Up to 4 at once.
| Criteria | Directus | Superdesk API |
|---|---|---|
| Weighted Score | 2.7/5 | 3.8/5 |
| Pricing | Core is free (up to 3 seats, self-hosted); Team is $499/mo on an annual commitment ($599/mo billed monthly); Enterprise is custom. Directus Cloud hosting is a $99/mo add-on. Organisations under $5M revenue and 50 staff can apply for a free licence. | Open-source (free self-hosted); Managed Lite from €250/mo, Pro from €2,990/mo, and custom Enterprise plans. |
| Platform Type | Headless CMS | Headless CMS |
| Content modelling & structured content | 4.6/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Editorial experience | 3.3/5 | 4.6/5 |
| API performance & delivery | 4.6/5 | 3.8/5 |
| SEO & publishing features | 1.5/5 | 3.0/5 |
| Scalability & reliability | 4.5/5 | 4.0/5 |
| Extensibility | 4.7/5 | 4.0/5 |
| Localisation & multi-site | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 |
| AI & automation | 4.0/5 | 4.2/5 |
| Revenue integrations | 1.0/5 | 2.0/5 |
| Security & compliance | 4.0/5 | 3.6/5 |
| Strengths | ✓ Strong headless data that works as the framework of content delivery ✓ Compatible with any SQL database | ✓ Modern, clean, and easily modifiable interface ✓ Flexible and scalable for large news organizations |
| Limitations | ✗ Not suitable for the editorial workflow of newsrooms | ✗ Requires technical expertise for implementation ✗ UI needs to be more advanced |
Directus
2.7
Rating
★ 2.7/5
Pricing
Core is free (up to 3 seats, self-hosted); Team is $499/mo on an annual commitment ($599/mo billed monthly); Enterprise is custom. Directus Cloud hosting is a $99/mo add-on. Organisations under $5M revenue and 50 staff can apply for a free licence.
Platform
Headless CMS
Scores
Content modelling & structured content
4.6
Editorial experience
3.3
API performance & delivery
4.6
SEO & publishing features
1.5
Scalability & reliability
4.5
Extensibility
4.7
Localisation & multi-site
3.5
AI & automation
4.0
Revenue integrations
1.0
Security & compliance
4.0
Strengths
✓ Strong headless data that works as the framework of content delivery
✓ Compatible with any SQL database
Limitations
✗ Not suitable for the editorial workflow of newsrooms
Superdesk API
3.8
Rating
★ 3.8/5
Pricing
Open-source (free self-hosted); Managed Lite from €250/mo, Pro from €2,990/mo, and custom Enterprise plans.
Platform
Headless CMS
Scores
Content modelling & structured content
4.2
Editorial experience
4.6
API performance & delivery
3.8
SEO & publishing features
3.0
Scalability & reliability
4.0
Extensibility
4.0
Localisation & multi-site
3.5
AI & automation
4.2
Revenue integrations
2.0
Security & compliance
3.6
Strengths
✓ Modern, clean, and easily modifiable interface
✓ Flexible and scalable for large news organizations
Limitations
✗ Requires technical expertise for implementation
✗ UI needs to be more advanced
