Payload CMS

What Payload CMS is

Payload is a headless CMS, which means it manages your content and data and exposes them through APIs, while leaving the front end entirely up to you. What sets Payload apart from most headless CMSs is that it is also an application framework, and it is code-first. Instead of clicking through a hosted dashboard to build content types, you define everything, your collections, fields, access control, hooks, and admin panel, in TypeScript configuration that lives in your own codebase. Payload then generates a full admin UI, a typed database layer, authentication, file handling, and REST, GraphQL, and direct local APIs from that config.

The founder describes it as "a hybrid between a CMS and an app framework", and that captures it well. For a developer, especially one already working in TypeScript and Next.js, Payload feels less like a third-party CMS you integrate and more like a backend you own. It is used by everyone from indie developers to Fortune 500 companies, for content sites, headless commerce, digital asset management, and custom internal apps.

Code-first: how Payload works

Payload is built on Next.js, React, and Node.js, and written in TypeScript. It installs into a Next.js application rather than running as a separate service, so your CMS and your front end can live in one codebase and one deployment. The practical consequences of the code-first approach are:

• Full type safety. Your config generates types, so your content is typed end to end, which developers value highly.
• Version control for your schema. Because the config is code, your content model is in Git, reviewable and reproducible, not locked in a hosted dashboard.
• You own the data and the code. Self-host on your own infrastructure with your own database, with no vendor lock-in.
• Extensibility. Hooks, custom fields, and custom React components in the admin panel let you shape it to almost any use case.

Features

Out of the box, Payload gives you the core of a serious backend:

• Auto-generated admin panel with live preview of your front end.
• REST, GraphQL, and local APIs, generated from your config, so you query content however suits your app.
• Built-in authentication and granular access control, down to the field level.
• Multi-database support: PostgreSQL, MongoDB, and SQLite.
• Localization, multi-tenancy, and white-labelling for multi-market and agency use.
• File and media handling, making it usable as a digital asset manager.
• Enterprise add-ons such as SSO, audit logs, publishing workflows, a visual editor, and AI features including RAG and vector embedding.

Payload CMS pricing

Payload's pricing is refreshingly simple, and it changed after the Figma acquisition, so here is the current picture.

The core is free and open source. Payload is MIT-licensed, and that did not change when Figma bought it. You can download it, self-host it anywhere, and use the full CMS and app framework at no cost. For most projects, that is the whole bill.

There is a paid Enterprise tier. Enterprise is essentially a set of paid plugins and support layered on the open-source core, adding features like single sign-on, audit logs, publishing workflows, a visual editor, and AI capabilities. Enterprise pricing is not published; you negotiate it directly with the Payload team through their contact or enterprise page.

Payload Cloud, the managed hosting, was discontinued for new projects after the Figma acquisition. The old cloud-pricing page now shows the acquisition notice, existing Cloud projects keep running, but new Cloud deployments are paused. In practice that means you now host Payload yourself, which is straightforward on platforms like Vercel, or with Docker, or on your own server. So the honest summary is: Payload itself is free to self-host, you pay only if you need the Enterprise features or hosting elsewhere, and there is no longer a first-party managed hosting plan for new projects.

Is Payload CMS free, and how do you host it now?

Yes, Payload is genuinely free. The MIT open-source license means you can build and run production sites on it without paying Payload anything. The only costs are the ones you would have anyway: your hosting and your database. Since the first-party Payload Cloud was wound down for new projects, the common way to host a Payload app now is to deploy the Next.js app to Vercel, or run it in Docker on any cloud, or self-host on your own server, and point it at a managed Postgres or MongoDB. This gives you full control and no per-seat CMS fees, at the cost of managing the infrastructure yourself, which is the usual trade-off with a self-hosted, open-source CMS.

The Figma acquisition: what changed

In June 2025, Figma acquired Payload, reportedly for somewhere around $10 million to $15 million. The important thing for users is what did not change: Payload stays open source under MIT, your code and data remain yours, and James Mikrut and the team continue to run the project. What did change is the managed Payload Cloud, which was paused for new projects as the focus shifted back to the open-source framework and Enterprise. The strategic logic is that Figma, a design platform, gains a developer-grade CMS and app framework, closing the gap between design and shipped, content-driven products. For most developers, the acquisition is a stability signal rather than a disruption.

Payload CMS vs Strapi

Strapi is the most common comparison, since both are open-source, self-hostable, Node-based headless CMSs, and the choice usually comes down to philosophy. Payload is code-first and TypeScript-native: you define everything in typed config, get full type safety, install it into a Next.js app, and treat the CMS as part of your own codebase. That appeals to TypeScript and Next.js developers who want ownership and type safety. Strapi is more GUI-first and established: you build content types largely through an admin interface, it has a larger plugin ecosystem and community, and it is often quicker for teams who want a ready-made admin without writing config. As a rule of thumb, choose Payload if you are a TypeScript/Next.js developer who wants a code-first backend you fully control, and Strapi if you want a mature, GUI-driven CMS with a big plugin marketplace. The table below compares them directly.

What developers say about Payload

Payload has a strong reputation among developers, and its growth reflects that: downloads climbed from around 2,000 a week in its 2021 beta to roughly 20,000 a week in early 2024 and about 90,000 a week by the end of 2024, before the Figma acquisition. Developers praise the TypeScript type safety, the code-first ownership, the tight Next.js integration, and the flexibility to build well beyond a basic CMS. The honest criticisms are the flip side: it is developer-first, so it is not the right pick for non-technical teams who want a hosted, click-together dashboard; self-hosting means you manage your own infrastructure, more so now that Payload Cloud is paused; the plugin ecosystem, while growing, is smaller than Strapi's or the big SaaS CMSs; and Enterprise pricing is opaque. For its target audience of TypeScript developers, though, it is one of the most-loved tools in the category.

Payload contact and support

As an open-source developer tool, Payload's support runs through code and community channels rather than a phone line. The official routes are:

• Official website: payloadcms.com, with a contact page at payloadcms.com/contact and an enterprise page at payloadcms.com/enterprise for sales.
• GitHub: github.com/payloadcms/payload, for issues, discussions, and the source itself.
• Community: the Payload Discord, an active place for developer questions.
• Email: james@payloadcms.com is listed publicly for direct contact, and enterprise enquiries go through the contact and enterprise pages.
• Company: Payload, now part of Figma, is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. There is no phone support line.