Framer vs Instatic
Framer is a closed-source site builder that runs on the vendor's cloud. Instatic is an open-source site builder that you host yourself. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 10.
- Framer Site builder · Closed source · 14 of 28 built in
- Instatic Site builder · Open source · 15 of 28 built in
Sources checked: Framer on 29 Sept 2026, Instatic on 30 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
| Platform |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| What it is | Hosted visual site builder with a CMS, hosting and AI agents. Designers build pages on a canvas. Run by Framer. | Open-source, self-hosted CMS with a visual canvas editor. One Bun server runs the editor, content store and publisher, and publishing writes plain HTML files to disk. |
| Edition compared The product and release each column describes. | Framer 3.0 site plans, Free to Enterprise SaaS, continuously updated | Instatic 0.0.20, open source Version 0.0.20, released 13 Sept 2026 |
| Vendor | Framer B.V. framer.com | CoreBunch instatic.com |
| Licence | Closed source Proprietary | Open source MIT |
| Hosting | No self-hosting Vendor cloud A paid plan is required to connect a custom domain. | Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. You deploy the Docker image to your own server, or use the Railway and Render templates. |
| Built with | Hosted SaaS with React code components | TypeScript, Bun, React admin |
| Database | Managed by Framer | SQLite, PostgreSQL |
| Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. | Free to start Free plan. Basic $10, Pro $30 per site per month billed yearly. Extra editors $20 per month. | Free to start Free and open source, with no paid tiers. You pay only for hosting. |
| 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. | Not available You build collections in the editor or sync them through the Plugin and Server APIs. 313 | Not available Tables and fields live in the database and change in the Data workspace. Plugins can create tables through the SDK. 610 |
| Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. | Built in 13 | Built in Custom post types and data tables in the Data workspace. 616 |
| Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. | Built in Components with properties that content editors can change on-page. 14 | Built in Visual Components with typed parameters and named slots, placed and reordered on the canvas. 72 |
| Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. | Plugin or add-on Translation locales add-on, $20 per locale per month. One free locale to try. 117 | Not available One site-wide language setting. No per-locale fields or entries. 21 |
| Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. | Built in Generates 512 to 4096 px variants served through srcset. 8 | Built in Uploads get a set of WebP sizes, and the publisher writes srcset and sizes from the layout. 81 |
| APIs and delivery | ||
| REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. | Limited Server API in open beta, through the framer-api package over WebSocket. No plain REST. 23 | Limited The JSON API under /admin/api/cms serves the admin behind a session cookie. No token-based content API outside MCP. 920 |
| GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. | Not available | Not available |
| Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. | Not available Webhooks cover form submissions only. 10 | Not available No built-in webhooks. A plugin with network access can call a URL from content hooks. 10 |
| Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. | Built in | Built in Publishing renders every page to static HTML on the server's disk. 11 |
| Editorial workflow | ||
| Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. | Built in CMS items can stay in draft. 13 | Built in 51 |
| Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. | Not available No native scheduling. Third-party Marketplace plugins add it. 18 | Built in Per page and per post-type entry. 5 |
| Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. | Built in Version history and rollback of published versions. 67 | Built in Published versions of pages and entries, restorable into the draft. Added in 0.0.20. 124 |
| Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. | Built in | Built in The canvas renders drafts in the site design. Branch preview links work without an account. 122 |
| Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. | Built in Canvas editing and on-page editing of the live site. 14 | Built in Editing happens on the rendered page canvas, with a live mode for the full-size page. 214 |
| Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. | Limited Editors review and merge Pro branches. Only Deploy permission publishes. No stages. 45 | Limited Branch merge requests with a review page and comments. No configurable review stages. 12 |
| Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. | Paid tier Branching on Pro groups changes and ships them in one merge. 15 | Limited Publish ships all draft pages at once. Branches group edits across pages and entries, but entries still publish one by one. 125 |
| 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 Free workspaces allow up to three editors. 1 | Limited Live co-editing of pages, components and layouts in the Site editor. Content workspace entries save separately. 13144 |
| Access and governance | ||
| Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. | Limited Fixed roles plus Design, Content and Deploy permissions per project. No role builder. 4 | Built in The Owner builds roles from a fixed list of capabilities. 1516 |
| Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. | Not available | Not available Capabilities apply per table type and edit category, not per field. 16 |
| Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. | Paid tier Enterprise. 116 | Not available Email and password with optional TOTP two-factor. 15 |
| Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. | Not available Not documented publicly. | Built in Append-only log of logins, content changes, role edits and plugin actions. 17 |
| Platform and extensibility | ||
| Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. | Built in A workspace holds many site projects, each on its own plan. 4 | Not available One site per installation. 2 |
| Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. | Built in Plugins add custom panels and tools to the editor. 11 | Built in Plugins add admin pages, editor extensions, dashboard widgets and canvas modules. 10 |
| Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. | Built in Framer Marketplace. 12 | Not available Plugins install as uploaded zip packages. No official directory. 10 |
| Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. | Built in Native forms. Submissions can also go to a webhook. 10 | Built in Forms are built on the canvas and submissions land in a data table. 18 |
| Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. | Not available | Not available |
| AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. | Built in Agents write, rewrite and translate content. AI credits meter usage. 115 | Built in Built-in agent in the Site and Content workspaces, with your own Claude, OpenAI, OpenRouter or Ollama key. 19 |
| Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. | Not available No MCP server. External Agents, in preview, link AI tools through a CLI and skills. 9 | Built in Built in at /_instatic/mcp, with OAuth or scoped personal access tokens. 20 |
Framer sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Framer 3.0 site plans, Free to Enterprise.
