Payload CMS

Code-first Node/React headless CMS

FreeCMS & content infrastructurepayloadcms.com

What it is

Payload is an MIT-licensed TypeScript CMS that runs inside your own Next.js app. You define collections in code and it generates a React admin panel plus REST, GraphQL and local Node APIs. It joined Figma in 2025 and remains fully open source.

Why it earns a slot

No seats, no API quotas, no vendor pricing — a large publication costs the same as a hobby blog. The admin UI is React, so any field component can be replaced, and content lives in your own Postgres or Mongo.

Know before you commit

You own the ops entirely: database, backups, scaling, upgrades. Payload Cloud is no longer the pushed path, so plan for Vercel, Cloudflare or your own infrastructure.

Getting started

npx create-payload-app@latest

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Pricing snapshot

Free and MIT-licensed. No seat fees, no API metering. You pay only for hosting. Enterprise support is custom-quoted.

Snapshots move fast — verify at checkout, and post a field note if it changed.

Drop into your Lovable chat

Evaluate Payload CMS (https://payloadcms.com) for this project, then use it only if it fits what we are already building.
Context: Code-first Node/React headless CMS. Payload is an MIT-licensed TypeScript CMS that runs inside your own Next.js app. You define collections in code and it generates a React admin panel plus REST, GraphQL and local Node APIs. It joined Figma in 2025 and remains fully open source.
Reviewer notes (general, not written for this codebase): No seats, no API quotas, no vendor pricing — a large publication costs the same as a hobby blog. The admin UI is React, so any field component can be replaced, and content lives in your own Postgres or Mongo.
Watch out for: You own the ops entirely: database, backups, scaling, upgrades. Payload Cloud is no longer the pushed path, so plan for Vercel, Cloudflare or your own infrastructure.
Pricing: Free and MIT-licensed. No seat fees, no API metering. You pay only for hosting. Enterprise support is custom-quoted.
Setup: npx create-payload-app@latest
Rules: treat the notes above as background only. Do not assume a theme, style, layout or feature that is not already in this project — inspect the existing code first and ask me before changing visual direction.

/api/public/tools/payload-cms

Neighbourhood

How Payload CMS sits against the rest of the atlas — swaps, companions and the tools builders actually save alongside it.

Instead of thisKeystatic MDX Outstatic Velite WordPress (headless / WPGraphQL)Airtable as a CMS Builder.io Contentful

Named in the wiringTypeScript Figma

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