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CMS comparison Drupal vs Strapi

Drupal vs Strapi

Drupal is an open-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. Strapi is an open-source headless CMS 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 14.

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  • Drupal Traditional · Open source · 16 of 28 built in
  • Strapi Headless · Open source · 15 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Drupal on 29 Sept 2026, Strapi 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
Drupal vs Strapi feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Drupal Traditional
Strapi Headless
Overview
What it is Open-source PHP CMS with fieldable content types, core JSON:API and multilingual modules. Teams self-host it or use Drupal hosting platforms.Open-source Node.js headless CMS with a visual content-type builder, self-hosted or run on Strapi Cloud. Paid plans add governance features.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Drupal 11 core. Drupal CMS 2 bundles core with selected contrib modules. Version 11.4.8, released 26 Sept 2026 Strapi 5 CMS, free Community edition with paid Growth and Enterprise plans for self-hosted projects Version 5.55.1, released 24 Sept 2026
Vendor Drupal community, supported by the Drupal Association drupal.org Strapi strapi.io
Licence Open source GPL-2.0-or-later Open source MIT
Hosting Self-hosting No vendor cloud Acquia, Pantheon and other companies sell managed Drupal hosting. Self-hosting Vendor cloud Strapi Cloud removed its free plan in 2026. Hosting starts at the Starter plan.
Built with PHP, Symfony, TwigTypeScript, Node.js, React
Database MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQLitePostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free and open source. Hosting, support and contrib services cost extra. Free to start Community free. Growth $45 per month with 3 seats, then $15 per seat. Cloud from $35 per project per month.
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 Content types and fields export to YAML config files. Built in Content types are schema.json files in the project. 19
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in Field UI in core. Built in Content-type Builder works in development mode only. 16
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Layout Builder in core. Paragraphs and Drupal Canvas are contrib. 910 Built in Components and dynamic zones. 216
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Field-level content translation in core. 7 Built in
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in Image styles scale, crop and convert images. 8 Built in Generates small, medium and large sizes on upload. No crops on request. 15
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in JSON:API and REST modules in core. 3 Built in 2
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Plugin or add-on GraphQL contrib module. Developers build the schema. 4 Plugin or add-on Official GraphQL plugin. 14
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Plugin or add-on Webhooks contrib module. Core has no outgoing webhooks. 18 Built in 218
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Twig themes. Not available
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Drafts of published content need the core Content Moderation module. 5 Built in Draft & Publish. 2
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Plugin or add-on Scheduler contrib module. 11 Paid tier Growth plan, by scheduling a Release. 6
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Revert in core. Side-by-side compare needs the Diff contrib module. Paid tier Content History keeps 14 days on Growth, 30 to 90 days on Enterprise. 7
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Preview button on the edit form. Built in Basic preview is free. Side-by-side Live Preview needs Growth. 5
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Limited Layout Builder edits blocks on a rendered preview. Drupal Canvas is contrib. 910 Paid tier On Growth, editors double-click content in Live Preview to edit it. 5
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Built in Workflows and Content Moderation modules in core. 5 Paid tier Review Workflows on Enterprise. 9
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Built in Workspaces module, stable in core since 10.3. 6 Paid tier Releases on Growth and Enterprise. 6
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. Built in Built in Unlimited admin roles on Community. 28
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Plugin or add-on Field Permissions contrib module. 12 Built in 8
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Plugin or add-on OpenID Connect or SAML Authentication contrib modules. 13 Paid tier Enterprise, or a $150 per month add-on on Growth. 211
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Limited Database Logging records content events by user. It caps and prunes entries. 20 Paid tier Enterprise plan. 10
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Plugin or add-on Domain contrib module. Core multisite shares only the codebase. 14 Not available
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Custom field widgets, forms and admin routes. Built in 20
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in drupal.org module directory. Built in Strapi Marketplace. 2
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Webform contrib module. Core Contact is deprecated in 11.4. 152 Not available
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Built in Built in Users & Permissions feature for end users. 17
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Plugin or add-on AI module from the Drupal AI Initiative, bundled with Drupal CMS. 1619 Paid tier AI translation and image alt text on Growth. Not yet available on Enterprise. 212
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Not available Community contrib only, e.g. the MCP Server module by Lullabot and Omedia. 17 Built in Built in. Developers switch it on in the server config. 13

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

Where they differ

Drupal and Strapi get a different status on 14 of the 28 features and the same status on 14. Drupal has 16 built in on its baseline edition, Strapi has 15. 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
Drupal has no vendor-run cloud. Strapi has a vendor-run cloud.

Built in on Drupal, a different answer on Strapi 4

  • Renders the website Drupal: Built in. Strapi: Not available.
  • Version history Drupal: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Approval workflows Drupal: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Content releases Drupal: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.

Built in on Strapi, a different answer on Drupal 3

  • Webhooks Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Built in.
  • Field-level permissions Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Built in.
  • Official MCP server Drupal: Not available. Strapi: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 7

  • Scheduled publishing Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Visual editing Drupal: Limited. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Single sign-on Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Audit log Drupal: Limited. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Multiple sites Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Not available.
  • Form builder Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Not available.
  • AI writing assistant Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Strapi: Paid tier.

More comparisons

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

Drupal against other platforms

Strapi against other platforms

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

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