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CMS comparison Directus vs Wagtail

Directus vs Wagtail

Directus is a closed-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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  • Directus Headless · Closed source · 18 of 28 built in
  • Wagtail Traditional · Open source · 18 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Directus 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
Directus vs Wagtail feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Directus Headless
Wagtail 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 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. Directus 12, self-hosted core tier or licensed plans, with optional Directus Cloud Version 12.4.1, released 23 Sept 2026 Wagtail 8, open source Version 8.0, released 25 Aug 2026
Vendor Monospace Inc. directus.com Wagtail core team (created by Torchbox) wagtail.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 BSD-3-Clause
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 The Wagtail project runs no managed hosting. Deploy it like any Django app.
Built with TypeScript, Node.js, VuePython, Django
Database PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite, MS SQL Server, Oracle, CockroachDBPostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, 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. 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 Schema snapshots are files in the repo, applied to an instance with the CLI. 16 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. Built in 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 Page builders use many-to-any relations. 17 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 Translations field with related translation records. 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. Built in URL parameters and saved presets. 13 Built in Renditions with resize, crop and format filters. 4
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in 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. Built in 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. Built in Through Flows. Core allows 5 Flows. 219 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 Built in
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
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 Go-live and expiry dates. 7
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 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 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. Built in Visual Editor module. The site adds the Directus frontend library. 7 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 Built from a status field and custom permissions, which need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 152 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. Built in Collaborative Editing with field locking. 8 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. Built in Unlimited roles on Core. Custom access policies need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 220 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. Paid tier Custom permissions for fields and item rules need Team, Enterprise or the grant. 25 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. Paid tier Team plan and up, or the grant. SAML, OpenID, OAuth 2.0 and LDAP. 211 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. Limited Activity log kept 30 days on Core, 90 on Team, configurable on Enterprise. 212 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. Not available 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 Extensions add interfaces, layouts, panels and modules. Built in Hooks, viewsets and custom panels.
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Marketplace inside the Studio. 18 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. Built in API-only application users do not use Studio seats. 3 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. Built in AI Assistant on every plan with your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key. 29 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. Built in Built in since 11.12. 10 Limited Experimental wagtail-mcp package, announced September 2026. 16

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)

Wagtail sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Wagtail 8, open source.

  1. Wagtail 8.0 release notes
  2. How to use StreamField for mixed content
  3. Wagtail docs: Internationalization
  4. Wagtail docs: Images
  5. Wagtail API v2 usage guide
  6. wagtail-grapple on GitHub
  7. Wagtail guide: Scheduled publishing
  8. Wagtail guide: Configure workflows for moderation
  9. Wagtail docs: Permissions
  10. Wagtail docs: Panels reference
  11. Wagtail docs: Audit log
  12. Wagtail 6.2: content metrics and concurrent editing
  13. Wagtail docs: Form builder
  14. Wagtail docs: Private pages
  15. Wagtail AI
  16. Experiments with MCP in Wagtail
  17. Wagtail docs: Packages
  18. Wagtail docs: Signals
  19. django-allauth: SAML provider
  20. Wagtail 4.0 release notes: live preview panel

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

Where they differ

Directus and Wagtail 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, 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.

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). Wagtail is open source (BSD-3-Clause).
Vendor cloud
Directus has a vendor-run cloud. Wagtail has no vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Directus, a different answer on Wagtail 8

  • Content model in the UI Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Not available.
  • GraphQL API Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Plugin or add-on.
  • Webhooks Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Not available.
  • Visual editing Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Limited.
  • Real-time co-editing Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Not available.
  • Site member accounts Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Limited.
  • AI writing assistant Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Plugin or add-on.
  • Official MCP server Directus: Built in. Wagtail: Limited.

Built in on Wagtail, a different answer on Directus 8

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

Built in on neither, with different answers 1

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

More comparisons

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

Directus against other platforms

Wagtail against other platforms

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

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