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CMS comparison EmDash vs Hygraph

EmDash vs Hygraph

EmDash is an open-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. Hygraph is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 15.

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  • EmDash Traditional · Open source · 14 of 28 built in
  • Hygraph Headless · Closed source · 13 of 28 built in

Sources checked: EmDash on 29 Sept 2026, Hygraph 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
EmDash vs Hygraph feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
EmDash Traditional
Hygraph Headless
Overview
What it is Open-source CMS from Cloudflare that runs inside an Astro site, with the admin and pages in one app on Cloudflare Workers or Node.js.Hosted headless CMS run by Hygraph, formerly GraphCMS. Serves content over a GraphQL API and can pull in data from remote REST and GraphQL sources.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. EmDash 1.0, open source Version 1.0.1, released 28 Sept 2026 Hygraph SaaS, Hobby, Growth and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated
Vendor Cloudflare emdashcms.com Hygraph (formerly GraphCMS) hygraph.com
Licence Open source MIT Closed source Proprietary
Hosting Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. You deploy to your own Cloudflare account or Node.js server. No self-hosting Vendor cloud Shared regions on every plan. Dedicated clusters on Enterprise.
Built with TypeScript, AstroHosted SaaS with a GraphQL Content API
Database SQLite, Cloudflare D1, PostgreSQL, libSQLManaged by Hygraph
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free and open source. You pay only for hosting. Free to start Hobby free. Growth from $199 per month. Enterprise 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. Limited Seed files set up new sites. A live site's model changes through the admin, API or CLI. 20 Limited Management SDK applies schema changes from code. No declarative schema files. 2
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in Admin role only. 220 Built in 1
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Blocks field with versioned block types. 5 Built in Components in modular fields: 10 on Hobby, 20 on Growth. 1
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Each translation is a separate entry with its own status. 6 Built in Field-level locales: 2 on Hobby, 3 on Growth, up to 80 on Enterprise. 1
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in Uses Astro's image endpoint for sizes and formats. Crop and focal point in the editor. 78 Built in Resize, crop and format conversion by URL or GraphQL argument. 4
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in 9 Not available Content API is GraphQL only. 3
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Not available Built in 3
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Plugin or add-on Official webhook-notifier plugin. 18 Built in 5 on Hobby, 10 on Growth. 15
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in The Astro site renders the pages. 2 Not available
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in 10 Built in DRAFT and PUBLISHED stages on every plan. 1
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Built in 10 Paid tier Scheduled publishing on Enterprise. 17
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in On revision-enabled collections. 10 Paid tier 14 days on Growth, up to 365 on Enterprise. None on Hobby. 1
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Signed preview links. 11 Built in 1
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in Signed-in editors get visual editing on the rendered page. 11 Built in Click to Edit via the Hygraph Preview SDK opens the field in Studio. 6
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Not available Contributors cannot publish. No configurable review stages. 1210 Paid tier Custom Workflows, up to 10, on Enterprise. 113
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Not available Paid tier Releases on Enterprise. 7
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 Collaborator View shows who else is in an entry. 9
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Not available Five fixed roles from Subscriber to Admin. 12 Paid tier Up to 30 custom roles on Enterprise. Hobby has 2 standard roles, Growth 4. 1
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available 12 Not available Permissions scope by model, locale, stage, environment and condition. 8
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Limited Microsoft Entra sign-in built in. Other IdPs through Cloudflare Access. No native SAML. 12 Paid tier Enterprise. 1
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Plugin or add-on Official audit-log plugin. 19 Paid tier Enterprise, 90-day retention. 1
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Not available Paid tier Multitenancy on Enterprise. 1
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Plugins add admin pages and dashboard widgets. 13 Built in App Framework for custom fields, sidebars and pages. 12
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Plugin registry, launched with 1.0. 143 Built in Hygraph Marketplace. 12
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Official forms plugin. 17 Not available
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Limited Subscriber role reads member-only content. Members share the editors' user system. 12 Not available
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Not available Built in AI Assist on every plan, with a monthly AI token allowance. 110
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in Built in and on by default. 15 Built in Global endpoint at mcp.hygraph.com and per-project endpoints. Also a Claude connector. 111415

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

Where they differ

EmDash and Hygraph get a different status on 15 of the 28 features and the same status on 13. EmDash has 14 built in on its baseline edition, Hygraph has 13. 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
EmDash is open source (MIT). Hygraph is closed source (Proprietary).
Self-hosting
EmDash can be self-hosted. Hygraph cannot be self-hosted.
Vendor cloud
EmDash has no vendor-run cloud. Hygraph has a vendor-run cloud.

Built in on EmDash, a different answer on Hygraph 4

  • REST API EmDash: Built in. Hygraph: Not available.
  • Renders the website EmDash: Built in. Hygraph: Not available.
  • Scheduled publishing EmDash: Built in. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Version history EmDash: Built in. Hygraph: Paid tier.

Built in on Hygraph, a different answer on EmDash 3

  • GraphQL API EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Built in.
  • Webhooks EmDash: Plugin or add-on. Hygraph: Built in.
  • AI writing assistant EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 8

  • Approval workflows EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Content releases EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Custom roles EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Single sign-on EmDash: Limited. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Audit log EmDash: Plugin or add-on. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Multiple sites EmDash: Not available. Hygraph: Paid tier.
  • Form builder EmDash: Plugin or add-on. Hygraph: Not available.
  • Site member accounts EmDash: Limited. Hygraph: Not available.

More comparisons

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

EmDash against other platforms

Hygraph against other platforms

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

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