Payload CMS Has a Free API That Gives You a Headless CMS Built on Next.js

Payload CMS is a headless CMS built on Next.js. TypeScript-native, self-hosted, with auto-generated APIs and a beautiful admin panel.

Quick Start

npx create-payload-app@latest

Define Collections

// collections/Posts.ts
import { CollectionConfig } from 'payload'

export const Posts: CollectionConfig = {
  slug: 'posts',
  admin: { useAsTitle: 'title' },
  fields: [
    { name: 'title', type: 'text', required: true },
    { name: 'content', type: 'richText' },
    { name: 'author', type: 'relationship', relationTo: 'users' },
    { name: 'status', type: 'select', options: ['draft', 'published'] },
    { name: 'publishDate', type: 'date' },
    { name: 'featuredImage', type: 'upload', relationTo: 'media' }
  ]
}

This generates:

• REST API: GET /api/posts, POST /api/posts, etc.
• GraphQL API: queries and mutations
• Admin panel: CRUD interface with rich text editor

Access Control

export const Posts: CollectionConfig = {
  access: {
    read: () => true,                    // anyone can read
    create: ({ req }) => !!req.user,     // must be logged in
    update: ({ req }) => req.user?.role === 'admin',
    delete: ({ req }) => req.user?.role === 'admin',
  },
  // ...
}

Payload vs Strapi vs Sanity

Feature	Payload	Strapi	Sanity
Language	TypeScript	JavaScript	Proprietary
Framework	Next.js	Koa	N/A
Self-hosted	Yes	Yes	Cloud only
Admin UI	Built-in	Built-in	Studio
API	REST + GraphQL	REST + GraphQL	GROQ
License	MIT	MIT	Proprietary

The Bottom Line

Payload is the CMS for Next.js developers. TypeScript-native, self-hosted, with the best admin UI in the open-source CMS space.

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Need to automate data collection or build custom scrapers? Check out my Apify actors for ready-made tools, or email [e-mail] for custom solutions.