Craft CMS
PHP CMS with great developer ergonomics. Headless mode via the Element API.
VISIT CRAFT CMSKey takeaway: Craft CMS is a PHP CMS loved by agencies and designers for its clean content modelling and control, usable headless via its GraphQL API. Pick it for bespoke, design-led sites where editors want a tidy, tailored authoring experience and developers want precise control.
Quick facts
- CategoryLegacy / Headless mode
- LanguagePHP
- PricingPaid
- LicenseProprietary (open-source Solo edition)
- Created2013
- GitHub stars1.5k
- Statusactive
What it is
Craft CMS is a PHP-based commercial CMS with a strong developer reputation. Twig templates, GraphQL API, Element API for headless. Used heavily in agency work where the editorial UX is important and the team is PHP-fluent. Commercial license; the Solo edition is free.
Best for
- Agencies with PHP fluency and a preference for the Craft editorial UX
- Sites where the polished admin matters more than the latest JS-framework headline
When not to pick it
Skip Craft outside the PHP / agency world, the alignment is the differentiator. Hosting and ops cost is real.
My take
Craft has a loyal agency following because the editorial UX is genuinely good. Outside PHP-comfortable teams, Sanity or Payload will fit better.
Content modelling and craft
Craft gives developers fine-grained control over content types, fields, and relations, and editors a clean, uncluttered admin tailored to the site, which is why design-focused agencies favour it. It can run traditionally with Twig templates or headless through its GraphQL API (Craft Pro), feeding a Next.js or Astro front end while keeping Craft’s authoring strengths.
Licensing and fit
Craft is commercial: a per-project licence plus optional renewals for updates, which is modest next to enterprise SaaS bills and buys a polished, self-hosted tool. It is a strong fit for bespoke marketing and brand sites; it is less of a fit for teams wanting a free open-source stack or a turnkey hosted SaaS with no infrastructure to run.
Frequently asked questions
Can Craft CMS be used headless?
Yes. Craft Pro exposes a GraphQL API so you can run it as a back end and render the front end in Next.js, Astro, or another framework, while keeping Craft’s content modelling and admin.
Is Craft CMS free?
Craft has a free Solo tier; Craft Pro (which includes the GraphQL API and multi-user features) is a paid per-project licence with optional renewal for ongoing updates.
Why do agencies like Craft CMS?
Clean, precise content modelling, a tidy admin tailored per site, and strong developer control, which suit bespoke, design-led builds rather than templated mass content.
Links
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If Craft CMS is your pick, the next conversation is short
The 30-min call is where your CMS choice becomes a real architecture, an editorial workflow your team can adopt, and a price range you can take to your stakeholders. Describe your content estate, your team\'s muscle memory, your timeline. I tell you whether Craft CMS is genuinely your fit.