Introduction
In the ever-evolving world of web development, choosing the right tool for the job is crucial. As a full-stack developer, you’re likely familiar with building applications from scratch using frameworks and libraries like Node.js, Express, NestJS, React, Angular, and Vue.js. However, with the rise of Content Management Systems (CMS) such as Strapi, WordPress, and others, it’s worth considering when a CMS might be a better choice than a custom-built solution.
This article explores scenarios where using a CMS is more advantageous than a framework or library, and when it makes sense to stick with traditional development approaches. We’ll also highlight some of the top CMS options for both frontend and backend development.
Not Every Website Needs a Framework
While frameworks and libraries like React, Angular, or NestJS offer powerful tools for building custom web applications, they aren’t always the best choice. Developing a website or application from scratch can be time-consuming, expensive, and overkill for certain projects. For example, a simple blog, portfolio, or small business website may not require the complexity of a full-stack framework.
This is where CMS platforms come into play. A CMS provides pre-built functionality, such as content management, user authentication, and database management, allowing developers to focus on customization rather than reinventing the wheel. However, the decision to use a CMS, a framework, or even a native language depends on the specific requirements of your project.
When to Use a Native Language, Framework, or CMS
1. When to Use a Native Language (e.g., JavaScript, Python, PHP)
- Use Case: Small, simple projects or when you need full control over every aspect of the application.
- Example: A basic static website, a custom script, or a lightweight API.
- Pros: Complete control, no unnecessary overhead, and lightweight.
- Cons: Requires more development time and effort, especially for complex features.
2. When to Use a Framework or Library (e.g., React, Angular, NestJS)
- Use Case: Medium to large-scale applications that require custom functionality, scalability, and flexibility.
- Example: E-commerce platforms, SaaS applications, or real-time applications.
- Pros: Reusable components, structured codebase, and access to a rich ecosystem of tools and libraries.
- Cons: Steeper learning curve, longer development time, and higher costs for maintenance.
3. When to Use a CMS (e.g., Strapi, WordPress, Contentful)
- Use Case: Content-heavy websites, blogs, or projects where rapid development and ease of use are priorities.
- Example: Corporate websites, blogs, portfolios, or small e-commerce sites.
- Pros: Faster development, built-in features (e.g., content management, SEO tools), and easier for non-technical users to manage.
- Cons: Limited flexibility compared to custom solutions, potential performance overhead, and dependency on the CMS ecosystem.
Key Scenarios Where a CMS Shines
1. Content-Heavy Websites
If your project involves managing a large amount of content (e.g., blogs, news sites, or documentation), a CMS is ideal. Platforms like WordPress or Strapi provide intuitive interfaces for content creation, editing, and organization.
2. Rapid Development
When time-to-market is critical, a CMS can significantly speed up development. With pre-built templates, plugins, and themes, you can launch a website in days rather than weeks.
3. Non-Technical Users
If the website will be managed by non-technical users (e.g., marketers or content creators), a CMS offers an easy-to-use interface for updating content without requiring coding knowledge.
4. Budget Constraints
For small businesses or startups with limited budgets, a CMS can reduce development costs by eliminating the need for custom coding and ongoing maintenance.
5. SEO and Marketing Tools
Many CMS platforms come with built-in SEO tools, analytics integrations, and marketing features, making it easier to optimize your site for search engines and track performance.
Top CMS Platforms for Frontend and Backend Development
When it comes to choosing a CMS, the landscape is vast and varied. Different types of CMS platforms cater to different needs, whether you're building a simple blog, a headless e-commerce site, or a complex enterprise application. To help you navigate this space, we’ve categorized the top CMS platforms by type and highlighted their key features, use cases, and popularity.
1. Traditional CMS
a. WordPress
- Popularity: Powers over 40% of all websites on the internet.
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Features:
- User-friendly interface with a WYSIWYG editor.
- Extensive plugin ecosystem (e.g., Yoast SEO, WooCommerce).
- Thousands of free and premium themes.
- Use Cases: Blogs, corporate websites, small e-commerce sites.
- Why It’s Popular: Easy to use, highly customizable, and has a massive community.
b. Joomla
- Popularity: Powers around 2% of all websites.
