head to head · open source
Strapi vs primo
Strapi has 73,422 GitHub stars, 10,044 forks, 558 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. primo has 2,380 stars, 567 forks, 41 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Strapi leads on adoption by 2,985% (73,422 vs 2,380 stars). Strapi is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; primo is written in Svelte under MIT. Strapi has attracted 14% as many forks as stars, primo 24%. primo was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (cms, jamstack), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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
| Strapi | primo | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 73K | ★ 2.4K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | Svelte |
| Last push | 2026-10-30 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 10K | ⑂ 567 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Strapi if
- You weight community size — 73K 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 primo if
- You want the primo feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Svelte
- You evaluated both and primo fits your workflow better
About Strapi
Open source headless CMS, self hosted or Cloud you're in control. The leading open source headless CMS, 100% JavaScript/TypeScript, flexible and fully customizable. Docs · Strapi Cloud · Roadmap · Discord · Discussions Strapi is an open source, self hosted headless CMS that lets developers build content APIs fast while giving content creators a friendly editing interface. Define your content models and Strapi generates a full API, ready to consume from any frontend, mobile app, or IoT device. Design content structures visually with the Content Type Builder , no code required Auto generated REST & GraphQL APIs…
read the full Strapi overview →
About primo
Primo Primo is a CMS for developers who build sites for clients who need to manage them afterward. Your entire site stays in sync as both a database and a folder of files, so Claude Code, Cursor, and any AI agent can edit it directly. Your clients manage content visually in the browser. In active development since 2019. Self hosted by freelancers, agencies, and small teams. One click deploy: The shape of it One Go binary. PocketBase (SQLite) for storage. Svelte 5 for the editor UI and for the blocks you write. The same server hosts the CMS and serves your published sites — no external services, no separate…
read the full primo overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Strapi or primo more popular?
Strapi has 73,422 GitHub stars and primo has 2,380. Strapi has the larger community by that measure.
Are Strapi and primo free?
Both are open source. Strapi has no licence declared in this registry, and primo is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Strapi and primo?
Strapi is written in TypeScript and primo in Svelte. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Strapi or primo?
Choose Strapi if you want the larger community (73,422 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose primo if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.