Alternatives
Best Strapi Alternatives for Agencies (2026)
By Red Kite Search Agency Created Updated 8 min read
Summary
Strapi is a solid choice, but it does not fit every agency. Sanity: A fully customisable, code-first headless CMS with a free plan and per-seat pricing. Storyblok: A headless CMS with a visual editor, priced per space (one space per site). WordPress.com: Managed WordPress hosting and site building. Prices and ratings below were checked in October 2026.
What are the best Strapi alternatives for agencies in 2026?
Strapi is cheap, but you take on hosting work and there is no visual editor.
We compared each option with Strapi on price, scope, and public ratings.
The three alternatives below are a code-first hosted CMS, a visual CMS, and a general-purpose CMS.
The shortlist is Sanity, Storyblok, WordPress.com. The table puts them next to Strapi.
| Tool | Editorial score | Review-site ratings | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strapi | 4.2 / 5 | No review-site rating found | Self-hosted: Community free under the MIT licence, Growth $45 a month for 3 users, Enterprise custom. Strapi Cloud, per project a month: Starter $35, Pro $90 and Business $450. | Freelancers to agencies |
| Sanity | 4.5 / 5 | G2 4.7 | Free $0 with up to 20 seats and 2 public datasets. Growth $15 per seat a month for up to 50 seats and 2 datasets, public or private. Enterprise is custom and can be paid annually. Self-serve plans accept monthly payments only. | Developer-led agencies to enterprise teams |
| Storyblok | 4.4 / 5 | G2 4.5 | Per space. Starter is free for 1 space. Growth costs $99 monthly or $90.75 a month billed yearly with 5 seats. Growth Plus costs $349 monthly or $319.91 billed yearly with 15 seats. Premium and Elite are custom. | Small agencies to enterprise teams |
| WordPress.com | 4.2 / 5 | G2 4.4 | Free plan. Personal $4, Premium $8, Business $25 and Commerce $45 a month billed every 12 months; Enterprise runs on WordPress VIP. | Individuals to enterprises |
Why do agencies look for Strapi alternatives?
Agencies usually look beyond Strapi for a hosted service, a visual editor, or less maintenance.
Others want a larger public review base.
A fair test is to build one real client site on each option for two weeks. Track setup time, how often the team got stuck, and whether the editing experience was good enough to hand to a client without training. Real use shows differences that feature lists hide.
Cost behaves differently in each tool. Some charge per seat, some per space or project, and some are free to self-host but cost time to run. Count what you will really use over twelve months, including extra seats and hosting, before you compare headline prices.
Think about the client side. Clients judge your agency by how easy the editor is, so look at the editing screen as a client would, and check what a client can see, change, or break.
Finally, plan the move. Content models and entries rarely transfer cleanly, so budget time to rebuild them, and keep the old CMS running for a short period so nothing a client relies on disappears during the switch.
Common limitations of Strapi
- Self-hosting means you run hosting, updates and backups for each client.
- Cloud plans are per project, so cost scales with each client site.
- SSO on Growth is a $150 a month add-on.
- A mobile app and most support detail were not stated.
Is Sanity a good Strapi alternative for agencies?
Sanity is hosted, code-first, and the highest rated.
Sanity is a headless content platform where the editing studio is built in code. It sells a free plan with up to 20 seats, a Growth plan priced per seat, and a custom Enterprise plan, with API, CDN and bandwidth limits per plan.
Who it suits: Agencies with developers that build custom editing experiences for client sites and apps.
Sanity pros
- The Free plan costs $0 and allows up to 20 seats and 2 public datasets.
- Growth costs $15 per seat a month for up to 50 seats and private datasets.
- G2 shows 4.7 from 926 reviews, the highest score in the category.
- A startup programme offers a year of Growth free, and a non-profit plan exists.
Sanity cons
- Self-serve plans are monthly only; annual billing needs Enterprise.
- The page does not say how multiple client projects are billed, so confirm before you plan an agency portfolio.
- API and bandwidth limits are fixed on Free and Growth (1M CDN requests, 250K API requests, 100 GB a month).
- Plan-level support channels and a mobile app were not stated.
Is Storyblok a good Strapi alternative for agencies?
Storyblok has a visual editor and about $99 a month per space.
Storyblok is a headless CMS with a visual editor for marketers. Plans are priced per space, which maps to one client site, with seats, API requests and traffic included. A free Starter plan, Growth and Growth Plus are self-serve, and Premium and Elite are custom.
Who it suits: Agencies that build client sites with developers and hand the editing to marketers.
Storyblok pros
- Starter is free for 1 space, with 1 seat (up to 2), 100K API requests and 100 GB traffic.
- Growth costs $90.75 a month billed yearly, or $99 monthly, with 5 seats and 1M API requests.
- Growth Plus costs $319.91 a month billed yearly with 15 seats and 4M API requests.
- G2 shows 4.5 from 633 reviews.
Storyblok cons
- Each client site needs its own space, so cost scales per site.
- No agency or partner programme was shown on the pricing page.
- Growth includes only 5 seats, up to 10.
