{
  "name": "Best Git-based CMS",
  "description": "Every Git-based CMS, ranked honestly. Prices, backends, licences and real cons, verified on the date shown.",
  "url": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com",
  "updated": "2026-09-04",
  "author": "Andrew Chemerynskiy",
  "license": "Facts checked against each vendor's own site on the date shown. Quote freely, link back.",
  "definition": "A Git-based CMS stores content as files in a Git repository and writes every change back as a commit. The site build reads the files, so there is no content database.",
  "ranking": "Number one is the tool built for clients who edit. From two, the order is developer fit. The order is an opinion; the facts are not.",
  "count": 16,
  "tools": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "id": "cms-brew",
      "name": "CMS Brew",
      "category": "Chat editing",
      "summary": "Best for agencies handing finished sites to non-technical clients",
      "verdict": "First because it is the only tool here built for clients who edit: chat, per-field guards, one commit per publish. Paid, and a developer working alone does not need it.",
      "url": "https://cmsbrew.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/cms-brew",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/cms-brew/index.md",
      "price": "$39/mo, 5 sites",
      "pricing": "$39/mo for 5 sites, unlimited editors, 7-day free trial.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted, chat-based",
      "setup": "Connect repo, automatic mapping",
      "review": "Included, per-field guards",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, GitLab",
      "tags": [
        "Client handoff",
        "Review included",
        "Hosted",
        "Framework-neutral"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Clients edit by chat, nothing to relearn between rare visits",
        "Review-before-publish and per-field guards included",
        "Sign-in built in, no GitHub accounts or OAuth wiring",
        "No config file or schema, mapping is automatic"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Paid, while most Git-based panels are free",
        "Clients cannot create new pages or change layout; those escalate to you",
        "Hosted service, not self-hostable"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "id": "decap-cms",
      "name": "Decap CMS",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best battle-tested free panel",
      "verdict": "The default. Free, works with any static site generator, and the 3.x line ships again. The config file stays your job.",
      "url": "https://decapcms.org",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/decap-cms",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/decap-cms/index.md",
      "price": "Free",
      "pricing": "Free and open source.",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Self-hosted panel",
      "setup": "config.yml + OAuth",
      "review": "Drafts via editorial workflow",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea, Azure DevOps",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "Framework-neutral",
        "PR drafts"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free, mature, works with any static site generator",
        "Editorial workflow gives PR-based drafts on GitHub",
        "Large installed base and years of community answers"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "config.yml written and maintained per site",
        "Bring-your-own OAuth until Decap Turbo leaves closed beta",
        "Dated form admin that rare editors never quite learn"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "id": "tinacms",
      "name": "TinaCMS",
      "category": "Visual editor",
      "summary": "Best for React sites wanting in-place editing",
      "verdict": "Visual editing on React sites. Editors see the page while they type. You add a schema and a data layer to get it.",
      "url": "https://tina.io",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/tinacms",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/tinacms/index.md",
      "price": "OSS core; cloud from $29/mo",
      "pricing": "Open-source core (Apache-2.0); TinaCloud free for 2 users, Team $29/mo, editorial workflow from Team Plus at $49/mo.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "In-site visual editor",
      "setup": "Tina schema per site",
      "review": "Team Plus tier, $49/mo",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub with TinaCloud; other hosts with a self-hosted backend",
      "tags": [
        "Visual editing",
        "Open source core",
        "React-first",
        "Paid review tier"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Visual editing daily editors prefer",
        "Open-source core (Apache-2.0), content stays in the repo",
        "Hosted backend available when you want it"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Schema and a data layer added to the site",
        "React-first; other frameworks get less",
        "Review-before-publish starts at the $49/mo tier"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 4,
      "id": "keystatic",
      "name": "Keystatic",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best for technical editors who want clean files",
      "verdict": "Clean files and a typed schema for Next.js and Astro. Editors need GitHub write access or Keystatic Cloud seats.",
      "url": "https://keystatic.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/keystatic",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/keystatic/index.md",
      "price": "Free; Cloud from $10/mo",
      "pricing": "Free and open source (MIT); Keystatic Cloud free for 3 users, Pro from $10/mo plus $5 per extra user.",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Self-hosted admin UI",
