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CMS comparison HubSpot CMS vs Strapi

HubSpot CMS vs Strapi

HubSpot CMS is a closed-source site builder that runs on the vendor's cloud. 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 13.

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  • HubSpot CMS Site builder · Closed source · 16 of 28 built in
  • Strapi Headless · Open source · 15 of 28 built in

Sources checked: HubSpot CMS 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
HubSpot CMS vs Strapi feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
HubSpot CMS Site builder
Strapi Headless
Overview
What it is HubSpot's hosted CMS and site builder, sold as Content Hub. Pages and blogs connect to the HubSpot CRM, and HubSpot hosts every site.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. Content Hub: Free, Starter, Professional, Enterprise SaaS, continuously updated 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 HubSpot, Inc. hubspot.com Strapi strapi.io
Licence Closed source Proprietary Open source MIT
Hosting No self-hosting Vendor cloud Self-hosting Vendor cloud Strapi Cloud removed its free plan in 2026. Hosting starts at the Starter plan.
Built with HubL templates, HubSpot CLITypeScript, Node.js, React
Database Managed by HubSpot, with HubDB for structured dataPostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Free plan for 2 users. Starter $20 per seat per month. Pro from $450 per month for 3 seats. Enterprise from $1,500. 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 Theme and module fields live in fields.json, synced with the HubSpot CLI. 3 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. Paid tier Module fields in Design manager on Starter. HubDB tables on Professional. 14 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 Drag-and-drop modules and sections. 5 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 Free tools cover 3 languages, Starter 50, Professional unlimited. 16 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 Automatic resizing plus the HubL resize_image_url function. 7 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 CMS APIs for pages, blog posts and HubDB. 8 Built in 2
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Paid tier Content Hub Professional. 9 Plugin or add-on Official GraphQL plugin. 14
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Not available Webhooks API covers CRM objects. No page publish events. 10 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 HubL themes and templates on HubSpot hosting. Not available
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in Built in Draft & Publish. 2
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Built in 118 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 Restore previous versions on all plans. 12 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 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. Built in Drag-and-drop editor edits the rendered page. 5 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. Paid tier Content approvals on Enterprise. 1 Paid tier Review Workflows on Enterprise. 9
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Paid tier Content staging on Professional publishes staged pages together. 13 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. Paid tier Permission sets on Enterprise. Per-user permissions on all plans. 14 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. Not available Built in 8
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Paid tier SAML SSO on Content Hub Professional and Enterprise. 15 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. Paid tier Activity logging on Enterprise. 1 Paid tier Enterprise plan. 10
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Paid tier Multisites on Enterprise. 1 Not available
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in Custom modules and their fields appear in the page editor. 3 Built in 20
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in HubSpot Marketplace for apps and themes. 16 Built in Strapi Marketplace. 2
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Built in Not available
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. Paid tier Memberships on Professional with 2 access groups and Enterprise with 100. 12 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. Built in Breeze generates and refines content in editors on all plans. 17 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. Built in Remote HubSpot MCP server reads site pages, landing pages and blog posts. 18 Built in Built in. Developers switch it on in the server config. 13

HubSpot CMS sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Content Hub: Free, Starter, Professional, Enterprise.

  1. HubSpot Content Hub pricing
  2. HubSpot Product & Services Catalog
  3. HubSpot docs: Modules overview
  4. HubSpot KB: Create and populate HubDB tables
  5. HubSpot KB: Edit content in the content editor
  6. HubSpot KB: Create pages in multiple languages
  7. HubSpot docs: HubL functions
  8. HubSpot API: Schedule a website page
  9. HubSpot docs: Query HubSpot data using GraphQL
  10. HubSpot docs: Webhooks API guide
  11. HubSpot KB: Set a blog post's publish date and time
  12. HubSpot KB: Restore a previous version of content
  13. HubSpot KB: Redesign and relaunch a site with content staging
  14. HubSpot KB: Create and assign permission sets
  15. HubSpot KB: Set up single sign-on (SSO)
  16. HubSpot Marketplace
  17. HubSpot KB: Generate and refine content with AI
  18. Remote HubSpot MCP server is now generally available

Strapi sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Strapi 5 CMS, free Community edition with paid Growth and Enterprise plans for self-hosted projects.

  1. @strapi/strapi on the npm registry
  2. Strapi CMS pricing
  3. Strapi Cloud pricing
  4. We're removing the Free plan from Strapi Cloud
  5. Strapi docs: Preview
  6. Strapi docs: Releases
  7. Strapi docs: Content History
  8. Strapi docs: Role-Based Access Control
  9. Strapi docs: Review Workflows
  10. Strapi docs: Audit Logs
  11. Strapi docs: Single Sign-On
  12. Strapi docs: AI for content managers
  13. Strapi docs: MCP server
  14. Strapi docs: GraphQL plugin
  15. Strapi docs: Media Library
  16. Strapi docs: Content-type Builder
  17. Strapi docs: Users & Permissions
  18. Strapi docs: Webhooks
  19. Strapi docs: Models
  20. Strapi docs: Admin panel customization

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

Where they differ

HubSpot CMS and Strapi get a different status on 13 of the 28 features and the same status on 15. HubSpot CMS 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.

Licence
HubSpot CMS is closed source (Proprietary). Strapi is open source (MIT).
Self-hosting
HubSpot CMS cannot be self-hosted. Strapi can be self-hosted.

Built in on HubSpot CMS, a different answer on Strapi 6

  • Renders the website HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Not available.
  • Scheduled publishing HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Version history HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Visual editing HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.
  • Form builder HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Not available.
  • AI writing assistant HubSpot CMS: Built in. Strapi: Paid tier.

Built in on Strapi, a different answer on HubSpot CMS 5

  • Content model in the UI HubSpot CMS: Paid tier. Strapi: Built in.
  • Webhooks HubSpot CMS: Not available. Strapi: Built in.
  • Custom roles HubSpot CMS: Paid tier. Strapi: Built in.
  • Field-level permissions HubSpot CMS: Not available. Strapi: Built in.
  • Site member accounts HubSpot CMS: Paid tier. Strapi: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 2

  • GraphQL API HubSpot CMS: Paid tier. Strapi: Plugin or add-on.
  • Multiple sites HubSpot CMS: Paid tier. Strapi: Not available.

More comparisons

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

HubSpot CMS 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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