Self-hosted alternatives to Contentful
Want headless content management without handing your data to Contentful? These 4 self-hosted apps run on your own server. Cheapest estimated hosting starts at about $5/month.
About Contentful: API-first headless CMS.
| App | Health | Stars | License | Docker | RAM (est.) | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strapi | Active | 73.4k | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Payload CMS | Active | 45.7k | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Squidex | Active | 2.5k | MIT | – | 2 GB | $10/mo |
| d9 | Active | 184 | GPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
The options in detail
1. Strapi
Headless CMS that lets developers build content APIs fast while giving content creators a friendly editing interface.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release v5.61.0 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM incl. mysql. How to run it →
2. Payload CMS
Developer-first headless CMS and application framework.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release v4.0.0-beta.7 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM incl. mongodb/postgres. How to run it →
3. Squidex
Headless CMS, based on MongoDB, CQRS and Event Sourcing.
Active Last commit 2026-10-30. Latest release 7.24.0 (2026-09-28). Needs roughly 2 GB RAM incl. mongodb. How to run it →
4. d9
Turn SQL databases into secure APIs through an intuitive admin interface. Data platform and headless CMS (fork of Directus).
Active Last commit 2026-11-02. Latest release v12.0.26 (2026-10-29). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
Why self-host instead of Contentful?
- Own your data — it lives on a server you control, with backups you decide on.
- Predictable cost — a small VPS often replaces per-seat pricing for a whole team or family.
- No lock-in — open-source licenses let you keep running the software even if a vendor disappears.
The trade-off: you are responsible for updates, backups and security. Pick an app marked Active (a commit in the last 90 days) and with Docker support for the easiest ride.
Browse related categories
Other alternatives guides
Contentful is a trademark of its owner; this site is not affiliated with it. Listings come from the community-maintained awesome-selfhosted list.