Best Self Hosted Alternatives to ProcessWire

Halo is an open-source website builder and content management system for creating blogs, knowledge bases, and business websites. It focuses on an efficient editing experience, structured configuration, and a plugin/theme ecosystem for long-term maintainability and growth.

Key Features

• Rich text and Markdown editing with embeddable content elements
• Theme templates and plugin-based architecture with one-click enable/disable
• RESTful API for integrations and secondary development
• Site logs and basic status monitoring capabilities
• Built-in backup and restore for site data
• Data migration tooling from other platforms
• Multiple storage strategies, including local storage and S3-compatible object storage
• Authentication options designed for flexible access control
• Optional AI capabilities via plugins (assisted writing and knowledge-base Q&A)

Use Cases

• Personal or team blogs with a fast publishing workflow
• Knowledge base sites with search and interactive Q&A extensions
• Company websites that need modular content and easy customization

Halo is a solid choice for users who want a modern, extensible CMS with a strong ecosystem of themes and plugins, plus integration-friendly APIs. Its modular design supports everything from simple blogs to more complex content-driven sites.

Grav is a modern, open-source flat-file CMS written in PHP that delivers fast, flexible websites without a database. It uses Markdown for content, Twig for templating, YAML for configuration and provides a package manager and rich plugin ecosystem for extensibility. (getgrav.org)

Key Features

• Flat-file architecture: pages are simple Markdown files organized in folders for easy versioning and deployment. (getgrav.org)
• Twig templating and theme inheritance for flexible, performant presentation layers. (getgrav.org)
• YAML-based configuration with environment overrides and blueprint-driven admin forms. (getgrav.org)
• Built-in package manager (GPM) to install and update plugins, themes and Grav itself. (github.com)
• Optional Admin plugin offering a responsive GUI, page blueprints, forms and one-click installs/updates. (getgrav.org)
• Smart caching and image processing to optimize performance for production sites. (getgrav.org)

Use Cases

• Marketing or brochure websites that benefit from fast static-like performance and simple content workflows. (getgrav.org)
• Documentation and knowledge portals using skeletons and modular pages to structure content. (getgrav.org)
• Blogs, portfolios and small-to-medium sites that prefer file-based versioning and easy backups without a database. (getgrav.org)

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires a PHP environment (minimum supported version historically noted as PHP 7.3.6+); verify current PHP compatibility for recent releases before deployment. (getgrav.org)
• Ecosystem quality varies: many plugins and themes are community-contributed; some premium themes/plugins are commercial or maintained by third parties. (getgrav.org)

Grav provides a compact, extensible alternative to database-backed CMSes, focusing on developer-friendly tools and fast runtime behavior. It is suitable for projects where simple content workflows, file-based versioning and flexible theming are priorities.

Umbraco CMS is a free and open-source content management system built on .NET for creating and managing content-driven websites and digital experiences. It provides an editor-friendly backoffice and a flexible, developer-centric architecture for building customized solutions.

Key Features

• Content modeling with custom document types, templates, and structured content
• Editor-focused backoffice for creating, organizing, and publishing content
• Extensible architecture for adding custom dashboards, sections, and content apps
• Integration-friendly approach for connecting to external services and APIs
• Deployment options suitable for small sites through enterprise-scale implementations

Use Cases

• Building and managing marketing websites with custom editorial workflows
• Implementing scalable content platforms for organizations with multiple sites
• Developing tailored CMS solutions that require custom integrations and UI extensions

Umbraco CMS is well-suited for teams that want a mature .NET-based CMS with a strong editing experience and the flexibility to build highly customized implementations. Its extensibility and scalability make it a common choice for long-lived websites and evolving digital platforms.

Winter CMS is a free, open-source content management system built on the Laravel PHP framework. It is designed for developers and agencies who want a clean, extensible CMS with a strong focus on simplicity, stability, and long-term maintainability.

Key Features

• Laravel-based architecture with a dedicated foundation layer to reduce breaking changes
• User-friendly backend for managing pages, content, and site structure
• Plugin and theme architecture to extend functionality and customize presentation
• Suitable for rapid prototyping as well as larger, more complex web applications
• Focus on backward-compatible iteration, performance, and security-minded development

Use Cases

• Marketing and brochure websites with a manageable admin interface
• Agency-built client sites that require extensibility via plugins and themes
• Custom web applications that benefit from CMS-driven content and Laravel foundations

Winter CMS combines an approachable content editing experience with a developer-centric stack. It is a strong fit when you want Laravel compatibility, a stable CMS core, and an ecosystem designed around plugins and themes.

MODX Revolution is an open source content management system (CMS) and application framework built for creating custom websites and digital experiences without forcing a fixed theme or markup structure. It emphasizes flexibility, performance through caching, and security-focused architecture.

