Payload

Platform

Code-first CMS with an admin panel and generated REST and GraphQL APIs

Price: Free software; own infrastructure
Access: Access rules and optional API keys

About

Payload is an MIT-licensed TypeScript CMS and application backend built into Next.js. Define collections, fields and access rules, then use its admin UI, REST, GraphQL or Local API. You operate the server and database; an official plugin exposes selected content over MCP.

What you can do with it

Manage CMS content through a generated admin panel
Serve structured content to a frontend through REST or GraphQL
Define collection schemas and document access rules in TypeScript

Get started

Create a Payload project with a supported Next.js runtime
Configure the database and define content collections
Read permitted content through the generated collection API

Example

curl "$PAYLOAD_URL/api/pages?limit=5"

Details

Hosting: Self-hosted, Runs locally
Available in: Worldwide
Official SDKs: JavaScript/TypeScript
MCP server: Remote