CMS comparison Decap CMS vs Liferay DXP

Decap CMS vs Liferay DXP

Decap CMS is an open-source headless CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Liferay DXP is a closed-source enterprise DXP 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 20.

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Decap CMS Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
Liferay DXP Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 26 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Decap CMS on 29 Sept 2026, Liferay DXP 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 Liferay DXP feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform	Decap CMS Headless	Liferay DXP Enterprise DXP
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.	Java platform for websites, portals and commerce, with a new object-based CMS. Self-hosted or run by Liferay as PaaS or SaaS.
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	Liferay DXP 2026.Q3, Enterprise Subscription. The Free Tier replaced Liferay Portal CE from 2026.Q1. Version 2026.q3.5, released 25 Sept 2026
Vendor	Decap CMS project (formerly Netlify CMS), maintained in Europe decapcms.org	Liferay, Inc. liferay.com
Licence	Open source MIT	Closed source Proprietary, under the Liferay EULA. Free Tier activation key at no cost
Hosting	Self-hosting Vendor cloud Decap Turbo, a hosted backend for login and Git access, is in public preview.	Self-hosting Vendor cloud Free Tier suits smaller-scale use and gets no security patches, SAML or AI Hub.
Built with	JavaScript, React	Java, OSGi, React
Database	Your Git repository on GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea or Azure	MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, IBM Db2
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 Tier at no cost for smaller-scale use. Enterprise Subscription per server instance, price 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 Definitions export to JSON and deploy from the repo as batch client extensions. 7
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 Objects and web content structures. 6
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 Fragments on content pages. 11
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
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 Adaptive Media generates set image resolutions. 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 Headless REST APIs. 9
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content.	Not available	Built in 9
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.	Built in Object actions call a webhook on add, update or delete. 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	Built in
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
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish.	Not available	Built in Display and expiration dates.
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
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
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	Built in Inline editing in the content page editor. 11
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 Kaleo workflow, also included in the Free Tier. 3
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release.	Not available	Built in Publications group changes and publish them together. 12
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 A page locks while one editor has it open. 13
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. 12 14	Built in
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries.	Not available	Not available Permissions apply per object, entry or asset. 14
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. 4 13	Built in SAML and OpenID Connect. The Free Tier lacks SAML. 3 15
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	Built in Audit framework with search and export of events. 16
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. 14 12	Built in
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. 11 10	Built in Client extensions. 7
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions.	Not available No official extension directory.	Built in Liferay Marketplace. 17
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code.	Not available	Built in Liferay Forms.
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	Built in AI Hub writing tools in the new CMS. Not in the Free Tier. 4 18
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content.	Not available	Built in Built-in MCP server released in 2026.Q3, switched on by feature flag. 19

Decap CMS sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Decap CMS 3, open source. Decap Turbo hosted backend is in public preview..

Liferay DXP sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Liferay DXP 2026.Q3, Enterprise Subscription. The Free Tier replaced Liferay Portal CE from 2026.Q1..

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

Where they differ

Decap CMS and Liferay DXP get a different status on 20 of the 28 features and the same status on 8. Decap CMS has 6 built in on its baseline edition, Liferay DXP has 26. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Licence: Decap CMS is open source (MIT). Liferay DXP is closed source (Proprietary, under the Liferay EULA. Free Tier activation key at no cost).

Built in on Liferay DXP, a different answer on Decap CMS 20

Content model in the UI Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Image transformations Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
REST API Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
GraphQL API Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Webhooks Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Renders the website Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Scheduled publishing Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Version history Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Visual editing Decap CMS: Limited. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Approval workflows Decap CMS: Limited. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Content releases Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Custom roles Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Single sign-on Decap CMS: Limited. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Audit log Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Multiple sites Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Plugin marketplace Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Form builder Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Site member accounts Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
AI writing assistant Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.
Official MCP server Decap CMS: Not available. Liferay DXP: Built in.

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