Payload CMS vs Medusa
TypeScript-first open-source headless CMS — code-first, config-driven
vs. Open-source commerce engine — build custom storefronts with Next.js + Node
Pricing tiers
Payload CMS
Open Source (self-host)
MIT license. Run free on any Node host. Full admin + APIs.
$0 base (usage-based)
Cloud — Standard
$35/month. 3 GB DB storage, 30 GB file storage, 40 GB bandwidth.
$35/mo
Cloud — Pro
$199/month. Higher resources + priority support.
$199/mo
Cloud — Enterprise
Custom cloud hosting with dedicated support.
Custom
Medusa
OSS (self-host)
$0. MIT license. Run Medusa backend + admin on your infra.
$0 base (usage-based)
Medusa Cloud Free
$0. Hobby projects. Shared infra. Community support.
Free
Medusa Cloud Pro
$99/mo. Production support. Dedicated DB. Priority.
$99/mo
Enterprise
Custom. SSO, SLA, dedicated cluster, PCI.
Custom
Free-tier quotas head-to-head
Comparing oss on Payload CMS vs oss on Medusa.
| Metric | Payload CMS | Medusa |
|---|---|---|
| No overlapping quota metrics for these tiers. | ||
Features
Payload CMS · 18 features
- Access Control — Function-based per-collection/field access rules.
- Admin UI — React admin — fully customizable components + views.
- Authentication — Built-in JWT + HTTP-only cookies + API keys.
- Blocks — Flexible page-builder pattern via block field.
- Collections — Schema-defined content types with fields, hooks, access control.
- Drafts & Versions — Version every change. Autosave, drafts, scheduled publish.
- Field Types — Rich field library: text, textarea, richText (Lexical), upload, relation, blocks…
- Form Builder Plugin — Dynamic forms with submissions storage.
- Globals — Single-instance documents (site settings, header, footer).
- GraphQL API (auto) — Full schema auto-generated.
- Hooks — Lifecycle hooks: beforeChange/Read/Delete, afterChange, etc.
- i18n — Multi-locale field values + admin UI translations.
- Live Preview — Side-by-side editor + iframe preview of Next.js site.
- Local API (zero latency) — Direct in-process data access. Ideal for Next.js server components.
- Multi-Tenancy Plugin — Multi-tenant content isolation via plugin.
- @payloadcms/plugin-seo — Built-in SEO meta fields.
- Plugins — Official + community plugins (SEO, Stripe, Form Builder, multi-tenant, etc.).
- REST API (auto) — Auto-generated REST endpoints for every collection.
Medusa · 16 features
- Admin Dashboard — React-based admin UI.
- Auth — Customer + admin auth with JWT.
- Cart — Multi-region carts with tax/pricing logic.
- Checkout — Multi-step checkout flow.
- Customers + Groups — Customer records + B2B groups.
- Dynamic Pricing — Price lists, rules, customer-specific.
- Event Bus — Async events via Redis / RabbitMQ.
- File Service — Pluggable storage (S3, local).
- Gift Cards — Native gift-card support.
- Inventory + Multi-warehouse — Stock tracking across locations.
- Next.js Starter — Production-ready Next.js storefront.
- Orders + Fulfillment — Full order lifecycle (edits, returns, exchanges).
- Products + Variants — Products with options, variants, images.
- Promotions + Discounts — Rule-based promos, campaigns.
- Tax Providers — Pluggable tax calculation.
- Workflows Engine — Durable saga-style business logic.
Developer interfaces
| Kind | Payload CMS | Medusa |
|---|---|---|
| CLI | create-payload-app | medusa CLI |
| SDK | @payloadcms/next (Node) | @medusajs/js-sdk |
| REST | Payload REST API | Medusa Admin API, Medusa Store API |
| GRAPHQL | Payload GraphQL API | — |
| MCP | — | Medusa MCP |
| OTHER | Admin UI, Local API (Node.js direct) | Medusa Admin UI, Next.js Starter |
Staxly is an independent catalog of developer platforms. Some links to Payload CMS and Medusa may be affiliate links — Staxly may earn a commission if you sign up through them, at no extra cost to you. Pricing is verified against vendor pages at publication time — reconfirm before buying.
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