Headless CMS: what users struggle with, 2026
58 sourced reports about 2 headless cms products, gathered from public posts and linked to where each was said. The most-discussed problem area is Reliability & bugs (34 items across the category). 10 items, across all dates, describe leaving one of these tools.
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The category at a glance
| Product | Reports | Themes | Source threads | Most-discussed area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Directus | 34 | 34 | 90 | Reliability & bugs |
| Strapi | 24 | 23 | 102 | Reliability & bugs |
Problem areas, ranked by number of items
Items of every date, including older ones outside the recent window the report counts above use.
| Area | Items | Directus | Strapi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reliability & bugs | 34 | 17 | 17 |
| API & developer experience | 29 | 15 | 14 |
| UI & usability | 24 | 11 | 13 |
| Self-hosting & upgrades | 15 | 6 | 9 |
| Permissions & security | 13 | 10 | 3 |
| Customization | 12 | 2 | 10 |
| Integrations | 11 | 6 | 5 |
| Setup & onboarding | 10 | 8 | 2 |
Read the products
- Directus problems and requests · Directus alternatives
- Strapi problems and requests · Strapi alternatives
Side by side
Method and limits
Reports come from public Hacker News comments and public issues of vendors' open-source repositories; each was extracted into a structured item, and each links to its source. A report counts once per product, however many people agreed. Open-source and developer-facing products are over-represented because that is where public discussion happens; counts show how much is said, not which tool is better. Full method and sources.
Cite as: Friction, “Headless CMS: what users struggle with, 2026”, https://friction.grain64.com/state-of/headless-cms/, data as of 2026-10-15.