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CMS comparison FirstSpirit vs Statamic

FirstSpirit vs Statamic

FirstSpirit is a closed-source enterprise DXP that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Statamic is a closed-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 20.

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  • FirstSpirit Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 19 of 28 built in
  • Statamic Traditional · Closed source · 8 of 28 built in

Sources checked: FirstSpirit on 29 Sept 2026, Statamic 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
FirstSpirit vs Statamic feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
FirstSpirit Enterprise DXP
Statamic Traditional
Overview
What it is Java-based enterprise CMS with in-preview editing and a CaaS layer for headless delivery. Runs as FirstSpirit Cloud or on-premises.Laravel-based PHP CMS that stores content in flat files by default. Free Core edition. Pro adds users, APIs and multi-site. You host it.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. FirstSpirit 5.2 monthly release line, FirstSpirit Cloud and on-premises Version 2026.10 (5.2.261011), released 15 Sept 2026 Statamic 6, Core and Pro Version 6.34.1, released 23 Sept 2026
Vendor Crownpeak Technology GmbH, part of Rezolve Ai since December 2025 firstspirit.com Statamic, LLC statamic.com
Licence Closed source Proprietary Closed source Proprietary, source available. Core is free to use.
Hosting Self-hosting Vendor cloud Self-hosting No vendor cloud
Built with Java, ContentCreator web client, SiteArchitect desktop appPHP, Laravel, Vue
Database Built-in repository, plus SQL databases such as PostgreSQL for data sourcesFlat files by default, SQL databases via the Eloquent Driver
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. No free option Pricing on request. Free to start Core free for one admin user. Pro $349 per site, then $99 per year for updates. Enterprise from $10k per year.
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 Templates sync to files in Git through external synchronization and FSDevTools. 34 Built in Blueprints and fieldsets are YAML files in the project. 4
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Limited Developers build templates in SiteArchitect but write their forms as XML. 412 Built in Blueprint builder in the Control Panel. 4
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Pages consist of sections based on section templates. Built in Replicator and Bard sets. 5
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. Built in Language-dependent fields per project language. Paid tier Multi-site and multilingual content need Pro. 61
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in FirstSpirit automatically generates the image resolutions defined per project. Built in Glide resizes and crops on request. 7
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Built in CaaS REST API. 56 Paid tier Read-only REST API on Pro. 8
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in CaaS GraphQL API generated from the FirstSpirit data model. 56 Paid tier Read-only GraphQL API on Pro. 9
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Limited CaaS Change Streams push change events over WebSocket. 6 Not available Laravel events only. No webhook settings in core.
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Built in Generates pages from templates. CaaS covers headless delivery. Built in Antlers or Blade templates.
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Changes stay unreleased until the release workflow runs. 8 Paid tier Working copies of live entries need Revisions on Pro. Core has unpublished entries. 101
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Limited Admins set up timed schedule entries. Editors have no per-item publish date. 10 Limited Future-dated entries stay private until their date. Set per collection. 11
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Built in Paid tier Revisions on Pro. 10
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in Built in 121
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in ContentCreator in-preview editing. Omnichannel Manager for headless frontends. 7 Limited Live Preview shows the edit form beside the page. No click-to-edit. 12
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Built in 8 Not available Approval workflows are on the roadmap as planned. 19
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Limited Release with dependencies publishes a page with its linked media and parents. 9 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 The Collaboration module adds comments on fields. No co-editing. 11 Plugin or add-on Free first-party Collaboration addon. Requires Pro. 18
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Built in Groups with permissions per store and node. Paid tier Roles and permissions need Pro. 131
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Limited Form rules hide or lock single fields per user group. 12 Not available Field conditions depend on field values. User roles can't drive them. 4
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Built in SAML and OpenID Connect login modules. 1314 Paid tier Pro via Laravel Socialite providers such as SAML2. Enterprise tier lists SSO. 1521
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Built in Audit logging to the server log once enabled. 15 Paid tier Enterprise tier, from $10k per year, lists audit logging. 121
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Built in Several projects per server. Multisite Management shares content between them. 16 Paid tier Pro. 61
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in ContentCreator and SiteArchitect plug-ins. Built in Custom fieldtypes, widgets and Control Panel pages. 17
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in FirstSpirit Marketplace. 17 Built in Statamic Marketplace for addons. 18
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Plugin or add-on Formcentric for FirstSpirit, a partner product. 18 Limited Core allows one form. Pro removes the limit. 116
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Not available Paid tier Member accounts, registration and login tags need Pro. 1416
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. Plugin or add-on AI Suite module: Content, Analyze and Image assistants. 117 Not available
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in CaaS Platform MCP server builds and runs CaaS GraphQL queries. 19 Not available Third-party addons only, such as MCP Server for Statamic by Cbox. 20

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

Where they differ

FirstSpirit and Statamic get a different status on 20 of the 28 features and the same status on 8. FirstSpirit has 19 built in on its baseline edition, Statamic has 8. 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
FirstSpirit has a vendor-run cloud. Statamic has no vendor-run cloud.
Free option
FirstSpirit has no free option. Statamic has a free option.

Built in on FirstSpirit, a different answer on Statamic 12

  • Localization FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • REST API FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • GraphQL API FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Drafts FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Version history FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Visual editing FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Limited.
  • Approval workflows FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Not available.
  • Custom roles FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Single sign-on FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Audit log FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Multiple sites FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • Official MCP server FirstSpirit: Built in. Statamic: Not available.

Built in on Statamic, a different answer on FirstSpirit 1

  • Content model in the UI FirstSpirit: Limited. Statamic: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 7

  • Webhooks FirstSpirit: Limited. Statamic: Not available.
  • Content releases FirstSpirit: Limited. Statamic: Not available.
  • Real-time co-editing FirstSpirit: Not available. Statamic: Plugin or add-on.
  • Field-level permissions FirstSpirit: Limited. Statamic: Not available.
  • Form builder FirstSpirit: Plugin or add-on. Statamic: Limited.
  • Site member accounts FirstSpirit: Not available. Statamic: Paid tier.
  • AI writing assistant FirstSpirit: Plugin or add-on. Statamic: Not available.

More comparisons

FirstSpirit against other platforms

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

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