A Headless CMS (Content Management System) is a backend-only content management system that provides content via an API, separating the content repository (the “body”) from the presentation layer (the “head”).
š What Makes it “Headless”?
Traditional CMS (like WordPress, Drupal) has both the backend (content editing) and frontend (theme, display) tightly coupled.
Headless CMS removes the frontend (“head”) and delivers content through APIs, allowing developers to use any frontend framework (React, Vue, Next.js, etc.).
ā Key Features
API-driven (RESTful or GraphQL)
Decoupled architecture
Supports omnichannel content delivery (websites, mobile apps, IoT, etc.)
Flexible front-end development
Scalable and developer-friendly
š ļø Popular Headless CMS Platforms
CMS | API Support | Hosting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Strapi | REST & GraphQL | Self-hosted | Open source, flexible |
Contentful | REST & GraphQL | SaaS | Enterprise-grade, easy to use |
Sanity | GROQ & REST | SaaS | Real-time collaboration |
DatoCMS | GraphQL | SaaS | Great for static sites |
Ghost (headless mode) | REST & GraphQL | Self-hosted or SaaS | Blogging-focused |
Directus | REST & GraphQL | Self-hosted or SaaS | Works with existing SQL databases |
š§ Use Case Example
If you want to build a Next.js blog that pulls articles from Contentful, you only need to:
Create content models in Contentful
Fetch data via API in your Next.js frontend
Deploy anywhere (Vercel, Netlify, etc.)
š¦ Benefits
Future-proof: Frontend can evolve independently
Multi-platform: Content reuse across apps, websites, smart devices
Performance: Static-site generation, CDN support
Security: Smaller attack surface (no exposed admin panel)
ā ļø Considerations
More Dev Resources: Requires front-end development
Learning Curve: API and architecture understanding needed
Cost: Some services charge per API call or usage