- Framer pricing
- Framer update: Server API (February 2026)
- Framer Developers: Server API introduction
- Framer Help: members, roles and permissions
- Framer: collaboration with branches, reviews and staging
- Framer: publish with staging, hosting and rollback
- Framer Help: staging and versions
- Framer Help: how Framer optimizes images
- Framer External Agents
- Framer Help: connect Framer forms to a webhook
- Framer Developers: plugins introduction
- Framer Marketplace plugins
- Framer CMS
- Framer Help: on-page editing
- Framer blog: Framer 3.0 with Agents and Branching
- Framer Enterprise
- Framer Help: localization
- Framer CMS Scheduler plugin (third party)
Instatic sources
Checked 30 Sept 2026. Instatic 0.0.20, open source.
- Instatic homepage
- Instatic repository on GitHub
- Instatic 0.0.20 release
- Instatic changelog
- Instatic docs: Content storage
- Instatic docs: Data workspace
- Instatic docs: Visual Components
- Instatic docs: Media
- Instatic docs: Server
- Instatic docs: Plugin system
- Instatic docs: Publisher
- Instatic docs: Site branches
- Instatic docs: Site shell and real-time co-editing
- Instatic docs: Content workspace
- Instatic docs: Auth and access
- Instatic docs: Capabilities
- Instatic docs: Audit log
- Instatic docs: CMS-native forms
- Instatic docs: AI agent
- Instatic docs: MCP connectors
- Instatic docs: Editor
Considering more platforms? Compare Framer and Instatic with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.
Where they differ
Framer and Instatic get a different status on 10 of the 28 features and the same status on 18. Framer has 14 built in on its baseline edition, Instatic 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.
- Licence
- Framer is closed source (Proprietary). Instatic is open source (MIT).
- Self-hosting
- Framer cannot be self-hosted. Instatic can be self-hosted.
- Vendor cloud
- Framer has a vendor-run cloud. Instatic has no vendor-run cloud.
Built in on Framer, a different answer on Instatic 3
- Real-time co-editing Framer: Built in. Instatic: Limited.
- Multiple sites Framer: Built in. Instatic: Not available.
- Plugin marketplace Framer: Built in. Instatic: Not available.
Built in on Instatic, a different answer on Framer 4
- Scheduled publishing Framer: Not available. Instatic: Built in.
- Custom roles Framer: Limited. Instatic: Built in.
- Audit log Framer: Not available. Instatic: Built in.
- Official MCP server Framer: Not available. Instatic: Built in.
Built in on neither, with different answers 3
- Localization Framer: Plugin or add-on. Instatic: Not available.
- Content releases Framer: Paid tier. Instatic: Limited.
- Single sign-on Framer: Paid tier. Instatic: Not available.
More comparisons
Framer against other platforms
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Instatic against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Instatic
- Contentful vs Instatic
- Contentstack vs Instatic
- CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Instatic
- Craft CMS vs Instatic
- DatoCMS vs Instatic
- Decap CMS vs Instatic
- Directus vs Instatic
- Drupal vs Instatic
- EmDash vs Instatic
- FirstSpirit vs Instatic
- Ghost vs Instatic
- HubSpot CMS vs Instatic
- Hygraph vs Instatic
- Instatic vs Joomla
- Instatic vs Keystone
- Instatic vs Kirby
- Instatic vs Liferay DXP
- Instatic vs Optimizely CMS
- Instatic vs Payload
- Instatic vs Prismic
- Instatic vs Progress Sitefinity
- Instatic vs Sanity
- Instatic vs Sitecore
- Instatic vs Squarespace
- Instatic vs Statamic
- Instatic vs Storyblok
- Instatic vs Strapi
- Instatic vs TYPO3
- Instatic vs Umbraco
- Instatic vs Wagtail
- Instatic vs Webflow
- Instatic vs Wix
- Instatic vs WordPress
- Instatic vs Xperience by Kentico
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