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Compare Directus and Payload CMS 
At a Glance
Market Segments
Small-Business (53.2% of reviews)
Small-Business (86.2% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $15.00 1 Seats Per Month
Free
Directus
Star Rating
(47)4.9 out of 5
Market Segments
Small-Business (53.2% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $15.00 1 Seats Per Month
Browse all 4 pricing plansPayload CMS
Star Rating
(59)4.9 out of 5
Market Segments
Small-Business (86.2% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
Free
Browse all 4 pricing plansSummary
AI Generated Summary
AI-generated. Powered by real user reviews.
- Users report that Directus excels in its Content Repository with a perfect score of 10.0, allowing for seamless management of content, while Payload CMS also performs well but has a slightly lower score of 9.0 in this area.
- Reviewers mention that Payload CMS shines in Content Authoring, achieving a top score of 10.0, which users appreciate for its intuitive interface and rich text editing capabilities, compared to Directus's score of 9.3.
- G2 users highlight that Directus offers robust Versioning features, scoring a perfect 10.0, which is crucial for teams needing to track changes over time, while Payload CMS does not have a dedicated score for this feature.
- Users on G2 report that Payload CMS provides superior Customization options, with a score of 10.0, allowing for extensive branding and theme adjustments, whereas Directus scores 9.3 in this category.
- Reviewers say that both platforms have strong API / Integrations capabilities, but Directus stands out with a perfect score of 10.0, making it easier for developers to connect with other tools, while Payload CMS also performs well but does not match this level.
- Users report that Directus has a slight edge in Ease of Use with a score of 9.5, making it more accessible for new users, while Payload CMS, with a score of 9.0, is still user-friendly but may require a bit more time to master.
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Pricing
Entry-Level Pricing
Directus
Starter Cloud
Starting at $15.00
1 Seats Per Month
Best for static site CMS projects and small personal projects.
- 5,000 DB Entries
- 50,000 API Requests
Payload CMS
Self-Hosted
Free
Get started in one-line: $ npx create-payload-app
- Completely free and open-source
- GraphQL, REST, and Local APIs
- Easily customizable ReactJS Admin
Free Trial
Directus
Free Trial is available
Payload CMS
Free Trial is available
Ratings
Meets Requirements
9.5
37
9.4
56
Ease of Use
9.3
39
9.0
56
Ease of Setup
9.1
38
9.1
48
Ease of Admin
9.3
33
9.3
47
Quality of Support
9.4
36
9.3
55
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
9.6
31
9.4
35
Product Direction (% positive)
9.0
36
10.0
55
Features by Category
Content
8.9
9
10.0
7
8.1
9
9.5
7
7.1
7
10.0
7
7.3
8
8.8
7
7.1
7
10.0
7
6.4
7
9.3
7
8.1
8
9.0
7
7.6
7
9.8
7
8.1
7
9.8
7
Design
5.7
7
8.3
6
6.4
7
8.6
7
7.9
8
9.2
6
8.1
8
9.8
7
Platform
7.5
8
9.8
7
7.6
7
9.5
7
9.2
8
9.8
7
9.2
8
9.8
7
9.0
7
9.8
7
8.1
6
9.3
7
7.4
7
8.1
7
9.0
7
10.0
7
Agentic AI - Web Content Management
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Data Management
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Optimization
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Analytics
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Publishing
8.0
20
8.9
25
8.7
22
9.1
35
4.4
13
6.8
12
Development
8.7
24
8.4
43
8.7
23
9.4
42
7.9
20
8.8
29
8.2
21
8.8
26
Analytics
7.7
21
8.6
40
8.3
21
9.2
44
Agentic AI - Headless CMS
Not enough data
Not enough data
Headless Commerce
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Generative AI
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Agentic AI - E-Commerce Platforms
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Merchandising/Marketing
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Product Catalog
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Order Process
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Multi-Channel Support
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Platform
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Categories
Categories
Shared Categories
Directus and Payload CMS are categorized as Headless CMS and Web Content Management
Unique Categories
Directus is categorized as Product Information Management (PIM)
Payload CMS is categorized as E-Commerce Platforms
Reviews
Reviewers' Company Size
Directus
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Payload CMS
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Small-Business
(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market
(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise
(> 1000 emp.)
Reviewers' Industry
Computer Software
17.0%
Program Development
10.6%
Leisure, Travel & Tourism
6.4%
Real Estate
4.3%
Non-Profit Organization Management
4.3%
Other
57.4%
Computer Software
32.8%
Information Technology and Services
13.8%
Design
8.6%
Marketing and Advertising
6.9%
Internet
5.2%
Other
32.8%
Most Helpful Reviews
Directus
Most Helpful Favorable Review
Brian M.
Verified User in Health, Wellness and Fitness
Directus is an SQL wrapper. One can start with an existing DB schema or use the app to build the schema. When one's done, the resultant is a database that could be moved to another solution with little effort. This ensures that I'm using a product but...
Most Helpful Critical Review
Payload CMS
Most Helpful Favorable Review
Eric J.
Verified User in Information Technology and Services
It is developer-friendly, being code-first and written entirely in TypeScript. It is easy to self-host and deploy. The documentation is excellent and allows developers to add customizations and develop their own plugins. Unlike many other CMS's, Payload is...
Most Helpful Critical Review
Brian M.
Verified User in Health, Wellness and Fitness
Directus is an SQL wrapper. One can start with an existing DB schema or use the app to build the schema. When one's done, the resultant is a database that could be moved to another solution with little effort. This ensures that I'm using a product but...
Eric J.
Verified User in Information Technology and Services
It is developer-friendly, being code-first and written entirely in TypeScript. It is easy to self-host and deploy. The documentation is excellent and allows developers to add customizations and develop their own plugins. Unlike many other CMS's, Payload is...
Discussions
What is Directus used for?
1 comment
JW
Directus provides an Open Data Platform with dynamic database mirroring APIs and no code Admin App to manage data model, content/data items, etc with a...Read more
Directus has no more discussions with answers
Payload CMS has no discussions with answers
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