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CMS comparison Decap CMS vs Drupal

Decap CMS vs Drupal

Decap CMS is an open-source headless CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Drupal 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 18.

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  • Decap CMS Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
  • Drupal Traditional · Open source · 16 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Decap CMS on 29 Sept 2026, Drupal 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
Decap CMS vs Drupal feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Decap CMS Headless
Drupal Traditional
Overview
What it is Open-source Git-based CMS. A React admin app added to your site edits Markdown, YAML or JSON files and commits them to your repository.Open-source PHP CMS with fieldable content types, core JSON:API and multilingual modules. Teams self-host it or use Drupal hosting platforms.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Decap CMS 3, open source. Decap Turbo hosted backend is in public preview. Version 3.16.3, released 22 Sept 2026 Drupal 11 core. Drupal CMS 2 bundles core with selected contrib modules. Version 11.4.8, released 26 Sept 2026
Vendor Decap CMS project (formerly Netlify CMS), maintained in Europe decapcms.org Drupal community, supported by the Drupal Association drupal.org
Licence Open source MIT Open source GPL-2.0-or-later
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Decap Turbo, a hosted backend for login and Git access, is in public preview. Self-hosting No vendor cloud Acquia, Pantheon and other companies sell managed Drupal hosting.
Built with JavaScript, ReactPHP, Symfony, Twig
Database Your Git repository on GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea or AzureMySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQLite
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free and open source. The Decap Turbo hosted backend, in public preview, has a Free plan and Pro at €19 per month. Free to start Free and open source. Hosting, support and contrib services cost extra.
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 Collections and fields are defined in config.yml. 6 Built in Content types and fields export to YAML config files.
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Not available Built in Field UI in core.
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in List widget with variable types. 7 Built in Layout Builder in core. Paragraphs and Drupal Canvas are contrib. 910
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Side-by-side editing per locale, stored per folder, file or field. 8 Built in Field-level content translation in core. 7
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Not available Media goes to the repo or an external media library. Built in Image styles scale, crop and convert images. 8
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Not available Content is files in Git. Read them through the Git host API. 2 Built in JSON:API and REST modules in core. 3
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Not available Plugin or add-on GraphQL contrib module. Developers build the schema. 4
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Not available Use the Git host's webhooks on commit. Plugin or add-on Webhooks contrib module. Core has no outgoing webhooks. 18
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Not available Pairs with a static site generator. 2 Built in Twig themes.
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Editorial workflow keeps drafts on a branch until merged. 9 Built in Drafts of published content need the core Content Moderation module. 5
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Not available Plugin or add-on Scheduler contrib module. 11
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Not available History lives in Git. The CMS has no revision view. Built in Revert in core. Side-by-side compare needs the Diff contrib module.
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Preview pane with custom templates and styles. 10 Built in Preview button on the edit form.
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Limited Preview pane beside the form. No click-to-edit on the live page. 10 Limited Layout Builder edits blocks on a rendered preview. Drupal Canvas is contrib. 910
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Limited Fixed Drafts, In review and Ready stages. No per-stage permissions. 9 Built in Workflows and Content Moderation modules in core. 5
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Not available Built in Workspaces module, stable in core since 10.3. 6
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. Plugin or add-on Decap Turbo, in public preview, has a custom roles add-on at €19 per month on Pro. Core uses Git access. 1214 Built in
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available Plugin or add-on Field Permissions contrib module. 12
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Limited Sign-in runs through the Git host or Turbo. SAML only where the Git host enforces it. 413 Plugin or add-on OpenID Connect or SAML Authentication contrib modules. 13
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Plugin or add-on Decap Turbo, in public preview, has an activity log on its Free plan. Core has Git history only. 12 Limited Database Logging records content events by user. It caps and prunes entries. 20
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Plugin or add-on Decap Turbo organizations share members across sites. Turbo is in public preview. Extra sites €10/month. 1412 Plugin or add-on Domain contrib module. Core multisite shares only the codebase. 14
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Custom widgets, preview templates and editor components. 1110 Built in Custom field widgets, forms and admin routes.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Not available No official extension directory. Built in drupal.org module directory.
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Not available Plugin or add-on Webform contrib module. Core Contact is deprecated in 11.4. 152
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Not available Built in
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Not available Plugin or add-on AI module from the Drupal AI Initiative, bundled with Drupal CMS. 1619
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Not available Not available Community contrib only, e.g. the MCP Server module by Lullabot and Omedia. 17

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

Where they differ

Decap CMS and Drupal get a different status on 18 of the 28 features and the same status on 10. Decap CMS has 6 built in on its baseline edition, Drupal 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.

Vendor cloud
Decap CMS has a vendor-run cloud. Drupal has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Drupal, a different answer on Decap CMS 10

  • Content model in the UI Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Image transformations Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • REST API Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Renders the website Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Version history Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Approval workflows Decap CMS: Limited. Drupal: Built in.
  • Content releases Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Custom roles Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Drupal: Built in.
  • Plugin marketplace Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.
  • Site member accounts Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 8

  • GraphQL API Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • Webhooks Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • Scheduled publishing Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • Field-level permissions Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • Single sign-on Decap CMS: Limited. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • Audit log Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Drupal: Limited.
  • Form builder Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.
  • AI writing assistant Decap CMS: Not available. Drupal: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

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

Decap CMS against other platforms

Drupal against other platforms

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

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