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Features:
- Advanced user management and access control.
- Built-in multilingual support.
- Extensible with modules and components.
- Use Cases: Community portals, membership sites, and medium-sized businesses.
- Why It’s Popular: Offers more flexibility than WordPress for complex sites.
c. Drupal
- Popularity: Used by large organizations and governments.
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Features:
- Highly scalable and secure.
- Advanced content modeling and taxonomy.
- Strong community and enterprise support.
- Use Cases: Government websites, universities, and large enterprises.
- Why It’s Popular: Ideal for complex, high-traffic websites with custom requirements.
2. Headless CMS
Headless CMS platforms decouple the backend (content management) from the frontend (content presentation). They provide content via APIs, making them ideal for modern, multi-channel applications.
a. Strapi
- Popularity: Rapidly growing among developers.
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Features:
- Open-source and self-hosted.
- Fully customizable API.
- Supports REST and GraphQL.
- Use Cases: Custom APIs for React, Vue.js, or mobile apps.
- Why It’s Popular: Developer-friendly, flexible, and integrates seamlessly with modern frameworks.
b. Contentful
- Popularity: Widely used by enterprises.
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Features:
- Cloud-based and scalable.
- Real-time content updates.
- Integrates with modern frontend frameworks.
- Use Cases: Multi-channel content delivery (web, mobile, IoT).
- Why It’s Popular: Robust API, enterprise-grade features, and excellent documentation.
c. Sanity
- Popularity: Gaining traction for real-time applications.
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Features:
- Real-time collaboration and content updates.
- Customizable content models.
- Powerful APIs and GROQ query language.
- Use Cases: Dynamic websites, editorial workflows, and e-commerce platforms.
- Why It’s Popular: Highly flexible and developer-centric.
3. E-commerce CMS
E-commerce CMS platforms are specifically designed for building online stores. They come with built-in features like product management, payment processing, and inventory tracking.
a. Shopify
- Popularity: Powers over 1.7 million online stores.
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Features:
- Easy-to-use drag-and-drop builder.
- Built-in payment processing and inventory management.
- Extensive app store for additional functionality.
- Use Cases: Small to medium-sized e-commerce businesses.
- Why It’s Popular: Quick setup, no coding required, and excellent customer support.
b. WooCommerce
- Popularity: Powers over 28% of all online stores.
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Features:
- Built as a WordPress plugin.
- Highly customizable with themes and extensions.
- Large community and ecosystem.
- Use Cases: Small to medium-sized e-commerce businesses.
- Why It’s Popular: Combines the flexibility of WordPress with e-commerce functionality.
c. Magento (Adobe Commerce)
- Popularity: Used by large enterprises.
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Features:
- Highly scalable and customizable.
- Advanced SEO and marketing tools.
- Enterprise-grade security.
- Use Cases: Large e-commerce platforms with complex requirements.
- Why It’s Popular: Ideal for high-traffic, enterprise-level online stores.
Choosing the Right CMS for Your Needs
The CMS landscape offers a wide range of options, each tailored to specific use cases and requirements. Whether you’re building a simple blog, a headless e-commerce site, or a complex enterprise application, there’s a CMS that fits your needs.
- Traditional CMS like WordPress and Joomla are great for content-heavy websites.
- Headless CMS like Strapi and Contentful are ideal for modern, multi-channel applications.
- E-commerce CMS like Shopify and WooCommerce are perfect for online stores.
- Static Site Generators like Gatsby and Next.js are excellent for performance-focused projects.
- Enterprise CMS like Sitecore and Adobe Experience Manager cater to large organizations with complex needs.
By understanding the strengths and use cases of each type of CMS, you can make an informed decision and choose the right tool for your project.
Conclusion
The decision to use a CMS, a framework, or a native language ultimately depends on your project’s requirements, budget, and timeline. While frameworks and libraries offer unparalleled flexibility and control, they can be overkill for simpler projects. On the other hand, a CMS can save time and resources, especially for content-heavy websites or projects with non-technical users.
