head to head · open source
Directus vs WordPress
Directus has 38,782 GitHub stars, 4,989 forks, 402 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. WordPress has 21,523 stars, 13,084 forks, 3 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Directus leads on adoption by 80% (38,782 vs 21,523 stars). Directus is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; WordPress is written in PHP under a custom or non-standard licence. Directus has attracted 13% as many forks as stars, WordPress 61%. WordPress was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Directus | WordPress | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 22K |
| License | Custom / other | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.0K | ⑂ 13K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Directus if
- You weight community size — 39K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick WordPress if
- You want the WordPress feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and WordPress fits your workflow better
About Directus
The Collaborative Backend for Builders & AI Connect any SQL database and get instant REST and GraphQL APIs, a visual management Studio, and a native MCP server for AI agents. 45M+ downloads · 500K+ projects deployed [!NOTE] Free for most organizations. Under $5M annual revenue and 50 employees? Directus is completely free. Apply for an Open Innovation Grant license and get a key in minutes. Learn more about our license. 🐇 Introduction Directus wraps any SQL database with a REST and GraphQL API layer and a visual Studio. Engineers control schema and access. Non technical teammates and AI agents work directly…
read the full Directus overview →
About WordPress
WordPress & 8250; ReadMe Semantic Personal Publishing Platform First Things First Welcome. WordPress is a very special project to me. Every developer and contributor adds something unique to the mix, and together we create something beautiful that I am proud to be a part of. Thousands of hours have gone into WordPress, and we are dedicated to making it better every day. Thank you for making it part of your world. & 8212; Matt Mullenweg Installation: Famous 5 minute install Unzip the package in an empty directory and upload everything. Open wp admin/install.php in your browser. It will take you through the…
read the full WordPress overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Directus or WordPress more popular?
Directus has 38,782 GitHub stars and WordPress has 21,523. Directus has the larger community by that measure.
Are Directus and WordPress free?
Neither Directus nor WordPress declares a licence in this registry, so check each project's own repository before relying on either for a commercial use. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Directus and WordPress?
Directus is written in TypeScript and WordPress in PHP. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Directus or WordPress?
Choose Directus if you want the larger community (38,782 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose WordPress if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.