Key Features

• Template-driven rendering that gives developers full control over HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
• Extensible core with packages and modular components for custom requirements
• Built-in caching to improve performance for dynamic sites
• Granular user permissions and access controls for tailored editorial workflows
• Multi-site and multilingual capabilities suitable for multi-domain deployments

Use Cases

• Corporate and marketing websites requiring custom design and structured content editing
• Agency-built client sites that need a tailored admin experience and fine-grained permissions
• Content-driven applications and integrations (for example, headless-style delivery via custom endpoints)

Limitations and Considerations

• Best suited for teams comfortable with configuring templates and content models; it is less “theme-first” than some CMS platforms
• The ecosystem and extensions differ from more mainstream CMS options, so feature parity may require custom development

MODX Revolution is a strong fit when you need a customizable PHP CMS with clean separation of presentation and content, robust access control, and an extensible framework for building beyond standard page publishing.

Textpattern CMS is a lightweight, fast content management system written in PHP, designed for building websites and blogs with clean, controllable markup. It uses a tag-based templating language and keeps the core lean while remaining extensible through plugins.

Key Features

• Browser-based administration interface with a deliberately uncluttered, accessible UI
• Tag-based template language for layouts, pages, and reusable components
• Plugin ecosystem to extend core functionality
• Multi-language admin interface with extensive localization
• Supports authoring content with Textile; Markdown support is available via plugins
• Designed to keep generated HTML clean and under your control

Use Cases

• Personal or editorial blogs with structured content and custom templates
• Lightweight CMS for small-to-medium business or brochure websites
• Custom-designed sites where precise control over markup and presentation matters

Limitations and Considerations

• Some functionality (for example Markdown authoring) may require installing plugins

Textpattern CMS is a mature, long-running project focused on simplicity, performance, and clean site building. It suits teams and individuals who want a traditional CMS with strong template control and an extensible plugin ecosystem.

Concrete CMS is an open-source content management system designed for teams to create, edit, and publish websites. It emphasizes in-context editing, collaboration, and flexible site management.

Key Features

• In-context editing with a WYSIWYG content editor on the page
• Granular permissions and robust collaboration, including change logs and version control
• Workflow-based content approvals and built-in versioning
• Multisite management and multilingual support
• Built-in SEO tools and responsive design, with support for digital asset management

Use Cases

• Intranet/Portals and multi-site collaborative sites built from a single installation
• Public-facing marketing sites with multilingual content and strong SEO
• Teams needing asset management and content workflows for campaigns

Conclusion Concrete CMS provides an open-source, developer-friendly platform that enables editors and developers to build, manage, and scale websites with integrated collaboration and governance.

REDAXO is a PHP-based content management system focused on simplicity and flexibility. It uses a modular approach where templates, modules and content blocks define site output, and it provides a media pool and AddOn system to extend functionality.

Key Features

• Modular content model with reusable modules and block-based content editing for flexible page composition
• Media pool for centralized file handling with metadata and extensible media fields
• Multilingual support and article/category-based structure for navigation and content organization
• AddOn ecosystem to extend capabilities (forms, user management, search, URL rewriting, etc.)
• Developer-friendly: Composer and Docker support, editable templates that give full control over output code
• Lightweight admin interface geared toward efficient editorial workflows and custom themes

Use Cases

• Corporate or brochure websites that require tight control over markup and performance
• Multilingual sites and local portals where content structure and custom fields are important
• Bespoke information management solutions built with custom AddOns and modular templates

Limitations and Considerations

• Community and ecosystem are strongest in German-speaking regions, which can affect availability of third-party themes and plugins in other languages
• Not primarily headless-first; integrations and headless capabilities require additional custom work or AddOns
• Smaller marketplace than larger CMS platforms, so some advanced features may require custom development

REDAXO is suited for projects where developers need direct control over frontend output and editors need a straightforward, extensible backend. It is particularly attractive for teams that want a lightweight, modular CMS that can be extended via AddOns and custom modules.

BigTree CMS is an open-source content management system built on PHP and MySQL that emphasizes developer control and an intuitive admin experience. It uses standard HTML/CSS/JavaScript and allows embedding PHP in templates for flexible site development.

Key Features

• Core built with PHP and MySQL; designed to let developers write standard HTML, CSS, JS and PHP (no proprietary templating).
• Template-driven output with editable frontend/admin UI and a visual editing workflow for pages and modules.
• Modular content types (modules, callouts, matrices) and a media manager with thumbnailing and cloud-storage integrations.
• Site integrity checking, pending changes workflow, role-based permissions, and search-optimized views.
• Bundled demo site and developer guides, plus changelog-driven maintenance and releases.

(bigtreecms.org)

Use Cases

• University, institutional, and corporate brochure sites that need hierarchical pages and fine-grained permissions.
• Custom brochure, marketing, or campaign sites where developers require full control over HTML/CSS/JS and PHP templates.

