Headless CMS: Pros and Cons

When to choose a headless content management approach and what to consider for your project.

A headless CMS separates content storage and management from the presentation layer. Instead of rendering HTML, it exposes content via APIs so that websites, mobile apps, and other channels can consume it independently.

Pros

Multi-channel: Same content can power web, mobile, kiosks, and IoT. One source of truth.
Technology freedom: Front-end teams can use any framework (Blazor, React, etc.) without being tied to the CMS template engine.
Performance: Static sites and CDNs can serve content without hitting the CMS on every request.
Scalability: Content and delivery can scale independently.

Cons

Complexity: You need to build or integrate the front end and handle preview, routing, and SEO yourself.
Editor experience: Content editors may miss WYSIWYG preview if not implemented.
Cost: More moving parts can mean higher development and maintenance cost.

At Calliope Creations we use and offer Nano CMS, which supports both traditional and API-driven content delivery, so you can adopt a headless approach when it fits your needs.

Calliope Creations Published 2024