# DatoCMS vs Payload CMS

**Leader by Vioscale score:** DatoCMS

| Attribute | DatoCMS | Payload CMS |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 59 (73% (medium)) | 50.9 (39% (low)) |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"cloud":true,"on_prem":true,"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A cloud-based content management platform that lets teams organize and publish structured content from a central hub to any digital channel via API. Supports real-time collaboration, multiple locales and user roles, and integrates with popular deployment tools and static site generators. | A flexible, developer-friendly headless CMS and backend framework built on Next.js that supports cloud and self-hosted deployment, offering code-first development for developers and visual content interfaces for marketers. |
| features.capabilities | `{"cms_type":"headless","free_tier":true,"multisite":true,"open_source":false,"headless_api":true,"localization":true,"visual_builder":true,"managed_hosting":true,"content_workflow":true,"plugin_ecosystem":"Integrations with popular static site generators including Jekyll, Hugo, Middlem","structured_content":true}` | `{"cms_type":"headless","free_tier":true,"multisite":true,"open_source":true,"git_workflow":true,"headless_api":true,"localization":true,"self_hostable":true,"visual_builder":true,"managed_hosting":true,"content_workflow":true,"plugin_ecosystem":"Community-driven with templates and GitHub integration","structured_content":true}` |
| integrations.count | 5 | 6 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Vercel"},{"name":"Jekyll"},{"name":"Hugo"},{"name":"Middleman"},{"name":"Imgix"}]` | `[{"name":"Nodemailer"},{"name":"Resend"},{"name":"SendGrid"},{"name":"Stripe"},{"name":"Ethereal"},{"name":"SMTP"}]` |
| market.availability | `{"hqCountry":"IT","primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":["US"],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"web":true}` | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"hybrid","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Developer","description":"Fully-featured free plan with all CMS features available, no paywall-locked functionality","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Professional","description":"All-inclusive plan with all features, consistent support, and predictable monthly costs","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Agency","description":"Custom-priced plan for agencies managing multiple projects with discounts up to 80% per project","contactSales":true},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","description":"Premium plan with guaranteed support response times, grade A onboarding, and uptime SLA","contactSales":true}],"summary":"Free Developer plan; Professional, Agency, and Enterprise paid plans. 50% discount on annual billing; 50% discount for educators, students, and nonprofits.","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://www.datocms.com/blog/we-made-big-changes-to-our-pricing-model","retrievedAt":"2026-08-13T22:24:34.051Z","freeTrialDays":14,"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` | `{"type":"hybrid","summary":"Free and open-source. Paid cloud hosting with 14-day trial for new signups; enterprise available on quarterly billing.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://payloadcms.com","retrievedAt":"2026-08-21T13:19:38.129Z","freeTrialDays":14,"billingPeriods":["month","quarter"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | low | low |
| pricing.transparent | yes | no |
| reliability.status_page | yes | - |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.iso27001 | yes | - |

## Capabilities (CMS Software)

| Capability | DatoCMS | Payload CMS |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| CMS type | Headless / API-first | Headless / API-first |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Open-source | ✗ | ✓ |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Self-hostable | - | ✓ |
| Managed / cloud hosting offered | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Delivery** |  |  |
| Headless API (REST/GraphQL) | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Content** |  |  |
| Structured content modelling | ✓ | ✓ |
| Localisation / i18n | ✓ | ✓ |
| Content workflow / approvals | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Editing** |  |  |
| Visual / no-code page builder | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Extensibility** |  |  |
| Plugin / app ecosystem size | Integrations with popular static site generators including Jekyll, Hugo, Middlem | Community-driven with templates and GitHub integration |
| **Scale** |  |  |
| Multi-site / multi-tenant | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Workflow** |  |  |
| Git-based / code-first workflow | - | ✓ |
| **Pricing** |  |  |
| Free / open tier | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T16:43:03.811Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*