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CMS comparison Hygraph vs Sanity

Hygraph vs Sanity

Hygraph is a closed-source headless CMS that runs on the vendor's cloud. Sanity 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 9.

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  • Hygraph Headless · Closed source · 13 of 28 built in
  • Sanity Headless · Closed source · 15 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Hygraph on 29 Sept 2026, Sanity 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
Hygraph vs Sanity feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform
Hygraph Headless
Sanity Headless
Overview
What it is 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.Headless CMS with an open-source React editor, Sanity Studio, configured in code. Sanity stores content in its hosted Content Lake.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes. Hygraph SaaS, Hobby, Growth and Enterprise plans SaaS, continuously updated Sanity hosted Content Lake with Sanity Studio 6 Version 6.16.0, released 22 Sept 2026
Vendor Hygraph (formerly GraphCMS) hygraph.com Sanity sanity.io
Licence Closed source Proprietary Closed source MIT for Sanity Studio. The Content Lake backend is proprietary.
Hosting No self-hosting Vendor cloud Shared regions on every plan. Dedicated clusters on Enterprise. No self-hosting Vendor cloud You can host the Studio anywhere, but content always lives in Sanity's cloud.
Built with Hosted SaaS with a GraphQL Content APITypeScript, React for Studio. Hosted Content Lake with GROQ and GraphQL APIs
Database Managed by HygraphHosted Sanity Content Lake
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. Free to start Hobby free. Growth from $199 per month. Enterprise on request. Free to start Free plan. Growth $15 per seat 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 Management SDK applies schema changes from code. No declarative schema files. 2 Built in 3
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. Built in 1 Not available You define schemas only in Studio code. 3
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. Built in Components in modular fields: 10 on Hobby, 20 on Growth. 1 Built in Array fields of typed objects act as a page builder. 3
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 locales: 2 on Hobby, 3 on Growth, up to 80 on Enterprise. 1 Plugin or add-on Official document-level and field-level internationalization plugins. 4
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. Built in Resize, crop and format conversion by URL or GraphQL argument. 4 Built in Image pipeline resizes, crops and converts by URL parameter. 5
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. Not available Content API is GraphQL only. 3 Built in HTTP API queried with GROQ. 1
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. Built in 3 Built in The Sanity CLI deploys it from the schema. 1
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. Built in 5 on Hobby, 10 on Growth. 15 Built in GROQ-powered webhooks: 2 on Free, 4 on Growth. 16
Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. Not available Not available
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. Built in DRAFT and PUBLISHED stages on every plan. 1 Built in 1
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. Paid tier Scheduled publishing on Enterprise. 17 Paid tier Scheduled drafts on Growth and Enterprise. 1
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. Paid tier 14 days on Growth, up to 365 on Enterprise. None on Hobby. 1 Limited Draft history kept 3 days on Free, 90 on Growth, 365 on Enterprise. 1
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. Built in 1 Built in 17
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. Built in Click to Edit via the Hygraph Preview SDK opens the field in Studio. 6 Built in Presentation tool with click-to-edit overlays on every plan. 17
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. Paid tier Custom Workflows, up to 10, on Enterprise. 113 Not available Build with document actions or a community plugin such as Workflow Manager. 914
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. Paid tier Releases on Enterprise. 7 Paid tier Content Releases add-on on Enterprise. 1
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 Collaborator View shows who else is in an entry. 9 Built in 1
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. Paid tier Up to 30 custom roles on Enterprise. Hobby has 2 standard roles, Growth 4. 1 Paid tier Enterprise. Free has 2 fixed roles, Growth 5. 18
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. Not available Permissions scope by model, locale, stage, environment and condition. 8 Limited API access rules are per document. Studio can hide or lock fields per role. 8
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. Paid tier Enterprise. 1 Paid tier SAML SSO on Enterprise. 1
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. Paid tier Enterprise, 90-day retention. 1 Paid tier Full audit trail and History API on Enterprise. 1
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. Paid tier Multitenancy on Enterprise. 1 Built in Several projects per organization and Studio workspaces. 11
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. Built in App Framework for custom fields, sidebars and pages. 12 Built in Custom inputs, tools and document actions in the React Studio. 39
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. Built in Hygraph Marketplace. 12 Built in Sanity Exchange. 10
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. Not available Not available
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 AI Assist on every plan, with a monthly AI token allowance. 110 Built in Content Agent on every plan. In-Studio AI Assist on Growth and Enterprise. 113
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. Built in Global endpoint at mcp.hygraph.com and per-project endpoints. Also a Claude connector. 111415 Built in Hosted at mcp.sanity.io with OAuth. 12

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

Where they differ

Hygraph and Sanity get a different status on 9 of the 28 features and the same status on 19. Hygraph has 13 built in on its baseline edition, Sanity 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.

Built in on Hygraph, a different answer on Sanity 2

  • Content model in the UI Hygraph: Built in. Sanity: Not available.
  • Localization Hygraph: Built in. Sanity: Plugin or add-on.

Built in on Sanity, a different answer on Hygraph 4

  • Content model in code Hygraph: Limited. Sanity: Built in.
  • REST API Hygraph: Not available. Sanity: Built in.
  • Real-time co-editing Hygraph: Not available. Sanity: Built in.
  • Multiple sites Hygraph: Paid tier. Sanity: Built in.

Built in on neither, with different answers 3

  • Version history Hygraph: Paid tier. Sanity: Limited.
  • Approval workflows Hygraph: Paid tier. Sanity: Not available.
  • Field-level permissions Hygraph: Not available. Sanity: Limited.

More comparisons

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

Hygraph against other platforms

Sanity against other platforms

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

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