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CMS comparison Decap CMS vs Wagtail

Decap CMS vs Wagtail

Decap CMS is an open-source headless CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Wagtail 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 17.

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  • Decap CMS Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
  • Wagtail Traditional · Open source · 18 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Decap CMS on 29 Sept 2026, Wagtail 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 Wagtail feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Decap CMS Headless
Wagtail 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 CMS built on Django. Content types are Python models, and you host it yourself on any Python stack.
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 Wagtail 8, open source Version 8.0, released 25 Aug 2026
Vendor Decap CMS project (formerly Netlify CMS), maintained in Europe decapcms.org Wagtail core team (created by Torchbox) wagtail.org
Licence Open source MIT Open source BSD-3-Clause
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Decap Turbo, a hosted backend for login and Git access, is in public preview. Self-hosting No vendor cloud The Wagtail project runs no managed hosting. Deploy it like any Django app.
Built with JavaScript, ReactPython, Django
Database Your Git repository on GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea or AzurePostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, 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. No licence fee.
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 Page and snippet types are Django models. 2
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 Developers define content types in Python only.
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 StreamField blocks. 2
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 Core i18n with simple_translation. The wagtail-localize package adds a translation workflow. 3
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 Renditions with resize, crop and format filters. 4
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 Read-only v2 API. Writable v3 API in preview since 8.0. 51
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Not available Plugin or add-on wagtail-grapple, maintained by Torchbox. 6
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 Django signals such as page_published. No webhook settings. 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
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 Go-live and expiry dates. 7
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 Editors can compare and revert revisions. 11
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 20
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 Preview panel beside the edit form. No click-to-edit on the page. 20
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 Moderation workflows with tasks assigned to groups. 8
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 Concurrent editing notifications warn editors. No live co-editing. 12
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 Groups with page, collection and model permissions. 9
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available Built in Set in code with the permission argument on panels. 10
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 django-allauth supports SAML and OpenID Connect. 19
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 Site-wide history report of logged actions. 11
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 Built in Several sites in one installation with shared users. 9
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 Hooks, viewsets and custom panels.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Not available No official extension directory. Built in Wagtail packages directory on wagtail.org. 17
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Not available Built in wagtail.contrib.forms form builder. 13
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Not available Limited Login for private pages is built in. Public sign-up needs a package such as django-allauth. 14
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Not available Plugin or add-on Wagtail AI, an officially supported package. 15
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Not available Limited Experimental wagtail-mcp package, announced September 2026. 16

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

Where they differ

Decap CMS and Wagtail get a different status on 17 of the 28 features and the same status on 11. Decap CMS has 6 built in on its baseline edition, Wagtail has 18. 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. Wagtail has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Wagtail, a different answer on Decap CMS 12

  • Image transformations Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • REST API Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Renders the website Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Scheduled publishing Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Version history Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Approval workflows Decap CMS: Limited. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Custom roles Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Field-level permissions Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Audit log Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Multiple sites Decap CMS: Plugin or add-on. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Plugin marketplace Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.
  • Form builder Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 5

  • GraphQL API Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Plugin or add-on.
  • Single sign-on Decap CMS: Limited. Wagtail: Plugin or add-on.
  • Site member accounts Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Limited.
  • AI writing assistant Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Plugin or add-on.
  • Official MCP server Decap CMS: Not available. Wagtail: Limited.

More comparisons

Decap CMS against other platforms

Wagtail against other platforms

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