- SOC 2 and a mobile app were not stated, and live chat is limited to Premium and Elite.
Is WordPress.com a good Strapi alternative for agencies?
WordPress is a general-purpose CMS with a huge ecosystem.
WordPress.com is managed WordPress hosting from Automattic with plans from Personal to Commerce, free domain for a year, plugin support on paid plans, 24/7 expert support and an Automattic for Agencies program. It is separate from self-hosted WordPress.org software.
Who it suits: Agencies that build client sites on WordPress and want managed hosting, plugins and an agency program without running servers.
WordPress.com pros
- Personal from $4 a month with yearly billing, and Business at $25 a month.
- Plugins and custom themes on paid plans, with 50 GB storage on Business and Commerce.
- 24/7 support from Happiness Engineers on paid plans, and priority support on Business and Commerce.
- Automattic for Agencies for agencies with six or more client sites, with one dashboard, discounts and referral commissions.
WordPress.com cons
- First-year prices are discounted; renewals auto-renew at $5, $9, $28 and $50 a month.
- Free sites cannot install plugins.
- Downtime monitoring is only on Business and Commerce.
- SOC 2 and client billing were not stated; custom code flexibility can be more limited than self-hosting.
What is the quick verdict on each Strapi alternative?
If you only have a minute, this table gives our verdict on each alternative to Strapi, based on the research above.
| Tool | Verdict | Editorial score |
|---|---|---|
| Sanity | The highest-rated headless CMS we checked, with a generous free plan and simple per-seat pricing. It rewards developer time: setup is code, and the pricing page does not explain how many client projects a plan covers. | 4.5 / 5 |
| Storyblok | A strong agency fit because a space maps to a client site and the visual editor suits client teams. The cost is about $91 to $99 a month per client site on Growth, and no agency programme was shown on the page. | 4.4 / 5 |
| WordPress.com | The easiest route to managed WordPress, with low yearly prices, plugins on every paid plan, 24/7 support and a bulk plugin dashboard. Business is the plan most agencies need, renewals cost more than the first-year price, and SOC 2 and client billing were not stated. | 4.2 / 5 |
How much do Strapi and its alternatives cost?
Strapi Cloud Starter costs $35 per project a month. Sanity Growth costs $15 per seat a month, Storyblok Growth costs $90.75 a month billed yearly, and WordPress Business costs $25 a month billed yearly.
| Tool | Pricing summary |
|---|---|
| Strapi | Self-hosted: Community free under the MIT licence, Growth $45 a month for 3 users, Enterprise custom. Strapi Cloud, per project a month: Starter $35, Pro $90 and Business $450. |
| Sanity | Free $0 with up to 20 seats and 2 public datasets. Growth $15 per seat a month for up to 50 seats and 2 datasets, public or private. Enterprise is custom and can be paid annually. Self-serve plans accept monthly payments only. |
| Storyblok | Per space. Starter is free for 1 space. Growth costs $99 monthly or $90.75 a month billed yearly with 5 seats. Growth Plus costs $349 monthly or $319.91 billed yearly with 15 seats. Premium and Elite are custom. |
| WordPress.com | Free plan. Personal $4, Premium $8, Business $25 and Commerce $45 a month billed every 12 months; Enterprise runs on WordPress VIP. |
What do reviewers say about Strapi and its alternatives?
Review-site scores are a useful signal for how happy teams are after the first few months. They are snapshots from October 2026, and review counts differ widely between tools.
| Tool | Source | Rating | Number of reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanity | G2 | 4.7 / 5 | 926 |
| Storyblok | G2 | 4.5 / 5 | 633 |
| WordPress.com | G2 | 4.4 / 5 | 2,718 |
Which Strapi alternative suits which kind of agency?
The right pick depends mostly on team size, how clients interact with the tool, and whether you need money data. This table maps common situations to a recommendation.
| Agency situation | Best pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hosted code-first | Sanity | No hosting work. |
| Visual editing | Storyblok | Marketer-friendly. |
| Ecosystem | WordPress | Plugins and themes. |
How hard is it to switch away from Strapi?
Export your content and content types from Strapi before you leave.
Rebuild the content model in the new tool.
Keep your Strapi hosting until the new site is signed off.
Before you leave Strapi
- List content types.
- Export content.
- Compare cost per site.
- Rebuild the model.
- Test editing.
How do you choose the right Strapi alternative?
Decide who maintains hosting.
Compare cost per client.
A quick decision guide
- Choose Sanity for hosted code-first.
- Choose Storyblok for visual editing.
- Choose WordPress for ecosystem.
- Stay with Strapi for low cost.
- Prototype each on one site.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best Strapi alternative?
- Sanity for hosted code-first, Storyblok for visual editing, and WordPress for ecosystem.
- Why do agencies look beyond Strapi?
- Hosting work and no visual editor.
- Which is cheapest?
- Strapi Community is free.
- Is Strapi open source?
- Yes.
- Which has the highest G2 score?
- Sanity.
Sources
Prices, plan limits, and ratings were gathered in October 2026 from:
- Strapi pricing page
- Sanity pricing page
- Storyblok pricing page
- WordPress pricing page