15 Built in 1
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Editors can view and restore revisions. 14 Limited History kept 3 days on Free, 60 days on Professional. 1
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in 1 Built in 17
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Limited Live Preview shows the edit form beside the page. No click-to-edit. 14 Built in Click-to-edit overlays on the site in draft mode. 17
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Plugin or add-on Workflow plugin by Verbb, $49. 16 Paid tier Editorial workflows with stage permissions on Enterprise. 16
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Not available Limited Publishing a record can also publish its linked records. No standalone releases. 1
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 Presence and live updates, but a record locks while one editor edits it. 4
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Paid tier Pro. Team allows one user group. Solo has one user. 51 Built in Projects include Admin and Editor roles and can create additional roles. The Free plan is limited to 2 editor seats. 15
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Paid tier Per-field Current User Condition. Rules by user group need Pro. 65 Not available Rules apply per model, creator, locale and workflow stage. Locale rules need Enterprise. 5
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Paid tier First-party SAML SSO on Enterprise. 13 Paid tier Enterprise, with SCIM provisioning. 1
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Not available No core log. Craft 5 audit plugins exist but are niche. 20 Paid tier Enterprise. 1
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Built in Included on every edition. 19 Built in Separate projects per site. 3 on Free, extra projects €39 a month on Professional. 1
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in 18 Built in Plugin SDK for field editors, sidebars and custom pages. 1
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Craft Plugin Store. 1 Built in DatoCMS Marketplace. 19
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Formie by Verbb, $99. Pricing page lists forms as plugin-only. 171 Not available
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Paid tier Public registration needs Pro. 5 Not available
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Not available No first-party AI feature. Plugin or add-on Official AI Translations plugin with your own OpenAI, Gemini, Claude or DeepL key. 89
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Not available Third-party Craft CMS MCP plugin by Stimmt Digital. 19 Built in Remote MCP server at mcp.datocms.com. 10

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

Where they differ

Craft CMS and DatoCMS get a different status on 15 of the 28 features and the same status on 13. Craft CMS has 14 built in on its baseline edition, DatoCMS has 16. 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
Craft CMS can be self-hosted. DatoCMS cannot be self-hosted.

Built in on Craft CMS, a different answer on DatoCMS 3

  • Content model in code Craft CMS: Built in. DatoCMS: Limited.
  • Renders the website Craft CMS: Built in. DatoCMS: Not available.
  • Version history Craft CMS: Built in. DatoCMS: Limited.

Built in on DatoCMS, a different answer on Craft CMS 5

  • REST API Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. DatoCMS: Built in.
  • Webhooks Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. DatoCMS: Built in.
  • Visual editing Craft CMS: Limited. DatoCMS: Built in.
  • Custom roles Craft CMS: Paid tier. DatoCMS: Built in.
  • Official MCP server Craft CMS: Not available. DatoCMS: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 7

  • Approval workflows Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. DatoCMS: Paid tier.
  • Content releases Craft CMS: Not available. DatoCMS: Limited.
  • Field-level permissions Craft CMS: Paid tier. DatoCMS: Not available.
  • Audit log Craft CMS: Not available. DatoCMS: Paid tier.
  • Form builder Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. DatoCMS: Not available.
  • Site member accounts Craft CMS: Paid tier. DatoCMS: Not available.
  • AI writing assistant Craft CMS: Not available. DatoCMS: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

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

Craft CMS against other platforms

DatoCMS against other platforms

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

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