Choosing the Best Content Management System (CMS) in 2024

Choosing the best Content Management System (CMS) depends on your specific needs, including the type of website, level of customisation required, budget, technical expertise, and other factors. Whether your looking for to put together a basic template driven website or a more complex complete custom AI driven eCommerce store. Here are some of the top CMS options, each with its strengths:

Squarespace

Squarespace a template driven and subscription based CMS, easy to get something live quickly with to much technical knowledge but limited in customisation and complexity.

• Pros: Pre-made templates, easy to use, all-in-one platform, good for visual content.
• Cons: Less flexible, limited third-party integrations, more expensive than some other options.
• Best For: Small business websites, portfolios, personal websites.
• Similar CMS: Wix, Weebly, Strikingly, Godaddy Website builder

Shopify

Shopify is primarily an eCommerce platform that allows individuals and businesses to create and manage their own online stores. Over recent years its plugins ecosystem, tools & customisation ability have grown to improve its popularity.

• Pros: Good for basic eCommerce, easy to set up and use, secure and reliable, extensive app ecosystem.
• Cons: Monthly fees, transaction fees unless using Shopify Payments, limited customisation (particularly on the Checkout page).
• Best For: Smaller Online stores and eCommerce websites.
• Similar CMS: Magento

Magento

Magneto also called Adobe Commerce is an open-source robust e-commerce platform bought by by Adobe in 2018

• Pros: Customisable, scalable, robust eCommerce features.
• Cons: Requires technical expertise, can be resource-intensive and expensive. Lacks the ecosystem of other CMS platforms
• Best For: Medium-Large eCommerce websites, businesses with specific and and more complex needs.
• Similar CMS: BigCommerce, Shopify

WordPress

Probably the most well know WordPress was originally created as a tool to publish blogs but has evolved to support publishing other web content, including more traditional websites, Internet forums, media galleries, membership sites, online stores and more. Available as free and Open Source Software, WordPress is still among the most popular content management systems – it was used by 43.1% of the top 10 million websites as of December 2023. Its power is its strong community of Web developers which create and maintain the vast array of plugins that build on its core functionality.

• Pros: Highly customizable, large community, vast library of plugins and themes, user-friendly. Headless CMS option
• Cons: Can be resource-intensive, security vulnerabilities if not properly managed.
• Best For: Blogs, small to medium-sized business websites and Small Online stores (with WooCommerce).
• Similar CMS: Drupal, Joomla

Contentful

Contentful is powerful enterprise based Headless CMS with strong and flexible content creation tools and integration with AI

• Pros: Headless CMS, flexible API-driven content management, suitable for omni-channel content delivery. Frontend agnostic. A.I. Integration.
• Cons: Requires a custom frontend. Expensive
• Best For: Businesses needing a headless CMS, multi-channel content delivery.
• Similar CMS: Strapi.io, Santy.io, HyGraph, Kontent.ai, Butter CMS

StoryBlok

Storyblok is a Headless CMS known for its flexibility and powerful features. What sets itself apart from other Headless CMS by having what it calls a Real-time Visual Editor.  The editor is a live preview of the current page that you are working on and allows you click and edit any part of the content. 

• Pros: Headless CMS, Real-time Visual Editor, flexible API-driven content management, suitable for omnichannel content delivery. Frontend agnostic
• Cons: Requires a custom frontend. Can be expensive
• Best For: Businesses needing a headless CMS, multi-channel content delivery, Advanced client content management