Decap CMS vs Keystone
Decap CMS is an open-source headless CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Keystone is an open-source headless CMS that you host yourself. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 12.
- Decap CMS Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
- Keystone Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
Sources checked: Decap CMS on 29 Sept 2026, Keystone 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
| Platform |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Node.js headless CMS from Thinkmill that generates a GraphQL API and an admin UI from a TypeScript schema. |
| 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 | Keystone 6, open source, from the @keystone-6/core package Version 8.1.0, released 31 Aug 2026 |
| Vendor | Decap CMS project (formerly Netlify CMS), maintained in Europe decapcms.org | Thinkmill keystonejs.com |
| Licence | Open source MIT | Open source MIT |
| Hosting | Self-hosting Vendor cloud Decap Turbo, a hosted backend for login and Git access, is in public preview. | Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. Thinkmill offers enterprise support. |
| Built with | JavaScript, React | TypeScript, Node.js, GraphQL, Prisma, Next.js for the admin UI |
| Database | Your Git repository on GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea or Azure | PostgreSQL, MySQL, 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. Enterprise support from Thinkmill 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 Collections and fields are defined in config.yml. 6 | Built in Lists and fields are TypeScript config. 4 |
| Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. | Not available | Not available |
| 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 Component blocks inside the document field. 8 |
| 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 | Not available No locale support documented. Model translations yourself. 12 |
| 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. | Not available Image field stores originals. The Cloudinary field hands resizing to Cloudinary. 711 |
| 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 | Not available GraphQL only. Custom REST routes through extendExpressApp. 4 |
| GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. | Not available | Built in |
| 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. | Not available No webhook settings. Call URLs from hooks in code. 10 |
| 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 | Not available |
| 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 | Not available |
| Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. | Not available | Not available |
| 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. | Not available |
| 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 | Not available |
| 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 | Not available |
| 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 | Not available |
| Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. | Not available | 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. | 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 | Limited Roles are access-control functions written in code. No role editor in the admin. 5 |
| Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. | Not available | Built in Field-level access control. 5 |
| 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 | Not available The auth package covers password login. SSO means custom session code. 6 |
| 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 | Not available |
| 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 | Not available |
| 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 admin pages, navigation and field views. 9 |
| Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. | Not available No official extension directory. | Not available |
| 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 | Built in createAuth works on any list, including site users. 6 |
| AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. | Not available | Not available |
| Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. | Not available | Not available |
Decap CMS sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Decap CMS 3, open source. Decap Turbo hosted backend is in public preview..
- Decap CMS releases on GitHub
- Decap CMS overview
- Decap CMS features
- Decap docs: Backends overview
- Decap docs: Git Gateway backend
- Decap docs: Widgets
- Decap docs: Variable type widgets
- Decap docs: i18n support
- Decap docs: Editorial workflows
- Decap docs: Creating custom previews
- Decap docs: Creating custom widgets
- Decap Turbo plans
- Decap Turbo overview
- Decap Turbo: Organizations, sites and roles
- Decap Turbo: Billing and plans
Keystone sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Keystone 6, open source, from the @keystone-6/core package.
- @keystone-6/core on the npm registry
- Keystone releases on GitHub
- Keystone homepage
- Keystone docs: System configuration
- Keystone docs: Access control
- Keystone docs: Authentication
- Keystone docs: Image field
- Keystone docs: Document field demo
- Keystone docs: Custom admin UI pages
- Keystone docs: Hooks guide
- Keystone docs: Cloudinary image field
- Keystone documentation index (llms.txt)
Considering more platforms? Compare Decap CMS and Keystone with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.
Where they differ
Decap CMS and Keystone get a different status on 12 of the 28 features and the same status on 16. Decap CMS has 6 built in on its baseline edition, Keystone has 6. 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. Keystone has no vendor-run cloud.
Built in on Decap CMS, a different answer on Keystone 3
- Localization Decap CMS: Built in. Keystone: Not available.
- Drafts Decap CMS: Built in. Keystone: Not available.
- Preview Decap CMS: Built in. Keystone: Not available.
Built in on Keystone, a different answer on Decap CMS 3
- GraphQL API Decap CMS: Not available. Keystone: Built in.
- Field-level permissions Decap CMS: Not available. Keystone: Built in.
- Site member accounts Decap CMS: Not available. Keystone: Built in.
Built in on neither, with different answers 6
- Visual editing Decap CMS: Limited. Keystone: Not available.
- Approval workflows Decap CMS: Limited. Keystone: Not available.
- Custom roles Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Keystone: Limited.
- Single sign-on Decap CMS: Limited. Keystone: Not available.
- Audit log Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Keystone: Not available.
- Multiple sites Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Keystone: Not available.
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Keystone against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Keystone
- Contentful vs Keystone
- Contentstack vs Keystone
- CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Keystone
- Craft CMS vs Keystone
- DatoCMS vs Keystone
- Directus vs Keystone
- Drupal vs Keystone
- EmDash vs Keystone
- FirstSpirit vs Keystone
- Framer vs Keystone
- Ghost vs Keystone
- HubSpot CMS vs Keystone
- Hygraph vs Keystone
- Instatic vs Keystone
- Joomla vs Keystone
- Keystone vs Kirby
- Keystone vs Liferay DXP
- Keystone vs Optimizely CMS
- Keystone vs Payload
- Keystone vs Prismic
- Keystone vs Progress Sitefinity
- Keystone vs Sanity
- Keystone vs Sitecore
- Keystone vs Squarespace
- Keystone vs Statamic
- Keystone vs Storyblok
- Keystone vs Strapi
- Keystone vs TYPO3
- Keystone vs Umbraco
- Keystone vs Wagtail
- Keystone vs Webflow
- Keystone vs Wix
- Keystone vs WordPress
- Xperience by Kentico vs Keystone
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