# Payload vs Strapi

> Strapi scores 65.7 (B) on agent readiness against Payload's 55.2 (C), and leads in every scored category. Both do cms content. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi.md (~2,150 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi.min.md (~630 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-08

Strapi scores 65.7 (B) on agent readiness against Payload's 55.2 (C), and leads in every scored category. Both do cms content.

- Payload: grade C, 55.2/100, rank #516 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/payload.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/payload.json
- Strapi: grade B, 65.7/100, rank #252 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/strapi.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/strapi.json

## Which one, for what

### Payload (C)

Good for: Teams that build on Next.js and want the content model in TypeScript, with drafts, versions and localisation in the free core.

Watch for: 49 security advisories in the 12 months to 8 October 2026, 8 critical, 38 of them published since 18 September 2026

### Strapi (B)

Good for: Teams that want to own their CMS and let an agent draft, localise and publish entries under a narrow token.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 80 against 70
- Security & auth, 66 against 57
- Payments & pricing, 50 against 45
- Maintenance & community, 87 against 78
- Transparency & trust, 72 against 62

Watch for: Content History keeps no version for REST, GraphQL or MCP writes, and exists only on Growth and Enterprise plans


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Payload | Strapi | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 78 | 82 | Strapi +4 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 70 | 80 | Strapi +10 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 64 | 65 | Strapi +1 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 57 | 66 | Strapi +9 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 45 | 50 | Strapi +5 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 78 | 87 | Strapi +9 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 62 | 72 | Strapi +10 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | -10 | -6 | |
| **Total** | | **55.2 · C** | **65.7 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Payload | Strapi |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Payload CMS, Inc. (Figma) | Strapi, Inc. |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | HTTP, Streamable HTTP |
| Auth | API key | API key |
| Pricing | Free | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT for the core and the official packages. Enterprise add-ons are sold separately through sales | MIT for the Community Edition. Code under ee/ directories is under Strapi's Enterprise Edition licence, and Strapi Cloud is a paid service under its own terms |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-09-23 | 2026-10-07 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | 2026-10-07 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2024-03-28 | 2023-03-01 |
| Customer content may train models |  | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access |  | yes |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  | yes |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  | yes |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  | yes |
| Popularity | 45k stars, 1.1M npm/wk | 73k stars, 259k npm/wk |

## Verdicts

**Payload.** Payload generates REST, GraphQL and MCP interfaces from one typed config, with drafts, restorable versions and per-key MCP permissions in the free MIT core. The security record is the limit. The vendor published 49 advisories in 12 months, 8 of them critical, so an install older than 3.90.0 is exposed. No OpenAPI file is published.

**Strapi.** The built-in MCP server shows an agent only the tools, fields and locales its Admin token permits, and content tools create drafts by default. Rollback is the limit. Content History is a paid feature and records admin panel edits only, so API and MCP writes leave no version to restore, and the MCP server can't upload files.

## Before you call either

### Payload

1. Check the installed version first. Anything below 3.90.0 carries published critical advisories, so ask the owner to upgrade before writing
2. Send REST keys as `Authorization: {collection-slug} API-Key {key}` and MCP keys as `Authorization: Bearer {key}`. The two key kinds are separate
3. To publish, set `_status: 'published'` in the data. The `draft` parameter only relaxes validation and chooses where an update is written
4. Upload files with multipart POST to the upload collection, with other fields as JSON in `_payload`. No MCP upload tool is documented
5. Roll back with `POST /api/{collection-slug}/versions/:id` after listing versions. Versions exist only where the collection config enables them

### Strapi

1. Pass `status=draft` on every REST POST and PUT. Without it the Content API publishes the entry at once
2. Use an Admin token for `/mcp` and admin routes and an API token for `/api`. Each kind is rejected on the other's routes
3. Upload files with multipart POST to `/api/upload` first, then reference the returned file id in the entry. MCP tools can't upload
4. Call `media_delete_assets` and `media_delete_folder` without `dryRun` first to preview, and take asset ids only from `media_list_assets`
5. Keep your own copy of an entry before updating it. API and MCP writes create no Content History version

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Payload or Strapi?

Strapi scores 65.7 (B) on agent readiness against Payload's 55.2 (C), and leads in every scored category.

### Do Payload and Strapi need an API key?

Both need an API key.

### Can an agent call Payload and Strapi without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for Payload. No hosted endpoint is listed for Strapi.

### Are Payload and Strapi open source?

Yes. Payload is open source (MIT for the core and the official packages. Enterprise add-ons are sold separately through sales). Strapi is open source (MIT for the Community Edition. Code under ee/ directories is under Strapi's Enterprise Edition licence, and Strapi Cloud is a paid service under its own terms).


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-strapi.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "payload", "b": "strapi"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare payload strapi`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/payload.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/strapi.json

## Other comparisons with Payload or Strapi

- [Contentstack vs Payload](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/contentstack-vs-payload.md)
- [Contentstack vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/contentstack-vs-strapi.md)
- [DatoCMS vs Payload](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/datocms-vs-payload.md)
- [DatoCMS vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/datocms-vs-strapi.md)
- [Directus vs Payload](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/directus-vs-payload.md)
- [Directus vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/directus-vs-strapi.md)
- [Ghost vs Payload](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ghost-vs-payload.md)
- [Ghost vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ghost-vs-strapi.md)
- [Payload vs Sanity](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-sanity.md)
- [Payload vs Storyblok](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-storyblok.md)
- [Payload vs Webflow](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-webflow.md)
- [Payload vs WordPress](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payload-vs-wordpress.md)
- [Sanity vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/sanity-vs-strapi.md)
- [Storyblok vs Strapi](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/storyblok-vs-strapi.md)
- [Strapi vs Webflow](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/strapi-vs-webflow.md)
- [Strapi vs WordPress](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/strapi-vs-wordpress.md)