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CMS comparison Craft CMS vs Framer

Craft CMS vs Framer

Craft CMS is a closed-source traditional CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Framer is a closed-source site builder 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
  • Framer Site builder · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Craft CMS on 29 Sept 2026, Framer 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 Framer feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Craft CMS Traditional
Framer Site builder
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 visual site builder with a CMS, hosting and AI agents. Designers build pages on a canvas. Run by Framer.
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 Framer 3.0 site plans, Free to Enterprise SaaS, continuously updated
Vendor Pixel & Tonic craftcms.com Framer B.V. framer.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 A paid plan is required to connect a custom domain.
Built with PHP, Yii 2, TwigHosted SaaS with React code components
Database MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQLManaged by Framer
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. Basic $10, Pro $30 per site per month billed yearly. Extra editors $20 per month.
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 Not available You build collections in the editor or sync them through the Plugin and Server APIs. 313
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 13
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 Components with properties that content editors can change on-page. 14
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 Plugin or add-on Translation locales add-on, $20 per locale per month. One free locale to try. 117
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 Generates 512 to 4096 px variants served through srcset. 8
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 Limited Server API in open beta, through the framer-api package over WebSocket. No plain REST. 23
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in 111 Not available
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 Not available Webhooks cover form submissions only. 10
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. Built in
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 CMS items can stay in draft. 13
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 Not available No native scheduling. Third-party Marketplace plugins add it. 18
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 Built in Version history and rollback of published versions. 67
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in 1 Built in
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 Canvas editing and on-page editing of the live site. 14
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 Limited Editors review and merge Pro branches. Only Deploy permission publishes. No stages. 45
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Not available Paid tier Branching on Pro groups changes and ships them in one merge. 15
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 Built in Free workspaces allow up to three editors. 1
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 Limited Fixed roles plus Design, Content and Deploy permissions per project. No role builder. 4
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
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. 116
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 Not available Not documented publicly.
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 A workspace holds many site projects, each on its own plan. 4
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in 18 Built in Plugins add custom panels and tools to the editor. 11
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Craft Plugin Store. 1 Built in Framer Marketplace. 12
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 Built in Native forms. Submissions can also go to a webhook. 10
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. Built in Agents write, rewrite and translate content. AI credits meter usage. 115
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 Not available No MCP server. External Agents, in preview, link AI tools through a CLI and skills. 9

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

Where they differ

Craft CMS and Framer 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, Framer 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.

Self-hosting
Craft CMS can be self-hosted. Framer cannot be self-hosted.

Built in on Craft CMS, a different answer on Framer 4

  • Content model in code Craft CMS: Built in. Framer: Not available.
  • Localization Craft CMS: Built in. Framer: Plugin or add-on.
  • GraphQL API Craft CMS: Built in. Framer: Not available.
  • Scheduled publishing Craft CMS: Built in. Framer: Not available.

Built in on Framer, a different answer on Craft CMS 4

  • Visual editing Craft CMS: Limited. Framer: Built in.
  • Real-time co-editing Craft CMS: Not available. Framer: Built in.
  • Form builder Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. Framer: Built in.
  • AI writing assistant Craft CMS: Not available. Framer: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 7

  • REST API Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. Framer: Limited.
  • Webhooks Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. Framer: Not available.
  • Approval workflows Craft CMS: Plugin or add-on. Framer: Limited.
  • Content releases Craft CMS: Not available. Framer: Paid tier.
  • Custom roles Craft CMS: Paid tier. Framer: Limited.
  • Field-level permissions Craft CMS: Paid tier. Framer: Not available.
  • Site member accounts Craft CMS: Paid tier. Framer: Not available.

More comparisons

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

Craft CMS against other platforms

Framer against other platforms

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

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