As a developer, it’s essential to evaluate the pros and cons of each approach and choose the tool that best aligns with your goals. Whether you opt for a CMS like Strapi or a framework like NestJS, the key is to strike the right balance between functionality, efficiency, and maintainability.
By understanding when to use a CMS instead of a framework, you can deliver high-quality solutions that meet your clients’ needs while optimizing your development workflow.
Top comments (18)
The detailed breakdown of use cases, advantages, and limitations makes it easier for developers to decide the right approach for their projects. I especially liked the section on headless CMS and how they integrate with modern frameworks.
I saw a worst solution of combine next.js with contentful, using inhouse npm module. A real maintanance nightmare.
Oof, I hear you—bad integrations can be a nightmare! 😅 Next.js + Contentful can work great, but yeah, poorly designed in-house modules can ruin it. Did you find any better approaches or solutions? Always curious to learn from others’ experiences!
No, I move to another company, another problems :) - a bad react architecture with poorly designed AWS use. Currently fixing those.
Bad React architecture and AWS misuse can definitely be a headache. Good luck fixing those—sounds like a great learning experience though.
Thanks a lot! 😊 Really glad you found it useful, especially the headless CMS part. It’s such a game-changer for modern dev workflows.
"Traditional" CMS solutions can provide a rest API, for example Drupal. It is not a headless CMS service only feature.
With the headless CMS services there is a vendor lock-in. So they can go up in cost or strip features. I knew one project where the headless service just stopped, so they had to migrate to another CMS.
It is easy and fast when you use a service, but for long term projects I recommend a solution that gives you more control.
I would not call Shopify, WooCommerce and Magento CMS solutions. They are e-commerce solutions. While they have some content management, they are focused on selling things. Like a CRM manages user content, the main goal is to provide ways to attract and keep customers.
Great points! You're absolutely right—traditional CMS platforms like Drupal can also provide REST APIs, which makes them quite versatile. And I agree that vendor lock-in is a real risk with headless CMS services. It’s always a trade-off between speed/ease of use and long-term control, and for some projects, having more control over the stack is definitely the way to go.
As for Shopify, WooCommerce, and Magento, I included them because they often overlap with CMS use cases, especially for businesses that need both content management and e-commerce functionality. While their primary focus is on selling, they do offer robust content management features that make them a hybrid solution for many use cases.
Thanks for sharing your insights! If you’ve got any recommendations for balancing control and convenience in CMS/e-commerce setups, I’d love to hear them.
I understand you point of view about the ecommerce solutions.
I see a CMS more as a framework, and that can contain specialised solutions like e-commerce, CRM, DAM. Most of the time they are used without a clear distinction between the different parts, like Shopify and Magento.
But I wouldn't use the two solutions only for the CMS,
I agree with your conclusion every project has their own requirements and constraints. And we have to decide what the best solution is based on those terms.
I just wrote my own CMS and use it for every project. It's very scalable, so if a project requires additional features, it's very easy to add them. I try to keep my CMS updated and it was completely rewritten twice (the first time I completely changed the architecture, the second time moved to Vue 3 and also changed the architecture). Sometimes even just change the frontend HTML part and remove (or just disable) unnecessary modules and project is ready for production 🙂
That’s seriously impressive! Building your own CMS is no easy task, and it sounds like you’ve really nailed the scalability and flexibility part. Rewriting it twice—especially with the move to Vue 3 and architecture changes—shows some serious dedication. Hats off to you!
Thank you!
I've often wanted to bring this up with individuals who are relatively new to web and web application development. No matter how much I try to explain, they just don’t seem to grasp it.
Hopefully, they'll come across this article and give it a proper read. Only then might they start to understand and appreciate that web development isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach, especially when clients have specific demands.
Fantastic article btw 👏
Thanks a lot! 😊 You’re so right—web development isn’t one-size-fits-all, and it’s not always easy to explain that to newcomers. Hopefully, this article can help clear things up a bit. Really appreciate your kind words!
Simple, clear, and valuable. Exactly what I needed—great work!
Thank you! 😊 Really glad you found it helpful.
I have also written a blog on CMS. Take a look!
wpfolk.com/blogs/wordpress-like-cms
Nice! I’ll definitely check it out. Thanks for sharing! 😊