EmDashvsPayload CMS
Two self-hosted WordPress alternatives, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| EmDash | Payload CMS | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 67/100 | 83/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 18 in Content Management | #2 of 13 in Headless CMS |
| GitHub stars | 14 032 | 45 559 |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +647 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 10 | 20 |
| Latest release | @emdash-cms/plugin-test@0.2.10 · 18 Oct 2026 | v3.92.1 · 27 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | No |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Main language | Typescript | Typescript |
Which one should you pick?
Payload CMS scores 83/100 against 67/100 for EmDash, so it is the safer default.
Payload CMS ships more often: 20 stable releases in the past year, against 10 for EmDash.
Payload CMS is growing faster right now (+647 stars in 30 days).
EmDash details →Payload CMS details → All WordPress alternatives →