Payload vs Strapi
Payload, Strapi compared on license, free-edition limits, deployment and project health. Change a project below to compare something else.
| Payload | Strapi | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | CMS | CMS |
| License | MIT LicenseOpen source (OSI) | MIT LicenseOpen source (OSI) |
| Free edition | Some features paywalled | Some features paywalled |
| Deployment | Self-hosted | Self-hosted · Cloud |
| Self-hosting setup | Needs a database | Needs a database |
| SSO / SAML | Paid | Paid |
| Role-based access control | Free | Free |
| Audit logs | Not confirmed | Paid |
| Multi-user / teams | Free | Free |
| Backups and restore | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| API access | Free | Free |
| Support SLA | Not confirmed | Paid |
| GitHub stars | 45k | 73k |
| Last release | Sep 23, 2026 | Oct 7, 2026 |
| Alternative to | Contentful | Contentful |
In short
- Payload is licensed MIT License (open source (osi)). Free edition: some features paywalled.
- Strapi is licensed MIT License (open source (osi)). Free edition: some features paywalled.
Each project page lists the official sources behind these answers. Where the official pages do not say, the table shows “Not confirmed”.