Keystone vs Kirby
Keystone is an open-source headless CMS that you host yourself. Kirby 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 12.
- Keystone Headless · Open source · 6 of 28 built in
- Kirby Traditional · Closed source · 11 of 28 built in
Sources checked: Keystone on 29 Sept 2026, Kirby 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
| Platform |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| What it is | Open-source Node.js headless CMS from Thinkmill that generates a GraphQL API and an admin UI from a TypeScript schema. | File-based PHP CMS with a configurable editing Panel. Content lives in text files on your own server, under a paid per-site licence. |
| Edition compared The product and release each column describes. | Keystone 6, open source, from the @keystone-6/core package Version 8.1.0, released 31 Aug 2026 | Kirby 5. Kirby 6 is in alpha. Version 5.6.0, released 16 Sept 2026 |
| Vendor | Thinkmill keystonejs.com | Content Folder GmbH & Co. KG getkirby.com |
| Licence | Open source MIT | Closed source Proprietary, source available |
| Hosting | Self-hosting No vendor cloud No managed hosting. Thinkmill offers enterprise support. | Self-hosting No vendor cloud |
| Built with | TypeScript, Node.js, GraphQL, Prisma, Next.js for the admin UI | PHP, Vue for the Panel |
| Database | PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite | Flat files, no database required |
| Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. | Free to start Free and open source. Enterprise support from Thinkmill on request. | No free option Basic €99 per site if revenue is under €1M. Enterprise €349 per site. Both include 3 years of updates. |
| 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 Lists and fields are TypeScript config. 4 | Built in Blueprints are YAML files in site/blueprints. 5 |
| Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. | Not available | Not available You edit blueprints as files. The Panel has no schema editor. 5 |
| Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. | Built in Component blocks inside the document field. 8 | Built in Blocks and Layout fields. 6 |
| Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. | Not available No locale support documented. Model translations yourself. 12 | Built in Multi-language content is built in. 7 |
| Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. | Not available Image field stores originals. The Cloudinary field hands resizing to Cloudinary. 711 | Built in Thumbs with resize, crop and format conversion. 8 |
| APIs and delivery | ||
| REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. | Not available GraphQL only. Custom REST routes through extendExpressApp. 4 | Built in Authenticated REST API. The official KQL plugin serves headless queries. 910 |
| GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. | Built in | Not available |
| Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. | Not available No webhook settings. Call URLs from hooks in code. 10 | Not available PHP hooks only. No webhook settings. |
| Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. | Not available | Built in PHP templates and snippets. |
| Editorial workflow | ||
| Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. | Not available | Built in Page drafts. Kirby 5 stores unsaved changes apart from the live version. 4 |
| Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. | Not available | Not available |
| Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. | Not available | Not available Kirby 5 keeps the live version and one set of changes. No revision history. 4 |
| Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. | Not available | Built in Preview view renders unsaved changes, with shareable links. 4 |
| Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. | Not available | Not available Preview view compares versions. No click-to-edit. 4 |
| Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. | Not available | Not available Fixed page statuses: draft, unlisted, listed. 11 |
| Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. | Not available | 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 | Not available Content locking stops two editors changing one page at once. 320 |
| Access and governance | ||
| Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. | Limited Roles are access-control functions written in code. No role editor in the admin. 5 | Built in Roles are user blueprints with permissions. 12 |
| Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. | Built in Field-level access control. 5 | Not available Only by loading different blueprints per role in custom code. 13 |
| Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. | Not available The auth package covers password login. SSO means custom session code. 6 | Not available No first-party SSO. Community OAuth plugins exist. |
| Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. | Not available | Not available |
| Platform and extensibility | ||
| Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. | Not available | Not available One site per installation. |
| Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. | Built in Custom admin pages, navigation and field views. 9 | Built in Panel plugins add fields, sections, views and areas. 15 |
| Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. | Not available | Built in Official plugin directory at plugins.getkirby.com. 16 |
| Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. | Not available | Plugin or add-on Paid DreamForm plugin by tobimori. 17 |
| Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. | Built in createAuth works on any list, including site users. 6 | Limited Frontend login is built in. Sign-up needs custom code. 14 |
| AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. | Not available | Not available No first-party AI. Kirby Copilot is a paid third-party plugin. 18 |
| Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. | Not available | Not available Third-party Kirby MCP plugin by Bruno Meilick. 19 |
Keystone sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Keystone 6, open source, from the @keystone-6/core package.