      "setup": "keystatic.config per site",
      "review": "No",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, or local mode on the developer's machine",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "Next.js",
        "Astro"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free, open source, actively developed",
        "Clean two-way editing of Markdown, JSON, and YAML",
        "Solid fit for Next.js, Astro, and Remix"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Editors need GitHub write access or Keystatic Cloud seats",
        "Schema maintained per site",
        "No approval step before publish"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 5,
      "id": "sveltia-cms",
      "name": "Sveltia CMS",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best modern take on the free panel",
      "verdict": "Decap's config with a faster UI, real asset management and PR drafts. Still a 0.x beta from one maintainer.",
      "url": "https://sveltiacms.app",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/sveltia-cms",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/sveltia-cms/index.md",
      "price": "Free (MIT)",
      "pricing": "Free and open source (MIT).",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Self-hosted panel",
      "setup": "Decap-style config + OAuth",
      "review": "PR drafts on GitHub/GitLab",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, GitLab, Gitea and Forgejo",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "Framework-neutral",
        "Beta"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free (MIT), fast-moving, migration guides from Decap and Static CMS",
        "Substantially better editor UX than the original",
        "PR-based editorial workflow on GitHub and GitLab"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Config maintained per site",
        "OAuth sign-in is yours to wire, and editors need Git accounts",
        "Still 0.x beta from one maintainer; 1.0 due late 2026"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 6,
      "id": "pages-cms",
      "name": "Pages CMS",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best free option with hosting and sign-in handled",
      "verdict": "Hosted and free, sign-in handled by email invite. GitHub only, and no review step.",
      "url": "https://pagescms.org",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/pages-cms",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/pages-cms/index.md",
      "price": "Free (MIT)",
      "pricing": "Free and open source (MIT); hosted version free, or self-deploy.",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Hosted or self-hosted panel",
      "setup": "Config file, email invites",
      "review": "No",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub only",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "Hosted",
        "GitHub only"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free, with a hosted version, so auth and hosting are handled",
        "Editors join by email invite, no GitHub accounts",
        "Single config file, clean UI"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Config file still maintained per site",
        "GitHub-only",
        "Team features like granular permissions are roadmap items"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 7,
      "id": "cloudcannon",
      "name": "CloudCannon",
      "category": "Visual editor",
      "summary": "Best hosted visual editing",
      "verdict": "Real visual editing across frameworks, hosted. Per-seat pricing grows with every client editor you add.",
      "url": "https://cloudcannon.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/cloudcannon",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/cloudcannon/index.md",
      "price": "From $55/mo + $10/user",
      "pricing": "From $55/mo (3 users, unlimited sites), extra users $10/mo; 21-day trial.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted, visual editing",
      "setup": "Editable regions per site",
      "review": "On Team tier",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket",
      "tags": [
        "Visual editing",
        "Hosted",
        "Per-seat",
        "GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Real visual, in-context editing across frameworks",
        "Hosted and supported, multi-Git-provider",
        "Mature, agency-friendly product"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Per-user pricing grows with client editors",
        "Workflow features gated to the $300+/mo Team tier",
        "Per-site setup of editable regions"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 8,
      "id": "sitepins",
      "name": "Sitepins",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best free hosted panel for agencies, GitLab on paid tiers",
      "verdict": "Free hosted tier, cheap paid tiers, GitLab on Pro. A form-based panel that a rare editor must relearn.",
      "url": "https://sitepins.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/sitepins",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/sitepins/index.md",
      "price": "Free tier; $12 to $49/mo",
      "pricing": "Hobby free (3 sites, 1 user); Pro $12/mo, Team $29/mo, Agency $49/mo, less on annual billing; lifetime licenses from $249; self-hosting free under AGPL.",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Hosted or self-hosted panel",
      "setup": "Connect repo, fields auto-detected",
      "review": "Branch + PR flow on Pro",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub; GitLab on paid tiers",
      "tags": [
        "Free tier",
        "Open source",
        "Hosted",
        "Agency orgs"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free hosted tier, cheap paid tiers, unlimited AGPL self-hosting",
        "Editors join by email, sites grouped in per-client organizations",
