Craft CMS vs Directus
Craft CMS and Directus are both CMS options. Craft CMS lists 7 features across 2 platforms; Directus lists 8 features across 2 platforms — see the full breakdown below, sourced from each vendor's own site rather than ratings or reviews.
Side-by-side summary
Best for Craft CMS
Agencies and developers building multi-site or e-commerce projects who want flexible content modeling without being locked into a rigid page structure.
Best for Directus
Development and content teams that want to turn an existing SQL database into a governed API and content backend without vendor lock-in.
Feature comparison
Every feature listed here comes directly from each vendor's own official site.
Craft CMS
- Customizable field types and flexible content modeling
- Multi-site support with unlimited localization, translated into 25 languages in the control panel
- Twig templating for coupled sites and a self-generating GraphQL API for decoupled apps
- Extensible plugin framework with a built-in Plugin Store
- Craft Commerce for e-commerce functionality
- Third-party integrations including Salesforce, Mailchimp, and HubSpot
- Craft Cloud managed hosting option
Directus
- Instant REST and GraphQL API generation from an existing database
- No-code admin interface (Studio) for content management and data governance
- Digital asset manager with CDN-ready file transformation
- Real-time updates via WebSockets and subscriptions
- Visual editing with live preview
- Role-based access control for both human users and AI agents
- Native MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor integrations
- Self-hosted via npm on your own infrastructure or managed Directus Cloud
Pros and cons
Craft CMS
- Customizable field types and flexible content modeling
- Multi-site support with unlimited localization, translated into 25 languages in the control panel
- Twig templating for coupled sites and a self-generating GraphQL API for decoupled apps
- Extensible plugin framework with a built-in Plugin Store
- Craft Commerce for e-commerce functionality
- Third-party integrations including Salesforce, Mailchimp, and HubSpot
- Craft Cloud managed hosting option
- Self-hosted Team and Pro licenses include only one year of updates; continued updates/support cost $99/year per project after that, and commercial plugins can add separate costs.
- Craft Cloud is a separate recurring hosting expense ($120/month Team or $240/month Pro when paid annually), so a hosted deployment has very different economics from the one-time self-hosted CMS license.
Directus
- Instant REST and GraphQL API generation from an existing database
- No-code admin interface (Studio) for content management and data governance
- Digital asset manager with CDN-ready file transformation
- Real-time updates via WebSockets and subscriptions
- Visual editing with live preview
- Role-based access control for both human users and AI agents
- Native MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor integrations
- Self-hosted via npm on your own infrastructure or managed Directus Cloud
- Core has hard limits including 3 seats, 25 collections, and 5 flows; SSO is not available on Core.
- Team is a large price step at $499/month with an annual commitment ($599 month-to-month), while Enterprise pricing is custom.
Key differences
- Craft CMS lists Customizable field types and flexible content modeling, Multi-site support with unlimited localization, translated into 25 languages in the control panel, Twig templating for coupled sites and a self-generating GraphQL API for decoupled apps, Extensible plugin framework with a built-in Plugin Store, Craft Commerce for e-commerce functionality, Third-party integrations including Salesforce, Mailchimp, and HubSpot, Craft Cloud managed hosting option that Directus doesn't list.
- Directus lists Instant REST and GraphQL API generation from an existing database, No-code admin interface (Studio) for content management and data governance, Digital asset manager with CDN-ready file transformation, Real-time updates via WebSockets and subscriptions, Visual editing with live preview, Role-based access control for both human users and AI agents, Native MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor integrations, Self-hosted via npm on your own infrastructure or managed Directus Cloud that Craft CMS doesn't list.
- Craft CMS supports Web (Craft Cloud), which Directus doesn't list.
- Directus supports Web (Directus Cloud), which Craft CMS doesn't list.
Choose Craft CMS if…
Choose Craft CMS if this fits: Agencies and developers building multi-site or e-commerce projects who want flexible content modeling without being locked into a rigid page structure. Compared with Directus specifically, Craft CMS also offers Customizable field types and flexible content modeling, Multi-site support with unlimited localization, translated into 25 languages in the control panel, Twig templating for coupled sites and a self-generating GraphQL API for decoupled apps, and 4 more features that Directus doesn't list, plus Web (Craft Cloud) support that Directus doesn't list.
Choose Directus if…
Choose Directus if this fits: Development and content teams that want to turn an existing SQL database into a governed API and content backend without vendor lock-in. Compared with Craft CMS specifically, Directus also offers Instant REST and GraphQL API generation from an existing database, No-code admin interface (Studio) for content management and data governance, Digital asset manager with CDN-ready file transformation, and 5 more features that Craft CMS doesn't list, plus Web (Directus Cloud) support that Craft CMS doesn't list.
Facts on this page are sourced from each vendor's official site (linked below), not from ratings or reviews. Products change — verify anything that matters to your decision directly on the vendor's own site before switching. See our Disclaimer and Sources Policy.
Craft CMS sources
Last verified October 6, 2026
- https://craftcms.com
- https://craftcms.com/pricing
- https://craftcms.com/cloud
- https://craftcms.com/knowledge-base/how-craft-licenses-and-renewals-work
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