(bigtreecms.org)

Limitations and Considerations

• Smaller ecosystem and third-party plugin marketplace compared with major CMS platforms; community and ecosystem are modest in size (repository activity and star count indicate a smaller community footprint).
• Historically oriented toward traditional templated sites rather than headless or Jamstack-first workflows; integration work may be required for modern decoupled architectures.

(github.com)

BigTree is suited for teams that want developer control with an approachable admin UI and modular content modelling. It is maintained with a changelog and release notes that document compatibility and fixes for PHP/MySQL versions.

SPIP is a free and open source content management system (CMS) created for publishing websites with a strong focus on ease of use, multilingual content, and collective editorial work. It is widely used for institutional, community, personal, and small commercial sites.

Key Features

• Collaborative editorial workflow with roles/permissions for contributors and editors
• Built-in multilingual publishing tools for pages and site structure
• Flexible templating system for designing themes without changing stored content
• Article-based publishing suited to news sites, magazines, and documentation-style sites
• Extensible architecture with plugins for added features (e.g., consent management, payments)

Use Cases

• Association or NGO websites with multiple editors and contributors
• Institutional portals requiring structured publishing and multilingual pages
• Online magazines and news sites with regular editorial updates

SPIP provides a mature, community-driven publishing platform that balances editorial simplicity with the ability to build customized site designs. Its strengths make it especially suitable for collaborative teams and multilingual publishing needs.

Drupal is an open source content management system and web application framework used to build and manage websites, intranets, and digital experience platforms. It emphasizes structured content, extensibility, and fine-grained access control for complex publishing needs.

Key Features

• Modular architecture with a large ecosystem of extensions (modules) and themes
• Structured content modeling with custom content types, fields, and taxonomies
• Granular roles and permissions suitable for multi-role editorial workflows
• Built-in content authoring, revisions, moderation, and publishing workflows
• Multi-site and multi-language capabilities for managing multiple properties
• Extensible APIs for integrating with external systems and headless use cases

Use Cases

• Content-heavy corporate and government websites with complex governance
• Community portals and editorial platforms with workflow and moderation needs
• Headless or decoupled architectures where Drupal provides content APIs

Limitations and Considerations

• Operational complexity can be higher than simpler CMS options, especially with many modules
• Major version upgrades may require planning and compatibility checks for custom code and modules

Drupal is a strong choice when you need structured content, robust permissions, and a highly extensible platform. It scales from single sites to large multi-site and multi-language deployments when properly designed and maintained.

Noosfero is an open source web platform for creating community portals and social networking sites. It combines content publishing features with social components such as user profiles and communities, making it suitable for organizations and networks that want to publish and collaborate in one place.

Key Features

• User profiles with social interactions and activity-oriented community participation
• Communities/groups with shared pages and collaborative publishing
• Content management features for pages, blogs, and portal-style navigation
• Extensible architecture with plugins to add or customize functionality
• Moderation and administration tools for managing users, communities, and content

Use Cases

• Community portals for NGOs, cooperatives, and civic networks
• Organization websites that also need member profiles and group spaces
• Collaborative publishing networks combining blogs, pages, and community areas

Limitations and Considerations

• Primarily designed as an integrated social/CMS platform, which may feel heavy for simple websites
• Feature set and theming may require customization work to match modern UX expectations

Noosfero is a solid choice when you need a single platform that blends a CMS with social networking and community features. It is especially well-suited to portal-style sites that organize people, groups, and published content together.

Neos is an open-source content application platform (CMS) built for teams that need structured content, flexible content modeling, and a modern editorial experience. It combines an inline editing UI with a powerful content repository and a PHP framework foundation (Flow) to build websites and content-driven applications.

Key Features

• Inline, in-context editing with a visual page/content editing experience
• Content repository with node-based, structured content modeling and reusable content elements
• Content dimensions and variants (commonly used for languages and segmentation)
• Workspace-based editorial workflow with publishing/review concepts
• Extensible architecture via packages and a strong separation of content, rendering, and behavior
• Integrates with PHP ecosystem tooling (Composer) and supports templating for frontend rendering

Use Cases

• Corporate and marketing websites requiring rich editorial workflows
• Multi-language sites with structured content and reusable components
• Content-driven applications where content modeling and extensibility are central

Limitations and Considerations

• Typically requires familiarity with Neos/Flow concepts (content repository, workspaces, dimensions) to implement effectively
• Best suited to teams comfortable operating a PHP/Composer-based stack and building custom packages

Neos fits organizations that want more than a page-centric CMS: it emphasizes structured content, editorial collaboration, and extensibility. It is commonly adopted for multi-language, content-heavy sites and bespoke content applications where a robust content repository and inline editing are important.