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CMS comparison Directus vs TYPO3

Directus vs TYPO3

Directus is a closed-source headless CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. TYPO3 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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  • Directus Headless · Closed source · 18 of 28 built in
  • TYPO3 Traditional · Open source · 20 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Directus on 29 Sept 2026, TYPO3 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
Directus vs TYPO3 feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Directus Headless
TYPO3 Traditional
Overview
What it is Source-available data platform and headless CMS that puts a Studio admin app and REST and GraphQL APIs over your own SQL database.Open-source PHP CMS for multi-site, multilingual websites, with workspaces and granular backend permissions. Self-hosted, often run by agencies.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Directus 12, self-hosted core tier or licensed plans, with optional Directus Cloud Version 12.4.1, released 23 Sept 2026 TYPO3 v14 LTS, version 14.3, open source Version 14.3.7, released 8 Sept 2026
Vendor Monospace Inc. directus.com TYPO3 Association (project); TYPO3 GmbH sells support and extended LTS typo3.org
Licence Closed source MSCL-1.0-GPL, source-available, GPL-3.0 after four years. Free under $5M revenue and 50 staff via the Open Innovation Grant Open source GPL-2.0-or-later
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Directus Cloud is a $99 per month add-on for Core and Team. Enterprise cloud on request. Self-hosting No vendor cloud No vendor SaaS. TYPO3 agencies and hosts run managed installations.
Built with TypeScript, Node.js, VuePHP, Symfony components, Fluid
Database PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite, MS SQL Server, Oracle, CockroachDBMySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQLite
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Core free for 3 seats and 25 collections. Team $499 per month billed yearly or $599 monthly. Enterprise on request. Free to start Free and open source. Commercial support and extended LTS are sold separately.
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 Schema snapshots are files in the repo, applied to an instance with the CLI. 16 Built in TCA in PHP. The Content Blocks extension adds YAML definitions. 11
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in Plugin or add-on Mask extension builds content elements in the backend. 12
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Page builders use many-to-any relations. 17 Built in Content elements on pages, reordered by drag and drop.
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Translations field with related translation records. Built in Page and record translations. Guided translation wizard in v14. 2
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in URL parameters and saved presets. 13 Built in Server-side image processing with crop variants. 10
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in Plugin or add-on EXT:headless outputs pages as JSON. Core has no content API. 13
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in Not available
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Built in Through Flows. Core allows 5 Flows. 219 Built in Webhooks system extension, in core since v12. 6
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Not available Built in Fluid templates. Camino default theme in v14. 2
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Content versioning with a draft per item. 6 Built in Via the Workspaces system extension. 5
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Limited No schedule field. An official guide publishes future items with a scheduled Flow. 14 Built in Start and stop dates on pages and content.
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Limited Revisions kept 30 days on Core, 90 on Team, configurable on Enterprise. 2 Built in Record history with diff and undo.
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Built in Workspace preview links. 5
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in Visual Editor module. The site adds the Directus frontend library. 7 Plugin or add-on Visual Editor extension from Friends of TYPO3. TYPO3 plans core support for v15. 3
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Limited Built from a status field and custom permissions, which need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 152 Built in Custom stages in Workspaces. 5
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Not available Built in Workspaces publish staged changes together. 5
Real-time co-editing Two or more editors can work on the same entry at once and see each other's changes live. Built in Collaborative Editing with field locking. 8 Not available
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in Unlimited roles on Core. Custom access policies need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 220 Built in Backend user groups. 9
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Paid tier Custom permissions for fields and item rules need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 25 Built in Exclude fields per backend group. 9
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Paid tier Team plan and up, or the grant. SAML, OpenID, OAuth 2.0 and LDAP. 211 Plugin or add-on OpenID Connect extensions such as causal/oidc. 14
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Limited Activity log kept 30 days on Core, 90 on Team, configurable on Enterprise. 212 Built in Log module records backend changes by user.
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Not available Built in Several site configurations in one installation.
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Extensions add interfaces, layouts, panels and modules. Built in Backend modules and custom form elements.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Marketplace inside the Studio. 18 Built in TYPO3 Extension Repository. 16
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Not available Built in Form Framework with a backend form editor. 7
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Built in API-only application users do not use Studio seats. 3 Built in Frontend users and the felogin extension. 8
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Built in AI Assistant on every plan with your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key. 29 Not available Core ships AI integration points only. Third-party extensions such as AI Suite. 417
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in Built in since 11.12. 10 Not available Third-party only, e.g. hauptsache.net's TYPO3 MCP Server. 15

