13+ Headless CMS APIs You Can Use for Your Blog Vyom Srivastava May 25, 2021 There’s a lot of buzz around the concept of headless CMS in 2021. Technologists have been using traditional CMS or Content Management Systems for more than 20 years, but now, the world is changing. We live in an era where we consume information from different sources like smartphones, smart TV, desktop.The main disadvantage of a traditional CMS is that it is not cross-platform; it can only be used as a web application. Using a conventional CMS, it’s challenging to create a mobile application since the servers wrap everything.The headless CMS is a backend-only content management system using server-side technologies that make content accessible via a REST API. The term “headless” comes from the concept of removing the head (frontend) from the body (backend). Therefore, the headless CMS can be used to deliver content to multiple platforms. Below, we’ll go through some of the best headless CMS APIs.DatoCMSOne of the most well-known headless CMSs on the market is DatoCMS. It is a self-hosted CMS platform that is being used by more than 25,000 companies. It provides a central hub to distribute the content to multiple platforms through its GraphQL API.Since the API uses GraphQL, it provides a very efficient way to make API calls. DatoCMS also comes with a Visual Model Builder, which allows you to create beautiful pages using drag-and-drop elements.Pros:DatoCMS is flexible and easy-to-useIt is an API-based CMSIt is a simple tool with tons of customizationCons:It requires a bit of competencyThe new pricing structure made it hard for small businesses to buyFlotiqFlotiq is a headless CMS that aims to provide developers with a simple API and powerful integrations and SDKs to help them create complex systems. Separation of concerns is supported by Flotiq, which separates the data from the presentation layer, allowing you to use the data anywhere you want.Pros:Easy to useClear onboarding processAvailability of SDK generators makes the development process faster and saves a lot of timeGood user supportShop, Blog, Recipe starter projects available on their GitHubCons:Higher initial cost (for bigger projects)Lack of dark modeCosmicCosmic is an API-based content management system that enables developers and content editors to create apps quickly. It is a cloud-based solution for rapid application creation and collaborative content management.Pros:Great and easy to use.Easy import/exportLeveraging the Cosmic GraphQL API allows for easy updates to news and blogsCons:Webhooks are JSON onlyWordPress APIWordPress API is one of the world’s most popular headless CMS options. It’s used to make blogs, business websites, landing pages, online shops, and portals with registration requirements. WordPress comes with all of the resources needed to create fully functioning eCommerce and small business websites.Pros:Flexible with customization potentialThere are some good security plugins for WordPress.With WordPress keywords and plug-ins, SEO is much easier to achieveCons:No WYSIWYG Editor (for headless version)More complex maintenanceMore complex credentialingLack of speedForestry.ioIt is without a doubt that Forestry is one of the most widely used commercial Git-based CMS. It is a complete platform consisting of a single HTML file.Forestry is designed to make uploading and updating content on static websites easier. It is ideal for a marketing team of editors and developers because of its ease of use and native Git integration. Forestry also maintains TinaCMS, an open-source headless CMS for Next.js websites.Pros:No limits in terms of the amount of content or requestsInstant preview servers availableThe installation of the Forestry is extremely simpleForestry’s configuration is just as simpleCons:Forestry doesn’t support multiple media foldersGentics MeshAnother great open-source headless CMS is Gentics Mesh. It is a CMS that you can run on your server. Since Gentics Mesh is based on GraphQL, it is simple to connect to the API, decreasing the time to transform the data.Pros:Easy to install and use.It comes with a built-in search index.Cons:Lack of supportJamstack CMSJAMstack is another great headless CMS. ‘JAM’ in JAMstack stands for “Javascript”, “API,” and “Markup”. It’s a method of web design that allows users to create static websites with dynamic functionality. It combines many of the tools and workflows that developers admire.Pros:Great developer experienceCreating content is easyMore security and reliabilityCons:Dynamic features requires more heavy liftingThe limited ability to use real-time/user-provided dataNetlify CMSNetlify is an open-source content management system tool for building, deploying, serving, and managing frontend websites and mobile apps. It is aimed at more experienced users, such as web developers. You may use it with GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket API since it serves as a framework for the Git workflow.Pros:Flexible and unlimited content types with custom fieldsIt can be used with any static site generatorIt is an open-source CMSCons:Documentation can be hard to follow sometimesNo responsive interface, no mobile appSanity.ioNext on our list of headless CMS is Sanity. Sanity is an extremely fast, real-time, and flexible CMS. Sanity is heavily invested in assisting developers who use the platform. In the group Slack workspace, their team is always attentive and supportive. It can be used for a lot more than just browsing the internet.Pros:Highly customizableIt offers a lot of ways of filteringSupport helps people follow up with interest promptlyGreat query languageCons:Development is more time-consuming in comparison with other servicesYou have to learn the new and very specific query language (GROQ)Overall UI isn’t as sleek as some other optionsStatamicStatamic is another good headless CMS that gained popularity with developers back in 2012. Using Statamic, your designs, content, and resources are stored in files on your CMS, and you can version control your site closely because it uses a flat-file system.The content editor in Statamic is simple to use and offers a wide range of options for positioning and organizing text and photographs.Pros:It can work as a static site generatorSurprising flexibilityGreat documentationEasy templatingCons:Not as user-friendlyThe number of add-ons and themes to buy as a new user is very limitedTakeShapeTakeShape is another API-based CMS and a static site generator designed to free up developers’ time to concentrate on product development. It’s as simple as signing, modeling, developing, and using. Instead of thinking about CMS backends, developers can focus on the final product.Pros:Super easy to useClean, Elegant, Fast, Developer-friendlyNo database maintenance requiredSaves developer’s time and effortCons:Some programming experience is neededStoryblokAnother API-based headless CMS is Storyblok. Storyblok assists you in gaining control of your material. After publishing an entry, it has a built-in option to activate a webhook. It ensures that any updates you make to your website will be rebuilt automatically.Pros:Easy licensing with unlimited usageStoryblocks’ fixed plans make stock footage super accessible for YouTubers, freelancers, and content companies with low budgetsGreat variety of stock videosA consistent and straightforward way of filtering storiesCons:There are no aggregations or results from scoring supportChoosing the right subscription plan may be tricky and require some thinkingImage library to be a bit limitedPonzu CMSPonzu is a powerful headless CMS that is open-source and based on the HTTP server. It is written in Go, and it comes with several user interfaces for extending the functionality of each content from within your CMS.Pros:Ponzu fills the void where you want to reach for WordPress to get a great CMS, or Rails for rapid developmentAutomatic HTTP/2 integration (Server Push & more)Flexible CMS and JSON APIs for content, files, searchCons:Not the best developer experienceHonorable MentionsDid we miss a headless tool? Please let us know in the comments.Hygraph: Quickly generates GraphQL-based Content APIs to power headless platforms. (formerly GraphCMS).Final WordsGone are the days when traditional CMS used to rule the market with one platform (website). Now you can deliver your content to multiple channels using the headless CMS and experiment with multiple platforms.