- @keystone-6/core on the npm registry
- Keystone releases on GitHub
- Keystone homepage
- Keystone docs: System configuration
- Keystone docs: Access control
- Keystone docs: Authentication
- Keystone docs: Image field
- Keystone docs: Document field demo
- Keystone docs: Custom admin UI pages
- Keystone docs: Hooks guide
- Keystone docs: Cloudinary image field
- Keystone documentation index (llms.txt)
Kirby sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Kirby 5. Kirby 6 is in alpha..
- Kirby pricing
- Kirby releases
- Kirby 5 release overview
- Kirby 5: Preview your changes
- Kirby docs: Blueprints
- Kirby docs: Blocks field
- Kirby docs: Languages
- Kirby docs: $file->thumb()
- Kirby docs: REST API
- Kirby Query Language (KQL) plugin
- Kirby docs: Publishing workflow
- Kirby docs: Permissions
- Kirby cookbook: Extending permissions
- Kirby docs: Frontend login
- Kirby docs: Plugin extensions
- Kirby plugin directory
- DreamForm plugin
- Kirby Copilot plugin
- Kirby MCP plugin by Bruno Meilick
- Kirby docs: Content options (locking)
Considering more platforms? Compare Keystone and Kirby with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.
Where they differ
Keystone and Kirby get a different status on 12 of the 28 features and the same status on 16. Keystone has 6 built in on its baseline edition, Kirby has 11. 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
- Keystone is open source (MIT). Kirby is closed source (Proprietary, source available).
- Free option
- Keystone has a free option. Kirby has no free option.
Built in on Keystone, a different answer on Kirby 3
- GraphQL API Keystone: Built in. Kirby: Not available.
- Field-level permissions Keystone: Built in. Kirby: Not available.
- Site member accounts Keystone: Built in. Kirby: Limited.
Built in on Kirby, a different answer on Keystone 8
- Localization Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- Image transformations Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- REST API Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- Renders the website Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- Drafts Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- Preview Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
- Custom roles Keystone: Limited. Kirby: Built in.
- Plugin marketplace Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Built in.
Built in on neither, with different answers 1
- Form builder Keystone: Not available. Kirby: Plugin or add-on.
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Kirby against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Kirby
- Contentful vs Kirby
- Contentstack vs Kirby
- CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Kirby
- Craft CMS vs Kirby
- DatoCMS vs Kirby
- Decap CMS vs Kirby
- Directus vs Kirby
- Drupal vs Kirby
- EmDash vs Kirby
- FirstSpirit vs Kirby
- Framer vs Kirby
- Ghost vs Kirby
- HubSpot CMS vs Kirby
- Hygraph vs Kirby
- Instatic vs Kirby
- Joomla vs Kirby
- Kirby vs Liferay DXP
- Kirby vs Optimizely CMS
- Kirby vs Payload
- Kirby vs Prismic
- Kirby vs Progress Sitefinity
- Kirby vs Sanity
- Kirby vs Sitecore
- Kirby vs Squarespace
- Kirby vs Statamic
- Kirby vs Storyblok
- Kirby vs Strapi
- Kirby vs TYPO3
- Kirby vs Umbraco
- Kirby vs Wagtail
- Kirby vs Webflow
- Kirby vs Wix
- Kirby vs WordPress
- Xperience by Kentico vs Kirby
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