Self-hosted alternatives to Webflow
Want visual website building and hosting without handing your data to Webflow? These 12 self-hosted apps run on your own server. Cheapest estimated hosting starts at about $5/month.
About Webflow: Visual website builder and hosted CMS aimed at designers.
| 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 |
| Vvveb CMS | Active | 1.2k | AGPL-3.0 | ✓ | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Typemill | Active | 620 | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Expressa | Active | 452 | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Contao | Active | 450 | LGPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| HTMLy | Maintained | 1.4k | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| d9 | Active | 184 | GPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Localess | Active | 75 | MIT | ✓ | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| CMS Made Simple | Unknown | – | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Plone | Unknown | – | ZPL-2.0 | ✓ | 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. Vvveb CMS
Powerful and easy to use CMS to build websites, blogs or e-commerce stores.
Active Last commit 2026-10-29. 8 releases in the past year. Latest release 1.0.9.0 (2026-10-29). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
5. Typemill
Author-friendly flat-file-cms with a visual markdown editor based on vue.js.
Active Last commit 2026-10-23. Latest release v2.28.0 (2026-10-23). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
6. Expressa
Content Management System for powering database driven websites using JSON schemas. Provides permission management and automatic REST APIs.
Active Last commit 2026-09-22. Latest release 2.1.3 (2026-09-05). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
7. Contao
Powerful CMS that allows you to create professional websites and scalable web applications.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. 10+ releases in the past year. Latest release 6.0.4 (2026-10-09). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
8. HTMLy
Databaseless PHP blogging platform. A flat-file CMS that allows you to create a fast, secure, and powerful website or blog in seconds.
Maintained Last commit 2026-01-25. 1 release in the past year. Latest release v3.1.1 (2025-11-03). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
9. 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 →
10. Localess
Powerful translation management and content management system. Manage and translate your website or app content into multiple languages, using AI to translate faster.
Active Last commit 2026-10-26. Latest release v4.1.0 (2026-10-05). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
11. CMS Made Simple
Faster and easier management of website contents, scalable for small businesses to large corporations.
Unknown Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
12. Plone
CMS system that is used to create, edit, and manage digital content, like websites, intranets, and custom solutions.
Unknown Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
Why self-host instead of Webflow?
- 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.
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Other alternatives guides
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