        "Fields auto-detected from Markdown and front matter"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Form-based panel a rare editor must relearn",
        "Review is a Pro-plan branch and PR flow, not per edit",
        "GitLab only from the $29 Team plan; one user on the free tier"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 9,
      "id": "front-matter",
      "name": "Front Matter CMS",
      "category": "Developer tool",
      "summary": "Best for developers who edit content in VS Code",
      "verdict": "The whole CMS inside VS Code, free and MIT. Editors need VS Code and a clone of the repository.",
      "url": "https://frontmatter.codes",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/front-matter",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/front-matter/index.md",
      "price": "Free (MIT)",
      "pricing": "Free and open source (MIT).",
      "free": true,
      "model": "VS Code extension",
      "setup": "Local clone, frontmatter.json",
      "review": "No",
      "gitHosts": "Any host. It works on a local clone",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "VS Code",
        "Local only"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free and open source, no server to run",
        "Works with almost any static site generator",
        "Front matter, data files, and media in one dashboard"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Editors need VS Code and a clone of the repository",
        "No review step, no hosted sign-in",
        "Feature development throttled without sponsorship"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 10,
      "id": "outstatic",
      "name": "Outstatic",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best free dashboard for Markdown in a Next.js app",
      "verdict": "A free Markdown dashboard for Next.js apps. Self-hosted, it is Next.js and GitHub only.",
      "url": "https://outstatic.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/outstatic",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/outstatic/index.md",
      "price": "Free; PRO $9.99/user/mo",
      "pricing": "Free self-hosted; Outstatic PRO $9.99 per user per month hosted, 14-day trial. Source-available (FSL-1.1).",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Panel in a Next.js app, or hosted",
      "setup": "Next.js install or hosted dashboard",
      "review": "Draft or published only",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub only",
      "tags": [
        "Free self-hosted",
        "Next.js",
        "Markdown",
        "Source-available"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free self-hosted version with the full feature set",
        "Hosted PRO dashboard with email and Google sign-in",
        "Actively maintained, frequent releases"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Self-hosted install is Next.js only; GitHub only",
        "Draft or published, no review step; roles are PRO-only",
        "Source-available (FSL), not open source"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 11,
      "id": "nuxt-studio",
      "name": "Nuxt Studio",
      "category": "Visual editor",
      "summary": "Best free option if the site is Nuxt",
      "verdict": "Free and MIT, lives inside the Nuxt site. Nuxt Content only, and the site must run with SSR.",
      "url": "https://nuxt.studio",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/nuxt-studio",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/nuxt-studio/index.md",
      "price": "Free (MIT)",
      "pricing": "Free and open source (MIT); the hosted subscription was discontinued.",
      "free": true,
      "model": "Editor module inside a Nuxt site",
      "setup": "Install module, connect repo",
      "review": "No; PRs on the roadmap",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, GitLab",
      "tags": [
        "Free",
        "Open source",
        "Nuxt only",
        "GitHub, GitLab"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Free and MIT, no seats, self-hosted inside your Nuxt site",
        "GitHub and GitLab, with Google sign-in for editors",
        "Live preview of the real site while editing"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Nuxt with Nuxt Content only, SSR deployment required",
        "No review step; commits go straight to the branch",
        "Young as an open-source module, roadmap still open"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 12,
      "id": "gitcms",
      "name": "GitCMS",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best one-time price for a Markdown content layer",
      "verdict": "$49 one-time per site with a review workflow on by default. Markdown and MDX only, GitHub only.",
      "url": "https://gitcms.dev",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/gitcms",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/gitcms/index.md",
      "price": "$49 one-time per site",
      "pricing": "$49 one-time per site during launch ($79 regular), 1 seat included, extra seats $9 each; free preview mode, no self-serve free plan.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted Markdown editor",
      "setup": "GitHub App, collections",
      "review": "Editorial workflow, on by default",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub only",
      "tags": [
        "One-time price",
        "Markdown",
        "Review workflow",
        "GitHub only"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "One-time $49 per site during launch, no subscription",
        "Review-before-publish on by default, with reviewer roles",
        "Block editor plus MCP access for AI drafting"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Markdown and MDX only; component copy is out of reach",
        "GitHub only, no self-hosting",
