CMS comparison Liferay DXP vs Optimizely CMS

Liferay DXP vs Optimizely CMS

Liferay DXP is a closed-source enterprise DXP that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. Optimizely CMS is a closed-source enterprise DXP 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 4.

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Liferay DXP Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 26 of 28 built in
Optimizely CMS Enterprise DXP · Closed source · 22 of 28 built in

Sources checked: Liferay DXP on 29 Sept 2026, Optimizely CMS 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

Liferay DXP vs Optimizely CMS feature comparison. Columns are the two platforms. Rows are features, grouped by area.
Platform	Liferay DXP Enterprise DXP	Optimizely CMS Enterprise DXP
Overview
What it is	Java platform for websites, portals and commerce, with a new object-based CMS. Self-hosted or run by Liferay as PaaS or SaaS.	Optimizely's .NET CMS for rendered and headless sites, hosted on Optimizely's DXP cloud or self-hosted, with Optimizely Graph for delivery.
Edition compared The product and release each column describes.	Liferay DXP 2026.Q3, Enterprise Subscription. The Free Tier replaced Liferay Portal CE from 2026.Q1. Version 2026.q3.5, released 25 Sept 2026	Optimizely CMS 13 PaaS, the current flagship. CMS SaaS is a separate hosted variant. Version 13.1.3, released 9 Sept 2026
Vendor	Liferay, Inc. liferay.com	Optimizely optimizely.com
Licence	Closed source Proprietary, under the Liferay EULA. Free Tier activation key at no cost	Closed source Proprietary
Hosting	Self-hosting Vendor cloud Free Tier suits smaller-scale use and gets no security patches, SAML or AI Hub.	Self-hosting Vendor cloud Self-hosted installs lose Opti ID features such as Opal and the DAM.
Built with	Java, OSGi, React	.NET 10, ASP.NET Core
Database	MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, IBM Db2	SQL Server, Azure SQL on DXP
Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere.	Free to start Free Tier at no cost for smaller-scale use. Enterprise Subscription per server instance, price on request.	No free option Pricing 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.	Built in Definitions export to JSON and deploy from the repo as batch client extensions. 7	Built in Content types as C# classes. 3
Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code.	Built in Objects and web content structures. 6	Built in Content types and properties in Settings. 4
Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them.	Built in Fragments on content pages. 11	Built in Blocks in content areas and Visual Builder elements.
Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language.	Built in	Built in Language branches per content item. 5
Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service.	Built in Adaptive Media generates set image resolutions. 8	Built in DXP CDN resizes, crops and converts images by URL parameters. 6
APIs and delivery
REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content.	Built in Headless REST APIs. 9	Built in Content Delivery API 13 and a management REST API. 1 2
GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content.	Built in 9	Built in Optimizely Graph, included in the CMS 13 licence. 2 8
Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published.	Built in Object actions call a webhook on add, update or delete. 10	Limited Graph webhooks fire on sync batches and expired content only. Per-item hooks need code. 7 2
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 ASP.NET Core MVC and Razor rendering, or headless. 2
Editorial workflow
Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then.	Built in	Built in 9
Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish.	Built in Display and expiration dates.	Built in 9
Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them.	Built in	Built in
Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing.	Built in	Built in
Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it.	Built in Inline editing in the content page editor. 11	Built in Visual Builder. 2
Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage.	Built in Kaleo workflow, also included in the Free Tier. 3	Built in Approval sequences. 10
Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release.	Built in Publications group changes and publish them together. 12	Built in Projects publish or schedule grouped items together. 11
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 A page locks while one editor has it open. 13	Not available Comments and notifications only. 12
Access and governance
Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set.	Built in	Built in Access rights for roles and virtual roles. 13
Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries.	Not available Permissions apply per object, entry or asset. 14	Not available Access rights apply per content item. Not documented per property. 13
Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider.	Built in SAML and OpenID Connect. The Free Tier lacks SAML. 3 15	Built in Opti ID with an external identity provider, or OpenID Connect in code. 2
Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log.	Built in Audit framework with search and export of events. 16	Built in Change Log in Settings. 14
Platform and extensibility
Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users.	Built in	Built in Several sites and hosts in one installation. 15
Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface.	Built in Client extensions. 7	Built in Shell modules, gadgets and custom editor widgets. 16
Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions.	Built in Liferay Marketplace. 17	Built in Optimizely connectors directory and NuGet add-ons. 17
Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code.	Built in Liferay Forms.	Plugin or add-on Optimizely Forms package. No extra licence. 18
Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors.	Built in	Limited Visitor login uses ASP.NET Core authentication set up in code. 2
AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content.	Built in AI Hub writing tools in the new CMS. Not in the Free Tier. 4 18	Plugin or add-on Opal, billed through Opal credits. Needs Opti ID on DXP. 2 19
Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content.	Built in Built-in MCP server released in 2026.Q3, switched on by feature flag. 19	Built in MCP server in the Optimizely.Cms.Opal.Tools package. 20

Liferay DXP sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Liferay DXP 2026.Q3, Enterprise Subscription. The Free Tier replaced Liferay Portal CE from 2026.Q1..

Optimizely CMS sources

Checked 29 Sept 2026. Optimizely CMS 13 PaaS, the current flagship. CMS SaaS is a separate hosted variant..

Considering more platforms? Compare Liferay DXP and Optimizely CMS with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.

Where they differ

Liferay DXP and Optimizely CMS get a different status on 4 of the 28 features and the same status on 24. Liferay DXP has 26 built in on its baseline edition, Optimizely CMS has 22. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.

Free option: Liferay DXP has a free option. Optimizely CMS has no free option.

Built in on Liferay DXP, a different answer on Optimizely CMS 4

Webhooks Liferay DXP: Built in. Optimizely CMS: Limited.
Form builder Liferay DXP: Built in. Optimizely CMS: Plugin or add-on.
Site member accounts Liferay DXP: Built in. Optimizely CMS: Limited.
AI writing assistant Liferay DXP: Built in. Optimizely CMS: Plugin or add-on.

More comparisons

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

Liferay DXP against other platforms

Optimizely CMS against other platforms

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