capvsPayload CMS
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| cap | Payload CMS | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 79/100 | 83/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 12 in Video | #2 of 13 in Headless CMS |
| GitHub stars | 24 018 | 45 563 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +1 338 | +651 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 14 | 20 |
| Latest release | cap-v0.6.2 · 28 Oct 2026 | v3.92.1 · 27 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | No |
| License | Other | MIT |
| Main language | Rust | Typescript |
Which one should you pick?
Payload CMS scores 83/100 against 79/100 for cap, so it is the safer default.
Payload CMS ships more often: 20 stable releases in the past year, against 14 for cap.
cap is growing faster right now (+1 338 stars in 30 days).
cap details →Payload CMS details →