Contao vs django CMS
Contao
contao.org
django CMS
django-cms.orgSide by side
| Figure | Contao | django CMS |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $2/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 6 |
| Spec score · Content Management Systems | 8.9 (#17) | 9.4 (#1) |
| Custom content types | Yes | Yes |
| Custom user roles | Yes | Yes |
| Editing | Editors can use TinyMCE, edit multiple records at once, and restore prior versions. | Editors can change content directly on the page using visual frontend editing. |
| Editorial workflows | Yes | Yes |
| Founded | 2006 | 2007 |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Headquarters | 3250 Lyss, Switzerland | Zurich, Switzerland |
| Integrations | Contao is based on Symfony and can be extended with packages from the Contao extension directory or Packagist. | django CMS can integrate custom Django applications, while add-ons provide capabilities such as rich-text editing, Bootstrap 5 components, media management, versioning, and reusable content blocks. |
| Intended users | The homepage cites use for landing pages, portals, e-commerce, and enterprise sites. | The site describes django CMS as serving digital agencies, marketers and publishers, developers and product managers, and business executives. |
| Media library | Yes | Yes |
| Multilingual content | Yes | Yes |
| Permissions | Access rights can be set for individual backend form fields and assigned by user or group. | The feature list includes granular privileges, and the product page lists editor and publisher permissions. |
| Platform type | self_hosted | self_hosted |
| Security | Contao supports passkeys or two-factor authentication and automatically locks accounts after too many failed login attempts. | The feature list says django CMS has passed security audits and includes granular privileges, SSL, and session management. |
Plans
django CMS
- django CMSFree
- Supporter Association Membership$2 a month
- Bronze Association Membership$500 a year
- Silver Association Membership$1,500 a year
- Gold Association Membership$3,000 a year
- Platinum Association Membership$15,000 a year
In their own words
Contao
Contao is a free, open-source content management system for professional websites and scalable web applications. One installation can operate multiple websites and multilingual sites. Editors can work in TinyMCE, change multiple records together, and restore earlier versions. Administrators can assign permissions to individual backend fields for users or groups, while editorial workflows, custom roles, custom content types, a media library, and multilingual content support organize publishing. The core includes calendar, news and blog, newsletter, form-generation, and full-text-search modules. SEO features include schema.org data and generated XML sitemaps, with stated WCAG 2.1 AA support. Passkeys or two-factor authentication and account locking address access security. Contao runs on web servers with current PHP and MySQL, and can be installed through Contao Manager or Composer. It is based on Symfony and extendable through its directory or Packagist.
django CMS
django CMS is an open-source content management system built on Django for creating and managing websites. Editors can change content directly on the page, while a drag-and-drop builder arranges reusable components such as text, images, videos, forms, and custom business elements. The system supports multiple languages and multi-site publishing, with SEO tools, a media library, custom content types, editorial workflows, and custom user roles. Permissions include granular privileges and separate editor and publisher roles. Developers can integrate existing Django applications through application views and placeholders. Deployment can use traditional Django rendering, hybrid rendering with a REST API, or headless delivery through REST endpoints; headless mode and the REST API are available through the djangocms-rest add-on. The core CMS is free and open, with no license fees. It is self-hosted and supports web, Linux, Windows, and API contexts. Installation requires Python 3.10 or later and uses pip. The maker, based in Zurich, Switzerland, was founded in 2007 and identifies enterprises, universities, and digital agencies as intended users.