Strapi vs Kinde
Leading open-source Node.js headless CMS — self-host or Cloud
vs. Flexible authentication, user management, and feature flags
Pricing tiers
Strapi
Self-Hosted (OSS)
MIT-licensed Node.js CMS. Run free on any infra. Full admin + plugin ecosystem.
$0 base (usage-based)
Cloud Free (trial)
14-day free trial of Strapi Cloud.
Free
Cloud Essential
$18/month ($15 annual). 500k API requests, 50 GB asset bandwidth, 50 GB storage. Transparent overages.
$18/mo
Cloud Pro
$90/month. Higher quotas, faster support.
$90/mo
Cloud Scale
$450/month. Enterprise-grade infra, priority support.
$450/mo
Enterprise Edition (self-host)
Self-host + Enterprise license. SSO/SAML, audit logs, review workflows, content releases.
Custom
Kinde
Free
10,500 MAU included. MFA, B2B orgs, custom domain, 2 custom roles, 1 webhook, 2 environments.
Free
Pro
Unlimited webhooks, roles, feature flags, API keys. Remove Kinde branding. SOC 2 attestation.
$25/mo
Plus
Unlimited enterprise SSO, API scopes, org-owned M2M apps, 6 environments.
$75/mo
Scale
11 environments, custom domain per org, SCIM, MFA triggers, 30-day audit logs.
$250/mo
Enterprise
Custom. Dedicated infra option, volume discounts, custom SLAs.
Custom
Free-tier quotas head-to-head
Comparing self-hosted on Strapi vs free on Kinde.
| Metric | Strapi | Kinde |
|---|---|---|
| custom roles | — | 2 roles |
| environments | — | 2 envs |
| feature flags | — | 10 flags |
| mau included | — | 10500 users/month |
| webhooks | — | 1 webhooks |
Features
Strapi · 16 features
- Audit Logs (EE) — Track every admin action.
- Components — Reusable field groups shared across content types.
- Content Types Builder — Visual schema builder — fields, relations, components, dynamic zones.
- Custom Fields — Plugin-based custom field types (color picker, markdown, etc.).
- Draft & Publish — Two-phase publishing workflow.
- Dynamic Zones — Flexible page builder — authors pick components to add.
- GraphQL API (plugin) — Optional GraphQL layer via official plugin.
- Internationalization — Multi-locale content out of the box.
- Media Library — Upload + organize media. Providers: local, S3, Cloudinary, DO Spaces.
- Releases (EE) — Bundle content changes and publish atomically.
- REST API (auto-gen) — Auto-generated REST endpoints per content type. Full CRUD + filters.
- Review Workflows (EE) — Approval-based content workflows.
- Role-Based Access Control — Per-role permissions at content type + field level.
- SSO / SAML (EE) — Enterprise identity for admin users.
- Strapi Cloud — Fully-managed hosting of Strapi instances.
- Webhooks — Built-in webhooks on content lifecycle events.
Kinde · 14 features
- API Scopes — OAuth scopes for your APIs, enforced server-side (Plus+).
- B2B Organizations — Multi-tenant orgs with user roles, invitations, feature flags per org.
- Custom Domain — Host auth at auth.yourbrand.com. Free tier includes this.
- Enterprise SSO — SAML 2.0 + OIDC enterprise connections (Plus unlimited).
- Feature Flags — Built-in feature flags with per-user/org overrides. No separate service needed.
- Kinde AI — AI-assisted query and insights over your Kinde data.
- Kinde Billing (preview) — Built-in subscription billing linked to users/orgs. Stripe under the hood.
- Machine-to-Machine — Client credentials grant for service-to-service auth.
- Multi-Factor Auth — TOTP authenticator apps, SMS, email, passkey.
- Passwordless — Email code + passkey (WebAuthn).
- Roles & Permissions — RBAC with roles → permissions. Assigned per user or per organization.
- SCIM Provisioning — Directory provisioning from IdPs (Scale tier).
- Sign-in Widget — Hosted pages + themeable widget for login/signup. Customizable with CSS.
- Webhooks — Event webhooks: user.created/updated, organization events, MFA, etc.
Developer interfaces
| Kind | Strapi | Kinde |
|---|---|---|
| CLI | Strapi CLI | — |
| SDK | @strapi/client (JS) | Kinde Android / Kotlin, Kinde Flutter SDK, Kinde Go SDK, Kinde iOS / Swift, @kinde-oss/kinde-auth-nextjs, @kinde-oss/kinde-auth-react, @kinde-oss/kinde-nodejs-sdk, Kinde Python SDK |
| REST | Admin REST API, Strapi Content REST API | Kinde Management API |
| GRAPHQL | GraphQL API (plugin) | — |
| MCP | — | Kinde MCP |
| OTHER | Webhooks | — |
Staxly is an independent catalog of developer platforms. Outbound links to Strapi and Kinde are plain references to their official websites. Pricing is verified against vendor pages at publication time — reconfirm before buying.
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