The Best Headless CMS Platforms in 2025 – Directus vs Strapi vs Payload

Choosing the right headless CMS is a critical decision for any tech team building modern digital experiences. At True Freedom Tech, we’ve worked with a variety of CMS platforms across client projects and internal tools. After testing and deploying real-world applications with Strapi, Payload, Directus, and KeystoneJS, we’ve identified the strengths, limitations, and ideal use cases of each. Here’s our no-nonsense breakdown of the leading open-source CMS options in 2025.

🏆 Rankings Summary

1. Directus – Our overall CMS pick – Feature-rich, flexible, modern UI.

2. Payload – Code-first with powerful layout blocks, ideal for developers.

3. Strapi – Extensive plugin system, but key features locked behind paywalls.

4. KeystoneJS – Minimalist and developer-heavy with limited out-of-the-box functionality.

Directus: Best for Admin UX and Flexibility

Directus is a polished, full-featured CMS that offers instant REST and GraphQL APIs, a modern admin interface, and dynamic layout capabilities. It supports advanced features like role-based permissions, dashboards, and content workflows—all accessible via a visually intuitive interface. Crucially, Directus is responsive and works well across all devices, including mobile.

Pros:

• Exceptional admin UI with full mobile support

• Flexible content modeling with fieldsets, tabs, and JSON repeaters

• Clean rich text editing via TinyMCE

• Instant, zero-config REST and GraphQL APIs

• Visual workflows, dashboards, and permissions

• Fully open-source with no feature paywalls

Cons:

• Plugin support is still maturing and can require manual setup

  • It took us a while to get the SEO Plugin working. We added the plugin through the Marketplace in the UI, it didn’t appear to work, Uninstall the plugin, restart the website, install again, the database complained and wouldn’t allow the reinstall, manually removed the tables from the database, reinstall, upgrade, downgrade, upgrade, try in private tab, works? Clear browser cache, works…
  • Directus prefers docker as its method of deployment and this can complicate the plugin process.

• All configuration is UI-based, with no code-defined schema

• Direct database interaction can lead to human error if unmanaged

  • We’ve had it happen… Good thing for proper backups

Recommendation: Directus is ideal for teams needing fast iteration, a great editing experience, and cross-functional usability across developers and non-technical users.

Payload: Best for Code-Defined Flexibility

Payload is a TypeScript-first CMS designed for developers. It emphasizes full control through code, with schemas, access control, and layout blocks all defined in the application itself. This makes it highly customizable and a strong fit for structured applications and developer-centric workflows.

Pros:

• TypeScript-based, code-first schema and logic

• Supports advanced layout blocks and conditional fields

• Built-in auth, GraphQL, and media handling

• Seamless integration with frameworks like Next.js

Cons:

• Admin UI is basic and lacks customization

• No media folders, nested navigation, or field grouping in UI

• Rich text editor lacks inline embeds

• No plugin ecosystem; everything must be built manually

Recommendation: Payload is an excellent option for developer-led teams building complex, structured content systems with strict TypeScript requirements.

Strapi: Powerful, UI sucks, SSO behind a paywall…

Strapi offers a solid plugin ecosystem, extensibility through Node.js. However, several key features—including single sign-on (SSO), audit logs, and role-based access—are gated behind monthly subscriptions. This makes Strapi less viable to us, not a fan of not allowing revisions of a post to be stored unless we have a subscription.

Pros:

• Mature plugin ecosystem (GraphQL, SEO, error logging with Sentry, etc)

• Backend logic customization via routes, controllers, and middleware

• i18n support with intuitive UI

Cons:

• Mobile admin experience is exceptionally poor

• Enterprise features like SSO and revisions require paid upgrades

• UI inconsistencies with modals and sidebars

Recommendation: Strapi is suitable for backend-heavy projects with experienced developers, but the paywall on essential features can limit scalability for some teams. Its just not nice to have to pay for these things on an open source project when almost all the others (except for the code it yourself ones) include these features.

KeystoneJS: Minimalist and Developer-Only

KeystoneJS is a code-only CMS that provides full control over GraphQL and schema configuration using Prisma. However, it lacks a plugin system, has minimal admin UI capabilities, and requires manual setup for even basic features.

Pros:

• Full control over GraphQL and schema

• TypeScript schema definitions with Prisma support

• Lightweight and minimal by design

Cons:

• No plugin system or built-in extensions

• Limited admin UI with no folders or navigation groups

• No native rich text editor or media management

• Manual configuration required for core features (e.g., .env support)

Recommendation: KeystoneJS is best reserved for highly specialized developer teams who prefer to build every piece from scratch. For most business cases, other platforms offer more efficiency and capability.

Keystone is bascially like reinventing the wheel every time you start a project.

Rich Text and Layout Block Comparison

SEO, Live Preview, and eCommerce

SEO Support

• Strapi: Best plugin availability, strong i18n

• Directus: Manual but flexible

• Payload: Requires custom field creation

Live Preview

• Strapi: iframe-based preview, not real-time

• Directus: Supports real-time with SDK/webhooks

• Payload: Works with custom preview URLs, great with frontend frameworks

eCommerce Compatibility

• All platforms are viable for API-based eCommerce, but none match the out-of-box functionality of dedicated platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce.

Final Verdict

Conclusion

Each of these headless CMS platforms offers unique strengths. The choice depends on your team’s workflow, technical preferences, and the needs of your editors and clients. At True Freedom Tech, our preference leans toward Directus for flexible content projects and Payload when structured development control is critical. Strapi and KeystoneJS, while powerful in theory, are rarely used by us. Payload is a better dev focused KeystoneJS. Strapi locks features in a pay wall that in our view, should be included, and does not allow us to manage our clients on the go since the mobile version is essentially useless. Strapi’s plugins are great and this is its main selling point, if it is a requirement for our project, we don’t mind using it.

When evaluating a CMS, focus on open-source flexibility, extensibility, and whether it empowers both developers and non-technical users. The best CMS isn’t the most complex—it’s the one that gets out of the way and lets your team build faster.