Directus sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Directus 12, self-hosted core tier or licensed plans, with optional Directus Cloud.

  1. directus on the npm registry
  2. Directus pricing
  3. Directus docs: Licensing overview
  4. Monospace Sustainable Core License
  5. Directus docs: Access control
  6. Directus docs: Content versioning
  7. Directus docs: Visual Editor
  8. Directus docs: Collaborative Editing
  9. Directus docs: AI Assistant
  10. Directus docs: Directus MCP
  11. Directus docs: Single Sign-On
  12. Directus docs: Accountability
  13. Directus docs: Transform files
  14. Directus tutorial: Schedule future content with Flows
  15. Directus tutorial: Content approval workflows with custom permissions
  16. Directus tutorial: Promoting changes between environments
  17. Directus tutorial: Reusable blocks with many-to-any relationships
  18. Directus docs: Marketplace
  19. Directus docs: Send Directus webhooks to Clay with Flows
  20. Directus license, MSCL and v12 questions (Contensu)

TYPO3 sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. TYPO3 v14 LTS, version 14.3, open source.

  1. get.typo3.org: latest TYPO3 14 release
  2. TYPO3 Releases v14 LTS (press release)
  3. Changing the Playing Field: Visual Editing in TYPO3 v14
  4. TYPO3 v14: Building a System for Community-Driven AI Integrations
  5. TYPO3 Workspaces documentation
  6. TYPO3 Webhooks documentation
  7. TYPO3 Form documentation
  8. TYPO3 Frontend Login documentation
  9. Access control options (TYPO3 Explained)
  10. Crop variants for images (TYPO3 Explained)
  11. TYPO3 Content Blocks documentation
  12. Mask extension (TER)
  13. EXT:headless documentation
  14. OpenID Connect integration for TYPO3
  15. hauptsacheNet/typo3-mcp-server on GitHub
  16. How to find extensions (Getting Started)
  17. AI Suite extension (TER)

Considering more platforms? Compare Directus and TYPO3 with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.

Where they differ

Directus and TYPO3 get a different status on 17 of the 28 features and the same status on 11. Directus has 18 built in on its baseline edition, TYPO3 has 20. 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
Directus is closed source (MSCL-1.0-GPL, source-available, GPL-3.0 after four years. Free under $5M revenue and 50 staff via the Open Innovation Grant). TYPO3 is open source (GPL-2.0-or-later).
Vendor cloud
Directus has a vendor-run cloud. TYPO3 has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Directus, a different answer on TYPO3 7

  • Content model in the UI Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Plugin or add-on.
  • REST API Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Plugin or add-on.
  • GraphQL API Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Not available.
  • Visual editing Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Plugin or add-on.
  • Real-time co-editing Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Not available.
  • AI writing assistant Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Not available.
  • Official MCP server Directus: Built in. TYPO3: Not available.

Built in on TYPO3, a different answer on Directus 9

  • Renders the website Directus: Not available. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Scheduled publishing Directus: Limited. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Version history Directus: Limited. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Approval workflows Directus: Limited. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Content releases Directus: Not available. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Field-level permissions Directus: Paid tier. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Audit log Directus: Limited. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Multiple sites Directus: Not available. TYPO3: Built in.
  • Form builder Directus: Not available. TYPO3: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 1

  • Single sign-on Directus: Paid tier. TYPO3: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

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

Directus against other platforms

TYPO3 against other platforms

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

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