Payload CMS ranks #10 in Headless CMS & Content Platforms AI search.

Payload CMS is an open-source, developer-first headless CMS and full-stack application framework built with TypeScript, React, and Node.js. Founded in 2018 in Grand Rapids, Michigan by James Mikrut, Elliot DeNolf, and Dan Ribbens, it became the first CMS to run natively inside a Next.js /app folder with version 3.0. Developers configure Payload entirely in code, which auto-generates a TypeScript backend, REST and GraphQL APIs, and a customizable React admin panel. Licensed under MIT, it is free to self-host, with Payload Cloud plans starting at $35/month. The platform supports MongoDB and PostgreSQL and includes built-in authentication, access control, versioning, localization, and a plugin ecosystem. With over 41,000 GitHub stars and 18,000 dependent repositories, it has achieved strong open-source traction. Payload was acquired by Figma in June 2025, positioning it as the backend foundation for Figma's design-to-deployment platform.