Automad vs Craft CMS
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Automad
Flat-file CMS and template engine in one
VS
Craft CMS
Flexible CMS for custom-designed websites
| Feature | Automad | Craft CMS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 82 · Excellent | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 937 | ★ 3,608 |
| First released | 2014 | 2013 |
| Replaces | WordPress | WordPress, Sitecore |
What are Automad and Craft CMS?
Automad
Automad is a flexible flat-file content management system with a built-in template engine and an in-page editing dashboard. It stores all content in text files for easy version control.
- Flat-file content
- Built-in template engine
- In-page editing dashboard
- Git-friendly
Craft CMS
Craft CMS is a content management system focused on giving developers and designers complete control over content structure and markup. The core product is open source with optional commercial editions.
- Flexible content modeling
- Twig templating
- GraphQL API
- Plugin store
Automad vs Craft CMS: key differences
Automad is written in TypeScript, while Craft CMS is built with PHP. Automad is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Craft CMS. Craft CMS has the considerably larger community, at 3,608 GitHub stars versus 937.
Why pick each one
Choose Automad if…
- No database to manage
- Self-contained and portable
Watch out for
- Small community
- Limited extensions
Choose Craft CMS if…
- Excellent for bespoke sites
- Clean control panel
Watch out for
- Pro edition is paid
- Not ideal for non-developers
Frequently asked questions
Is Automad or Craft CMS better?
Neither is universally better. Craft CMS has the larger community, while Automad is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Automad and Craft CMS free and open-source?
Yes. Automad is licensed under MIT and Craft CMS under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Automad and Craft CMS with Docker?
Automad: yes. Craft CMS: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Automad or Craft CMS?
Automad has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Craft CMS. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.