        "One seat included, extra seats cost extra"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 13,
      "id": "unfreez",
      "name": "Unfreez",
      "category": "Visual editor",
      "summary": "Best client-billed click-to-edit layer for component copy",
      "verdict": "Click-to-edit for component copy, billed to the client at €90 per site per year. Every field is unlocked by hand.",
      "url": "https://unfreez.app",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/unfreez",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/unfreez/index.md",
      "price": "€90 per site per year",
      "pricing": "€90 per site per year excl. VAT, billed to the client; unlimited editors; 14-day free trial, no card.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted, click-to-edit",
      "setup": "Developer unlocks fields per site",
      "review": "No; undo per publish",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub only",
      "tags": [
        "Click-to-edit",
        "Client-billed",
        "Component copy",
        "GitHub only"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Edits copy inside components, not only Markdown",
        "Client-billed at €90 per site per year, unlimited editors",
        "One atomic commit per publish, one-tap undo"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Developer unlocks every editable value per site by hand",
        "No review queue or escalation for out-of-scope asks",
        "GitHub only; young product with no public changelog"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 14,
      "id": "spinal",
      "name": "Spinal",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best scheduled publishing for a Markdown marketing blog",
      "verdict": "Scheduling and a content calendar for a Markdown blog. $39/mo with a five-member minimum.",
      "url": "https://spinalcms.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/spinal",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/spinal/index.md",
      "price": "$39/mo",
      "pricing": "Pro $39/mo (5 members minimum, $4 per extra member; 1,000 entries, 10 collections); power-ups $9/mo each; 7-day trial, card required.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted Markdown CMS",
      "setup": "Connect GitHub, pick folders",
      "review": "Roles only, no approval",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub only",
      "tags": [
        "Hosted",
        "Markdown",
        "Scheduling",
        "EU-hosted"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Scheduling and a content calendar for a blog team",
        "Editors sign in with email, no GitHub accounts",
        "Hosted in the EU, no CMS code in your site"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "$39/mo with a 5-member minimum, card required for the trial",
        "Markdown content only, GitHub only",
        "Role split, but no per-edit review"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 15,
      "id": "netlify-visual-editor",
      "name": "Netlify Visual Editor",
      "category": "Visual editor",
      "summary": "Best if the team already lives in Netlify",
      "verdict": "A visual layer for teams already on Netlify. No marketing page; the product lives in the docs.",
      "url": "https://docs.netlify.com/manage/visual-editor/overview/",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/netlify-visual-editor",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/netlify-visual-editor/index.md",
      "price": "Netlify Pro $20/mo",
      "pricing": "Netlify Pro from $20/mo with unlimited team members; which plans include Visual Editor is not stated on the pricing page.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted visual layer",
      "setup": "Netlify site + content source",
      "review": "Builder and Publisher roles; PR mode",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub, Bitbucket",
      "tags": [
        "Visual editing",
        "Netlify teams",
        "Docs only",
        "GitHub, Bitbucket"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Visual editing over repo files or a headless CMS",
        "Reviewer and Publisher roles; Git publishes can open a PR",
        "Unlimited team seats on the $20/mo Pro plan"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "No marketing page; the product lives in the docs",
        "GitHub and Bitbucket only, no GitLab",
        "Editors must be Netlify team members on a Pro team"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    },
    {
      "rank": 16,
      "id": "siteleaf",
      "name": "Siteleaf",
      "category": "Git-based panel",
      "summary": "Best hosted panel if the site is Jekyll",
      "verdict": "A hosted panel for Jekyll, still running. Jekyll only, and the prices are not published.",
      "url": "https://www.siteleaf.com",
      "profile": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/siteleaf",
      "markdown": "https://bestgitbasedcms.com/tools/siteleaf/index.md",
      "price": "Unpublished; per site",
      "pricing": "Prices not printed on the plans page; free Developer plan for public repos, 14-day trial on Personal, billed monthly per site.",
      "free": false,
      "model": "Hosted panel for Jekyll",
      "setup": "GitHub sync, Jekyll only",
      "review": "Writer drafts on Team plan",
      "gitHosts": "GitHub sync",
      "tags": [
        "Hosted",
        "Jekyll only",
        "GitHub sync",
        "Prices unpublished"
      ],
      "pros": [
        "Two-way GitHub sync, editors invited by email",
        "Writer drafts wait for a Publisher on the Team plan",
        "Unlimited users on every plan"
      ],
      "cons": [
        "Jekyll only",
        "Prices not published; billed monthly per site",
        "Quiet since 2023, new version still promised"
      ],
      "verifiedOn": "2026-09-03"
    }
  ]
}